Undercover Cowboy Page 5

  Nick gave him a blow-by-blow description of Sara Jane’s rodeo antics and tried to explain about the kiss that followed. “She took me by surprise. It won’t happen again.” He left out how his body responded to her closeness…her kiss. No father wanted to hear that, and Nick wished he could rip the memory from his own mind.

  Matt listened, his expression closed. “I just need to know one thing,” he finally said, his voice steely. “Can you keep her safe?”

  “She’s a handful,” Nick admitted. And an armful of passion, he thought. “But with your permission to treat her like I used to treat my kid sister—which could get a little rough—I’ll keep her alive.” Or die trying, he told himself.

  “Do what you have to do,” Matt said. “I trust you.”

  Heat crawled up Nick’s neck, and he quickly changed the subject to the aging crime boss, Fernando Antonio Maltese De Fuego—the guy Matt had locked up over eighteen years ago. “I checked on De Fuego. If he’s involved in those threats you’ve been getting, it’s indirectly. He’s still in prison.”

  “With long arms,” Matt said in a tight voice.

  Nick exhaled to calm himself, realizing both he and Matt were knots of tension. “Right. But Angie’s checking on every visitor, phone call, and letter De Fuego’s received since his first day in the pen.” Nick knew he could count on Angie. She could tap into resources few had access to with a speed that amazed him. “She’ll get back to me with a list by secure e-mail sometime tomorrow and you can read it over and mark the likely suspects.” Nick paused and studied Matt. “Are you worried about De Fuego’s parole hearing? Angie said it’s coming up in a few weeks.”

  Matt shook his head firmly. “No. I’ll be there to block any early outs.” He was quiet a moment. “Luke thinks our trouble involves the land deal I turned down last month rather than De Fuego settling old scores.”

  Nick went to Matt and touched his shoulder. “There’s even an outside chance that the murder was the work of a serial killer who happened to pick your ranch to dump his victim’s body.”

  Matt stared at him with a probing gaze. “I don’t think either of us believes that. But thanks for trying to ease my mind about the family.”

  “I’m personally familiar with a serial killer case with the same MO as the murder today and—”

  “Was that the case they bumped you from?”

  Fighting anger and humiliation, Nick nodded. “Now, back to this case—once the forensics guys do a work-up of the woman’s skull and construct a visual likeness, we’ll have something to work with. Her identity might be the key to all this.”

  Matt’s frown deepened. “Or the key could be the locket and the photo inside.”

  Nick’s stomach knotted. The uncertainty about the possibility of someone in the Ryan family being involved with the murder was clearly worrying the hell out of Matt. “The photo could be a false lead. If we can tie the woman to De Fuego…” Nick let his words trail away as another thought hit him. “Did you tell the sheriff about our long-armed jailbird?”

  Matt nodded.

  “Did Bemis leave?” Nick wanted to talk to him again.

  “Not yet. The sheriff and his other deputies are staying the night to give them time to question all of the ranch hands. But Luke is flying the forensics team and the body to San Antonio in our chopper within the hour.” Matt paused, the lines in his forehead deepening. “The sheriff said a bracelet that was on the victim’s arm disappeared. Could you describe it?”

  Nick nodded. “Sterling silver Indian bracelet with three turquoise stones, looked valuable, maybe one of a kind.”

  “Damn it, I was afraid of that. I gave an identical bracelet to Sara Jane. I had it designed and special made for her thirteenth birthday. I haven’t seen it on her for about a week.”

  Nick had sensed that she knew something about it. He tightened his jaw. He had to find a way to get her to work with him instead of keeping secrets.

  Minutes later, Nick discovered Luke sitting on the railing of the wrap-around covered front porch drinking coffee. “Where’s Ed and Joe?” Nick asked.

  “Gettin’ last minute instructions from the sheriff, I reckon.”

  Nick sized Luke up from his faded black Stetson to his well-worn snakeskin boots. He’d heard a lot about the younger brother—that he was the wild card in the family. Judging from the barely noticeable scar just below Luke’s eye, and the slice missing from the top of his right ear, he’d been in a scrape or two and earned the wild brother tag the hard way. His smile was cocky, but his eyes held friendship. Nick wanted to believe the jovial glint didn’t mask trouble. “Have you seen Sara Jane?” he asked.

