Tuff paced the barn, wondering whether Angie was going to show. He’d found an English saddle in a storage room and had tacked up Muchacho and a gentle mare named Sugar, who was as old as Tuff. He thought about calling but didn’t want to wake her if she’d slept in.
He glanced at his watch. Five more minutes, he told himself. But it was already closing in on nine-thirty. He thought they’d settled on nine. But maybe she’d stuck with the original eight and had shown up, believing that he’d stood her up.
Of course, there was a third possibility.
“You’re here.”
He turned around to find Angie, dressed to ride in jeans and a pair of cowboy boots. Her cheeks were filled with color, like maybe she’d jogged the mile to the stable.
“I thought we were walking over together.”
He didn’t remember that being part of the plan. “Sorry. I didn’t realize you were waiting for me. I got here early, hoping to scout around for an English saddle.” He nudged his head at Sugar.
She lit up when she saw what he’d found. “That’s my old saddle. Where did you find it?”
“In one of the tack rooms. Ellie’s got one too. I figured in a pinch we could make that work but then I found this.”
She lifted one of the stirrups, admiring it with a smile as big as the ranch. “My whole family gave me crap for this saddle.” She looked down at her shit kickers. “Had I known I would’ve worn my equestrian boots and my riding britches.”
He was having enough trouble not ogling her in jeans. A pair of skin-tight riding britches would’ve done him in.
“You ready to go?”
“If I can remember how to do this.” She mounted up as gracefully as any accomplished horsewoman.
“It’s just like riding a bike.”
“We’ll see.” She clicked her tongue. “Be kind to me, Sugar. It’s been a while.”
“You two are acquainted, huh?”
“Oh yeah. Sugar and I are like this.” She held her two fingers together, then scratched the mare on her head. “Aren’t we, girl?”
He took the lead, heading for a trail that wended gently through the hills but wasn’t too grueling. Until Angie felt comfortable, they’d stick with mostly flat land.
It was sunny, not a cloud in the sky and less chilly than it had been the night before. But they both had jackets if the temperature dropped.
“I thought we’d ride to the south pasture, then into the foothills. Nothing too strenuous. That okay?”
“Sure.” She reined her horse alongside his. “This must be Muchacho?” She leaned over to pet Tuff’s gelding’s muzzle.
“Yep.”
“Hello, Muchacho. Pleased to meet you.” Muchacho pushed his forehead into her hand. “You’re a sweetheart, aren’t you?”
Tuff turned in his saddle to take a look at Angie’s seat. She might claim to be rusty, but the woman could ride. He didn’t know why he was surprised. Her brother and cousins were as good horsemen as any he knew.
“You want to pick up the pace?”
“Sure.”
Tuff loosened his reins, and gave Muchacho a slight tap with his heel, moving him into a trot. Angie did the same. From there they changed to a lope, or he supposed to a canter in Angie’s case. They ran as far as the ridge, then slowed their horses to walk as they climbed the hill.
“That was fun,” Angie said with the giddiness of a young girl.
Her mood was infectious because Tuff couldn’t stop smiling. “Looks like you’ve still got it.”
“I have to say you were right. It is like riding a bicycle. But I have a feeling I’m going to be sore tomorrow.”
Where the trail narrowed, they rode single file. When it widened, they came up next to each other and took their time covering ground and taking in the sites.
“It’s a great day. Not too cold and the wind has died down.” Angie leaned forward over Sugar’s neck to sniff the air, giving Tuff a nice look at her ass. “Can you smell the pine trees? It smells like Christmas.”
He equated pine trees with nature, not Christmas. But he’d never been big on holidays.
“Should we go to the top or do you want to stay at this elevation for a while?” There was a switchback up the mountainside.
“I’m good with this.”
They stayed on the trail they were on and maintained a leisurely pace, riding in companionable silence. Not a word was spoken about the kiss the previous night much to Tuff’s relief. It had been a mistake, though he’d enjoyed it more than he wanted to admit. Hell, he’d laid awake most of the night reliving it, tempted to march across the creek and finish the job.
“We should’ve packed a picnic lunch.” Angie pulled Sugar’s head away from a patch of grass.
“You hungry?” He had a protein bar in his saddlebag.
“Not yet. But it’s a perfect day for dining al fresco, don’t you think?”
“Sure.” He visualized the both of them laying on a blanket and his groin tightened. It was a better idea—and a safer one—to keep riding.
They circled the mountain and headed back across the field. There was a cluster of cows in the pasture, jostling for space under a shade tree.
Angie stared out over the field at a second group that had congregated at a water trough. “Did you call Cash last night?”
“Yeah. He drove out on one of the ATVs for a closer look but thinks one of the boys left the gate open.”
