The Deputy's Redemption

by Delores Fossen

  Maybe.

  She didn’t see any movement in the barn. Didn’t see Colt at first, either, but then Elise caught a glimpse of him on the side of the front porch right before he jumped down next to some shrubs. He waited, obviously listening, with his attention nailed to the gaping hole where there’d once been a barn door.

  “I’m Deputy McKinnon,” Colt called out, taking aim. “Come out with your hands in the air.”

  Elise gulped down her breath. Waited, too, and just when she thought Colt was going to have to go in after the intruder, she saw someone in the doorway of the barn. She lifted her gun. Took aim, as well. And watched as the sandy-haired man stepped out from the shadows.

  Buddy.

  What the heck was he doing here?

  She groaned, releasing her breath and lowering her gun. But Colt certainly didn’t lower his. He kept it pinned to her former tenant.

  “No need for that gun,” Buddy snarled, but he did keep his hands raised in the air. Even though he had a loud voice, she opened the window so she could hear him better. “I just came here to get the rest of my things.”

  “You’re trespassing,” Colt insisted.

  “I’ll only be here long enough to pick up a few things,” he answered. Of course, that didn’t explain the trespassing accusation. “After I’m finished, I’ll be leaving town.”

  He’d told Elise that nearly two weeks ago, so either something had delayed him or he’d lied to her. She didn’t like either possibility.

  Buddy eased his hands down to his sides, but he didn’t drop the glare that he was giving Colt. And her. Buddy snagged her gaze through the window screen, and she had no trouble seeing that he was still past the point of being angry at her.

  After the night that Colt and she had had, the last thing she needed was Buddy showing up with more demands and a surly attitude. Feeling pretty surly herself, Elise shut the window and went out onto the porch so she could confront Buddy face-to-face. Obviously, though, Colt didn’t like her being outside, because he shot her a split-second glare of his own.

  Tough.

  She stayed put.

  “Got the law sleeping over here with you now?” Buddy asked her.

  It wasn’t just a simple question. Maybe he’d heard about the trouble from the hit man or maybe he was just trying to goad her by implying that Colt and she were having an affair.

  “It’s my house,” she answered. “I can invite anyone I want to come here. Or sleep over. But I definitely didn’t invite you.”

  “Didn’t figure I needed an invite to get my own things,” Buddy snapped.

  “Well, you were wrong.” Elise made sure she added her own dose of surliness to that.

  Of course, it wasn’t a bigger dose than Colt’s.

  “Go back inside,” Colt warned her. Glared at her, too. “And call Cooper again to tell him I don’t need backup. I can handle this on my own. But let him know that Buddy’s here and that I want somebody to run a quick check on him to find out why he’s still in town.”

  Elise debated the wisdom of him handling this alone as well as her going back inside, but Buddy didn’t appear to be armed. Despite the bitter cold, he wasn’t even wearing a coat, and the frayed drab gray sweatshirt hugged his beer gut enough that it didn’t seem he was carrying a concealed weapon.

  She made the call to Dispatch to cancel the backup and to ask for the check on Buddy, as Colt had requested, but Elise stayed put on the porch.

  Oh, yes. That made Colt’s glare even worse.

  “You’ve already picked up all your things. Why’d you come back?” she asked Buddy.

  He hitched his thumb toward the hayloft. “I forgot about a box of stuff still up there.”

  Colt glanced back at her to see if that was true, but Elise had to shrug. The ladder leading to the loft was rickety at best, and she hadn’t gone up there since her return. There was no telling what was up there.

  “Get the box,” Colt told Buddy. “But if you remember anything else you left, call first and get permission from Elise.”

  That caused Buddy’s nostrils to flare. “This place is my home, you know. Lived here over five years while Elise was off gallivanting in the city. If it hadn’t been for me, this barn and that house would have probably fallen down by now.”

  “I wasn’t gallivanting.” Elise thought her nostrils might have flared, too. “I was working. And you were paid for any repairs you made.”

