“Hey, buddy, I won’t do it again. I promise.”
Ryan smiled. “Okay.” He turned to the three horses as they came to the fence to see him.
“See this one? His name is Danny Boy.”
The child seemed to recover from the incident. “He’s big,” the boy said and pulled back.
“But he’s friendly, too.” Cullen pulled a carrot out of his pocket. “Here, feed him this.”
Shelby stepped up to the railing. “Watch.” She laid the carrot across her palm, and Danny quickly snatched it up and Ryan laughed.
“I want to do it.”
Cullen reached inside his jacket and pulled out an apple. “Try this one.” He held his hand flat with Shelby’s help, and Dakota took it.
The boy giggled. “Tickled.”
“Yeah, horses have whiskers,” Cullen explained.
Ryan looked at him. “You have whiskers.” He ran his tiny hands over Cullen’s day-old beard.
“Ryan, don’t do that.”
“It’s okay,” Cullen said. “He just wants to feel what it feels like.”
“Does this tickle?” Cullen leaned forward and rubbed his face gently against the boy’s cheek.
“Tickles,” Ryan confirmed as he laughed and pulled away.
Cullen paused, suddenly feeling a connection to this child. He wasn’t sure if it was good or bad. Right now he was feeling pretty good.
“Hey, how would you two like to go with me to dinner? Trent raves about Joe’s Barbecue Smokehouse.”
He saw Shelby tense at his invitation. “Look, you’ve done all the cooking so far, and brought me cookies. I’d like to repay the favor. And I hate to eat alone.”
Ryan tugged on Shelby’s arm. “Please, Aunt Shellie, I want to go with the sheriff.”
Cullen turned to her. “Yeah, please, Aunt Shellie. Come with me to dinner.”
“Okay, but the food better be good. I make a pretty good bourbon sauce for my ribs.”
“You can exchange recipes with Joe.” He raised an eyebrow. “I’m just hungry.”
“And I’m hungry, too.” Ryan said.
“I guess I’m outnumbered. So let’s go.”
Chapter Six
An hour later, Cullen held the door open, allowing Shelby and Ryan to walk inside Joe’s Barbecue Smokehouse. A spicy aroma greeted her, along with loud voices of the many patrons. Families filled large picnic-style tables and high-back booths.
Shelby was intrigued to find the large restaurant was crowded for the middle of the week. She wanted to find out if the food was really as good as Cullen had raved about. Although she was a little more nervous about meeting up with Trent and Brooke than having someone show her up with better rib sauce.
She placed her hands on Ryan’s shoulders, feeling him tense. She gave him a reassuring squeeze, letting him know she was close by.
Her nephew turned to her and tugged on her sweater. “I don’t like barbecue.”
She bent down. “Remember, Cullen said they have other food. But maybe you should try something new.”
Ryan relented, “Okay.”
A young hostess appeared. “Sheriff, your party is already here. Follow me.”
Cullen came up behind Shelby. “Come on, they have a table ready for us.” He placed a hand against her lower back as if it were the most natural thing to do and escorted her through the rows of tables. Several patrons greeted him. He acknowledged everyone, but kept moving. It seemed the good-looking sheriff had become popular in the short few weeks he’d been in town.
They reached an opening into the tavern, where a long wooden bar was lined with patrons, watching the several televisions playing different sports games. You could also hear in the background the familiar voice of Luke Bryan singing “Country Girl.”
They came to another doorway and went inside. Seated around a long table were Trent and Brooke Landry and their son, Christopher. But there were more people, too.
Trent stood with a bright smile. “Good, you made it.” He came over to them. “Nice to see you, Shelby and Ryan. You’re in for a treat tonight.”
“So I heard,” she said, then looked at Cullen. “You didn’t tell me we’d be crashing a party.”
An innocent smile appeared on his face. “It isn’t a party, Shelby. Just some family and a couple of friends.”
