“Hi, Larry. How’s life treating you?”
“Not bad.” He shot a glance at Joshua.
“Do you two know each other?” She looked from Joshua to Larry.
“Haven’t had the pleasure,” Larry said and held out a hand.
The men made their introductions, then Larry faced Savannah once again. “Could I talk to you alone for a moment?” he asked.
“I’ll wait right over there,” Joshua said and walked several feet away.
Larry swept his hat off his head, revealing a head of unruly dark blond hair. He worried the brim of his hat between his thick callused fingers. “I was just wondering if maybe you’d like to have dinner with me sometime.”
Savannah took a step back from him, surprised by the invitation. Perhaps if she hadn’t met Joshua she might have considered accepting his offer. But it didn’t seem right to sleep with one man and have dinner with another. Besides, there was absolutely no sparks where Larry was concerned.
“Thanks, Larry, but right now I’m really busy with work.” He looked crestfallen. “Maybe you could check back with me in a couple of weeks,” she added, not wanting to hurt his feelings.
“I’ll do that,” he said and plopped his hat back on his head, then turned and headed down the sidewalk.
Savannah rejoined Joshua, who stood near the front door of the city hall building. He scowled. “How do you know that guy?”
“One of the first people I profiled when I started my column was Mayor Sharp. Larry works on the Mayor’s ranch, and while I was out there he showed me around the place.”
“What did he want?” The scowl showed no sign of lifting.
“He wanted to ask me out to dinner,” she said, then added, “not that it’s any of your business.”
“I hope you turned him down. He’s definitely not your type.”
She looked at him in surprise. “And just what is my type?”
The scowl finally vanished, replaced by a knowing glint in his eyes. “He has to be strong, otherwise you’d ride ripshod all over him. And he has to have money.” His gaze slowly slid down the length of her. “Because you are definitely a high maintenance kind of woman.”
“I have my own money, thank you very much,” she replied.
“Oh, and he’ll have to be the silent type because the odds are good he’ll rarely get a word in edgewise.”
“Ha, ha, I bet you think you’re funny.” She grabbed him by the arm and steered him toward the door. “Come on, let’s see if you can exude some of that Joshua charm on Lillian so she won’t take all day getting the records we want to see.”
Cotter Creek City Hall was a study in opulence for a Midwest cow town. The floor was imported gray marble with pale pink veins, more befitting a plush hotel than a government building.
Several years ago Aaron Sharp had pushed for major renovations for City Hall, resulting in mahogany counters, gleaming brass fixtures and the latest in computer technology.
One thing that hadn’t changed was Lillian. She sat at a desk behind the counter, the same place she had sat five days a week for the past ten years.
She got up from her desk as they came in, a smile of welcome on her wrinkled face. “You must not be here to pay taxes because you don’t look mad.”
“Actually, we’re here for some information,” Savannah said. “We’d like to find out who owns some of the property in the area.”
“Should be easy enough,” Lillian said. She took the list of properties that Savannah had prepared. “It’s going to take me a few minutes.”
“We’ll wait,” Joshua said.
As Lillian returned to her desk and her computer, Savannah tried to still her racing heart. She was anxious to find out what information Lillian might be able to give them, but she suspected her quick heartbeat might also be because as crazy as it sounded, Joshua had acted like a jealous suitor for a moment.
She glanced over to where he stood leaning against the counter. Don’t be ridiculous, Savannah Marie. A man who looks like Joshua might sleep with you because you’re convenient, but when it comes time for him to settle down, it won’t be with a woman like you.
“Shut up, Mother,” Savannah muttered.
“Excuse me?” Joshua eyed her curiously.
“Nothing, I was just talking to myself.”
He grinned, that easy, lazy smile that never failed to warm her. “It’s nice to know you don’t need anyone else around to fulfill your need for meaningless chatter.”
She might have been offended by his words if it hadn’t been for a soft, indulgent light that filled the green of his eyes.
“I spent most of my childhood talking to myself,” she said lightly. “I’m used to it.”
His smile faltered and instead he gazed at her for a long, somber moment. “I’m sorry about that.”
There was something soft, something gentle in his voice that pierced through the protective barrier she kept so firmly around her heart. For just a moment as she looked into his eyes hope buoyed inside her, a fragile hope that she was afraid to hang onto. She feared that if she grasped it too tightly, she’d be shattered when she discovered her mother had been right about her after all.
“This is odd,” Lillian said as she handed Joshua the information they’d been seeking. “All of those properties are listed to two men who have the same address in Boston. Isn’t that odd?” Lillian looked from Joshua to Savannah.
“It’s more than odd,” Joshua said as he exchanged a meaningful glance with Savannah. “Come on, we’ve got more work to do.”
“I was right, wasn’t I, Joshua?” Savannah said as they left City Hall. “This is proof, isn’t it?” Her cheeks flushed becomingly. “I knew I wasn’t crazy. I might be a lot of things, but I’m not crazy.” She followed him down the sidewalk. “Where are we going? What happens now?”
