Beware the Ranger

by Debra Holt

  “There aren’t any streams where you come from?”

  “Afraid not. I live in New York City. We have the river and there’s a lake in Central Park. Nothing as nice as this though.”

  “You live in New York? Wow!” The brown eyes really lit up. “Say, you look familiar. Sure you haven’t come here before?”

  She shook her head. “I haven’t been in McKenna Springs since before you were born.”

  “That’s a long time. How come? Don’t you get along with Gran?”

  “I love Gran. But my job has kept me very busy. And Gran has always come to visit me where I live.” Nice sidestepping there.

  “I still think I’ve seen you before.”

  “Well, possibly you saw a photo of me at Gran’s house? I’m sure…”

  “No! I know now.” He spoke, snapping his fingers. “It was a photo.” Then a quiet expression followed the grin. “It wasn’t at Gran’s. It was in my dad’s study. One day I noticed it on a shelf behind his desk. I asked him about you. You had on this long, formal dress and he was in the photo, too. In a tuxedo thing like you wear in weddings.”

  This news stopped Kaitlyn in her tracks. As far as she knew there were just two copies of that photo from the night of the prom. She had one… that she had destroyed. And now she knew where the other one had ended up. Clay had kept it all this time? And it was displayed in his home? How very strange. It made no sense.

  “What did your dad say about it?”

  “Something about you were a girl he took to a dance a long time ago. That’s all.”

  Just a girl he took to a dance long ago. That hit her in the gut. Certainly put her in the place she belonged… just a girl from his past. Still, it was odd he would keep it around.

  If the boy had any more questions about it, he moved on when he spied something on the riverbank. “Hey! It’s a turtle.” Wading over to it, he reached down and picked it up, causing the head and legs to immediately disappear inside the green and yellow marked shell.

  “It’s a little thing. Fits in the palm of your hand.” Then he turned with a grin. “Here… you want to hold it?” The light of a dare was in his eyes.

  She’d show this youngster. Wading over to where he stood, she held out her palm. “Sure. Let’s see him.” That brought a moment’s hesitation on his part, but he gave a quick shrug of his shoulders and did just that.

  Kaitlyn smothered a laugh… at herself. Again, what would people think if they could see her now? What would Jeffrey think? The idea that she had only thought of him for a scant amount of time in all the hours of the last couple of days gave a slight pause. She brushed it away from spoiling the moment.

  “Where the hell have you been?”

  The smile left her face instantly and the chuckle resembled a strangled gasp as she froze in place. She looked toward the direction the too familiar voice came from, her eyes travelling upward. Clay sat a few feet away on the back of a tall, dark chestnut-colored horse, eyeing the pair in the water.

  Kaitlyn stiffened, caring neither for his tone nor his words. “I beg your pardon? What is this? John Wayne to the rescue?”

  She handed the turtle back to Joshua, who hadn’t seemed to notice the undercurrent between the pair. “Hey, Dad. I just came back from Ronnie’s. We’ve been wading and just found this turtle.”

  “Seth is waiting at the barn for you to help move the livestock into the smaller stable. Best get a move on. Ms. Russell and I have an appointment in town.”

  “Yes, sir.” The turtle went onto a log where it promptly dove for cover under the water.

  Kaitlyn stepped onto the bank and hastily slid her feet back into her shoes and unrolled her jeans. Barefoot and in a creek was a decided disadvantage when facing down Clay Morgan.

  “Nice to meet you, ma’am.” Joshua smiled at her as he gathered the reigns of his horse and quickly left them alone… much to Kaitlyn’s discomfort. He was soon disappearing into the tree line.

  “He’s very nice.”

  “Yes, he is… thanks. You’re causing a lot of people a lot of worry.” He nudged the horse to stand just inches from her. To her credit, she held her ground.

  “I will remind you that I did not ask to come here. And I am not one of your hired…” Kaitlyn was not allowed to finish. A strong arm swung out and grasped her waist, hoisting her unceremoniously upward before dumping her in the same manner in front of him on the horse’s back.