A cute little girl with curly blond hair walked up to them dressed in a white T-shirt with sparkles that said I’m a Cowgirl and a pair of jeans tucked into red boots. “Hi, I’m Addy and I’m six years old. My mommy is married to my daddy.” She pointed to the table. “That’s them over there. Mommy is going to have two babies. They’re in her tummy right now, but in three more weeks they’re coming out. I get to help name them, too.”
Another handsome man with dark hair came over. “Addy, I think that’s enough information.”
The little girl looked up at her dad. “I just want to be Ryan’s friend.”
Shelby kept a secure arm on Ryan as he turned his body toward her. Meeting strangers had always been difficult for him. “And I’m sure he would like that, too.”
The man looked at Cullen. “Sheriff, good to see you.”
“Hi, Kase. Kase Rawlins, I’d like you to meet Shelby Townsend and her nephew, Ryan.”
The man turned to Shelby. “We send our daughter on ahead as the icebreaker. It’s nice to meet you, Shelby. Hi, Ryan. I’m Kase, and Addy has been waiting to meet you.”
“Hi, Addy,” Ryan managed to say.
Kase motioned to the other blonde at the table. “Come on over and meet my wife,” he said.
They approached the table and Brooke spoke, “Shelby, I hope you don’t mind that we horned in on your dinner, but we all want to welcome you and get to know you better.”
“It was kind of you to invite us,” Shelby said.
Cullen pulled out chairs for her and Ryan. “Don’t look so worried, they’re harmless. Well, most of the time.” He winked at her.
“It was our idea,” the very pregnant woman added. “Brooke and I decided it would be nice to go out.” She rubbed her expanded belly. “I’m going on house arrest next week, and I’ve been craving Joe’s barbecue ribs. Hi, I’m Laurel. I’m married to Kase, and I’m Addy’s mother and very soon adding two more to the mix.”
Shelby began to relax. “I’m Shelby and this is Ryan. We’re a little overwhelmed to see y’all here.”
Brooke waved. “You’ll get used to us, Shelby. We’re pretty harmless. This is our son, Chris.” She motioned to the blond-haired toddler in a high chair, grinning and drooling.
Cullen placed his arm across the back of Shelby’s chair and leaned closer to her. “They’re just family,” he said. She inhaled his familiar scent and felt reassured just by his presence. “As you can probably tell, Brooke and Laurel are twins.”
Shelby nodded. “Yes.” She’d heard their story. How the two sisters found out about each other only a few years ago when their biological mother confessed about her twin’s existence to Brooke.
The sisters exchanged a glance, and Brooke said, “If you work for Bess, I’m sure she’s filled you in on our story. Welcome to small-town living.”
Shelby blushed. “Only that you two just recently met each other.”
Brooke shook her head. “It’s fine. Pretty much everyone knows about us.” She glanced down at her niece beside her, then to her son. “We only worry about anything said that would hurt the little ones. Believe me, there’s been a lot of turmoil in this family. Somehow we’ve managed to survive it all, find the love of two good men and build a life here.”
Shelby wasn’t sure if she could find all that. But at the very least, she hoped to make a life for her and Ryan. She put on a smile. “I think it’s wonderful that you two found each other.” She thou
ght about Georgia, and how many years they’d been apart, and when they finally found each other only to have her die. She touched Ryan’s back. “Sometimes it’s nice to go to a place where no one knows you.”
Addy spoke up. “I didn’t know Papa Gus until we moved to his ranch and Daddy found my new mommy.”
Kase pulled Laurel closer. “Yeah, Laurel gave me a second chance and took on a ready-made family, and now we’re adding to that.”
“Yeah, two more at a time,” his wife said.
Laughter rang out, and Shelby liked that she and Ryan were being included in this group.
The owner, Joe, appeared at the table. “I hear we have someone famous here tonight. Sous-chef Shelby Townsend.” He looked at her, and she couldn’t help but blush. “Word around town is you’ve been cooking up a storm over at B&B Café.”
The man was good-looking, especially with the mischievous look in his dark eyes. This small town seemed to be filled with an array of handsome men.
