The clock next to the phone read eleven forty-eight. When he made a move to answer it, Kendra placed a panicked hand against his chest. “Don’t.”
He frowned at her. “It could be an emergency.”
Brushing aside her hand, he maneuvered out from under her and across the bed to reach for the receiver. Vaguely aware he’d answered with a terse, “Hello,” Kendra twisted around to locate her shirt. She snatched it off the edge of the bed and dragged it on.
The phone had brought reality crashing back in. Robert was out there, searching for her and Noah, and the numerous hang-ups lately made her fear he’d found them. She couldn’t believe she’d forgotten about everything for even for a moment, much less the past twenty minutes.
Colton hung up and faced her across the bed just as she realized she’d put her shirt on inside out. She thought about leaving the room, or even just rising to her feet so she didn’t feel so small as he studied her, but it was doubtful her knees would cooperate at this moment.
“W-who was it?” she asked, even though she already knew. He hadn’t spoken a word after answering, and she knew with sickening certainty that all he’d heard on the opposite end had been ominous silence before a distinct click.
“Same as before,” he confirmed. Standing next to the bed, his gaze dropped to her shirt, then rose back to her face. “What’s the matter?”
The desire to tell him everything and let him protect her—and Noah—almost overwhelmed her. But she couldn’t trust him with the full, ugly, dangerous truth. He’d want to go to the police, same as Joel. Their lives depended on not trusting the cops, here and definitely not in New York. After what Jeremy had done to her that night…she forced the ugly memories away.
No. Never again would she trust them.
Looking away from Colton’s bare chest and sexy, unfastened jeans, she said softly, “This was a mistake.”
The bed creaked as the mattress dipped with his weight. He advanced on hands and knees, and she scrambled back against the headboard. He didn’t stop until he was positioned over her, hands braced on either side of her hips. Her heart leapt. Was he going to kiss her again? Did she want him to?
Heaven help her, yes.
“Who keeps calling here?”
She gulped down the lump in her throat. “I d-don’t know.”
“Yes, you do.”
“I swear, I don’t.” Suspected, but didn’t really know for sure. Didn’t want to know.
“I can help,” he said softly.
She shook her head, unable to look away as she fought tears of despair. When he moved forward, she caught her breath and let her lashes drift shut. He’d offered to help, but what she really wanted was protection. She wanted to be cherished in a way she’d never been before.
The touch of his lips was soft and gentle, compassionate and undemanding. Security embraced her once more. This was it. This was what she wanted. He was what she wanted. She leaned into him, opened her mouth beneath his and reached for his shoulders.
His right hand came up to grip her forearm and he eased her back as he broke the kiss. “We can’t do this,” he said in a gruff voice.
Confusion warred with overwhelming disappointment. “Why?”
His green eyes met hers and in that instant, time stopped.
“Because I’ve just realized something…there’s absolutely nothing casual about you, Kendra.”
His low statement made her heart pound, even as he pushed off the bed and walked out of the room.
****
Nervousness assailed Kendra when she entered the barn the next morning. Colton smiled, said good morning, and kept working. Her frown was immediately banished. She began feeding the horses and told herself she didn’t care. So what, right? Who cared if he said she wasn’t casual, but then turned around and acted like she was. She’d made it through the long, sleepless night, she could handle this, too.
She played it his way all day; distantly polite despite the unreasonable hurt that left an ache in her chest. It got a little easier the following morning when Joel and Britt and the boys returned from their camping trip, but by Sunday night, lying in bed, she was miserable and lonely. The only positive was there hadn’t been a single hang-up for two days. And her nightmare hadn’t surfaced in almost a week. She prayed the first had in fact been wrong numbers, and didn’t even try to analyze the second. At least she’d been getting some sleep for once—until Colton rejected her.
The next morning, only one week before her birthday, Noah entered the barn as Kendra finished feeding the horses. She realized he’d hung around the barns all afternoon yesterday, and her in particular. Even last night, he’d never been out of sight.
