Cowboy to the Core

by Joanna Wayne

  “The steed can be arranged.”

  “It sounds incredibly tempting,” she admitted, “but we’re only here until tomorrow afternoon, and the wedding activities will take most of our time.” She slipped the card in her pocket without looking at it.

  “If I can help with anything, don’t hesitate to call.”

  “I won’t.” Nor could she imagine a situation in which she’d need the services of a cowboy. Well, there was one, but that involved the romantic entanglement that she had zero time for. She started to gather the trash.

  “I’ll take care of it,” he said. “Go enjoy the festival, but don’t lose that card.” He stood and then in a suavely, smooth move touched his lips to hers.

  Heat shot through her in waves, and it was all she could do not to melt into his arms. Fortunately, his lips didn’t remain on hers long enough to give her the chance. She walked away while she still could, much too aware of the card and phone number that lay buried in the pocket of her new designer jeans.

  Once she’d put a few yards between them, she glanced back and found Marcus still standing in the exact same spot as she’d left him. Their eyes locked, and he smiled and tipped his hat. Her heart flipped in response.

  “Dani!”

  The squeal jolted her out of her momentary sensual relapse. To her rear might be a gorgeous cowboy, but in front of her was Bethany Sue. Not the same Bethany Sue she remembered, however.

  The pudgy ally she’d known for years was absolutely svelte now. And radiant. She positively glowed.

  The two collided in a genuine hug. “You look great,” Dani said when they separated from each other and stepped back.

  “Thanks.” Bethany Sue did a catwalk turn for her to get the full effect. “I owe it all to Arnie. He persuaded me to quit smoking, start working out and to eat healthy.”

  Dani was sure she owed part of the new her to a plastic surgeon, but she let that ride. More power to her for taking control of her body and her life.

  “I can’t wait to meet the lucky groom.”

  “You’ll love him. He’s a body builder and personal trainer. A real hunk! But not all muscle. He’s got brains, too.”

  “He sounds fascinating.”

  “He is. And he’s dying to meet you. I’ve told him all about you, my friend. The winner of the state math competition and karaoke queen.”

  “Oh, God, that was so long ago. Can we just go with mother and buyer for Duran Muton?”

  “You look far more like a model than a buyer. But speaking of motherhood, where is Celeste? She did come, didn’t she?”

  “She and a friend. They’re over there, absorbed in a juggling act.” Dani nodded toward the crowd seated on concrete benches shaded by a web of net and intertwined branches.

  “Great. I’ll catch up with both of you at the dinner tonight. I’m rushing off right now to reconfirm the setup for the tables and to make sure they have plenty of champagne. Everything will be outdoors.”

  “Perfect weather for that. Is there anything I can do to help?”

  “No, just enjoy yourself, unless…” She hesitated.

  “This doesn’t have anything to do with the guy you wanted me to meet, does it?”

  “No,” Bethany assured her. “But you’ll probably be begging me to fix you up once you see him.”

  “Don’t count on it. So, how can I help?”

  “Arnie’s sister is supposed to sing at the ceremony, but she woke up this morning with a terrible headache and a fever. She thinks she may be coming down with the flu.”

  The one thing worse than a blind date. “I haven’t sung in front of an audience in years.”

  “You’re kidding, right?”

  “No, and it’s not that shocking, Bethany. I was never that good.”

  “Yes, you were. If there had been an American Idol back then, you’d have won in a landslide.” Bethany glanced at her watch. “I have to go, but consider singing for me at the ceremony, please. It’s just two songs. We’ll talk more tonight. Gotta run.” She gave Dani a parting hug.

  “I’m seriously out of practice,” Dani called after her.

  Bethany either didn’t hear or chose to ignore her. Dani imagined it was the latter. She’d protest again tonight, but it would be a wasted effort. Bethany was not one to take no for a final answer, and it would be pretty crummy to refuse a bride in distress.

  The good thing was that other than Celeste and Katie, she would neither know the guests nor have to face them again after she murdered the music.

  Murdered. Even thinking the word gave her chills after this morning’s hallucinations. They’d been so intense that Dani had actually felt the thrust of the blade as it punctured the walls of the chest and sliced into the victim’s heart—as if it were happening to her.

  In broad daylight. Eyes wide open, at least they had been until she’d passed out.

  “You should have seen the jugglers, Mom. They were funny and really good.”

  Startled, Dani jumped and then spun around to face the girls.

  “Are you okay?” Katie asked. “You look kind of pale.”

  “Eeks, you do,” Celeste agreed. “You’re not going to faint again, are you?”

  “I’m not pale. I just haven’t gotten enough sun lately. Today’s the day for it.”

  “Where’d the cute cowboy go?” Katie asked.

  “Who needs a cute cowboy when I have you two? Now tell me about the jugglers.” She forced the disturbing memories to the back of her mind. She had to get a hold of her emotions and regain her stability before she turned this whole weekend into a fiasco.

  “The jugglers were really cool,” Katie said, thankfully changing the topic of conversation. “They even juggled fiery batons.”