  Kaitlyn landed in the one place she never wanted to be again—Clay Morgan’s arms. She tried to squirm her way out of his hold but it just tightened. The same thing happened to the set of his jawline visible at her eye level. Clay held her between his rock solid chest and the saddle horn… both immovable objects. Tucking her further into the crook of his left arm and with the reins through his fingers, his right hand reached into the saddlebag and drew out a radio. His tone was terse and his words short.

  “Morgan to base. Stand down. I found her. We’re heading in now.” Clay didn’t wait for a reply, but let the instrument drop back into the bag. Booted feet touched the horse’s sides, and the animal responded with lively steps, retracing its path up the bank and onto the road.

  “I would rather walk.” She ground out through clenched teeth.

  “I’d rather you didn’t. This is faster.”

  “I don’t need your permission to take a walk. I am not a prisoner to keep under lock and key. Do you treat all your guests in such a high-handed manner?”

  The look in his eyes said otherwise. The ominous tone of his voice punctuated the fact. “On my land, people do as they are told. Right now, that includes you, too. What did you think would happen when you disappeared without telling anyone what you were doing or where to find you? You’re unfamiliar with your surroundings. Do you care that you got everyone in an uproar because they couldn’t find you? Angie and Edie are worried sick.”

  Kaitlyn started to speak and then stopped. Some of his words rang true enough, she begrudged him that much. It would have been the wise thing to let someone know her intentions. Part of her brain told her she acted petty and spiteful, but he seemed to bring out the worst in her each time they were in shouting distance of each other.

  “Okay. I’m sorry that I upset everyone. I didn’t think a walk would do any harm. I may live in the city, but I haven’t forgotten to keep an eye out for snakes and such. And when your son came along, we were having a nice time just wading in the stream. What harm was done?”

  Clay drew the horse to an abrupt standstill. He gave her a long, considering look.

  Kaitlyn felt a knot somewhere in her midsection at the look in his eyes. She should know better than to let her gaze linger on his. The thought that this moment could last for as long as it wanted quickly came and went in her mind. Her senses reeled and her pulses did a tap dance.

  When next he spoke, his tone had softened to match the look from the honey-colored eyes. “I may have overreacted a bit. But, in the future, you need to let people know where you are or what your plans are. It will keep people from envisioning the worst. Think you can cooperate—for all our sakes?”

  Clay’s words gave her pause. As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. A sudden chill skittered across her skin even in the warmth of the day.

  He must have sensed it. There was another softening in his face.

  “Trust me, Kat. I know what I’m doing.”

  Those words… any words… but those. She went stiff against his arm and averted her eyes to some point in the distance ahead of them, dismissing anything he had to say. “You may know what you’re doing, Ranger Morgan, when it comes to your job and your ranch, but my trust is something you’ll never have again. I learned that lesson well.”

  Clay made no comeback. Kaitlyn caught a swift glint of something cross his features before her eyes focused elsewhere. Had her words scored a hit? She hoped so.

  His heels tapped the horse forward; a hard mask settled over his face. They moved at a faster pace. He apparently di
d not want to prolong the ride a moment longer than necessary—which was fine by her. Not another word passed between them the rest of the way back to his home.

  Angie, along with Edie and Seth close behind her, moved quickly down the porch steps as they saw their approach. The looks of relief were evident on all their faces.

  The same arm that scooped her up earlier lifted Kaitlyn and allowed her to slide to the ground. “I’ll have the truck out front in thirty minutes.”

  She turned to say something, but the horse and rider were already retreating toward the fenced pasture and barns beyond. A sudden tinge of regret filled her. Evidently, he was as glad to be rid of her as she was of him.

  “There you are! Come inside and get something to drink. You must be bone dry after being out in this heat,” Edie said, clucking over her like a mother hen. “Seth, you can get back to your work. We women can handle things from here.”

  Seth smiled and gave a nod. “Glad you’re back and no worse for wear.” He headed in the same direction as Clay.

