Her Cowboy Defender. Kerry Connor
After all, this was about her family. She would do whatever she had to.
Just as he would.
PIPER SHIFTED UNEASILY in her seat as the truck barreled down the open highway toward the cowboy’s ranch. She hadn’t felt this uncertain when they’d been headed toward the rendezvous point. Back then, she’d had a plan. She’d known where she was going, where she had to be, what she had to do. Before that, it had all been about getting to Pam. For the past two days, she’d been running nonstop with clear objectives in mind.
Now she didn’t have any of those things. She had no idea where they were going or what to do or what was going to happen next. The only thing she knew was that, once again, she wasn’t calling the shots. This man was, just as the kidnapper had been. She liked the feeling even less. At least with the kidnapper, she’d known what his motives were. With this man, she didn’t even have that.
She studied him out of the corner of her eye, knowing he was probably aware of her scrutiny but hoping he couldn’t read her nervousness. Why would he want to help her after everything she’d done to him, knowing how much trouble she was in?
“Because somebody needs to.”
It was a like a line out of a movie. People didn’t say things like that in real life. People didn’t do things like this in real life, certainly not in hers. She wanted to believe people like that did exist, that there were people who were willing to help a complete stranger, that she’d somehow come across one when she had needed him most. Experience had taught her that she couldn’t. No one in her life had ever offered her as much as that, not even Pam, her supposed other half.
Could she even trust him? It might not be a coincidence that he happened to come along when she’d been on her way to meet the kidnappers. Or even if he wasn’t directly involved, he might know them. She hadn’t thought Tara could trust anyone in the area, and yet here she was doing exactly that. Telling him the whole story may have been a huge mistake. She knew nothing about this man, who he associated with, what kind of life he led.
There was still time to ask him to drive her to the nearest town and let her out there, instead. She didn’t know what she would do when she got there, but his reaction to the request could reveal a lot about his true intentions.
But something told her that she could trust this man. She only hoped it was gut instinct, one she could rely on, and she wasn’t letting desperation cloud her mind, tricking her into placing her trust in a man she knew nothing about.
Including his name, she realized with a start. She’d been so dazed by the offer and everything that had happened in such a short amount of time she hadn’t even thought to ask, simply following him back to his truck without a word. She could have shaken herself. That was definitely a mistake, potentially a fatal one. Damn. She needed to pull it together.
“What’s your name?” she asked. The question came out more bluntly than she’d intended and she nearly winced. Of course, she’d pulled a gun on the man. It was a little late to worry about being rude.
If he took offense at her tone, he didn’t show it. She hadn’t seen a single flicker of emotion pass over the stony expression he’d worn since they’d climbed back into the truck, and she didn’t now. “McClain,” he said tersely. “Cade McClain.”
Her automatic response upon meeting someone was usually to say it was good to meet them, and she felt the words rise to her tongue. She choked them back, knowing how ridiculous they’d sound at this point. Not to mention he probably didn’t feel the same.
“How long have you lived around here?” she asked, instead.
“Four years,” he said. “That’s when I bought the ranch.”
She glanced at him in surprise. So he really had meant it was “his” ranch, not just one where he worked. He must be successful if he’d been able to buy it four years ago when he was only in his mid-thirties.
“So you must know everybody in the area pretty well.”
“Pretty much.”
“Any ideas of anyone who might be involved in something like this?”
“I’ve been thinking about it. Haven’t come up with a name yet.”
Not knowing what else to say, she turned her attention back to the road in front of them. The western landscape stretched out around them, seemingly endless. She was so tired she could barely think straight. It was all she could do not to sink back into the worn leather seat and close her eyes, if only for a moment.
“This is it.”
Piper jolted upright, her eyes flying open, the realization that she had closed them after all shocking her. She couldn’t afford to let her guard down. Yet it appeared she just had.
They were turning onto a driveway. Directly in front of them, a wooden arch with the words Triple C Ranch carved into it curved above the road. Piper had barely taken in the words when they’d passed beneath them.
Ahead she could see a long, one-story house, a barn a short distance from it, and several smaller buildings beyond. There appeared to be a few fenced-in areas, and surrounding it was flat, open land as far as the eye could see. Piper couldn’t detect any signs where the land ended. Clearly it was a massive property, she noted with a flicker of unease. She should have assumed as much. Ranches probably weren’t small, not that she would know. She’d never been to one before.
They were completely isolated out here. If she wanted to leave and he refused to let her, there was likely no way for her to escape. She would be among strangers, all of whom would be his allies, not hers. Most of them probably worked for him. And even if she was right in trusting him, there were no guarantees the same applied to anyone else here. Either way, she could be trapped here with the enemy.
McClain pulled the truck to a stop in front of the house. Through the windshield she could see a man approaching the truck from the barn. Piper felt another flicker of unease. Who was he? McClain didn’t appear concerned in the least, and the man was on his property, so he must be someone who belonged here. She would still feel a lot better if she knew who he was.
Before she could ask, McClain shut off the engine, unfastened his seat belt and climbed out without a word or a glance back, leaving her no choice but to follow his lead and get out.
Shading her eyes with one hand, Piper scrutinized the man approaching, trying to make a quick determination if he was friend or foe. He was a tall, muscular man, dressed in a button-down shirt, jeans and boots like McClain. Another cowboy. Piper guessed he was in his early thirties, his black hair and bronze skin indicating a Latino heritage. As he came closer, she could see he was handsome, albeit in a very different way from the man beside her.
“Everything okay?” he called. “I was expecting you back a while ago.”
“Yeah, something just came up.” As he said it, he turned slightly toward her, leaving no doubt what that something was. “Piper Lowry, this is my foreman, Matt Alvarez. Matt, Piper Lowry.”
She felt a moment of alarm at the sound of her name leaving McClain’s mouth, at having this new stranger learn who she was. Could he be trusted?
In fact, the way the man’s eyes narrowed with something that looked a lot like suspicion, Piper’s gut reaction was that he couldn’t be. She instantly reevaluated her first impression. There was nothing handsome about the cold way he was looking at her.
“Hello,” Alvarez said, not bothering to say it was good to meet her either, since it clearly wasn’t.
Piper glanced up at Cade, her body tensing in preparation to bolt if necessary, even if she didn’t have any idea where she would go. “Is there a problem?”
“No,” he said, glaring at the other man. “Matt is just not much of a people person. Don’t mind him. Come on inside.” He jerked his chin at Alvarez. “You, too. We need to talk.”
Turning back