  She had the proof, too, since Buddy had sent her the bills, and she’d deducted the cost from his rent.

  “You can’t pay a person for making a house into a home,” he snarled.

  “And this isn’t your home. It’s Elise’s,” Colt reminded him. “It’s been in her family since well before any of us were born.”

  “Home,” Buddy repeated like profanity. His attention drifted to the place that she had staked out for a new stable. “She’ll run it into the ground. She’s all city now. No way can she make a go of this place.”

  It wasn’t exactly the first time she’d faced that attitude, probably wouldn’t be the last, either. But it wouldn’t put her off. Especially not coming from Buddy.

  “Where were you last night?” Colt demanded.

  That didn’t help with Buddy’s angry body language, and he didn’t jump to answer. “Any reason you’re asking?”

  “Because Elise ran into some trouble. I hope that trouble didn’t come because of you.”

  “Not a chance. I don’t want her here, but I didn’t do nothing about it. If she had trouble, she probably brought it on herself.”

  Colt made a skeptical sound. “Or you could have helped it along. Where were you last night?” he repeated. “This time, I want an answer. If not here, then you can answer it at the sheriff’s office.”

  “You’re serious?” Buddy barked.

  “Oh, yeah. Now answer me.”

  Buddy’s glare eased up a bit, and after he did some mumbling, he scratched the scruff on his chin. “I started the night off at the Outlaw Bar, had a few drinks and left around midnight, I guess.”

  The incident with Martinelli had happened nearly two hours earlier, which meant Buddy wasn’t involved. Well, if he was telling the truth, that is. Elise hadn’t exactly trusted the man before this latest incident, and she certainly didn’t trust him any more now.

  “Were you with anybody at the Outlaw Bar who can confirm you were there?” Colt pressed.

  Buddy shook his head. “Didn’t know I’d need somebody to vouch for me.”

  “Well, you do.”

  That got Buddy cursing again. “You might be wearing a badge, Colt McKinnon, but that doesn’t give you any right to talk to me like this.”

  Colt was no doubt about to dispute that, but Elise spoke before he could.

  “Did you try to have me killed?” Elise came out and asked despite Buddy’s latest round of profanity.

  Colt shot her another back-off glance, which she ignored. She’d been dealing with Buddy for weeks now, and she thought she might be able to tell if he was lying. Or at least she might be able to push a button or two to get him to come clean.

  “Kill you?” Buddy questioned. And his mouth twitched as if threatening to smile. “Wasn’t me. But I guess you got more than just me ticked off at you, huh?”

  Maybe. But Elise wondered if this was all truly connected to Buddy and his venom over her not selling him the place? She’d been so quick to pin the blame on Colt’s family and the testimony that she would give for Jewell, but Buddy was certainly acting like a guilty man.

  “Since it’s pretty clear this isn’t going to be a friendly chat, I’ll get that box and leave,” Buddy grumbled. “If I do any more talking to you, Deputy, I should probably have a lawyer with me so you don’t try to pin any trumped-up charges on me.”

  With that, Buddy turned and went into the barn.

  Colt huffed and moved back onto the porch with her. “I really don’t want you outside with Buddy still here,” he insisted.

  She
understood Colt’s concern, but she wanted to show Buddy that she wasn’t afraid of him.

  Even if she was.

  Either the man was mentally unstable or he had a strange attachment to her childhood home.

  “If you won’t go inside, at least move into the doorway,” Colt pressed.

  Because he was genuinely concerned about her safety. Elise was, too. So, she moved back.

  “Did you see Buddy’s truck anywhere?” Colt asked her.

  Elise had another look around the grounds. “No.” And she could see clear to the end of the road that led to her house. There weren’t any motels or rental properties nearby, so that likely meant Buddy had parked on the main road itself.

  Where his truck wouldn’t be seen.

  A man with nothing to hide wouldn’t do that.

  “If he’d knocked on the door and asked to get the box from the barn,” she said, “I would have let him. So why all the secrecy?”

