She hadn’t made it out to work around the tree trunks since she found Duce on Sunday, but she was just as careful. So far she hadn’t seen even a glimpse of another stinkin’ snake or a wild hog. And that was fine by her. A gun is what she needed. Just in case. She knew Aunt Roxie had a shotgun that used to be hidden in her closet. Cassidy was going to get that gun and learn how to shoot it. Maybe she’d ask someone to show her. Maybe Jarrod might do that for her.
And so within seconds of beginning to pick the peaches again, her thoughts went directly back to Jarrod. She still couldn’t believe she’d told him about Jack.
Why had she exposed her personal humiliation to him? Because that was what it was. And yet he’d vehemently called Jack the fool.
She pulled a plump golden peach from the tree and absently placed it in the red bucket, then reached for another one. Jarrod hadn’t thought she was the fool.
She couldn’t say she agreed with him, but he’d been pretty convincing, and remembering the look on his face caused her pulse to race once more. He’d been serious. There was no way to hide that kind of sincerity.
But still. That didn’t change anything.
After Jarrod left Cassidy’s, he went into Kerrville to the sporting goods store. He bought a few supplies, then went straight home. He had some work to do and stakeouts to begin. He’d fill Cassidy in on the rustlers tomorrow night, and maybe if he was lucky he’d know more about them after tonight. He’d at least know he was more prepared. Going to the barn, he saddled his horse, then led him to the house where he tied him to the porch post while he went in to grab a bed roll and fill his saddlebags with supplies. He also took a couple of canteens of water, which he tossed over his shoulder as he grabbed his gun and extra ammunition.
He didn’t call Tru or Bo. Tru had a major exhibition coming up and Bo had an overload of stirrup orders he and his staff had to meet. No, this was Jarrod’s area of the business, and both his brothers had held up their end of the bargain bringing in income to pay off the loans. And up to this point Jarrod knew he’d done a good job keeping the ranch afloat. But now, with it being time to sell cattle and turn a profit, everything he’d been working for was in jeopardy. If he didn’t stop the stealing, at the rate the loss was adding up they could be in trouble again with the last loans.
And though he hated to admit it, he couldn’t let any of his men in on what he was doing. He had no idea if someone had fooled him. Whoever was committing these acts of thievery had a mile radius, and that meant to Jarrod that it could be anyone. Even one of his men.
The only problem with him doing it all himself was that the ranch wasn’t small. And he had to figure out when and where they might strike before he could catch them.
That was going to be about as easy as finding the proverbial needle in a haystack.
Within thirty minutes from the time he’d arrived home, and with daylight burning, he settled the saddlebags behind his saddle and rammed his rifle into the sheath. After he led Tracer into the pasture and closed the gate, Jarrod mounted up. The saddle creaked as he settled into it, and he looked around the land Pops had worked so hard for.
Determination tightened his gut. “Let’s ride, Tracer,” he said, and with the mere touch of his knees the gelding took off at a lope.
They had a lot of ground to cover going cross country, but Tracer was up for the challenge and so was Jarrod.
Tuesday morning Cassidy was pleased to find Duce sitting in the doorway of her bedroom when she woke. “Hey there, boy. Aren’t you pushing it a little?” It was good to see his readiness to get well. She climbed out of bed and was glad to see her hip was finally back to normal too.
She sat on the floor and scratched the dog between the ears, then gave him a back scratch. She found he was putty in her hands after that.
“You like this, I see.” She laughed as he nudged her for more. “We are going to get on well.” Thankfully he’d figured out what the doggie door was for and had been getting up and going to the bathroom outside. He just hadn’t been real excited about it. But today she watched him through the window as she made coffee. Despite the stitches, he ambled across the yard a fairly good distance out before taking care of business. This was very good news indeed.
When he was done he came as far as the porch, curled up on the rug, and there he stayed. She walked to the open doorway. “So are you telling me you’re done with this inside stuff?”
He wagged his tail and raised his eyes to look at her, but didn’t bother to lift his head from his crossed paws.
“Well, if you’re happy, I’m happy.”
Taking her coffee, she walked to the living room and studied the walls.
To her surprise, Duce padded through the kitchen into the dark room to sit down next to her. He studied the room too.
“You know what, big guy? It’s time to paint.” She took a couple more sips of her hot coffee, set the cup on a table, and started moving furniture into the middle of the room. This could not wait any longer. This room needed sunshine and color. The rose kitchen would be next, but today the ugly green had to go.
After she’d managed to get the couch and chairs moved, she changed into paint clothes and wrangled her morning hair into a clip before stuffing a ball cap over the top. The song “Wild Thang” played in her head as she tamed the mass, and she wondered if she should cut it. It did drive her crazy sometimes.
She drove to the superstore on the outskirts of town. Hoping not to run into anyone she knew, she tugged her ball cap low and ducked through the store to the paint area, grabbed the color she wanted, and managed to get out without seeing anyone. She was back home painting before ten o’clock.
“Betcha didn’t think I could get back here so quick, did ya?” she said to Duce. He was sitting in the doorway, watching her. He was a good dog, but she could tell by the sadness and the wariness in him that he’d not been in a good home.