  “In the training corral. Taking out her frustrations,” Luke said, looking amused. “You’ll find her over yonder, near the largest barn. But watch out. When she sees you’re still here, she’ll be mad as a hornet. She expected Matt to send you packing.”

  Nick laughed at that. “Shows how wrong even a sharp little cookie like your niece can be. Matt and I have an understanding. Besides, I’ve only begun to fight.”

  Luke chuckled, and then his angular face went serious. “Just keep her safe.”

  Nick nodded and headed toward the big barn. The smell of manure hung in the air; he wondered how folks ever got used to it. He hadn’t gone far when a tractor hauling hay passed in front of him. When it moved away, he saw Sara Jane ahead inside a spit-rail corral. He stepped into the shadows of the barn to observe her without her knowledge.

  She kicked up a lot of dust as she rode at breakneck speed, taking a white quarter-horse through quickstepping barrel race traces. With flowing auburn tresses and flying mane, they were the most beautiful creatures Nick had ever seen. He watched in awe as Sara Jane rode hard with unbridled agility, speed, and skill while smoothly circling a cloverleaf pattern around three 55-gallon drums. Her incredible turns were tight, only inches from the barrels—and she never once knocked one over. Clearly, she and the horse were attuned to each other. He’d never seen anyone who looked more serious or all business while mounted on a horse.

  She absolutely took his breath away. He had seen the dozen pictures on Matt’s den wall of Sara Jane accepting her various awards, and Matt had told him that she was one of the top equestrians in the state, so he definitely expected her to know her way around a horse, but nothing as astounding as this. If he known for sure when they first met out in the boondocks that she was Matt’s daughter, her initial Rodeo Girl escape from him wouldn’t have taken him by surprise. Now it made sense.

  She and the horse closed the top of a cloverleaf and looped again. Knowing better than to approach her until she was done, he hung back in the shadows and planned his next and very challenging move—to corral her.

  Chapter Three

  Fighting the strong, unsettling awareness that someone was watching, Sara Jane rode the horse hard, trying to stomp away the bloody image of the faceless woman. No one deserved to be dumped out in the bush like that. People deserved to die with loved ones around. Was anyone looking for that woman? Had a friend or sweetheart reported her missing? Sara Jane intended to ask the sheriff. Nick knew more than he was telling, but, thanks to her little game, he would be gone by the time she got back to the house. Maybe she’d acted too hastily. No, getting him out of her life before she fell for him was for the best. Attraction she could fight, but love…

  She shook her head, refusing to consider the possibility.

  Tightening the loop of Vision’s gait sharply around the barrel, Sara Jane forced her thoughts back to the dead woman. What was the body of a woman who looked so much like her doing on her beloved Ryan land? Desire for an answer whipped up her curiosity. But the clincher that sucked her into the quicksand of the intrigue was discovering that the woman wore an Indian bracelet with three turquoise stones identical to the one her dad had designed and had special made for her thirteenth birthday—a bracelet that disappeared from her jewelry box a week ago. The sudden appearance of the missing bracelet on the dead woma
n made this murder personal. The missing photo, and the remaining one that nobody wanted to talk about, supported her growing fear that a Ryan was the real target.

  A tremor slid down Sara Jane’s spine. If Dad would just tell her what he knew and what he was going to do about it. But no, as always, he kept her in the dark. She clenched the reins so hard her fingernails dug tiny half-moons into her palm. It was clear if she wanted information, she’d have to dig it out herself. Luckily, she’d inherited some of her mom’s talent for poking around.

  Sara Jane reined Vision into a cool-down trot, and then led him to the barn, her mind still churning. Tomorrow, after her training session with Monica and Vision, she would ride into Stampede Junction. Perhaps someone there was missing a loved one. Or maybe one of the girls hadn’t shown up for work at Lady Leila’s Passion Palace. Women in these parts hated that place, but probably not enough to kill one of the girls.