“Makes sense. I know Travis was practicing his driving skills in Jace’s pickup. He probably went through the gate and came around on the public road and forgot to come back and close it.”
“According to Cash, the herd is all accounted for. So no harm, no foul.”
“It was good of you to check last night.”
He gave a slight bob of his head. The Daltons were his friends. Of course, he’d look out for their cattle and their property.
While they were on the topic of the previous night, he figured he say something about their kiss. Get it out in the open and put it to rest.
But before he could compose the exact words in his head, she spoke first. “What was your deal last night?”
“What do you mean?” He wanted to make sure they were talking about the same thing before he explained himself.
“We were kissing and then we weren’t. And for whatever reason you seemed mad. Or at the very least upset.”
He blew out a breath and reined Muchacho over to a tree, where he let the gelding munch on the tall grass. Angie followed him over, took her feet out of the stirrups and stretched her legs, while staring at him expectantly.
“I wasn’t mad.” Only at himself for his lack of willpower. “But I shouldn’t have been kissing you.”
“Why not?”
“A lot of reasons, starting with the fact that I’m not looking for anything complicated. And you living next door complicates things.”
“It was just a kiss, Tuff.”
He held her gaze. “You and I both know it wasn’t going to end with just a kiss if one of us hadn’t shut it down when we did.”
Her cheeks turned red, but she didn’t deny it because it was the damned truth. He’d been close to taking her on the front seat of his truck. He was forty damned years old and behaving like a besotted high school kid.
“I did exactly what I promised your brother I wouldn’t do.”
“My brother?” Her head jerked back. “What does he have to do with this?”
He looked away, realizing he’d stepped in it. The last thing he wanted to do was get in the middle of a family squabble. And it didn’t take a genius to see that Angie was going to give Sawyer a rash of shit for messing around in her private life.
“Forget I said that. Can we get back to riding now?” He tugged Muchacho’s head from the grass and nudged the gelding into a trot.
Angie followed behind him. He could feel her agitation burning through his back the whole way home.
* * * *
“The meddling has to stop now!” Angie pushed her way into Sawyer’s house, brushed past him, and went straight to the kitchen.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He closed his laptop, which was sitting on the center island next to a reporter’s notebook and a file of papers.
She got a bottle of water out of the fridge and spun around to face him. “Why would you tell Tuff to stay away from me?”
“I didn’t tell him to stay away from you.”
She knew he was obfuscating by being too literal. Maybe he didn’t use those exact words with Tuff, but it was something close enough. “What did you tell him, then?”
“I’ve told him a lot of things. You’ll have to be more specific.” It was the kind of smart aleck answer he would’ve given when they were kids.
“If one of your sources said that to you, you’d laugh in his face.”
His face softened and he gave her a hug. She knew from experience that he was getting ready to charm her—another childhood tactic he used as his “get out of jail” card. This time, she didn’t plan to fall for it. She was a grown woman and didn’t need him warning off her romantic prospects. Not that Tuff Garrison was a prospect or that she was looking for romance. She wasn’t. But she still had to assert her independence.
“Ah, come on, Ange. I’m just looking out for you.”
“So, you admit you said something?” She sat at the island and drank her water.
He shrugged. “I may have mentioned that you were coming out of a bad situation and didn’t need any more upheaval.”
“Why? Did he bring it up?”
He sat next to her. “I can’t remember.”
“Sure you don’t.” She poked him in the arm. “Sawyer, I know you mean well but please butt out. It’s embarrassing.” It was beyond embarrassing. It was mortifying at her age.
“Ange, Tuff’s not for you.”
“You already made your feelings clear on that. Not that it’s any of your business, but there is nothing between us other than friendship. Though I don’t know what your problem with him is.” Tuff appeared to have it together a hell of a lot more than any of the other men she’d dated. Compared to Zane, Tuff was a veritable prince, starting with the fact that he wasn’t about to become a felon.
“No problem. He’s a stand-up guy all the way. But he’s forty and still single. And I can tell you that it’s not from a lack of female interest.” He made that know-it-all face that used to drive her nuts.
“First of all, I’m not interested in him in that way. And second of all, I remember a time when you were single.” She flashed a got-you smile.
“That was different,” he protested.
“Yeah, like how?” She had him there.
He scrubbed his hand through his hair. “Did you come over just to harass me?”
“And to bum a water.” She held up her bottle. “Where’s Gina?”
“At the restaurant. The woman works too much.”
“Kettle. Black.”
“I’m not five months pregnant.”
She loved how smitten her brother was with his wife. Before she’d left for Zaire, he’d been a confirmed bachelor. And now Sawyer was going to be a father.
