The Ranger's Reunion Threat

Wyatt didn’t speak for a moment. He glanced up and down the fence then turned to look at the pond where the trespassing cows were still drinking. “I take it you’re working for Diego now?”

Isabel bristled at the implication she took orders from her brother. “I’m working with him.” Diego might be older by a few years, but that didn’t make him her boss.

“When did you come back?” He wore a frown, as if he hadn’t wanted to ask the question but couldn’t stand not knowing the answer.

“Almost a month ago,” she said. “Didn’t Diego tell you?”

“I didn’t ask,” he replied flatly.

Well, then. Apparently she didn’t cross his mind, after all.

The knowledge stung, but what could she expect? His actions the day after their encounter had showed how he’d really felt. Still, part of her had assumed that Diego had talked about her over the years, since they’d all known each other.

She pressed her lips together, hoping to hide her disappointment. “Well, here I am. Sorry my presence bothers you.” She pivoted on her heel and started walking toward the dead cattle. “Thanks for bringing back our animals,” she said over her shoulder. “They won’t break into the park again.” She was ready for him to leave, so she could return her attention to the problem at hand. It was too hard to think when he was around; his appearance had stirred up a number of emotions that were clouding her thoughts. Later, when she was alone, she’d process these feelings and what it meant to see Wyatt again. But for now, she needed to focus on the mystery of these dead animals and getting the fence repaired.

Footsteps sounded behind her. “I didn’t say I was bothered.” His voice made the muscles in her shoulders tighten. Take the hint, she thought irritably. Get back on your horse and ride off into the sunset.

But he kept walking, his long legs making short work of the distance between them. “Do you need some help fixing the fen...” His words trailed off at the sight of the dead cows. “Damn,” he said, whistling softly. “What happened here?”

“I’m not sure yet,” she murmured. Isabel knelt next to one of the animals, running her gaze over the slightly distended belly. Not dead too long, then, she figured. Decomposition was still setting in, which meant these cattle had likely died sometime in the night.

She felt a rustle of air as Wyatt crouched down beside her. “Doesn’t look like a cougar,” he remarked.

“No,” she replied absently. She tried to ignore him so she could think; her brain whirred with possible explanations as she attempted to figure out what had caused three healthy-looking animals to drop dead more or less simultaneously.

The answer was there, floating around in her subconscious. She closed her eyes, trying to block out all distractions. If she could just clear her mind, she could solve this riddle. But seeing Wyatt had left her feeling flustered and being so close to him now didn’t help. He wasn’t talking to her or even touching her, but she was hyper aware of his breathing and of his subtle movements as he shifted to keep his balance next to her.

Disgusted with her lack of focus, Isabel opened her eyes. To her surprise, Wyatt was no longer next to her. She glanced around, wondering where he’d gone. She hadn’t heard his horse, so it was unlikely he’d taken off. Besides, he surely would have said something before leaving. They might not be on the best of terms, but he wasn’t a total jerk.

Isabel got to her feet, leaning down to brush the dirt off her knees. Then she turned around and spied Wyatt walking toward Miel.

The mare shifted in response to Wyatt’s approach, her ears going back and her tail twitching with agitation as she assessed this new person. Isabel set off for the pair, wanting to reassure her horse that all was well. She was already jumpy—she didn’t need the stress of a stranger to add to her discomfort.

But Isabel needn’t have worried. Wyatt moved slowly, extending one hand for Miel to sniff. As Isabel got closer, she could hear him speaking to the horse. His voice was too low for her to make out what he was saying, but his tone was calm and his cadence measured. The mare’s ears relaxed and her tail stilled; they had apparently become friends. Wyatt was patting her neck gently when Isabel walked up.

“What’s her name?” he asked.

“Miel,” she replied, reaching up to stroke the horse’s cheek with the back of her fingers.

He smiled, his teeth a bright flash amid the dark stubble on his face. “That means ‘honey,’ doesn’t it?” Isabel nodded. He glanced back at the horse. “Well, you certainly seem sweet enough for that name.”