  “Because maybe he wants more than just that box.” Colt shot her another warning glance. “And that’s another good reason for you to go inside.”

  Since he was right, and she was tired of arguing, Elise huffed again and stepped just inside the living room. That way, she could still see the barn and help Colt keep watch but without being right out in the open.

  As Colt was.

  Of course, he’d argue that it was his job to take risks like that, but Elise hated that he was essentially risking his life for her.

  It didn’t take long for Buddy to come back out of the barn, and he was indeed carrying a cardboard box. Thankfully, he had both hands around it, which would have made it hard for him to pull a weapon.

  “Walking far with that box?” Colt asked. He went down the side steps of the porch, heading straight for Buddy. Elise moved back into the doorway so she could hear Buddy’s answer.

  “Not far. Just up the road.” Buddy called out. He kept walking, but he glanced over at her. “I figured I’d be in and out before Elise even got out of bed. If I’d driven up, the engine might have wakened her.”

  Elise wasn’t buying that. Of course, maybe there was nothing sinister about this and Buddy simply hadn’t wanted to run into her this morning. After the argument they’d just had, she could understand why he’d want to avoid something like that.

  Still...

  Colt caught up with Buddy, and he had a look in the box. Elise couldn’t see what was inside it, but it didn’t seem to alarm Colt any more than he already was.

  “It’s just papers and old magazines!” Buddy yelled. “I’m not taking anything that’s not mine.”

  Colt stepped in front of Buddy, forcing the man to stop. “Then you won’t mind if I check.”

  He didn’t wait for permission. Colt rifled through the box while Buddy’s shoulders and back got even stiffer. Colt must not have found anything because after a thorough look, he stepped aside. Buddy grumbled something that she didn’t catch and continued walking up the road.

  Colt kept his attention on the man, but he came back onto the porch. To stand guard, she quickly realized. Protecting her again.

  “I’ll make some calls,” she volunteered. “And get some security arrangements started. Maybe I can even get a security system installed today.”

  Colt huffed. “But you’re insisting on staying here.” He tipped his head toward Buddy. “What if he shows up again? Or what if another hit man does?” Colt didn’t wait for her to answer. “Look, I know it’s uncomfortable for you having me here, so I’ll call the Rangers and have them send out a protection detail.”

  “I’m less uncomfortable than I was,” she mumbled. She no doubt should have kept that to herself. “Well, about some things, anyway.”

  That, too. No way should she have said that aloud to Colt because he knew exactly what she meant.

  He looked over his shoulder at her, and despite the fact that they’d just had the adrenaline-spiking encounter with Buddy, she saw something else in his eyes. The reason why she shouldn’t put up even a smidgen of a fight about having someone guard her.

  Those McKinnon eyes—and pretty much the rest of him—were playing havoc with her body.

  Colt gave Buddy another glance, no doubt to make sure the man was indeed leaving. He was. And Colt took her by the arm and moved her deeper into the living room before he shut the door. He opened his mouth, closed it and opened it again only to curse.

  “Hell,” he mumbled, reholstering his gun.

  In the same motion, he leaned in and put his mouth on hers.

  Elise wasn’t sure who was more surprised by that, her or Colt. She felt the tightness of his lips. For a second, anyway. And then no more tightening. It turned into a full-fledged kiss.

  One that she instantly felt.

  The heat rippled through her. Mouth to toes. Warming her. Then, firing her body in a really good-bad way. It brought to the surface all those feelings that she’d been trying to pretend didn’t exist.

  Well, the pretense was over.

  The feelings existed, all right.

  She’d been attracted to Colt since she was old enough to feel attraction, and apparently that hadn’t changed one bit. If anything, that kiss had made it a heck of a lot worse.

  Mercy, he’d gotten even better at this since they were teenagers. Not that she’d expected anything less. With those hot cowboy looks, he’d no doubt had a lot of practice. Something that cooled the heat down just a bit.

  She definitely didn’t want to be another notch on Colt’s bedpost.

