by Leah Brooke
Quinn shot him a look. “It gets better.”
After a beep, another message played. “This is Sid. I’m here at the clinic with Kendra.”
Barrett stiffened, expecting the worse.
The sheriff’s message continued. “Don’t worry. She’s fine. The doctor’s in with her now. Look, this might be nothing, but—hell, I just got one of those feelings. There was a man standing outside the curtain where she is. I kept looking out and he was there. I figured he was waiting for someone, but something about him didn’t feel right. When the doctor went in to see her, I left her and came out to see if I could find out who he was. When I came out, he was gone. The thing is, I asked the nurse at the desk about him. As far as I can tell, he didn’t have any reason to be here. They’d already discharged everyone else. Kendra was the only one here. I have Frank looking for the guy, but so far he hasn’t found him or the dark blue sedan he was driving. I don’t like it. It might be nothing, but this guy made me uneasy, and he took off like a bat of out hell.”
A chill went down Barrett’s spine as the message ended. “Let’s go get her.”
“Wait.”
Barrett turned back to Quinn. “What?”
Quinn straightened. “There was another call, this one on my cell. I called a friend of mine earlier, and asked him to check out Don Edelson. It seems he has a gambling problem. Word on the street is that he’s in deep with the wrong sort of people—people who break legs if they don’t get their money. Marsh is going to see if he can find out more.”
Mason whistled. “So that’s why he’s so interested in selling the ranch. He needs the commission.”
Grant frowned. “Yeah, but why us? Why this place?”
Quinn sat and pulled on his boots. “Because there really is someone who wants the ranch. Kendra was right about that. They want to put some sort of resort here, and they have deep pockets. The more we stall, the more the offer goes up.”
Barrett nodded and sat to put on his own boots. “The more the offer goes up, the higher the commission.”
Quinn nodded. “Exactly. He probably sent Richard out here to play the numbers game. When we turned him down flat, without negotiating at all, Edelson got scared. That’s why he sent Kendra.”
Grant finished putting on his boots and went to retrieve his coat. “Thinking that she would be able to talk us into selling. He’s probably panicking now.”
Quinn got to his feet and shrugged on his own coat. “From what I understand, Edelson’s run out of time. He’s got to come up with the money fast. He’s scared. There’s no telling what he’ll do.”
Barrett grabbed his coat and smashed his hat on his head, adrenaline pumping through his veins, and he knew he wouldn’t settle until he got to her. “We’d better get her and bring her back here. I want her taken out of the equation as soon as possible.”
As they made their way to town, Mason, who sat in the back, leaned forward. “Just who the hell was the guy at the clinic?”
Barrett had been wondering the same thing. “I don’t know. But, whoever he is, he won’t get his hands on Kendra.”
Quinn pressed his foot on the gas, speeding up. “You know what this means, don’t you?”
Barrett rubbed his forehead. “I’m trying not to think about it. She’s going to be mad as hell at us.”
Grant nodded. “But, she’s got to come back to the ranch now, no matter what. There’s no way I’m leaving her unprotected.”
Barrett sighed, smiling faintly. “She’s not used to being under anyone’s protection. She’s not going to like it.” Sitting back, he watched for a dark blue sedan. “But she’s sure as hell going to have to live with it.”
Frowning, Barrett glanced in Quinn’s direction. “Marsh? I didn’t know you still talked to him. How the hell would a cop in Texas know anything about Edelson?”
Grant scowled thoughtfully. “I’ve heard that name before. Who the hell is Marsh?”
Quinn smiled crookedly. “John Marsh was a cop in Texas. The first time I met him was when he arrested me for beating the hell out of my fiancée.”
Grant blinked, sharing a look with Mason. “I didn’t know you were married.”
“I wasn’t.” A muscle worked in Quinn’s jaw. “I was arrested for beating her so badly that she had to be taken to the hospital. She told the cops that I was the one who hit her. I hadn’t touched her. Hell, I hadn’t even seen her since the night before. John Marsh was the only one who believed me. He’s the only one who tried to shake her story.”