Wyatt moved toward her saddlebags. “What are you doing?” she asked, mildly irritated he had approached her mount without asking and now seemed intent on rifling through her packs.

“I figured you have some supplies in here. I was going to see about the fence.”

“Oh.” Some of her annoyance faded. “I don’t have enough for a full repair.”

He peered into one of the bags. “That’s okay,” he said, taking stock of the contents. “I’ve got some rope in my pack. Between the two of us, we can get this hole patched until you guys have time to fix it.”

“You don’t need to worry about it,” she said. It was a nice gesture on his part, but she didn’t need him to hang around any longer. “Diego is on his way with supplies and some extra hands. We’ve got it covered.”

Wyatt nodded in acknowledgment, but made no move to go to his horse.

The low hum of an approaching engine sounded. “That’ll be them,” she said, relief filling her. “I appreciate your help, but you can get back to what you were doing now.”

Wyatt’s eyes glinted with amusement as he looked at her. “By my count, that’s the third time you’ve tried to get rid of me. Are you that offended by my company?”

No, just heartsick, she thought. She’d known that by coming back to work on the family ranch she would eventually run into Wyatt. But she had assumed she’d have some advance warning before actually seeing him again. This out-of-the-blue encounter had left her no time to prepare her heart for the shock.

She glanced away with a shrug, trying to hide her face. “I figured you have park ranger things to do,” she said, watching her brother’s truck as it drew closer. “I don’t want you to feel like you have to stay on my account.”

“It’s no imposition,” Wyatt said. Movement from the corner of her eyes revealed he’d walked back to Miel’s head and was stroking her cheek. “Besides, I need to talk to your brother.”

“I see.”

She set off toward the declivity, gesturing for Diego to pull the truck by the downed cattle. He backed into place, then cut the engine and climbed out of the cab.

After meeting her at the rear of the truck, Diego put his hands on his hips as he surveyed the scene, his gaze landing first on the cattle then on the break in the fence. “Well, hell,” he said disgustedly. “This is the last thing we need right now.”

“Yeah,” Isabel acknowledged. She nodded at Ruben, one of the older, more experienced ranch hands, who’d been with them as long as she could remember. He touched the brim of his hat then turned his head to spit tobacco juice. The man never said much, but he had a way with the animals that had proved invaluable on more than one occasion.

Wyatt walked over. Diego’s face lit up at the sight of his friend. “Hey, man,” he said. In a standard male greeting, the pair shook hands and slapped each other’s backs. “What are you doing here?”

Wyatt nodded at Ruben, who nodded back. Then he returned his focus to Diego. “Found some of your cattle in the park,” he said. “Didn’t really feel like doing paperwork today, so I drove ’em back to you and found the fence down and your sister standing by some dead cows.”

Diego glanced at Isabel. She shrugged.

“Thanks for giving us a break,” Diego replied. “It’s been a rough couple of months.”

Winter feed prices had gone up, and meat prices had gone down. The ranch wasn’t making the same kinds of profits it had enjoyed during its heyday, and if the trend continued, they were in for some hard choices in the years to come. Isabel thought they could weather the storm if they made a few changes, but Diego wasn’t so certain. It was a point of contention they would have to settle, as they were set to inherit equal shares of the ranch once their abuelo died.

Wyatt and Diego continued to chat as the three men worked to remove a new fence panel from the truck bed. She tried to help, but Ruben waved her off with a nod for her efforts. Within a matter of minutes, they had the new section in place and secured to the posts.

“What do you think happened here?” Diego asked as he returned to survey the cows once more.

“I’m not sure yet,” Isabel admitted. “I’ll open them up tonight and see if I can get some answers.”

“Do you think it was deliberate?” Wyatt asked.

The question made her frown. “You think someone targeted these animals?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I think you have to consider the possibility. That fence didn’t break down because of age. Someone cut it.”

A tingle shot down Isabel’s spine. “Sabotage.”

Diego’s lips blanched as he pressed them into a thin line. “Could be.”