  Edie hurried ahead of the two girls, leaving them to follow a few steps behind.

  “Where did you go?” Angie spoke in a lowered voice while her eyes scanned Kaitlyn’s face. “I woke to Clay banging on my door, and then when I saw his face, I thought something awful had happened to you.”

  “As I told him, I just went for a walk. You would think I had committed a federal crime the way people are reacting around here.” Kaitlyn felt awful the moment the words left her mouth. She was taking her frustrations and pain out on the wrong people.

  “You just took a walk…” Angie’s voice trailed off as she shook her head as Kaitlyn continued ahead of her up the steps.

  Kaitlyn refused to discuss it any further. Once she had some hydration in her, she hurried to freshen up for the hospital visit with her grandmother. Hopefully, the end of their stay on Clay Morgan’s land would soon be at an end.

  Chapter Eight

  “There’s my beautiful girl! Come here and give me a hug.” Arms opened wide and Kaitlyn made a beeline for the woman propped up against the pillows in the hospital bed. She was enveloped in warm arms and the remembered fragrance of Chanel, her grandmother’s favorite perfume.

  “Let me look at you.” The woman slipped her glasses down onto her nose from their perch on her head. “You look a little thin. But no worries, I know Edie will have you fattened up in no time at all with her cooking.” She glanced over at the tall man standing just inside the doorway of the private room, his hat in his hands, watching the greeting. “What do you think, Clay? How do you think our girl looks? She could stand some time out here in our country air, I think. Agree?”

  He was clearly not comfortable with the attention being turned in his direction or the line of questioning. But then neither was Kaitlyn. She wasn’t a specimen under a microscope. And why should her appearance make any difference to him?

  “I think she knows what she needs. She’s a grown woman and has never had any problem with what she wants.” The words were spoken in a quiet tone but they carried a wealth of meaning.

  Kaitlyn kept her eyes on her grandmother.

  The woman simply nodded her head slowly at the man and smiled. “I can see you’re ready to break out of this hospital room. You can find some coffee down the hall in the visitors’ lounge. There’s some decent pies down in the cafeteria I’m told also. We’ll have us a visit while you’re gone.”

  The door whispered shut behind him before Kaitlyn took a perch on the side of the bed, her hand still enclosed in one of Gran’s. It was time for some answers.

  “First of all, what’s this I hear about your health? What’s wrong? And don’t try to sugarcoat it. I’ll simply hunt down the doctor myself.”

  “When have you known me to ever sugarcoat anything?”

  “Don’t answer me with a question. Out with it.”

  The woman gave a slow smile, her light blue eyes with a tinge of sparkle in them indicating her sass was still alive and kicking inside. “Watch it my girl… you’re sounding like a younger version of me.”

  “And that would be horrible.” Kaitlyn came back with a shake of her head, and a chuckle on her lips. “So tell me. You brought me here.”

  “I came in for a checkup. That’s when they decided I might need to have a couple of stents placed in my heart… clear some of those clogged spots. Too much good cooking over the years I guess. It’s no big deal. Half of my card club has had it done. They’ll do it tomorrow afternoon. I should be home by the next day or so. You know Mason McGill. He’s a conservative worrywart.”

  “I’m glad Doctor McGill is just that. But maybe we should get you to Austin or Houston… one of the larger medical centers.”

  “They’re perfectly capable right here. I should know. I have donated more than a few dollars to this place over the years to make it so. McKenna Springs has grown a bit from the sleepy little country town you left. Our medical center is the best in several counties and the town has grown a bit… although making certain we keep that country charm. Enough talk about that stuff. I hate the fact this interrupted you and your friend Angie’s travel plans.”

  “Nonsense. In fact, Angie said she’s getting a lot more work done on new sketches in all the peace and quiet while we’re here. Of course, we need to be in a hotel and not forcing ourselves on Clay’s hospitality. Which brings me to another bone to pick with you. Why didn’t you let me know about the damage to your house? And what is this about you staying with Clay Morgan and his son? I know I’ve been away for a while but this is something I never would have imagined you would consider.”