“You need to hold your head up, little man,” she said as she rolled the pale-yellow paint over the aged ugly green that had been on the walls for forever. “You need to start being happy. Just like me. It’s time to stop looking back and look forward. You and me, buddy. You and me.”
Duce’s chin tilted and one ear quirked as if listening to everything she said.
She was starting to feel better. The anger she felt at Jack was still there, deep down, but she was doing okay. She didn’t know how to get rid of those feelings, but she could compartmentalize them from the rest of her life. And it was going great.
Great.
“Can a cowboy come in?”
She yelped and spun around, paint roller in hand. Jarrod stood in the front doorway. “You scared me.”
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to. I saw the front door opened as I was riding by. Duce has just lost points in the guard dog department. He looked over his shoulder when I rode up and never barked a note.”
“He’s a softy.” Cassidy put her paint roller in the pan, then walked over to the door. To deny that she was glad to see him would be a lie. “He’s moving around more today. Obviously feeling better.”
“Good.” A slow smile eased up the corners of his mouth. “Maybe when he’s more active he’ll be a watch dog too.”
“Maybe so. You rode over?” He looked tired, and he had a five o’clock shadow despite its being ten in the morning. He looked very good, though. She put the brakes on those thoughts.
“I did. I was passing by on my way back to the house this morning. I was on a stakeout last night.”
“Stakeout? That was not what I was expecting to hear you say. Stakeouts are for watching for illegal activity, right? Or is that what you call it when you’re watching for a calf to be born or something?”
His expression turned intense. “That’s why I stopped by. We have a situation that just developed on Friday. Seems we have rustlers.”
Cassidy digested the information slowly. “But do they even still do that?”
“They do. A lot more than you realize. We met w
ith the investigators last week after I’d already realized I had missing stock and suspected rustlers were the reason. They confirmed with their data that a ring they were tracking was now in this area.”
“So they took some of your cattle?”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry.” She wiped her hands on a rag and stuffed it in her back pocket. “Did they get a lot?”
“A trailer load.”
“So let me guess, you did a stakeout to see if they’d hit that same spot again?”
“I did. But I’m not broadcasting that information, so I’d appreciate it you’d keep that to yourself.”
“Sure. Why do I get the feeling you’ve got more to tell?”
“No, that’s basically it. I just wanted to let you know this is going on because it’s probably going to get out around town soon, and I didn’t want you to hear it secondhand. If you hear or see anything suspicious, let me know. What we know is this is an organized group. This isn’t a bunch of kids or goof balls. They know what they’re doing and they’re good. But Jake and the proper agents have a bead on them, and I think it’s only a matter of time until they’re caught. I’m just not patient enough to leave it completely up to them. Nor do I care to lose any more livestock. I want you to be aware of the situation for your own safety.”
Cassidy didn’t know what to think. “I’ll keep my eyes open.”
“Good. I’ll ride on home now. I’m ready for a shower. Did I hear you were coming to the house for dinner tonight?”
“I am. I wasn’t sure if you would be there.”
“Why do you think I came back from my stakeout?”
“Because you were tired and needed a shower.”
“Because you are coming to dinner. What if I pick you up? There’s no use us both driving when we’re going the same direction.”
“No, you don’t need to do that.”
He scowled. “So we’re back to you telling me what I need to do and don’t need to do.”
“No, it’s just that you have better things to do than cart me around.”
“I think you’re afraid of me. I want to pick you up. I’ll come by at six.” Three strides and he was off the porch, and within seconds he was almost to his horse.
“But—” Afraid of him, my foot.
“No buts, Cassidy. I’ll be here.” He never stopped to look back or anything. Just climbed onto his horse and rode away looking straight ahead.
Cassidy scowled. “Duce, the man is a bulldozer when he wants his way.” As if to show his great interest, Duce curled up in the doorway, placed his chin on his crossed paws, and closed his eyes. “Oh right, so you don’t want to hear what I have to say. Fine friend you are.”
But as she began rolling on paint again, her mind stuck on Jarrod . . . and the knowledge that in just a few hours she’d be spending the evening with him.
She began humming as she worked.
16
Jarrod had placed hunting cameras controlled by motion in several areas of his ranch. One place was the tree near the makeshift pen the rustlers had made. They might not come back to that pen, but if they did he might be able to get a shot of something useful. He’d also placed cameras near herds and in some other places he remotely thought might work for a great shot. And before he picked up Cassidy he told Gil where he wanted cattle moved in the morning. The traps were set.
Now he would wait. His efforts led to no sleep last night as covering ground on horseback was time consuming, but in his mind, it was the easiest way to do what he wanted in case his place was being watched.
He’d stayed in the shadows and he hadn’t used a light. If there was one thing he knew, it was this property. He’d roamed it since before he should have been allowed to roam it on his own. And then later, camping out on the property had been a favorite pastime he and his brothers shared.
His mind wasn’t on rustlers now. Cassidy rode beside him in the truck and he was completely distracted.