Grant’s jaw clenched. “Who beat her?”
Quinn smiled coldly. “The man she was seeing on the side. The man who got her pregnant. He beat her so that she would lose the baby, not wanting to be tied to her or pay child support.” He shrugged, staring straight out the window. “She figured that with the baby gone, and me out of the way, the two of them could be together.”
Mason gaped at Quinn. “Son of a bitch! What happened?”
Quinn shrugged again, smiling faintly. “Marsh questioned Maria in his own way. He told her that her lover, who was in hiding, had taken off. Left town. She was hysterical. Then, she got mad. That’s when she told him the truth, and told him to tell me that she wanted me back.”
“Fucking bitch!” Mason touched Quinn’s shoulder. “Hell, no wonder you don’t trust women.”
Barrett had heard the entire story years ago, and knew that Quinn left out a lot of details, such as the anguish of wondering if the child was his.
On a night, shortly after his wife, Ellen, had been diagnosed, he and Quinn had gotten drunk together, and Quinn had told him everything. Knowing what a difficult topic it was for Quinn to this day, he changed the subject.
“I still don’t understand how a cop in Texas would know anything about Edelson.”
Quinn smiled again, a genuine smile filled with pride. “Marsh’s bloodhound style got him a job with the FBI. He retired last year, but he made a hell of a lot of friends while he was there, and has a lot of connections. We’ve stayed in touch over the years.”
Quinn glanced at each of them in turn. “Besides the three of you, he’s the only man I trust.”
* * * *
Exhausted after answering all the questions about the crash, Kendra wanted nothing more than to get something to eat and sleep.
The questioning had taken much longer than she’d thought, and it had already started getting dark. Deciding to get a good night’s sleep before renting a car and driving home, she checked into the motel room, knowing she wouldn’t be able to relax until she made the call she’d been dreading.
With a sigh, she punched in the numbers.
“Edelson Realty. How can I help you?”
“Yvonne, this is Kendra Stevenson.”
A pregnant silence followed. “Kendra? We heard about the crash. Are you okay?”
Pulling a piece of lint from her dress, Kendra sighed. “I’m fine. Just a little rattled.”
“Thank God. Look, I don’t know what’s going on, but the boss has been a nervous wreck. He was getting all kinds of phone calls from a man who won’t leave his name. He got one early this morning and flew out of here. I haven’t seen him since and he doesn’t answer his cell phone. What the hell’s going on?”
Kendra blew out a breath. “I wish I knew.” Surprised that Yvonne actually seemed worried, Kendra found herself confiding in her. “I met the men at the Jagged Rock, but they don’t want to sell. I have no idea why Mr. Edelson even sent me here.”
“Don’t want to sell? Are you sure?”
Remembering the looks on the men’s faces, Kendra smiled. “I’m positive. When Mr. Edelson gets back, would you please tell him what happened, and tell he can call me back on my cell phone.” She’d gotten it back earlier, relieved that it still worked. “I’m heading back in the morning.”
“Wait! He just walked in. Ran in. He looks like hell. Hold—”
“Kendra? What the hell happened?”
Blinking at her boss’s tone
“No! Not until you make the deal. Did you talk to them?”
Tightening her hand on the receiver, she got to her feet. “They don’t want to sell. Not at any price.”
“That’s bullshit! Everyone and everything has a price. Even you! Go talk to them again. The buyer’s willing to go as high as ten million. Get me that contract or you’re fired. I’ll call you in a few days. You’d better have good news for me.”
Kendra blinked as the phone slammed in her ear. “I’m fine, thanks for asking. Asshole. Yeah, I have a price, and you can’t afford me you fucking bastard!”
Furious, she shrugged on her coat, grabbed her purse and went the door, in need of some air.
Following the sheriff’s directions, she made her way toward the nearby diner, trying to put thoughts of the men at the Jagged Rock and her boss out of her mind.
