He laughed to himself. Just my luck. She asks me to kiss her while she’s drunk and not likely to remember. The margaritas had brought her walls down. Now, she looks soft and approachable. Vulnerable even.
Which meant that Timbers could do nothing but watch over her. He refocused on doing his job and drove on into the night.
Chapter 8
A few nights later, Red had gone to bed early after a phone call from Timbers, who was out in L.A. again. He’d taken to calling her now and then, just to check in with her and make sure she was okay. Something she rather liked. That night, he’d told her that his client in L.A. liked him and had requested him whenever there was a security detail. So, he’d be in town for a few days, and she’d see him in class when he helped out, but then he’d be called away again.
It sucked, because she liked being around him. She could be herself, and she didn’t have to put him at arm’s length. After the night she’d had her tattoo redone and they’d had dinner, she’d looked for him whenever he was on the ranch or if she knew he was coming out there for any reason.
They hadn’t had a second date yet, though they teased each other about their first one.
“I don’t know if I want to date you,” he joked. “I seem to put you to sleep. And then after all that excitement, you get me in trouble.”
Well, she had, because he’d gotten an earful about letting her get drunk. Turned out that was against the rules off-site of the ranch as well an they’d even re-written the rules to be more specific after that. “Look, I’m not an alcoholic,” she told Leah the next day. “I was just celebrating a big occasion. Bigger to me than New Year’s Eve, right? It’s that kind of drinking. Once in a blue moon is not an issue, and it’s not affecting me in a bad way.”
“If we make allowances for a one-time event, then there will be another and another. If not you, then another woman. Think about the other women here for a change. This isn’t just about you.” Leah shook her head. “I’m only giving you a pass this time, because we weren’t clear enough in the rules. But that won’t happen again.”
A couple of the women seemed mad at her, but Red didn’t care. She wasn’t going to see any of them after she graduated from the program anyway. What really sucked was that the Brotherhood Protectors were keeping Timbers busy, when she’d finally decided she wanted to spend time getting to know him. Hank had so much work coming in that he was working security here tonight, with Gunny and Swede and she’d seen Barrett too, before she turned in.
Red had talked to Timbers on the phone that night, and then had gone to sleep early, so she was sound asleep in bed when the sound of gunfire woke her.
Gunfire. Here. Holy shit. Z’s here.
She sat straight up in bed, and then was out, reaching for her clothes, jamming her legs into her jeans.
“Everyone stay in your rooms!” Gunny shouted from the corridor outside.
“And stay away from the windows!” Barrett shouted.
Pulling her jeans up and fastening them over the gauze pad she was still wearing over her new tattoo to protect it, Red moved over to the side of the window, and then leaned just enough to look out.
No one’s at the side of the house. Sounds like it’s coming from out front.
She unlocked her door and opened it a crack to peer out. Hank was at the back of the building, going door to door, knocking, and when the door opened, saying, “Stay behind me.”
The women were coming out and doing as said, following.
Red didn’t wait for him. Pulling on a T-shirt and slipping her feet into her sandals, she went out the door and joined the other women behind Hank.
As he reached Cecelia’s door, it opened, and she came out. “What’s happening?” she asked, reaching for his forearm, her hand closing around it.
He put his hand on hers. “I’m taking you to a safer room.” He pulled her out of the doorway and into the hall, keeping the other women behind him. “Put your hand on my back,” he said to her.
“What’s happening?” Leah asked; as she looked out from the door across the hall, fear tightening her face.
“We’ve got a couple of fire bugs,” he said.
The women gasped, all except for Red.
Bullshit. Red didn’t buy that for a minute. That was gunfire I heard, and there’s no smoke.
“It’s all right. Don’t panic. Everyone stay close.” He peered around the doorframe. “Swede,” Hank spoke into his mouthpiece. “Gunny,” he spoke again. “Barrett.”
Why weren’t they answering him? What was happening? Red frowned. She hated not knowing what was going on. If it’s Z, I need to be ready.
“Get everyone to the kitchen and get them down on the floor,” he said to Leah.
Leah stood counting heads. “Two more.” She pointed to the last two doors. “Tamara and Chyna.” She knocked on one door and he knocked on another.
“Follow Leah,” he told Tamara, the short brown-haired woman who answered the door.
Chyna opened her door.
“Come with me,” Leah said to her. Over her shoulder, to him, she said, “That’s everyone.”
“Go to the kitchen and stay down on the floor, behind the island, away from the window,” he said.
Leah raised an eyebrow but nodded. Cecelia stood still. Her face was white, and her eyes were wide with terror.
Shit. That’s right. Cecelia’s ex had tried to burn down her house. Z’s not the only one to be afraid of. Any one of us might have some dangerous asshole show up ready to do real bad things.
“It’s going to be okay,” Leah reassured the group. She reached for Cecelia’s hand. “Take my hand. This is the safest place for us. We have to stay quiet and calm. Hank will let us know when we can come out.”
Hank nodded at Leah. She was in charge of the women now. He headed toward the front of the building.