“Guilty.” She wasn’t shy about her cooking skills. “And I’ve heard your ribs are pretty good, too.”
That caused a rumble around the table. “Sounds like a challenge, Joe,” Trent said.
Joe grinned. “I think I’m up for it.”
Shelby smiled sweetly. “Good, because Ryan and I brought our appetites.”
Ryan remained silent as his legs were swinging back and forth under his chair.
“Do you like ribs, Ryan?” Joe asked.
The boy shrugged. “I like chicken.”
Trent jumped in and said, “Let’s stop fooling around and get to eatin’.” The group placed their orders. Shelby relied on Cullen’s suggestions about getting a sampler platter. And the kid’s menu had several choices for the picky eaters like Ryan.
After the drinks were delivered the conversation began with questions to her. “Shelby, since you have a job at the café, will you be staying?” Laurel asked.
Cullen felt her tense, and he couldn’t help but wonder why.
“I’m still trying to figure that out. Coming to Hidden Springs was only supposed to be temporary. So we’ll see how it goes.”
“That’s kind of Cullen’s attitude,” Trent said. “He never stops reminding me that he’s the interim sheriff.”
“That’s because I am,” Cullen said. “Ted is coming back to work.”
Trent frowned. “That’s to be seen,” he said in a low voice. “The man should retire.”
Cullen didn’t want to talk about his job situation. Not tonight. He wanted some downtime and to enjoy the company.
Laurel quickly changed the subject. “I hear you picked up some four-legged boarders at the Circle R,” she said.
“Yeah, Trent didn’t think I had enough to do, so he sent over a few horses.”
“You had an empty barn,” his stepbrother said. “All you need to do is feed them in the morning and at night and give them a little love in between.” Laughter rang out. “Even a hard-nosed cop can handle that.”
Cullen tensed. He knew Trent was teasing him, but he didn’t want to be reminded of his past career. “Just so long as you come by and muck out the stalls.”
Another round of laughter, then Laurel said, “How many empty stalls do you have?”
“Should I be afraid to answer this?” Cullen frowned, then admitted, “Four that are in decent shape.”
Laurel smiled sweetly. “In my condition, I haven’t been able to do much riding lately.” She rubbed a hand over her expanded belly. “I’m worried about some of my horses getting enough exercise. I have this gray gelding named Cloud. In his day, he used to compete in reining shows. He’s well trained and such a sweetheart.” The pretty blonde gave him a pleading look. “He’d be the perfect horse for Ryan.”
That got both Shelby’s and the boy’s attention. “Ryan’s never ridden before,” Shelby said.
“Do you have anything against him learning?” Laurel asked.
Shelby shook her head. “No, but he’s never been around horses.”
“I wish I could help,” Laurel said. “But I’m going to be out of commission for a while.”
“At least two months,” Kase said and leaned over and kissed his wife. “Your right-hand man, Chet, will just have to take over everything.” He looked at Shelby. “As if two babies and a six-year-old aren’t enough to handle. Plus her horse training business.”
“I’m going to help Mommy, too,” Addy said.
Everyone chuckled. “Of course you are, sweetie.” Laurel hugged her stepdaughter.
Cullen knew that Laurel loved Addy as much as if she’d given birth to her. The woman stepped in after Kase’s estranged wife died. She helped him fight for custody of Addy from her maternal grandparents.
The conversation stopped as a parade of waitresses carried in the platters of beef and pork ribs. Soon everyone concentrated on eating.
Cullen watched as Shelby got Ryan’s food arranged for him. The boy was eating French fries and chicken strips. At least there was Joe’s barbecue sauce for dipping.
She turned to Cullen and brushed her hair back behind her ear, giving him a view of her pretty face. “Sorry, he has trouble trying new things.”
“Don’t apologize.” Cullen smiled as he inhaled the soft scent of her perfume. Damn. If he wasn’t careful, he could really like this woman. Whom was he kidding? He already liked her. “He’ll come around.”
