“Thanks.” She took the clothes and he stared a moment longer. She couldn’t read his expression and wasn’t sure she wanted to. “Is there something else?”
He started to shake his head then stopped. “You’re not the same Amber Starke I used to know.”
Amber let out a low laugh. “No, I’m definitely not the girl you used to know.” She paused. “Is that a bad thing?”
“No. Not bad. Maybe not good either. But interesting. Definitely interesting.” He turned and left, and Amber watched him disappear into the den.
Now what did he mean by that? He obviously felt the same tug of attraction she did. And while the thought was exhilarating, it was also...unnerving. She hadn’t planned to be in Wrangler’s Corner long, much less be attracted to a man she thought was lost to her forever. She huffed.
Who was she kidding? Romance and attraction aside, she had killers after her. And even if she didn’t, as long as she was in her line of work, she’d never get involved.
As an operative, before she had become Amber’s handler just six months ago, Kat had met someone she’d thought she might be able to develop a relationship with. She’d gotten involved with a guy named Vincent Ford. She’d met him through her brother and soon found herself defending every move she made.
When she’d finally read him in, he’d dumped her. After that, Kat had wept on Amber’s shoulder about having to lie about her job, her life, her...everything. She’d warned Amber to avoid romantic entanglements at all cost. Amber shook her head. She’d never met the man—Kat had been too worried about introducing him to her friends in the business. Which Amber had understood. Just one more sacrifice she’d had to make thanks to her career.
And now she found herself drawn once again to a man she couldn’t have. Or at least shouldn’t have. She groaned and sighed.
Unwilling to waste any of her remaining energy on thinking about it—or him—she looked around the room.
She needed a hot shower. She wanted a hot shower.
But first things first. She walked to the window to test it and found it secure. As secure as it could be, she supposed. She checked her weapon, tucked the covers around Sam a bit better then walked into the bathroom and turned on the water. While the water heated, she mulled the situation over and over in her mind.
And tried to figure out how she was going to get what she needed and get out of Wrangler’s Corner without getting anyone else involved.
Or killed.
FIVE
Lance paced his large den. From fireplace to recliner where he’d start to sit then spin on his heel and cross the room again. He couldn’t sit, he had to think. Backup had arrived at the cabin after he and Amber had managed to escape. He’d already reported that they were safe and in another location. The others would take care of the cleanup at the cabin while he tried to decide what to do. He glanced at his watch and grimaced. It had been a little over an hour since the attack and he needed to make some sort of decision soon.
He wanted to respect Amber’s wishes that he not say anything to her family, but he just didn’t see any other option. He knew it wasn’t that she didn’t trust them, but that she feared they’d be in danger if they knew she was here. But the very fact that the people after her and Sam knew who she was and where she lived put her family in danger.
They were going to need to bring someone else in. If they were going to live long enough to catch the people who were after Amber and Sam, they needed help. He just had to convince Amber of the fact. Amber, the girl he’d regarded as a little sister. The girl who was now an attractive woman who sent his senses spinning. What was he going to do about that?
Nothing, he decided. At least not until she didn’t have killers after her. Or maybe never. He’d sworn off marriage and women in general. After Krissy’s descent into her secret criminal lifestyle and willingness to kill anyone who crossed her, Lance wasn’t sure he trusted his judgment when it came to women. Krissy had been immature when he’d fallen for her, sure, but when her love of money and greed for more had overtaken her, she’d stepped into crime like she’d been born to it. And Lance hadn’t seen it. If he could be so blind—
He shook his head. Friendship was fine. Romance was not. However, the problem with having a friendship with Amber was that he wasn’t sure it wouldn’t turn into something else. And why was he even thinking about this? She had people trying to kill her. He could help keep her alive without falling in love with her.
The knock on the door sent him into the foyer. After checking out the window, he opened the door and let in the two guys who worked for him. “Hey, thanks for coming.”
“Sure thing, boss, what’s up?” Thirty-year-old Justin Allison pulled his Stetson from his head and held it in front of him. Handy Kilroy did the same. Handy’s given name was Kevin, but he’d earned his nickname as a teenager when it was discovered he could do just about any job on a ranch—and do it well. Now Handy was forty-seven years old and a confirmed bachelor. All he was interested in was working the ranch and adding to his book collection.
Justin handled the horses and Handy worked with the dairy farm Lance had started about a year ago. It was a profitable venture and growing. Soon he’d need to hire more men, but for now, he needed to put these two on high alert. “I’ve run into a problem. I need you two to keep your weapons on you at all times and let me know if you see any strangers lurking about. But be careful and don’t confront them, just let me know about it, understand?”
Handy’s brows went up. “Boss?”
“I can’t go into the details, but suffice it to say, trouble might come knocking and you need to be ready.”
“All right, then,” Justin said. “We’ve got your back.”
And that was that. Lance couldn’t express how much that meant to him. They stayed in the small apartment they’d helped him build at the edge of the property. A two-bedroom split plan that gave them each a bedroom and a bathroom with a kitchen and living area in between.