The women had just reached the kitchen when the fire alarm went off.
Damn. I was wrong. There is a fire, somewhere.
Chyna started to cry, and her shoulders shook.
Red put her arm around the other woman’s shoulder and squeezed. “Hey, it’s gonna be all right. We’re safe.”
She wasn’t so sure of that, but as she looked around at the other women, it seemed like she and Leah were the only ones not scared to death. Chyna did get on her nerves sometimes, but she was her sparring partner, and Red felt the need to boost her up. “We’re tough, remember? And our guys have everything under control. If this building were on fire, they’d be getting us out, not telling us go to the kitchen.”
Swede stepped into the kitchen to check on them. “Everybody here?” he asked.
“Yes,” Leah said, as Red gave him thumbs up.
“Everybody good?”
She gave him another thumbs up, and he nodded then turned and left.
“See?” she said to Chyna. “If we needed to get out of the building, he’d have been herding us out.”
She didn’t know about a fire, but she did know she’d heard gunshots and shouting.
Inside the building, the fire alarms were still going, and smoke was spreading from the back of the building toward the front.
Barrett barreled into the room and hurried the women out of the kitchen and into the great room.
Gunny joined Barrett. He hollered at the women as he waved an arm. “Come on,” he said. “Let’s go.”
The women ran after the men as they all rushed toward the front door. The gunshots had stopped, and smoke was filling the building.
Everyone ran outside, dashing down the steps, until they were away from the house. Then Red turned back to look. Fire burned in the building and across the roof. The bedrooms’ outer walls on the side where the fire had been set were burning higher, nearer the roof, as the big logs burned slower. Flames licked up into the air and across the roof on that back corner of the building. There were a few dead bodies on the ground and Chyna gasped when she saw them. Clearly, she recognized them. Her gaze clung to each as thoug
h not believing what she saw. Barrett was looking after her now, so Red didn’t have to play mama hen.
Nobody needed her. Which was fine. Just the way she liked it. Everyone else was busy, either doing something to try to put the fire out or comforting each other. She exhaled.
So, glad it wasn’t Z.
* * *
The reconstruction after the fire was underway. One side of the back of the building was closed off with tarps while half of the bedrooms were being repaired. The women had to double up in the other rooms, but everyone was getting along well. Red spent less time in her room now that she had a roommate and more of her time outside.
Security camera’s had been installed one at the guard gate.
Red watched Hank as he installed another security camera outside the main house by the doors leading to the pool. “Kind of like closing the barn doors after the horses are out, isn’t it?” She turned to Timbers. “Your security company should’ve done this before Chyna’s crazy ex and his cousins came after her. I thought we were supposed to be safe.”
Overhearing her, Hank said, “I recommended this step when I did the initial consult on this site. But the board declined because they thought the ranch was remote enough.” He shook his head.
“Right.” Red snorted in disgust. “They just didn’t want to spend the money.”
“Bingo,” Timbers said. “You nailed it.”
“Costing them a lot more now, I’ll bet,” she murmured.
“Yep,” Hank said. “When you hire security, it’s a wise idea to take their advice.”
“I’m glad you guys where here to stop them,” Red said. “The attack could’ve gone really bad for everyone.”
“I’m glad too,” Hank said. “From here on out, the company wants us to monitor things, so we’ll literally be keeping an eye on things.”
“Wish I’d been here,” Timbers said, his gaze cutting toward Red.
“You couldn’t help it. You were on that job in L.A.” Red said, moving closer. “Don’t worry about it. We’re all fine.”
She’d been thinking about Timbers a lot lately. “Tell you what. You can make it up to me. I want to go on an evening trail ride, and we aren’t allowed to go riding by ourselves. So, would you like to go with me?” She smiled at him. “That is, if you ride…”
He grunted. “Texas born and raised, remember? I was riding before I could read and write.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right. Then I’ll be in good company.” She stood. “Let’s go talk to Buck.”
“All right.” Timbers stood and joined her. “I’m right behind you.”
They found Buck and told him they wanted to go for a moonlit ride. He picked out two horses for them and helped them saddle the horses. “When you come back, you know what to do,” he told Red.
“Yes, sir.” She nodded.
“So, you know horses?” Timbers asked.
“Buck has been teaching me. I go riding every morning, and I help him with stuff.”
“I see.” Timbers said. “That’s good. I’d heard the others talking about you not riding with them and thought maybe you weren’t much into horses.”
“I’m not a big joiner,” she said, avoiding his knowing gaze.
They mounted up and headed down the trail.
The horses knew the way, but so did Red. Timbers was the only one who hadn’t ridden this way. They reached the creek and stopped, dismounting. The horses drank from the creek while the birds were silent, sleeping.
“It’s different here at night,” Red said. “I like it.” She looked up at the sky. “No light pollution out here.”
“I like it,” he said. He reached for her hand and pulled her close. “And I like you, too.” Wrapping one arm around her, he bent his head and kissed her.