“You’re up early, where’s Cody?” she asked, sliding the last stall door closed. One without the other these days was almost as rare as seeing a mountain lion.
“He went into town with Britt.”
“You should’ve said something, I wouldn’t have minded if you went.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t want to.”
“Great, then you can help me clean stalls,” she joked.
“Sure.”
Her brow rose as he fell into step beside her. Wow, no argument, not even a sour face. She resisted teasing him with a hand to his forehead; she wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.
“I’ll lead them out while you start,” she said on their way back to the first barn she’d fed. “You know where the wheelbarrow and pitchfork are?”
He nodded and headed in the direction of the tools. Kendra put the halter and lead rope on Lucky to take him out to a paddock. He’d become her favorite horse. Not only because he was the first one she’d ridden, but he had fire. He was so full of spunk and energy that he pranced in his eagerness to be free.
Her first day on the ranch seemed forever ago instead of just about a month. She remembered watching Colton lead the large bay. She’d been terrified of ever being on the opposite end of a lead rope, convinced the animal would toss her like a wet noodle. Lucky’s power still made her a little nervous, but Colton had taught her with a firm yet gentle hand, the horses did just about anything asked of them. It still amazed her.
Before opening the gate, she paused to give the stallion a sugar cube and stroke his soft muzzle as she glanced toward the barn. Her pulse leapt at the sight of Colton leaning against the hitching rail, arms crossed, watching her. The impact of their brief connection hit her in the gut clear across the barnyard. She quickly turned to reach for the latch on the gate.
Two steps in, an odd popping sound registered a split second before Lucky exploded. The horse reared high, hauling Kendra off her feet. Her hold on the halter slipped. She stumbled in front of the panicked horse and fell underneath his deadly hooves. Instinct curled her into a tight ball as she protected her head with her arms.
Then Colton was kneeling beside her. “Stay still,” he commanded. “Are you okay? Did he hit you at all? Kendra, answer me!”
She blinked and tried to sit. He held her down.
“I’m okay.” She fought him to get up. “What happened? Is Lucky okay?”
He ignored her questions and asked, “Are you hurt?”
She tested her limbs and shook her head. “I’m fine.”
At last, he turned that intense gaze from her and stared toward one of the mountain riding trails. She didn’t see Lucky anywhere and realized he must’ve taken off down the trail. So what was Colton still doing here? She pushed him away. “Go—make sure he didn’t hurt himself.”
With a final visual sweep of her body, he took off running for the trail. Kendra followed, but she soon fell behind. By the time she caught up, he’d just snagged Lucky’s dangling lead rope.
“He looks okay,” Kendra said hopefully and not a little out of breath.
Colton swung around, clearly surprised to see her. Concern followed as he thrust the lead into her hands. “I need to check his legs.”
She anxiously watched him run his hands up and down the s
tallion’s legs, holding her breath as he explained he was searching for heat or swelling, anything that would indicate an injury.
Finally, he heaved a sigh of relief and straightened to face Kendra. “Everything seems fine. He’s okay.”
“Thank God,” she breathed.
Before she could guess his intentions, Colton stepped forward and pulled her tight against his chest. “You sure you’re okay?” he asked, his chin on her head.
“I won’t be in a minute—I can’t breathe,” she advised in a muffled voice.
He abruptly set her away. “Sorry. It’s just that…it scared the hell out of me when I saw you fall under him.”
A hint of anger roughened his voice and she frowned in confusion. “If I’d had the time, I would’ve been scared, too.”
His hands tightened on her shoulders. “What the hell happened?”
She rubbed a hand over her face as she tried to recall the moment Lucky had reared up. “I think there may have been something on the ground.”
“What do you mean?” he asked with a deep scowl.
“There were these noises…like a snap or a pop,” she explained as they walked back to the barn. When they reached the ranch, Colton put the stallion in his stall and headed straight for the paddock. Kendra followed until it dawned on her that the wheelbarrow sat half full in the aisle, and Noah wasn’t in the barn. She called his name but received no answer.