She’d just about knocked his socks off when he picked her up. She had on a pair of white jeans and a pink blouse that reminded him of spun cotton candy. And he had a big weakness for cotton candy.
“You are beautiful.” He couldn’t help himself.
She stiffened at his compliment. “Thank you. I got the room finished.”
“That’s great. Makin’ progress.” He wondered why compliments bothered her. Was it just from him or all men? He turned onto the blacktop. The main headquarters of the ranch was on the opposite side of the ranch from where he lived. They traveled three miles, then turned left onto another country road. Finally the large metal entrance of the ranch came into view in the distance. Pops’s home and the main complex of the massive ranch could be seen up the hill.
“What did you do on stakeout last night?”
She’d thought about him—or at least about what he’d been doing. He liked that.
“I put out hunting cameras. But again, this is totally confidential. I haven’t even told Bo and Tru so, again, I’d appreciate it if you’d keep this to yourself.”
She looked pensive. “Sure. But surely you don’t think they would—”
“No. Not at all. I haven’t told them because I don’t want to bother them right now. Tru leaves for the exhibition in the morning and Bo has a major order deadline to get out. This is my problem. They don’t need to be bothered.”
“Whatever you say.”
He smiled at her agreement. They rode in silence until he reached the entrance of the ranch. He drove between the steel gate with the massive steel overhang that had the ranch name in logo form on it, a four with a heart extending from the long side of the numeral. His grandmother had come up with the design. As they drove up the lane, he saw Cassidy straighten, looking up the lane at Pops’s home on the right. Past Pops’s home and on the left was the red barn that held Bo’s Four of Hearts Ranch Stirrups business. And then a hundred yards farther down were the stable and arena where Tru’s horse training business was housed. Jarrod wasn’t seeing any of it as his hands tightened on the steering wheel.
“The place looks great. I remember coming here when we were kids and your pops taught me to ride.”
“Yeah,” he said. “But things are a little different now. The red barn is the stirrup business. The stable is Tru’s domain. And he and Maggie live in the foreman’s house on past the arena.”
“Abby told me she and Bo live with Pops now.”
He parked the truck. “I hate that he has to have someone living with him.” He stared out at the pasture beside the house.
“Yeah, I get that,” she said quietly. And then she reached out and touched his hand that was still tightly clasped around the steering wheel. “He’s a good man. I know how hard this must be for you.”
Jarrod went completely still. Looking at her hand on his, his throat went dry at her touch and her words. He met her gaze. “Extremely. But if there is one thing Pops never did it was hide from anything. He faced his life full-on. I didn’t always do that, and I regret it.” If she only knew how much.
She pulled her hand away, looking as if she wished she hadn’t touched him, and her fingers shook as she unbuckled her seat belt and rushed out of the truck. Her touch had simply been out of comfort, but he wanted it to be more. His resolve intensified as he followed her up the back steps.
Her red curls were dancing between her stiffened shoulder blades with each purposeful step she took away from him.
“Hey there,” Maggie called, opening the door before they could knock. “We are so glad you’re here.” She hugged Cassidy like they’d known each other forever.
“I am glad to make it. Goodness, it’s been a very long time since I was in this house.”
Jarrod took off his hat and hung it on the hat rack as the two women chattered together faster than bees could swarm.
“I think I’ll go join the fellas.” He held Cassidy’s gaze for a moment. Electricity sparked between them like lightning hitting a steel rod. Pain or uncert
ainty or something—distrust maybe—flashed in those eyes before she looked away. He forced his boots to move, carrying him out of the danger zone.
Cassidy was so glad not to be alone with Jarrod any longer. From the moment he’d looked at her like she was the prettiest female on earth she’d been a bit befuddled.
And then, just now, he’d had a hungry look in his eyes. As if he needed her.
As if he wanted her more than breath.
Her insides were quaking with the intensity of what she thought she saw.
Jarrod wasn’t a man who showed his emotions. He would have made a great poker player. So she knew what she’d just experienced was rare.
And that shook her immensely.
But Jack had also been able to hide his emotions, she reminded herself. Even after she’d finally figured out his lying, cheating ways, she’d sometimes fall for his lies—late nights at the office, business trips working on mergers and acquisitions—and when she questioned exactly who he was merging with, he’d accused her of imagining things and being overly jealous. He said he loved her and he worked hard to provide for her and the kids they would have soon.
Kids. She closed her eyes to shut out the heartache of that. She’d finally realized that almost everything he said was either a lie or a carefully concocted word set intended on getting her to do what he wanted. Having a wife looked good to his bosses. Having one he could dupe continually and still have his icing too . . . well, that worked well for him. And in his mind he was justified. After all, she got the blessing of his presence in her life so that made everything right. What a joke.
Narcissist. She’d heard the term and looked it up. It had been as if she’d been reading Jack’s biography. And he wasn’t alone. People like him had an MO, a mode of operating.
Okay, so even though she wasn’t interested in ever having a relationship with a man again, that didn’t mean all men fell into that category, and certainly not Jarrod. Nothing about him was narcissistic.
Kissed by a Cowboy Page 13