  To avoid locking horns with her dad, Sara Jane decided to ask Uncle Luke to go with her. Tangling with Dad now in her present frame of mind wouldn’t be wise. After she’d stressed that she wanted to pick up Monica’s horse herself, Dad had sent someone else to do it. Of course, she was glad Vision was here. She needed time with him before Monica came for her session. Monica wanted to be the first blind woman to compete in Buck’s charity rodeo and Sara Jane had only six months to get the horse and rider ready. It helped that Vision was reliable and sensitive and Monica had previous riding experience. Monica had two other important qualities, courage and trust. Sara Jane drew in a breath of determination. Now it was her job to bring horse and rider into a perfect oneness, a challenge even when working with sighted people. But she was up to it. When it came to horses and riders, she could teach anyone anything.

  Brushing Vision’s dusty white coat into a glossy luster, Sara Jane wondered if she’d be as brave and daring as Monica if she couldn’t see. “You know, Vision,” she told the horse, “I’d like to believe I’d at least try. But knowing Dad, in the name of sheltering, he’d probably do everything in his power to stop me.”

  The horse snorted and looked back at her with understanding brown eyes.

  “You’re right, Vision, Dad’s overprotection is a real pain.”

  Somehow she had to prove to her father that she came from his same tough Ryan stock. She shook her head. How could a man who thrived on danger and intrigue expect his daughter to accept him treating her like a glass figurine?

  She laughed to herself. A glass statue couldn’t have kissed Nick like that. The trouble was, like the flames in a back draft, the heat had turned on her. She couldn’t escape it. And now she couldn’t forget the subtle salty taste of Nick’s mouth or the hot flash of emotion that blazed its way across her nerve endings and whisked her into a state of confusion and left her wanting more.

  Struggling against her desires, Sara Jane led Vision back to his stall, secured the paddock door, and rushed out of the barn and ran smack into a broad chest. She stepped back and looked up into Nick’s smiling green eyes. “You’re still here!” Her voice rose as disappointment and delight warred within her.

  “What’s your hurry?” Nick asked, steadying her with strong arms.

  A shiver of delight slithered through her; having him hold her felt far too good. Her face burned. “Come to say good bye?” She hadn’t seen his roan in the barn, so it wasn’t his horse he was after.

  He grinned, all cocky and self-assured. “I’m staying. We had a bargain. You said if I caught you, you’d cooperate.”

  Needing to look at anything but him, she glanced up at the wide expanse of the late afternoon fading blue sky. What she had said was he’d be her man, but she decided not to remind him of that. She had to be careful and not say anything else too familiar. After all, this was a man she wanted to send away. Her little seduction game had already backfired on her. She cleared her throat. “We can discuss a compromise.”

  With a start, she realized that Nick still held her. She untangled herself and stepped away.

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a man’s shadow dart back and disappear behind a stack of hay. Her arms prickled. She had sensed someone watching her when she was in the training corral. “You got a sidekick around here playing spy?”

  Nick’s eyes darkened. “No. Why?”

  If she mentioned the shadowy man, Nick might tell her father and foul up her plans to go to town. Struggling with a sense of panic, she said, “I sensed someone watching me while I was in the corral. Did you just get here?”

  Nick’s shoulders relaxed, and he closed the distance she’d just put between them, but she barely noticed. Her mind was on the shadowy man and her anticipation of Nick’s next words. “No,” he said. “Been here a while. You and that horse looked great together.”

  She exhaled in relief. “Vision is a magnificent animal.” Dad’s paranoia must be rubbing off on her. It was ridiculous to think that the killer had been watching her. Certainly he wouldn’t dare enter the Ryan compound with all the tough ranch hands around. She met Nick’s gaze. “You must be a smooth talker. I expected Dad to give you your walking papers.”

  Nick grinned again, this time revealing a hint of a dimple. “Life’s full of surprises.” The amusement glinting in his eyes unsettled her. He lifted a hand as though to reach out and touch her.

  She forced herself to step back again, remembering the heat of his hands burning through her jeans when he’d helped her mount Demon. “How long am I gonna be stuck with you?” Her throat was dry. Every minute brought her closer to feelings she didn’t dare have.