Panic stole her breath away, and she rushed outside. Her gaze swept the yard to no avail. She turned for the guesthouse, praying he’d just gone inside. Colton’s furious voice pulled her up short.
“Noah!”
Kendra swung around and caught sight of Noah in the doorway of the Quarter Horse barn, with Joel beside him. She let out a sigh of relief, reversed direction, and arrived at the same time as Colton.
“Is this your idea of a joke?” Colton shook a fist in Noah’s face.
“W-what?”
Kendra stared at the dirt-covered white Snaps fireworks in Colton’s hand and suddenly understood Colton’s anger. The noise that scared Lucky.
Just the other day Colton had given each of the boys some harmless—hah—fireworks to play with. The kind you toss to the ground and they burst with a ‘snapping’ noise upon impact. But he’d specifically instructed them not to use any near the horses or the barns.
Surprised, she looked from the evidence in Colton’s hand to Noah’s face as Colton raged, “Your sister could’ve been seriously injured or maybe even killed with a stupid prank like this.”
Noah’s eyes widened as he looked at Kendra. “W-what h-happened?”
Kendra relayed an abbreviated version, and Joel frowned as his gaze swept over her. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine,” she insisted. She turned to Noah. “What were you thinking?”
“I—”
“He wasn’t thinking, that’s the problem,” Colton interrupted furiously. “Well, you’ll have plenty of time to think while you’re grounded for the next week.”
Noah looked from Colton to Kendra. “Ken, please—”
She shook her head. “Noah, he’s right. That was a dangerous stunt, and Lucky could’ve been hurt, too.” Tears began to well up in his eyes, but she forced back the urge to hug him. “Go to your room and stay there.”
He turned away with slumped shoulders. A moment later his little body stiffened and his fingers curled into tight fists.
“Pick up the rest of those Snaps first,” Colton instructed sternly. “And make sure you get every last one of them.”
Noah cast Kendra an angry glare, but he switched direction, kicking the dirt with his feet.
Kendra turned to Colton with dismay. “I’m so sorry. I know you guys pulled a lot of pranks, but I’m shocked he’d do something like this.”
Colton’s gaze followed Noah. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed before glancing at Kendra. “I shouldn’t have done that. I shouldn’t have grounded him without asking you—”
Kendra shook her head. “It’s exactly what I would’ve done. He needs to know it’s serious.”
“I think he does now,” Joel said. “I’ll be sure to talk to Cody and Dustin, too.”
Kendra watched Noah rake through the dirt for a little while before returning to her work. She checked outside from time to time and, after about an hour, noticed he’d finished. After a brief inspection of the gate area, she made her way inside the house to check on him.
Her knock on his door elicited a sullen, “Go away.”
She went to make a couple of sandwiches, loaded them on a tray with some milk and headed back to his room. Pushing the door open with her shoulder, she asked, “Hungry?”
“No.”
She set the tray on the desk. “Come on,” she coaxed. “It’s not so bad—at least you can be thankful no one got hurt.”
His brown eyes met hers. “I am—but not for why you all think.”
She sat on the bed and placed her hand on his leg in a gesture of sympathy. He jerked his leg away, arms folded tight across his chest.
“You wouldn’t even listen to me.” Wounded tears sprang into his eyes. “You like Colton better than me.”
Her heart broke. “I don’t like him better, Noah.” When he remained silent, she added, “I’m listening now—tell me why you did it.”
“That’s the whole point. I didn’t.”
“Noah, you’re old enough to know about the boy who cried wolf,” she warned.
“I didn’t do it.” He reached behind his pillow and then handed her a box of Snaps. She turned it over in her hand. The seal was unbroken.
She stared at the yellow box. “Why didn’t you say something?”
“No one would let me,” he accused.
