Ranger Protector. Angi Morgan
By the time Jack returned, she was finished and finding her confidence again. He stopped at the edge of the hall and stuffed his hand into the pocket of a tight pair of jeans.
He was dressed in scuffed boots, a large belt buckle and a heavily starched yellow shirt with Liberty Hill Boosters embroidered on the pocket. All he needed was a Western hat to complete the perfect cowboy picture.
Gillie whistled through her teeth. “Whew. Aren’t you all prettied up, ready for the big homecoming meeting?”
“It was already laid out. I’m not going. Someone is certain to have seen—”
“Seen what?” Gillie asked.
“I thought you two would have a plan hatched for Megan’s escape already. Didn’t she tell you she’s wanted for murder?”
“I might have left a few details out for brevity’s sake.” She shrugged. Or it might have been an attempt to convince Gillie to become an ally.
“In the name of brevity.” Jack laughed.
“Then you, Little Jack, are a kidnapper. Maybe you should turn Megan over to the appropriate authorities? You don’t have any right to keep her here against her will.” Gillie pointed to the handcuffs.
“Someone tried to kill her.”
“That’s still no reason to use force, and you know it.”
Jack looked at Megan. Truly looked. As in a deep connection.
Megan hardly knew Jack had unlocked the handcuff until it dangled from the table.
“I can help you.” His declaration was uncomplicated by reasoning.
Her belief was unprecedented in her experience. “Where do we start?”
Somehow he’d made a mistake. Someone had caught wind of his plans. The imbecile on loan to him hadn’t retrieved her at the airport gate, only her bag.
Megan Harper hadn’t picked up her car at the airport. It was still sitting there. He’d waited. Ready to act. Ready for the next phase of his revenge.
Now she was gone. Disappeared. No one could leave without a trace, though. There was a clue somewhere to her location. He just had to find it.
The hours of preparation wouldn’t be wasted. He’d bring her back into the open from wherever she was hiding. Then she’d face the consequences. His consequences.
The printer finished, and he cut the short article down to fit on the board. The authorities would find this and have no doubts about her link to his activities. One piece would remain missing to the ultimate takedown—Megan Harper’s obituary.
Miss Rising Star at the TDI would soon flame out at his feet.
* * *
SOME RANGER. IT HADN’T taken much for Gillie to convince him to take Megan to her house for her own clothes and personal items before heading on to Austin headquarters. Maybe because he’d already convinced himself when he pulled a gun on her.
Yeah, big mistake.
Guilt, responsibility and honor silently battled for a winner in his thoughts. Guilt had won and was still winning since he’d given in and they were on their way to Austin.
A low hum of road noise and notes from the local country station kept Megan’s silence from being deafening. They hadn’t spoken since leaving his house. Couldn’t she understand that she wasn’t a prisoner? She was just under his protection.
Big elephant-in-the-room question was, did she really need to fear the police? His partner said she did. Her friend said she did. The news reports proved that she was in trouble. She still wasn’t convinced.
But she was nervous. He observed it in her body language. Her thumbnail rose to the edge of her lips, but before it touched, she would bury it in her fist. Her heel would begin to tap. Stop. She’d put her hands on her knees to keep her legs still.
Yeah, he was a Texas Ranger. He couldn’t hold her against her will. Not unless he was ordered to by those getting paid a lot more than him. He had no choice but to hand her over, no matter what Wade’s instincts said.
And yet his gut shouted at him that leaving her on her own was the wrong thing to do. Maybe part of Wade was rubbing off on him. It felt like abandonment, and he hadn’t done anything except start driving.
He kept his head forward but continued watching Megan in the passenger seat. Besides looking a little tired and pulling at the tight T-shirt he’d given her, she didn’t look nervous.
“You’re doing the right thing.” Her hand started toward his shoulder, but she pulled it back and tapped on the console separating them.
“That remains to be seen.” His bad feeling persisted.
“What has you so worried? I told you I won’t press charges.” Her graceful hand—which had yanked his shirt over her head—made its way back to her wrist and rubbed it for emphasis.
“Honestly, that choice hadn’t occurred to me.”
Nope, he was more concerned about the promise to his partner. He’d never failed to keep his word to Wade and didn’t want to start now. He’d tried calling his partner. First thing back in the truck, Megan began calling Therese. She’d heeded his caution about contacting anyone else.
Neither person answered. They could only leave messages.
The noonday sun bounced off the blacktop road. They were nearly to Austin. He’d have a headache from gritting his teeth if he didn’t stop thinking about what he’d tell Wade. Hell, he’d have a headache from worrying what Mrs. Dennis was saying to his dad since Gillie was at the homecoming meeting instead of him.
Damn. More guilt from not filling in as mayor for the week. His sister should be the child groomed to take their father’s place. But that was in the future. Now he should focus on the problem in the passenger seat.
“You sure this is the best thing for you? We don’t know the time of death for the man you’re accused of killing. I might not be an alibi as much as assuring those involved what time you arrived in Austin.”
“I’m innocent.”
“I never thought otherwise.”
“Why is that, Jack? You don’t know me. You have every reason to turn me in to the police and let me sort this mess out on my own.” She shook her head, and her hair fell forward, blocking his glimpses of her face. “It has to be something more than just a promise. Keeping me in your home could ruin your career. I can’t let that happen.”
He had to think about that and took an opportunity to pass a horse trailer. Was helping her more than a promise? He’d never worked totally on instinct before. Although his gut reactions had paid off once or twice while he was on border patrol.
It sounded corny, but he didn’t want to drop Megan off and step away from the trouble. This excitement reminded him of the undercover work he’d been doing for the past couple of years.
“Liberty Hill only has about sixteen hundred citizens.” He tapped the steering wheel with his thumb, attempting to sound casual. “Most kids graduate and only come back for stuff like homecoming and holidays.”
She sighed and pushed her hair behind her ears. “I suppose that’s true everywhere nowadays.”
“Probably. My life adventure was the college my dad paid for, then accepting a position with the Texas Department of Public Safety. I didn’t come back home like my dad thought. No one imagined I would stay with DPS and not live in Liberty Hill.”
“No one except you? But you seem to have a house there.”
“Investment