As she started past a small shop attached to the motel, she paused, admiring the display. Sweat suits in an assortment of colors caught her eye.
Deciding to buy a comfortable one to wear for the drive home the next day, she went inside. She emerged a few minutes later, carrying a red bag containing three of them and feeling even better.
Walking to the diner next door, she went inside, unsurprised, but disappointed to find no empty tables. Sitting at an empty seat at the counter, she placed her purse and bag on the floor by her feet and reached for a menu.
Smiling politely at the man sitting next to her, she tried not to think about the men back at the Jagged Rock. They’d mixed her up so much, she’d actually thought of trying to build a future with them.
Now, she no longer had a job, and no one back at home waiting for her.
She could start over.
Again.
* * * *
With a forkful of apple pie halfway to her mouth, Kendra stilled as the bell clanged when the door to the diner opened.
It had opened at least a dozen times since she’d sat down, but this time, a hush came over the entire place and she got a strange prickling at the back of her neck. Straightening, she lowered the fork back to her plate with a hand that shook. With a sense of inevitability, she turned at the waist to see Barrett, Mason, Grant, and Quinn standing right behind her.
Her heart leapt to her throat, the strong masculinity emanating from each of them making the small diner almost claustrophobic.
She didn’t know why they would be looking for her, but she didn’t feel up to being put through another emotional wringer. Turning away, she lifted her fork again. “I had the special. It’s pretty good.”
“Excuse me?” Barrett’s deep baritone had the man sitting next to her shifting restlessly in his seat.
Amused at the disbelief in his voice, Kendra hid a smile as she chewed the mouthful of pie, lowering her gaze to the plate as she dug in for another bite. Once she’d scooped up a forkful, she lifted her head again, turning toward Barrett, who dropped into the empty seat on her left. “I said that I had the special and it was pretty good.”
The man sitting at her right brushed against her in his hurry to leave, and seconds later, Grant dropped onto the stool, pushing the other man’s dirty dishes out of the way. “We didn’t come here to eat, Kendra. We came to get you.”
She didn’t have to look over her shoulder to know that Mason and Quinn had moved in to stand close behind her. She could feel them.
All amusement fled. “I’m fine. The doctor at the clinic checked me out and said I was damned lucky and in great shape.” Lowering her fork to her plate again, she turned to Barrett. “He also said that you did a good job of getting me warm in time and stitching me up. He told me to tell you that the offer of a job there is an open invitation.”
The man who’d been sitting next to her stood at the register next to Barrett, looking decidedly uncomfortable.
Smiling an apology, she ignored Barrett’s narrowed gaze, and looked down at her plate again. No longer hungry, she pushed pieces of warm apple aside. “I’m going home in the morning.”
“No, you’re not.” Grant motioned for the waitress to give him the check. “Something’s going on, and until we figure it out, you’re staying with us.”
“No.”
With a sigh, she set her fork down again. “Look, I appreciate that you’re concerned about my boss being up to something. I get that. He’s acting crazy. He told me that he would fire me if I don’t get the listing and hung up before I could quit. I’m going home, packing up, and starting over.”
From behind, Mason slid his hands to her waist and bent close, his lips touching her ear. “I’m sorry. Did you think that was a request?” The cold demand in his voice both irritated and aroused her.
Damn it.
Kendra stilled, looking from Barrett to Grant, and shivering at the delicious feel of Mason’s warm breath against her neck. Fisting her hands on her lap, she fought the rush of desire that sent her senses into a tailspin. “I figured you’d be glad to get rid of me.”
Frowning at the breathless hunger in her voice, she tried to pull away, but Mason tightened the hands at her waist, his lips moving on the outer shell of her ear, the warmth travelling all the way to her nipples. “You figured wrong.”
Grant touched her arm. “Look, your boss has some gambling debts, and apparently, to the wrong sort of people. He’s desperate. There’s no telling what he might do.”