Who would’ve done it, then? Cody? Dustin? She couldn’t imagine them any more than Noah. It simply didn’t make sense past the fact that Noah was innocent. She felt horrible for not giving her own brother the benefit of the doubt. For not even letting him explain.
“I’m sorry, Noah,” she apologized softly. “I should’ve listened to you.”
He sighed, his gaze on his hands. “Am I still grounded?”
“No.”
A ghost of his usual smile settled on his face as he looked at the food she’d brought. “What kind of sandwich did you make?”
She handed over his favorite, ham and cheese. When they were finished eating, she picked up the tray. “Stay here until I’ve talked to Colton, okay?”
He nodded. At the door, he said in a tiny little voice, “Ken?”
She stopped, raising her brows in silent inquiry.
“There’s something else I have to tell you.”
“Yeah?” She waited, thinking his voice sounded odd. Shaky and—
“I thought I saw Robert the other day.”
Kendra almost dropped the tray at his whispered words. “Where?”
“When we were camping. That’s why I stayed home today. To make sure you were safe.”
Her hands shook so bad by now she had to step back into the room to set the tray down on his dresser. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“I didn’t want to scare you,” he admitted. “I’m not even sure it was him. Maybe it only looked like him?” His words lifted at the end, as if he hoped he was wrong.
“You’re probably right, since it was a couple days ago. Don’t worry about it, okay?” She took a calming breath and picked up the tray again. Keep it steady, don’t let him see. It was her job to protect him, not the other way around.
“You’ll talk to Colton?” Noah asked before she closed the door.
She nodded, then beat a hasty exit to the kitchen. She barely made it to the counter before she dropped the tray. Plates and glasses clattered together. Her whole body trembled while she struggled to keep fear from overwhelming her.
Automatically, she set the teakettle on the stove. Three minutes later the shrill whistle jangled her nerves all over again. She breathed deep, coun
ted to three while removing the kettle off the hot burner, and reached for a mug.
“Making some tea?”
Kendra screamed and whirled at the unexpected presence behind her. The mug flew from her hands, shattering on the floor. Her horrified gaze took in the shards of red glass at her feet before lifting to Colton’s shocked expression.
“I didn’t hear you come in.” Residual adrenaline sharpened her voice.
Noah skidded to a halt next to Colton, his eyes wide saucers. “Ken?”
“I dropped a cup, that’s all,” she hastened to assure him.
“You screamed.”
She forced a smile. “No, I just exclaimed because I dropped it—go back to your room.”
He hesitated.
“Go!”
His lower lip quivered, but he turned and went. Afraid to look at Colton, she kept her eyes on the floor. Her stomach churned, and her heart still felt as if it would leap from her chest. She crouched down to pick up the glass. Her extended hand shook violently. Control began to crumble like a sand castle in the rain. Breathing required concentration.
Colton hunkered down to her level. “You wanna tell me what the hell is going on?”
She shook her head, but he reached out and took hold of her wrist.
“Kendra…”
The tender note of concern in his voice disintegrated her defenses, and she burst into tears.
“Whoa, hey, what’s wrong?”
She couldn’t answer, but he didn’t wait for her to. A light shake of her wrist scattered the pieces of broken glass back on the floor. He urged her to her feet and steered her into the living room. She was helpless to stop the flood of tears. He let her cry, gathering her against his chest as he sat on the couch.
Gradually, she became aware of the reassuring thud of his heartbeat, the warmth and strength of his arms, the soothing pressure of his hand rubbing up and down the length of her spine. She’d never felt safer and wondered what it was about Colton Lawe that comforted her as no one else ever had.
Kendra pushed back a few inches and peered through her wet, spiked lashes. The moment her gaze met his, her pulse started racing again. A naked, indefinable emotion in his eyes drew her, made her slide her hands up his chest to pull his mouth down onto hers. He didn’t exactly resist, but he didn’t fully participate, either. She brushed her lips back and forth, then teased his closed mouth with her tongue.
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