“We’re going to see if we can find out who these two men are and why they have the same Boston address. Dalton should be in the office and with his help maybe we can get some answers before your dinner date with Sheila.”
A hard knot pressed inside his chest. Savannah had been right. There was something evil happening in the town he loved. Somebody was buying up all the land, land that had belonged to men who had died in what now seemed like damned suspicious accidents.
He’d worried that somehow Lauren had found him and set her sights on Savannah. He’d believed that the attacks on her had been from the woman he’d left behind in New York City. Now he wasn’t so sure.
If this was as big as he thought it might be, then it might just be big enough for Savannah’s questions to be making somebody very nervous. He fought an impulse to reach out and take her hand in his, as if to assure himself that at least for the moment she was safe.
The Wild West Protective Services wooden sign creaked on its hinges in the midmorning breeze as he and Savannah approached the front door.
Inside Dalton sat at the desk, looking bored and with a computer game pulled up in front of him. “Hey, what’s up?” He greeted them and closed down the game.
“We need some answers and I’m hoping you can get them off the Internet,” Joshua said. He handed Dalton the sheet of paper Lillian had printed out for them with the names and addresses of the men who owned the properties.
“I want to know who these men are and why they’re buying up land in Cotter Creek,” Joshua said, then went on to explain what he and Savannah had been investigating.
“Strange,” Dalton said when he’d finished. “Why would a couple of Boston men want anything to do with Cotter Creek?”
“That’s what I’m hoping you can find out,” Joshua replied.
“This may take a little while,” Dalton said.
Joshua looked at Savannah. “Want to grab a quick cup of coffee at the café while we wait?”
“Sounds good to me,” she replied.
“We’ll be back in twenty minutes or so,” Joshua said to his brother, who nodded absently, his attention totally focused on hi
s task.
There was no way Joshua felt like just sitting and waiting in the office. He knew Dalton would work better if he didn’t have the distraction of him and Savannah standing over him.
“What does all this mean, Joshua?” Savannah asked him a few minutes later as they sat at a back booth in the café. “Why would those men be buying land here?”
“I don’t know. Maybe Dalton will come up with some answers that will make sense.”
She frowned thoughtfully. “You think those men are responsible for all those ranchers’ deaths? Do you think one of those men killed Charlie?”
“Who knows? To be perfectly honest, I don’t know what to think.” He took a sip of the strong, hot coffee, then continued. “Cotter Creek is such a small town. I do find it difficult to believe that there are strangers running around killing people then buying up their land. People around here notice strangers.”
Savannah’s pretty eyes gazed at him somberly. “Then that means probably somebody here in town is killing those people. Somebody we know. Maybe somebody we trust.”
Once again the knot in his chest constricted tighter. “Hopefully when we get back to the office Dalton will have some answers for us.”
Savannah wrapped her slender fingers around her coffee cup and stared out the nearby window. As she looked outside, he found himself staring at her.
She was right. She wasn’t beautiful in the traditional sense. But she was pretty, and when she smiled she exuded a warmth that was entrancing.
Today she was dressed in a pair of navy slacks and a pink and navy striped sweater that intimately hugged her curves. As he stared at her, desire struck him like a punch to the gut.
He liked her. The sudden knowledge surprised him. In the time they had spent together he’d definitely come to admire her intelligence, he enjoyed her sense of humor and sensed they shared the same moral standards.
He’d even grown to like the fact that she’d never met a silence she couldn’t fill and had come to realize that her stubbornness was actually a fierce determination to do what she thought was right.
There was a soft vulnerability in her that touched him. Even though she often joked about her mother and the ugly things she’d been told about herself, he sensed she carried deep scars from her childhood and it surprised him that there was a part of him that wanted to heal those scars.
He wanted her again. Right here. Right now. He wanted to strip that sweater over her head and kiss the freckles on her shoulders. He needed to hear her soft sighs as he caressed her skin.
She looked at him then and a small gasp escaped her. A blush worked up her neck and swept to her cheeks…as if she were privy to his innermost thoughts, as if his desire was raw and bare in his gaze.
“What are you thinking?” she asked, her voice a husky whisper.
“I was just thinking that maybe after we see what Dalton finds, you’d like me to fix you some lunch at my place.” Of course, that hadn’t been what he’d been thinking. His thoughts hadn’t been of food, but rather of her.
“I’d like that,” she said simply, her eyes simmering with unspoken words.
“Don’t you want to know if I can cook or not?” he asked.
Her smile heightened the tension and made him glad he was seated at a booth. “I don’t care if you can cook or not.”
Her reply let him know she was aware of what would happen if she came to his place, she was not only aware of it but apparently wanted him as much as he wanted her.
She cleared her throat and sat back in the seat. “So, you still think it’s possible Lauren is after me?”
Thoughts of their lunch date instantly disappeared from his head. “I don’t know. I still haven’t been able to make contact with her and I have to admit that worries me a little.”
He took another sip of his coffee and frowned thoughtfully. “I can’t believe how badly I screwed that up.”