The two men left and as soon as he shut the door, he heard Amber’s footsteps behind him. He turned and drew in a silent breath as her beauty caught him off guard. She’d changed into the sweats and sweatshirt. He decided she looked like she was about eighteen and as vulnerable as a newborn. He reined in his attraction by focusing on safety. “We’ve got to let your family in on what’s going on.”
She didn’t say anything for a moment, simply stood there in the doorway looking weary—and very determined. “I’m not ready to do that yet.”
“Amber, you said these guys know who you are. They’ve managed to follow, track or guess that you’d come here. They know who your family is. Don’t you think it’s the right thing to do to give them a heads-up?”
She paled and ran a hand through her dark hair. “I wasn’t planning on being here this long. It was supposed to be get in, get out.”
“And then what?”
She sighed but met his gaze. Then lifted her shoulder in a slight shrug. “Then disappear forever. Or as long as it takes to keep Sam safe.”
“What about the information Sam has?”
She rubbed her hands on the legs of her sweatpants. “I know. I need to get it from him. The problem is, Sam is Sam. He’s special and unique and absolutely brilliant in some things. He can do math problems in his head, find meaning in numbers no one else sees. He was reading chapter books by the age of three. But I won’t get the information from him by pressing too hard. He’ll shut down. So until he’s willing to tell me what he knows—or maybe it’s not willingness, maybe it’s just figuring how to communicate it to me—then I just have to be patient and pray that by the time he manages to make me understand what it is he knows that it’s not too late to act on the information.”
“You’re sure he knows something.”
“Yes. Positive. It’s why his own father wants him dead.
”
“Then we need to bring Clay in to offer added protection—and investigative skills. He’s got some high-powered law enforcement friends in Nashville, people he trusts. As highly skilled and trained as you are, the fact remains, you’re only one person and you’re outnumbered. You need help.”
She walked over to the window and peered out. “It’s dark out there. Even the moon isn’t as bright as it was a little while ago.”
“Snow clouds.”
“I know.” He could tell she was thinking. She turned back to him. “I’m not disagreeing with you. But I just don’t know if I want to involve my family.”
“Amber, they’re already involved. These people know who you are, they know who your family is. They need protection, too. Think about what could happen if you keep silent.”
She bit her lip and sighed. And seemed to reach a conclusion. “Yes. You’re right, of course.”
“So you’ll let me call Clay?”
“Yes. Yes, call him. He can decide how much to tell and who to tell. I can’t take a chance on these goons going over to my family’s place and hurting them. Clay and Sabrina are living on the ranch. They built a house there last year.”
“I know.”
She laughed, a dry sound without any humor. “Of course you know. Aaron and Zoe are also living on the property so that should make things easier to keep an eye on.” She sighed. “Seth and Tonya are on the rodeo circuit so we don’t have to really worry about them, I don’t think. Seth’s in the top fifteen for bull riding once more so they’re headed for the finals again this year. Tonya and Brady, their little boy who’s what, sixteen months old now? They’re traveling with him. I haven’t seen Brady since he was three months old. Or Hannah, Clay and Sabrina’s little girl.” She sniffed and looked away. “They must think I’m the most self-absorbed, selfish person in the world. They probably hate me.”
His heart ached at her pain. He’d kind of just thought she’d made her choices without regard to how her family felt. He could see that nothing could be further from the truth. She’d made her choices, but she was paying the price.
“They don’t hate you, Amber. They do miss you and don’t understand why you don’t come home more often, but that’s the nature of the job. I’m sorry that you’ve had to do the things you’ve done to protect people like me, our country. I wish you could get the credit you deserve.”
She gave him a small smile. “I don’t need any credit. I knew what I was getting into when I accepted the job. And I love what I do most of the time. It’s had its slow moments. Even boring moments. Moments when I’ve been able to come home and visit family, catch up on friends.” She rubbed her eyes. “I’d give anything to have those moments back right now.”
“I’m sure. Hey, did you know your cousin, Becca, is back in town?”
“Really? I haven’t talked to her in ages.” She sounded wistful. Lance knew Becca and Amber had been tight friends growing up, before Becca’s parents moved to Nashville where her father had made his first million in the banking industry.
“She’s staying with your parents until the purchase of her ranch goes through.”
Amber’s eyes went wide. “She bought a ranch?”
“The Updike place.”
“The Updike place! What would she want with that place?”
He pursed his lips and shook his head. “The Updikes decided to move closer to their grandkids. According to Becca, she wanted to move back home. She said she was tired of city life and wanted to return to her roots.”
“I had no idea,” she murmured. “We’ll have to keep an eye on her, too.”
“That’s what I’m thinking.”
Lance pulled his phone from the clip on his belt and hit Clay’s number. A recorded message came on and he frowned. “The cell tower must be down. It’s saying all circuits are busy.”
Amber groaned and moved to peer out the window once more. “It’s snowing out there again, too.”