Isabel turned back to the dead animals, seeing the scene in a new light. “I assumed these two events—” she gestured to the cows and the now-repaired fence “—were simply a coincidence. We’ve had hikers cut the fence before to gain access to our watering holes. And it’s not unheard of for cattle to die while out at pasture. It never occurred to me that someone might have broken onto the ranch to kill our animals.”

“Maybe I’m being paranoid,” Wyatt admitted. “There are no obvious signs of trauma here, and I doubt someone who went to the trouble of dispatching these animals with such subtlety would leave a gaping hole in the fence.”

“Unless they’re trying to send a message,” Diego suggested.

Wyatt shrugged. “Who have you pissed off lately?”

Diego tipped his hat back and shot him a grin. “The list is long and distinguished.”

Ruben spit into the dirt again. “We’re losing daylight. Let’s get this done.”

The pronouncement had the intended effect. They set aside conversation and got to work securing chains around the downed animals’ legs. That done, Diego flipped on the winch secured to the bed of his truck. The motor groaned a bit as, one by one, the bodies of the cows were lifted off the ground. The three men maneuvered them onto the flatbed and then used ropes to tie them down.

When they were finished, both Diego and Wyatt removed their hats and wiped their foreheads. “Thanks, man,” Diego said.

“Anytime,” Wyatt replied.

“It’s getting late,” Diego noted. “Why don’t you come back to the house? Join us for dinner.”

Isabel’s breath hitched and she made a show of checking the ropes securing the cattle to the truck so Wyatt wouldn’t see her face. Please say no...

“That’s a tempting offer,” Wyatt said slowly. “But I’ve got a bit of a ride to get back home.”

“You can stay with us,” Diego pressed. “We’ll take care of you both for the night.” He jerked his chin in the direction of Wyatt’s horse, who was placidly grazing on a clump of grass. “It’s the least we can do for all your help today.”

“You don’t owe me anything for that,” Wyatt muttered. Isabel watched from the corner of her eyes as he looked down, scuffing the toe of his boot in the dirt.

His hesitation spoke volumes. It was clear Wyatt didn’t want to be around her. Unfortunately, Diego was too clueless to notice.

“Come on,” he said. “Maria will be happy to see you. It’s been ages.”

Wyatt looked up, smiling faintly. “She does make the best tortillas.”

“Then it’s settled,” Diego announced. “Saddle up. You and Isabel can ride back to the house together.”

Isabel felt her shoulders tighten but said nothing. Diego didn’t know about her personal history with Wyatt. If she appeared at all unhappy about her new riding partner, her brother would want to know why. And that wasn’t an issue she was willing to discuss.

Sensing the guys were waiting for her to respond, Isabel schooled her features and turned around. “Let’s get going then,” she said. “I’m hungry.”

Something’s off here...

Wyatt rode alongside Isabel, watching her in his peripheral vision. He was lucky Ajax was such a sure-footed horse, as he was paying little attention to the path. It was clear Isabel was unhappy about his presence, and Wyatt wanted to know why.

Ten years ago he’d found her walking along a deserted road, trying to make her way home after her boyfriend had taken her to a party in the desert and then ignored her to shack up with a willing girl. Never one to be passive, Isabel had simply started walking home rather than ask anyone for a ride. Looking back on it, Wyatt figured that was probably just as well, since all the kids there had been too drunk to drive. Still, at the time, he’d been angry with her for setting off alone into the desert.

Wyatt wasn’t much for sentiment, but there were times he could still feel the weight of her head on his chest and the wetness on his skin from her tears soaking through his shirt. He rubbed his sternum with one hand, his mind wandering down memory lane...

The night air was cool on his face as he cruised down the road, the rumble of the truck engine drowning out the cricket chirps and the occasional scream of a mountain lion. Wyatt’s body ached from the day’s labors, but it was a good type of exhaustion, the kind that only comes from sustained physical work. It had taken all day, but now his grandfather’s house sported a fresh coat of paint and the worn shutters had been replaced. It looked like a brand-new house, one they could both be proud to call home.