“From what you told me about the situation, you didn’t screw up. It sounds to me like Lauren had some major problems to start with.” Savannah leaned forward. “I’ve never understood those kind of women who smash car windows or rip up clothing or stalk a man because of unrequited love. If a man doesn’t want me, then I certainly don’t want to be with him. Life is too short for that kind of drama.”
“Yeah, but I should have seen that Lauren wasn’t right. Somehow I missed the signals, I misjudged her. Reading people and situations is part of what I was trained to do as a bodyguard.” Frustration edged through him at thoughts of Lauren.
She reached across the table and touched the back of one of his hands. “Joshua, stop beating yourself up. If disturbed or evil people were so easy to pick out then we’d know who in this town was responsible for those deaths just by looking at his face. Besides, as far as I’m concerned you’re a terrific bodyguard. You saved me from getting a butt full of birdshot, didn’t you?”
He turned his hand and grabbed hers as he thought of that moment when Jim Ramsey had told him somebody had been attacked at Winnie’s place. “Yeah, but somebody almost beat you to death in your bed and I was nowhere around.”
“You aren’t to blame for that. Who knew that anyone would break into Winnie’s. You can’t be with me every minute of the day and night.” She released his hand. “Joshua, if I had to handpick a bodyguard, you’d be who I’d choose.”
“Why? Because I’m a West?”
“I wouldn’t care if your name was Mud.” She leaned back in the booth and eyed him intently. “I’ve seen the way you are when we’re out in public, the way you look at everything and everyone, how you measure the safety of the place and the people around me. I’d hire you because whenever I’m with you I feel safe.”
Her words dug deeply into him, touching him more than he wanted her to know. “Thanks, and personally I’m glad my name isn’t Mud.”
She smiled. “You think we should head back over to the office?”
“Yeah, let’s go see if Dalton has managed to get us some answers.”
Together they left the café and walked the short distance back to the Wild West Protective Services office. Dalton was waiting for them, a frown etched across his forehead.
“I have something for you, but it isn’t much,” he said. “I can’t find anything on the two men, but the address comes back with a listing for a MoTwin Corporation.”
“Did you find out anything about the corporation?”
Dalton shook his head. “All I’ve managed to learn so far is that it’s a privately owned corporation. It’s going to take me longer than twenty minutes to get more information. It looks like it might be some sort of dummy corporation.”
“Keep digging, would you?” Joshua asked.
“Definitely. I’ll keep you posted on what I find out.”
Once again Joshua and Savannah stepped outside into the late morning sunshine. “So, what do you want to do now?” he asked Savannah. “Do you need to check in at the newspaper office or anything?”
She shook her head, her hair glinting like fire in the sunlight. She looked at him, her amber eyes blazing more gold than brown. “How about that lunch you offered me? I’m suddenly ravenous.”
Chapter 11
Not a word was spoken as Joshua sped to the West ranch. Savannah knew they were going to his cabin for one reason and one reason alone.
To make love.
The air between them snapped and crackled with their intent, with their desire for one another. It was as if the electricity was so big, so intense it left no room for talk or thought.
Even though she knew there was no future with him, even though she knew she’d never be anything but a momentary diversion in his life, no doubts entered her mind, her heart. She would take whatever pieces Joshua was willing to give her of himself.
She’d take from him until he tired of her then she would go quietly away. No drama, no tears. She was the queen of reality, and she had never questioned that her future would ultimately be a lonely one.
They fl
ew by the West ranch house and down a pasture lane, eventually stopping in front of a small cabin half hidden by lush trees and overgrown brush. The place held a rustic charm that wasn’t lost on her. It looked like the perfect place for a private midday rendezvous.
Savannah’s body nearly sang with anticipation as they got out of the truck and she followed Joshua across the small porch and to the front door.
She’d barely gotten inside the door when he grabbed her and crashed his mouth to hers. The kiss felt half-angry, demanding and all-consuming.
She returned it with the same emotions. She was half-angry with him because she knew that he wanted nothing more from her than to sate a physical desire. She demanded that he give her all he was capable of giving because she was at least worth that much.
They’d entered into the kitchen and the force of the kiss drove her back against the refrigerator. Joshua leaned into her, trapping her between the cool enamel of the fridge and his hot, hard body.
“What are you doing to me?” he asked, his voice a half growl.
“I don’t know, but you’re doing the same thing to me,” she replied breathlessly.
He slammed his mouth back to hers and ground his hips against hers. She ground back, loving the feel of his arousal hard against her. It frightened her more than a little, the ease that he could sweep all thoughts out of her mind, how easily he drove her half-crazy with desire.
The kiss ended and he stepped back from her, his chest heaving with deep breaths, his green eyes glowing with a primal energy.
“You make me crazy,” he said, his voice a husky whisper. “I can’t remember ever wanting a woman like I want you right now.”
The admission from him simply fanned the flames that burned inside her. “Joshua, I want you so much it’s all I can think about.”
He took her mouth again with his, his tongue battling hers in a sensual war. Savannah wound her arms around his neck, melting against him as the heat of his kiss weakened her knees.
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