“Yeah, supposed to do that off and on over the next couple of days.”
“Great.” She started pacing just like he’d done right before she’d come in the room. “Do you have a landline?”
“No. Just the cell.”
She pulled her phone out and dialed. Listened then hung up. “I got the same message.” She clipped her phone back on her belt. “I sincerely hope it’s a cell tower problem because of the weather and not that the guys after us somehow managed to sabotage it.”
“I don’t see how they’d know which tower to mess with. They don’t know where we are.”
“They have a good idea of the vicinity, though.”
“True.”
He stood. “I’ve got the radio in my Interceptor. Let me see if I can reach Clay or dispatch. I need to warn them about possible strangers in town. I know it’s just a week away from Christmas and there are probably a lot of out-of-town visitors, but these guys would stand out, I would think, and we need people on the lookout.”
She nodded. “And if they’re in town. Good idea. You do that. I’m going to check in on Sam.”
Lance watched her leave, saw her roll her shoulders as she walked and figured she felt like she had the weight of the world on them right now. He walked through the den and foyer and into the kitchen where he looked around. A surge of pride hit him. It was nice. He smiled then opened the door to step into the garage. Once inside the Interceptor, he grabbed the mic on his radio and pressed the button to connect him to dispatch. “Gretch, you there?”
“Right here,” she said, her voice crackling through. “What was going on out at the Landers place?”
“It’s been a really crazy night.”
“No kidding.”
“I’ll explain later. I’m still not sure and need to figure it out.”
“Fine. What’s going on now?”
He appreciated her willingness not to press the issue with questions he couldn’t—and wouldn’t—answer. “I’m at home right now, but I don’t have any cell service out here. I’m trying to reach Clay. Can you patch me through to him?”
“Let me try.”
Lance held while she worked on putting the call through. She finally came back on over the radio. “He’s not answering. The call is going straight to his voice mail and he’s not picking up on the radio. Want me to try someone else?”
Lance sighed. “Who’s on duty tonight?”
“Ronnie Hart and the new girl, Tiffany Mansford.”
Lance almost smiled at Gretchen’s description of Tiffany. She’d been a deputy for almost two years now. “See if you can get one of them to run out to Clay’s and tell him to get in touch with me. Then I need one of them to come over to my place. Can you make that happen?”
“I’ll find a way.”
“The snow is coming down again and the roads are dangerous. Tell them to use the snowmobiles.”
“I will.”
“Thanks.” His thumb released the button, and he clipped the mic back onto the main base of the radio. He had his own snowmobiles simply because he enjoyed riding them and it allowed him to get out when the weather was bad. He hated being trapped in the house.
Last year when he’d used his personal snowmobile to get to a bad wreck that no one else could drive out to, Clay had seen the wisdom in having them as part of the department. And after one of the deputies had crashed his cruiser—in spite of the chains on the tires—on slick roads last year, Clay had organized a department fund-raiser with the town’s help and had raised the money to purchase the snowmobiles.
They’d come in handy twice toward the end of last year’s winter, hauling those people injured in car wrecks and other winter accidents, and Lance thought it was one of the best investments the department had made. Not counting hiring more deputies for the growing town.
He
went back into the house to find it quiet. Silent. At least for now. His back itched but it wasn’t an itch that he could physically scratch. It was the kind of feeling that said he’d better watch his back and sleep with one eye open. All at the same time. A short time later, he heard the hum of a snowmobile outside. He pulled his weapon and gripped it while he looked out the front window. He left the porch light on and soon, the person was close enough he could make out the Wrangler’s Corner uniform. Tiffany. He holstered his weapon.
“I take it you know who’s out there?”
He glanced over his shoulder to see Amber standing against the wall, her weapon held ready. He nodded. “It’s another deputy. I asked her to come out. I want someone else here tonight to help keep watch. Go on back in the bedroom with Sam and stay there. She’ll never know you’re here.”
“Fine.” She slipped toward the back of the house and he opened the door to wave Tiffany in. “Thanks for coming.”
She took off her helmet and shook out her blond hair. Her green eyes glinted up at him. “What’s going on?”
“There was some trouble out at the Landers cabin tonight.”
“Yeah, I got the call and the place is riddled with bullets. You okay?”
“I’m okay. But I don’t know who shot the place up. Thought it would be nice to have an extra pair of eyes tonight.”
“So I’m not going to get the whole story.”
“Not tonight.”
She shrugged. “Fine. I can keep watch without needing to know why.” She started to turn toward the door then spun back. “Whose car went over the edge of the mountain and into the ditch?”
He tensed. So they’d found it. He’d have to let Amber know. “Who did it come back registered to?” he asked with a straight face.
Her lips curved. He was as good at hiding things as she was. “I managed to use the scope on my rifle and get the plate. It’s registered to someone by the name of Vivian Watson,” she said. “It has California plates. Snow covered up any tracks the person made getting out of the car and up the hill. I’m thinking if it was this Vivian person, she had help.”
Classified Christmas Mission Page 5