“I’m sure she’ll know when it’s too much.”
Angie spotted a nearly full pot of coffee on the counter and decided to switch beverages. She got up and helped herself to a cup. “You want a refill?” She spotted his empty mug on the center island.
“Nah, I’m good.” He eyed her ancient cowboy boots. “What are you up to today?”
“No plans.” She got the milk out of the refrigerator and fixed up her coffee the way she liked it. “I went riding with Tuff this morning.” She tossed that out just to get under his skin.
“I guess that’s when he told you that we had a conversation, huh?”
“He didn’t tell me anything.” As annoyed as she was that Sawyer and Tuff had conspired behind her back, she didn’t want to sell out her neighbor. “It just kind of came out during our conversation.”
“And what conversation was that?” Sawyer crossed his arms and pointedly stared at her.
“I don’t remember. What are you doing today, besides working?” She nudged her head at his now closed laptop.
“I was thinking of going on a ride myself. Maybe checking some fences. Too bad you already went.”
No way was she getting back on a horse today. Her muscles were still screaming from her ride with Tuff. She suspected she’d be even stiffer tomorrow. “Maybe Jace or Cash will go with you. I bet Ellie would be up for a ride. And if she goes, Travis and Grady could probably be talked into it.”
“Not a bad idea.”
The doorbell rang and Sawyer got up to look outside the window to see who it was. “Come on up,” he yelled down.
A few seconds later, Cash bounded up the stairs. “Hey,” he ruffled Angie’s hair, “I hear you and Tuff had a bit of an adventure last night.”
Sawyer shot her a look. “What’s that about?”
“Someone left the gate open last night. Tuff and I drove over to the south pasture to make sure nothing was amiss.” She didn’t elaborate on how they happened to come across the open gate. But she was certain that Sawyer had already figured it out.
“He called me afterward and I went back out just in case.” Cash grabbed a mug from the cupboard and poured himself some coffee. “Everything was fine. But we’ve got to remember to keep that gate closed at night.”
“Have you talked to Jace about it?” Sawyer asked.
“I’m on my way over there next.” Cash leaned against the counter, sipping from his cup. “What are you two up to?”
“Ange went riding this morning and I was putting the last touches on an article that’s due on Monday. How ’bout you?”
“I promised to take the girls to Roseville. Ellie needs some things for winter. The girl is growing faster than a weed. You’re welcome to come along, Angie. Aubrey and Ellie would love to have you.”
“Thanks for the invite but I don’t think I’m ready for a mall yet.” In WITSEC, she’d been instructed to stay away from large gathering places or crowded areas where someone might recognize her.
“Everything going okay?” Cash tried to make it sound like a casual question but the three of them knew what he was really asking.
She shrugged. “I’m still constantly looking over my shoulder.” She considered telling them that she had the sensation of being watched but knew it would sound crazy without any evidence to back it up. It was all in her head, she told herself. “Why, have you heard anything?” Just because Cash was no longer an FBI agent didn’t mean he didn’t keep his ear to the ground.
“Nothing that you don’t already know.” He rubbed his chin. “That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t all be on the alert.”
Angie averted her eyes, not wanting him to see the fear there.
But Cash didn’t miss much. “Ange, I’m just talking like a cop. I’ll feel a lot better when these yahoos are convicted and locked up for a long time. But for all intents and purposes the case appears to be wrapped up, leaving you safe to live your life. I just think it’s good to stay on your toes for the next several months, especially as we get closer to the trial.”
She was. After the incident with the paper falling from the door, she’d taken to using one of Earl’s other tricks. Whenever she left the house, she hid a fishing line over her door under a fall wreath she bought from Ava and Winter. She tied the line to a boot she placed on the inside of the house at the foot of the door. If the boot impeded her from coming inside, she knew it was safe. If the door swung in without interference from the boot, she knew someone had already opened the door before her. Low tech but it did the job.
“I am,” she told Cash, leaving out the part about her booby trap. No need for her cousin and brother to think she was needlessly paranoid. “I’ve been keeping in touch with my handler from the marshal’s office.”
“Are you nervous, Ange?” Sawyer paced behind her. “Maybe we should get you some kind of a panic button that would alert all of us if anyone approached you. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. It would just be a little peace of mind before the trial. What do you say?”
“I don’t think it’s necessary.” But a small part of her didn’t think it was a bad idea.
“I like it.” Cash told Sawyer, then turned to Angie. “Sawyer and I will look into it. It can’t hurt. And if the feds decide to put you on their witness list…well, it doesn’t hurt to amp up your security.”
She couldn’t argue with that, though she desperately hoped the authorities had enough evidence without her testimony to put the Liberty Fighters away for life.