  His eyes clouded. “Could you drop the attitude?”

  “No. It’s part of the package.” In the short time she’d known him, he’d stirred her more than she’d ever dreamed possible, and that was dangerous. He wasn’t a rancher—he was an FBI man who never stayed in one spot longer than necessary to get the job done. She widened her stance and placed her hands on her hips. “So, how long?”

  “Look, I don’t like this anymore than you do, but I signed on to keep you safe.”

  “Hope you’re well paid, because I promise you trailing around after me won’t be a jog in one of your LA parks.”

  “Save the tough girl act.” His eyes narrowed and a tendon in his jaw twitched. “Your life is on the line.”

  “So you said.” My heart, too, buster, and it scares the hell out of me. “If you want my cooperation, it’ll cost you.” She stepped around him and headed for the ranch house where the family waited. Safety in numbers, she thought.

  A forklift passed between them loaded with hay. She exhaled in relief, grateful for the barrier. The reprieve was fleeting. As soon as the tractor passed, Nick caught up with her and grabbed her arm, sending heat waves surging through her. He wasn’t even breathing hard.

  “You don’t bargain with the guy who’s going to keep you alive.” His deep voice vibrated within her.

  She yanked away from him, but it was too late. His heat was inflaming every inch of her. She lifted her chin, fighting the sensations. “Hey, Urban Cowboy, I don’t cave to rules I had no part in setting up. Hang around if you insist, but stay out of my way and keep your hands to yourself.” She took off, running.

  Nick ran along beside her, his breathing even. “Okay, you win. What’ll it take to get you to work with me on this?”

  Triumph surged through her. She climbed the steps, two at a time. She paused on the front porch and faced Nick. “I want to go to Stampede Junction tomorrow and talk to a few people. Somebody might be missing a loved one.” She had planned to take the truck, but thinking of sitting next to Nick in such close quarters killed that idea. Horseback would be less intimate, as long as they took two horses. “Dad won’t let me go alone. I’d planned to ask Uncle Luke. But if you have to hang around, you might as well make yourself useful.”

  “Forget investigating on your own. The sheriff and his men will check out any missing persons.”

  Sara Jane frowned, her patience waning fast. “Who knows how
long that’ll take?”

  “The sheriff doesn’t seem like one to drag his feet. Besides, it’ll be easier to protect you here in the compound. I don’t think—”

  “Never mind. I’ll ask Uncle Luke.” She wanted to whirl around, leave him and do the whole dramatic bit, but the troubled glimmer in his eyes persuaded her linger a moment longer to give him a chance to change his mind. Nick stared at her for several seconds. She squirmed, knowing they were at a crossroads. How she handled this could change the whole balance of power.

  ****

  Savory aromas of carne asada and Texas fries hung in the air. Dinner plates clattered as Maria filled the table with huge platters of food. The whole family gathered around the table, even Sara Jane’s cousins, Erik and Alicia. The sheriff sat on Dad’s left. The four deputies who had stayed to question the ranch hands were down at the chuck wagon talking to them and planned to eat there.

  During introductions, Sara Jane learned that stranger next to Alicia was the other FBI agent, Lloyd Adams, Alicia’s personal bodyguard. In spite of his sandy blond hair and broad shoulders, he faded to almost invisible when placed among Nick and the Ryan men who were all blessed with rugged, dark good looks.

  Nick’s dominant presence in the room seemed to heighten her awareness of the differences between herself and her cousin. Alicia was a striking blonde who was far too beautiful for her own good; and she was just a plain Jane with a mass of too curly auburn-hair and a light sprinkling of freckles. Their goals were totally different too. Alicia wanted to go to the city and become a reporter like Mom and all Sara Jane wanted was to stay on the ranch and run her horse-training business. And she would—finding one dead body, while chilling, wasn’t enough reason to hide away like a scared rabbit. Across the table, she met Nick’s gaze and quickly looked down. The lace tablecloth and wrought iron candleholders with white candles must have been in honor of the three lawmen. Treating guests special was a big thing to Texans in general and to the Ryan family in particular, especially Dad.