He turned to his food and began to eat. The ribs were mouthwatering, but he found the company was even better. He glanced around the table at his brother and his family. Little Christopher was gnawing on a rib bone while Addy ate her food. Their parents were enjoying a closeness that he envied. For the first time in a long time, he wondered what it would be like to have the same thing. Could he really make a place here in this town?
Suddenly little Addy climbed up on her knees, picked up one of her ribs and reached across the table. “Here, Ryan, try this. Don’t you know all cowboys and cowgirls eat ribs?”
The adults froze, then watched as the boy took the offered rib and took a small bite. He continued to eat all the meat off the bone.
“See, I knew you’d like it,” the little girl said, and everyone laughed. “Don’t you, Ryan?”
With barbecue sauce smeared across his mouth, the boy grinned at everyone. Another milestone.
* * *
AT DAYBREAK THE next morning, Cullen was out feeding the horses. He put Dakota and Sassy out in the corral, then headed back to the house to shower for work when his cell phone rang.
He looked at the caller ID and hesitated, seeing his father’s name. He’d been ignoring Neal Brannigan’s calls for the past two weeks.
“Might as well get it over with,” he grumbled as he punched the answer button. “Hello, Dad.”
“Well, it’s about damn time you took my call.”
Cullen wasn’t going to let the man bait him into an argument. He walked in the back door to the house. “I’ve been busy, trying to get situated in my new job.”
“Hell, that isn’t a job. You’re just babysitting those deputies until the real sheriff returns.”
“If you say so.”
“Of course I say so. Cullen, you need to stop messing around and come back to Denver. Your career depends on it.”
“Career? What career, Dad?”
Cullen went to the coffeemaker, grabbed a mug and poured some fresh brew.
“You’ve got to forget about the past and start over. Maybe go to work in a new department.”
For the past five years, Cullen had worked in the white-collar crimes unit. A year ago, his cover and credibility had been blown when incriminating evidence showed up against him. “What should I do, go out and work patrol again? I’m not going to do that.”
“Look, son, you’ve been
cleared and reinstated. You could go into any department.”
“Yeah, like anyone would trust me, and that includes you.”
He heard his father sigh. “I’ve already apologized for that. Besides, even you have to admit the evidence was pretty damning.”
Cullen felt a familiar ache in his chest. Nothing he’d done was good enough. “What about your own son, Dad? You couldn’t take his word?”
He had idolized this tough father and cop, even followed a career into law enforcement. He only wanted to make Neal Brannigan proud. “It hadn’t mattered about anyone else. I only needed you to believe me.”
“I had to stay neutral, Cullen. My reputation was at stake.”
He couldn’t deal with this right now. “Yeah, heaven forbid that you lose anything, but it would be okay if your son went to prison for crimes he didn’t commit.”
There was only silence on the line.
“Look, I gotta go.” Cullen hung up and cursed for letting his father get to him. He should be used to Neal Brannigan’s tougher-than-nails attitude. The man raised his boys that way. No matter how hard he and Austin worked and accomplished things growing up, the man wanted even more from them. Austin had the right idea. He didn’t worry about his father’s opinion. He didn’t stay in one spot long enough to be bothered by their father. He traveled the country on the rodeo circuit.
“I’m done with you, too, old man.”
“Excuse me.”
Hearing the feminine voice, Cullen swung around to find Shelby standing in the doorway. She looked fresh and pretty dressed in her jeans and blouse. Her rich brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She was ready for work at the café.
“Sorry, I knocked, and I heard you...” She paused. “I just wanted to tell you that...never mind.” She frowned. “I can see that this isn’t a good time. I’ll come back later.”
When she started to leave, he hurried after her. “Wait.” He caught her hand. “Don’t go, Shelby. It’s not you. In fact you’re just what I need right now.” When he tugged on her hand, it caused her to stumble right into his arms. He caught her surprise, her rapid breathing, but more than that, those blue depths held passion. And he wanted her.
Her Colorado Sheriff Page 6