Kendra shrugged, hiding her amusement as the waitress practically drooled. “There’s nothing he can do.”
Barrett picked up the fork and scooped a bite of her apple pie, lifting it to her lips. “We can’t be sure of that. Since you’re out of a job anyway, what difference does it make if you stay with us for a while?”
She opened her mouth to answer, but he shoved the bite of pie into her mouth, and she had to chew and swallow before she could speak again. “Don’t do that again. Look, you probably feel bad for lying to me. Forget it. We’ll never see each other again. You saved my life, and I appreciate it.”
Quinn’s lips touched her other ear. “My cock’s not hard because I feel bad, Kendra.”
Gasping, and shocked by Mason’s low chuckle, Kendra turned to look at Barrett and Grant, wondering how they would react.
To her surprise, both men regarded her steadily, their eyes dark with need and amusement.
Barrett leaned close, his voice a deep whisper. “You know damned well that we all want you to be our lover.”
She froze as the glass in the front window shattered and started to turn toward it, crying out when Quinn and Mason each wrapped an arm around her waist and yanked her to the floor. She landed on both of them, but they quickly reversed positions and lay over top of her.
Bent protectively over her, with his elbows on either side of her shoulders, Quinn scanned the area. When nothing else happened, he looked down at her and snarled. “That was a gunshot, baby. You’re coming home with us if I have to drag you kicking and screaming.”
Chapter Nine
Kendra’s feet barely touched the ground as Quinn and Barrett each took an arm and half carried her to their SUV, keeping their bodies close on either side of hers. “Wait! My clothes are at the motel.”
Barrett pushed her into the back side, and with a hand on her hip, shoved her to the center. A second later, he climbed in after her wrapping an arm around her back and pulling her toward him. “We’ve already got them and paid your tab.”
Grant jumped in on the other side, while Quinn slid behind the wheel, and Mason took the passenger seat up front, their movements hurried as they scanned their surroundings.
Within seconds, Quinn tore down the road as Grant took out his cell phone and dialed.
Listening to him talk to the sheriff, Kendra looked at the others, her heart pounding furiously. “Are you sure that was a gunshot?”
Quinn met her gaze in the rearview mirror, his eyes harder and colder than she’d ever seen them. “Absolutely.”
Mason turned to share a look with Quinn, frowning. “Terrible aim, though. Way too high to hit anyone.”
Squished between Barrett and Grant, Kendra struggled to a more comfortable position. “This doesn’t make any sense. If someone was shooting, which I doubt very much, they weren’t shooting at me. It was probably a rock that somebody kicked up when they drove past. Wait! Is that my phone ringing?” She glanced at Grant. “I thought you didn’t have cell phones.”
The silence in the car made it possible to hear her own heart beating.
Mason held her phone up just as it rang again, frowning when she snatched it out of his hand. “We lied.”
She looked down at the number, trembling slightly. “I don’t recognize this number.”
Quinn looked at her in the rearview mirror. “Put it on speaker.”
Kendra nodded, and answered. “Hello?”
“That was just a warning. Next time I won’t miss.”
With a gasp, Kendra dropped the phone, looking toward Barrett as he cursed, and with lightning-fast reflexes, grabbed the phone before it fell to the floor.
His eyes hardened and narrowed, his icy expression sending a chill through her, but the tenderness and protectiveness in his hold quickly dispelled it. “Now that we’ve established that it wasn’t a rock, and that your life is in danger, you’re going to come back to the ranch with us, and let us handle this.”
Stunned, Kendra fisted her hand on his jacket, leaning into his strength. “I can’t believe this is happening. Why me? I don’t have anything to do with this.”
Grant finished his call and disconnected. “I updated the sheriff and told him we were taking her home with us. He sounded relieved. His deputy just dug up the same dirt on Edelson that we did, but he says that there’s more.” Turning to Kendra, he took her hand in his. “Edelson’s house burned to the ground about three o’clock this morning.”
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