  Georgia gave her a shrewd, assessing look. “Why not?”

  “Seriously? You couldn’t wait to get me away from him. You said I would never be happy with him. You weren’t his fan.” She paused, dropping her eyes to an errant thread on the bed cover. “And you were right.”

  Her Gran didn’t respond right away. It was clear she was pondering Kaitlyn’s words.

  “There’s need for some clarification, I think. I said you would never be satisfied unless you saw what you could do with your talent. You would come to regret not trying and could end up hating him for keeping the opportunity from you.”

  Kaitlyn rose from the bed, something making her uncomfortable with the subject. She walked to the window that looked over the parking lot three stories below. It wasn’t really the view that occupied her mind. “There’s no reason to go back over all of that. I did leave and I have not looked back. You saved me.”

  “I saved you from what?”

  “From disappointment… from having my heart broken.”

  “I think your heart was broken anyway.”

  “Not for long. Not after you sent me those clippings and I realized what a silly little fool I had been. I fancied myself in love with someone who never existed. I have you to thank for getting me out of here.”

  “Well, I may have been the who that got you out of here but doesn’t mean I was right in doing it… or that I did it for the best for all involved.”

  The words confused Kaitlyn. She moved back to her seat on the foot of Gran’s bed. “That’s very cryptic. What’s on your mind? Is there something you’re trying to tell me?”

  “I took my responsibility of raising you, after your parents’ deaths, to heart. I planned everything out. You were going to have every opportunity I could give you for an excellent life. When it was clear the level of talent you had for the stage… well, I knew that was the path we needed to pursue. It seemed to be going along just fine. Until you met Clay Morgan.”

  Kaitlyn remained quiet.

  “I tried to play it off as a crush. You would grow out of it. I confess now that I knew better. It was more than a crush… on both your parts.”

  “This isn’t necessary to go back over the past, Gran. It’s done.” Kaitlyn shook her head, hoping to put an end to the uncomfortable conversation. Gran wouldn’t be deterred.

  “It is more than necessary. Y
ou just need to sit and listen and not interrupt.”

  Kaitlyn didn’t respond. Her quiet was enough to invite Gran to continue.

  “I never listened to you when you told me you didn’t want to go to New York. I heard you, but I chose to ignore it because you didn’t know what you were saying… you were too young. At least those are the things I told myself. I had decided what was best and that was that. Then I had to do something about Clay Morgan. Something I am not proud of.”

  Kaitlyn’s full attention was on the woman at that point. “Oh, Gran… what did you do?”

  “I sent you on an errand and I called him over to the house. I laid it all out for him. I told him that he had to let you go. If he didn’t and you stayed and you two married, he would always have to worry about the day coming when you would realize that you hadn’t had the chance to follow your dream. And what had you missed by remaining in this small town? Then you would resent him and could he live with doing that to you? He would be responsible for ruining your life. Well, it wasn’t easy but I got my point across and he did the honorable thing and stepped out of the picture. Something that I think broke both of your hearts. Something that I have thought about more and more over the years. Call it my conscience getting the best of me or whatever you want. I needed to let you know the truth.”

  Kaitlyn had to stand. She had to move. Wrapping her arms around her shoulders, she moved to stand across the room, at the window. Long moments passed before she moved toward the bed again.

  She looked at her grandmother, shaking her head. “I don’t understand how you could have done such a thing. I can understand, or at least see, why you would do it. You thought you were doing the right thing for me. I guess you feel better now that you got this off your chest.”

  Gran’s gaze narrowed on the girl. “Feel better? It’s a relief of sorts, yes. But I won’t feel truly better until things are right with you and Clay.”

  “Look, Gran…” Kaitlyn stood straighter and made eye contact with the woman. “Whatever you have in your mind… about Clay and me… you need to leave it alone. We are two different people from twelve years ago. Too much has happened and there are things I cannot forget… much less forgive. I’m glad you got this off your chest, but it makes little difference to me and my life now.”