“Are you really going out?” his grandfather had asked, seeing him showered and dressed a few minutes ago. “I figured you’d be tired after all that work.”

Wyatt had shrugged. “Some friends of mine are catching a movie tonight. Thought I’d join them.” If he was lucky, he’d get there before it started. If he was really lucky, he could convince Nikki Stalling to skip the movie altogether in favor of some one-on-one time. They’d dated briefly in high school and now that they were both in college, they had a sort of on-again, off-again arrangement during school breaks. With the fall semester starting up in a few weeks, there wouldn’t be many more opportunities to spend time together.

His grandfather had smiled knowingly. “I see. Well, have fun and be safe about it.”

“Will do.”

The road into town was just another two-lane dusty highway, the traffic nonexistent. Wyatt reached for the radio dial, his hand freezing in place when his headlights illuminated a figure walking along the side of the road. The long, dark braid and slender shoulders told him it was a woman. He slowed his truck and as he approached, his heart leaped into his throat.

It was Isabel Cruz. His best friend’s sister.

She glanced over as he pulled up alongside, but didn’t stop walking. Wyatt leaned over and cranked down the passenger-side window. “Isabel?” he called. “What are you doing out here?”

Her head whipped around, dark eyes going wide. “Wyatt? Is that you?”

He cut the engine as she lunged for the door. She climbed up into the cab, bringing the scent of night air and jasmine with her. He inhaled deeply, trying not to be too obvious about it. He loved her perfume—always had. For the past several months he’d been wanting to dip his nose into the hollow of her neck and breathe her in, to hold her until her scent was on his skin and clothes. But that wasn’t something he could ever admit, to her or to her brother. Diego would kill him if he knew Wyatt had been thinking about Isabel in anything other than a platonic context.

“What are you doing out here?” he repeated. He hadn’t seen any signs of a stalled car—where had she come from?

“I’m walking home.”

He didn’t bother replying to her ridiculous statement. He simply stared her down, one brow arched to show he wasn’t going to give up that easily.

Isabel held his gaze for several seconds. Then she sighed and looked away. “I was at a party, okay?”

“Out in the middle of nowhere?”

She shot him an incredulous look. “Don’t try to tell me you didn’t go to your share of desert parties in high school, okay? I know for a fact you and Diego were regulars.”

“Yeah, but...” He paused, thinking back to those days. He and Diego had had their share of fun, it was true. But Wyatt knew the kind of stuff that went on at those parties, and he didn’t like the thought of Isabel being exposed to such debauchery.

Her eyes glinted with challenge, practically daring him to argue with her. He lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “It was different for us. We’re guys.”

She snorted. “Oh, please. I’m not some princess who needs to be locked in a tower.”

“I never said you were,” he replied, careful to keep his tone even. “But you’re a beautiful young woman. There are guys who would try to take advantage of you.”

A haunted look flashed across her face and Wyatt’s stomach dropped. Oh God, he thought, immediately assuming the worst.

Before he could ask her another question, Isabel spoke again. “You think I’m beautiful?” There was a note of wonder in her voice, combined with an innocence that made her even more appealing.

Wyatt felt his cheeks warm and was grateful the lights from his dash didn’t provide much illumination in the cab of the truck. “You know you’re pretty,” he said a bit gruffly. It was clear from Isabel’s tone of voice that she hadn’t been fishing for compliments. But if they kept going down this road, he wasn’t going to be able to hide his attraction for her much longer.

Time to change the subject. “What happened?”

She shifted, looked away. “Nothing,” she muttered.

Wyatt ran his eyes over her body, looking for marks on her skin or ripped or dirty spots on her clothes. She didn’t look like she’d been assaulted, but that was no guarantee...

Anger and fear built in his chest as he imagined the worst. “Isabel.” He said her name softly, trying to keep his emotions in check. If someone had hurt her, the last thing he wanted to do was to frighten her with his temper.