His lips softly brushed hers and she caught her breath. The gentle way he kissed her settled into her body and soul, letting her know she was cared for. She relaxed into the kiss, opening her mouth, their tongues touching, exploring, and giving.
When they came up for air, she said, “I think I’d like to stay somewhere out here after I leave the program. I like this great outdoors and don’t think I’d be happy going back to a big city like Philadelphia. I’m gonna miss helping Buck in the morning, and then going for a ride.”
“Then stay. I’m sure there are jobs nearby. Will the ranch help you find a job?”
“Oh, yeah, that’s part of the exit plan in the program. Everything is all thought out. I can wait tables or tend bar. Those kind of jobs are easy to find.”
“Well, I hope you find something you enjoy.”
“Thanks.” She sighed. “We have to head back to the stable soon.”
They were both aware of the curfew. He nodded. “Any time you’re ready.”
By the time they’d put the horses in for the night and made it back to the main house, it was later than they’d thought.
Cecelia was in the great room, waiting up, and when Red snuck in and tried to tiptoe through the room, she spoke cleared her throat.
“There’s no point tiptoeing,” she said, her tone wry. “I can hear you. I hear you every time you sneak out.”
“Oh. You startled me,” Red said.
Every time? Is the woman kidding me? Surely not every time.
“You know, going out on the trail at night means Buck doesn’t get enough sleep. He still has to get up at the same time in the morning.”
“I put the horses up and made sure everything was done for the night.”
“Doesn’t matter. He won’t sleep ’til he checks on those horses. He’ll go back downstairs after you’re in your room, and he’ll check them over before he can go back to bed and to sleep.”
“I didn’t realize,” Red said. “Do you know everything that goes on in this place?”
“Pretty much.”
“There are a lot of people to keep up with.”
“That’s my job.” Cecelia stood. “Now, it’s late, and we all need to get some sleep. Tomorrow comes early.”
“Good night.” Red headed for her room.
“Good night.” Cecelia followed her toward her room.
Once inside her room, Red had trouble falling asleep. She kept touching her lips and thinking of how they’d felt when Timbers kissed her. She wished he were here in her bed, with her right now.
Chapter 9
Red had graduated from the program and was enjoying her new job at the Give a Whistle. It was good to be working again. She was even getting used to the patrons whistling at her. She made good tips, there was a bouncer who kept the men in line, and she was able to live closer to Timbers, when he was at home with the Brotherhood Protectors.
He’d even said he might buy a place out here and asked if she wanted to go house shopping with him next week.
This was her third week working, and it was last call when Timbers and Barrett walked into the bar. She waved at them and smiled. “Hey guys, good to see you.”
“Now, why can’t I get a smile like that one from you,” said the guy who’d been trying to pick her up all night.
Timbers banged his hand down on the bar beside the man, just strong enough to get the man’s attention, making him jump. “Because you’re not her boyfriend, bro.”
The drunk sat up, took his glass, and said, “Scuse me.” Then he walked away.
“Timbers, you sure know how to clear a bar.” Barrett laughed. “And look at that, two seats just waiting for us.”
“You two, behave,” Red said, with a smile. “What’ll you have? It’s on me.”
Timbers leaned his head to the side and gave her you know better kind of look. “Now, what did I tell you, darlin’, about trying to pay for me?”
“Ain’t happening,” she said.
“Damn straight,” Barrett said. “What kind of man lets his woman pay for everything? A lazy man, that’s who. And Timbers is not a lazy man.”
“I’ll take a draft. You know the kind I like.” Timbers winked at her.
; Red laughed. “Yes, I do.”
“I’ll have the same,” Barrett said.
Red filled up two beer mugs and placed them in front of the men. “Glad you two are here,” she said.
Tonight, the bouncer was out with the flu, so she was glad Timbers would be there to walk her to her car. She was about to tell him that when a man came up to the bar from the table with the largest party in the place. “Last call,” he shouted. “We all want one more.”
She hurried over with her notepad. Then things got busy and she was on the run until closing. Running to the ladies’ room before she had to close and count the drawer, she hurried inside, did her business, and then hurried to be back out so she could close.
Pushing the door open and coming out of the ladies’ room, she took one step when a hand came over her mouth and nose, closing off her air, and a familiar voice in her ear said, “Fight or bite, I’ll cut you.”
Ice.
Cold dread filled her belly while the chilled steel of the knife against her neck made her freeze, forgetting every move she’d learned.
The gang was here. Z has found me.
She tried to fight, but she couldn’t breathe or stop Ice from dragging her out the door.
Then just before she passed out from lack of air, she was out the door and into the night, where Z and three more of his men were waiting. Ice let her breathe then, and she gasped, taking in large gulps of air.
* * *
Timbers had a bad feeling even before thinking Red had taken too long in the restroom. It hadn’t been that long, but that bad feeling had him getting off the bar stool and heading down the hall to the bathroom.
He stopped outside the ladies’ room and knocked. “Red, you okay?”
Hearing no answer, he opened the door and looked inside. Empty.
“Barrett!” he called over his shoulder to his buddy, as he started to run.
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