  Yes, they’d made out before, but they’d never gone further than that. Elise figured it was a good idea if that continued. And the best way for that to happen was for the kiss to stop.

  He pulled back, his gaze snapping to hers. His gaze then lowering right back to her mouth.

  “That was a mistake,” he informed her.

  Then he dropped another of those scalding kisses on her mouth. He cursed some more, backed away from her. “And that’s also proof of why I need to put you in someone else’s protective custody.”

  Elise couldn’t argue with that, even if that’s exactly what her body wanted her to do. However, she didn’t get a chance to say anything one way or the other because Colt’s phone buzzed.

  “It’s Reed,” Colt said, glancing down at the screen. He took the call, but he also looked out the front window. So did Elise, but she could no longer see Buddy.

  Despite the heat and the tension still crackling between them, Elise moved closer so she could hear what Reed was saying. And she heard, all right. Something she didn’t want to hear.

  “We got a problem,” Reed said.

  “Hell,” Colt mumbled. “What’s wrong now?”

  “I just got the results of Buddy’s background check. If he’s still there, you need to bring him in now.”

  Chapter Six

  Colt glanced through the report that Reed handed him, and he cursed. Something he’d been doing a lot of lately, but he might do a lot more before this was over.

  Elise, too.

  Standing beside him in the sheriff’s office, she shook her head when she looked over the report on Buddy. Her attention landed on the same thing that’d caught Colt’s eye.

  That Buddy had been in juvie lockup when he was fifteen for assault with a deadly weapon.

  And that his cell mate had been none other than Simon Martinelli, the now-dead hit man.

  “Sweet heaven,” she mumbled, and she dropped down in the seat next to Colt’s desk. Judging from the way she rubbed her head, it was still hurting, and this sure wouldn’t help matters.

  “This didn’t come up during the background check I ran on him,” Elise added.

  “It wouldn’t have,” Colt assured her. “Juvenile records are sealed.”

  She looked up at Reed and him, volleying glances between them. No doubt wondering how they’d managed to get the records unsealed, but Colt just shrugged. “Reed has a few connections that he uses on occasions like this.”

  Reed nodded
. “After the stunt Buddy pulled vandalizing your place, I thought it was strange that he didn’t have a record. So, I kept digging.”

  And the digging had paid off. It’d given them a direct connection between Buddy and Martinelli. But there was just one problem with that.

  Buddy was nowhere to be found.

  The moment Reed had told him what was in the report, Colt had gone after Buddy, but the man had practically disappeared. There was an APB out on him, though, and Colt figured he would show up sooner or later. He just hoped that Buddy didn’t show up around Elise. She’d already been through more than enough.

  That blasted kiss included.

  She darn sure didn’t need any more complications to her life, but Colt had added a big one by kissing her. Twice! Heck, he’d added a big complication for himself, too, because now he was personally involved in something and with someone he shouldn’t be. Especially considering he had so many other things that should be holding his attention.

  “We’ll find Buddy,” Colt told her. “In the meantime, we’ll keep searching for proof that he’s the one who hired Martinelli. Unless Martinelli owed Buddy a huge favor and worked free, we might be able to get a court order and find a money trail for payment.”

  Elise lifted her head, looked at him. “Buddy has money. About a hundred thousand dollars. It’s an account in his late mother’s name, but since he was on the account, he still draws funds from it. The last time I checked, he’d withdrawn thirteen hundred.”

  Now it was Reed and Colt’s turn to look at her. “I have connections that I use on occasions like this,” she repeated.

  “Legal connections?” Colt pressed.

  She stared at him. “You really want to know?”

  He groaned. Colt didn’t mind her bending the law but not in this case. “If it’s legal, we can skip the court order and try to connect that money to Martinelli.”

  “You’ll need that court order,” she confirmed. “The source I used won’t own up to helping me. It wasn’t illegal. Not exactly,” Elise added in a mumble. “But my source could have cut a few corners.”

  Great. So now they needed to go about this in a way where they could actually build a case against Buddy.