She didn’t look at him right away. He said her name a second time and she turned to face him. His heart cracked when he saw the tears welling in her eyes.

“Oh, honey. What happened?” He opened his arms and she slid across the bench seat into his embrace.

She sniffled into his shirt, her nose pressed against his chest. “Nothing,” came her muffled reply.

Wyatt kept his touch light as he gently stroked his hand down her spine. “Sounds like a lot of tears over nothing,” he said carefully. “Who were you with tonight?”

Another sniffle then the muffled sound of a name. “Eddie.”

His hand stilled on her back, fingers curling into a fist. He should have known.

He took a deep breath, slipping a tight rein onto his anger. Isabel deserved better than that future frat boy. Wyatt had always considered him a harmless nuisance, but what if he’d been wrong?

“Did Eddie—” He had to stop, swallow hard. “Did Eddie hurt you?”

Isabel tensed. Time seemed to slow as he waited for her to reply.

She moved back, putting some distance between them. “No,” she said finally. “Not in the way you’re thinking.”

Wyatt’s breath gusted out in a sigh of relief. He lifted a hand to run through his hair, noting with faint surprise that it was shaking.

Isabel grabbed it, her fingers still cold from the evening air. “I’m fine,” she said, her voice firm.

He met her eyes, still wet from her tears. There was no sign of deception in her gaze. “Would you tell me if you weren’t?” It was important that she knew she could trust him. She and Diego loved each other, but their relationship was tumultuous at times. Wyatt wanted her to know he would be there for her if she ever needed anything.

She didn’t hesitate. “Yes,” she said, nodding as she spoke. “I think I would.”

He relaxed a bit, feeling marginally better. “Okay. So what did Eddie do to make you cry tonight?”

Isabel tilted her head. “Who’s asking? You? Or you and Diego?”

“Just me. We don’t tell each other everything, you know.” Like the fact that I want you...

Isabel nodded, apparently satisfied with his reaction. “It’s the last big party of the summer. We came to hang out. We were having fun, but as the night wore on, more and more people started pairing up and sneaking off for some privacy. Eddie thought we should, too, but...” She trailed off, shaking her head. “I kept saying no.”

A feeling of pride unfurled in Wyatt’s chest. Thank God, Isabel wasn’t a pushover. “How’d he take it?” Given the kid’s sense of entitlement, Wyatt didn’t imagine Eddie had been too happy about her refusal.

Tears welled in her eyes again. Wyatt swore silently to himself. Eddie wasn’t worth her tears. But that was something she was going to have to learn on her own.

“He was mad,” she said. “He kept pressuring me, and when I told him to stop or I was going to leave, he laughed. Told me I was welcome to try.”

Eddie was an idiot. But Wyatt was glad to learn he wasn’t stupid enough to force himself on her.

She sniffed, swiping at her eyes with a hand. “Then he wandered away and grabbed Carrie Cordova. They started making out by the campfire, and I wasn’t about to stand around and be disrespected like that.”

She glanced up and met his gaze, and a small shock ran through Wyatt’s body as he realized she wasn’t crying because she was sad.

She was angry.

“He had his keys in his pocket. I thought about trying to hot-wire his car, but I only saw Diego do it the one time to the farm truck. I don’t exactly remember how.”

Wyatt tried not to smile as he imagined Isabel fumbling under the wheel of Eddie’s prize Camaro. “I hate to break it to you, but a muscle car is a little harder to hot-wire than a thirty-year-old truck.” She would have kept at it and, given her determination, she might have even figured it out eventually. Probably better she’d started walking, though. Eddie’s parents were just the type to have her charged with grand theft auto if she’d managed to make off with their precious son’s car.

“I’ll teach you how to do it,” he promised absently. Now that he knew she was safe, annoyance began to replace his earlier concern.

“You should have called someone to pick you up.”

Isabel dug her phone out of her bag. “No service.” She held it up in illustration. It was a common problem out here, something that normally didn’t bother him. It worried him, though, to think about her essentially stranded out here.