  “And they threw a knife and chopped the end off a carrot a woman was holding in her mouth.” Celeste used her hand to show how close the knife had come to the woman’s nose. “I never would have trusted them to try that with me.”

  “Good for you,” Dani said. “Any ideas what we should do next, or should we just walk and take in the sights?”

  “A boy sitting next to us said we should be sure and go to the jousting exhibition,” Katie said. “He said it’s all staged but that it looks real and sometimes the guys get knocked off their horses.”

  “And you can cheer for whichever rider you want to win,” Celeste added, then turned to watch a rickshaw go by that was being pulled by a scantily clad slave lad. The pseudo lord and lady riding in the cart waved.

  “This is so neat,” Katie said. “Like taking a time machine into the past. I can’t wait until we get our costumes for tonight’s party.”

  Dani wasn’t quite up to that yet. She checked the program and her watch. “The next jousting exhibition is at one o’clock. That gives us twenty minutes, if you want to make that performance.”

  “Let’s do it,” Celeste and Katie said in unison.

  A few seconds later they’d checked the map and were on their way across the festival grounds to the day’s next adventure. The girls hurried ahead but stopped frequently to peek at wares on display outside of the shops—jewelry; sandals; pewter, fire-breathing dragons cast in stone. Some findings were far more authentic than others. All of them captured the Renaissance spirit.

  The spirit of revelry started to dissolve Dani’s misgivings about having come here today. Maybe the warning was just for her not to buy a green dress for the party or wedding. No problem there. She’d go in her jeans first.

  But suppose someone else wore that dress to the party, maybe even Bethany Sue?

  She shook her head to clear it, then stood perfectly still when she got this disconcerting feeling that someone was watching her. She turned. No one was paying her the slightest attention, not with two busty wenches posing for pictures near the beer stand.

  If she was going to be this jumpy all weekend, she should just pack it up and go home. Or perhaps she should have held on to the sexy cowboy a while longer, even invited him to the party tonig
ht as her guest. A new image took hold in her mind, this one of her in Marcus Abbot’s arms, dancing beneath a star-studded sky.

  The slow burn that settled between her thighs sent a quick flush to her cheeks. Lusting after strangers was not her style. She had to get out more. It had been months—no, make that a solid year—since she’d had any intimate contact with a man.

  With good reason, she reminded herself. Her last date had been a miserable exercise in how much boredom she could endure.

  As a group of sexy wenches passed, a young teenage boy walked up to her and stuck out a note. “I’m supposed to give you this.”

  Dani took the slip of paper and read the message that was printed in black ink.

  Beware of the dark knight.

  The boy started to walk away. She slipped the note into her pocket and hurried to catch up with him. “Why did you give me that?”

  “That man back there asked me to.”

  “What man? Show me.”

  He looked around. “I don’t see him now, but he was standing right back there by that tree a minute ago.”

  “Was he wearing a cowboy hat?”

  “Naw.”

  “In costume?”

  The kid shook his head. “He was just dressed like a regular dude. Had on a blue polo shirt. That’s all I know.”

  A blue knit shirt, like the man she’d thought was watching her in the dress shop. “Did he have dark brown hair?”

  “Yeah, maybe. I gotta go catch up with my friends.”

  Dani pulled out the note and reread it, growing more perturbed by the second. She stuffed it back into her pocket when she saw the girls approaching.

  “Hey, Mom, you dropped this.”

  The cowboy’s business card. Dani must have lost it when she was fiddling with the note.

  “Marcus Abbot,” Celeste read from the card. “Double M Investigation and Protection Service. No boundaries, No limits. No job too tough.” She handed the card back to Dani.

  “Cool. A Rambo,” Katie said.

  “I think that means he’s a private detective, not a commando,” Dani said. But the card did advertise protection and no limits. She could hire him. And he’d laugh her right off the planet when she told him she needed protection from a dark knight.

  “There’s the jousting arena,” Katie said, pointing dead ahead of them to a huge circular wall adorned by busts.

  Beware the dark knight.

  A dagger plunged into a woman’s heart.

  “Hurry, Mom. We want to get a good seat.”

  Marcus’s card felt as if it were burning the palm of her hand, all but making the decision for her. “Go ahead,” she called. “Save me a seat. Something’s come up at work, and I have to make a quick phone call.”

  She might have a date for tonight’s party after all.

  Chapter Three

  Marcus was watching a pair of youngsters being hoisted onto the back of a large and extremely wrinkled elephant when his cell phone rang. The caller ID merely indicated a wireless connection. He punched the talk button. “Hello?”

  “Marcus?”

  He recognized the voice at once. “At your service.”

  “This is Dani Baxter. We had lunch together a few minutes ago.”

  A reminder, as if she were that easy to forget. “Glad you called. What’s up?”

  Too many seconds of silence followed. “Are you okay, Dani?”

  “Yeah. I’m fine. No more fainting,” she added hurriedly.

  “Good.” She sounded rattled.

  “I was just looking at your card, and I have what may sound like a strange request.”

  “Strange is my specialty.”

  “I’d like you to be my guest tonight for the prewedding party. It’s on the festival grounds at eight o’clock.”

  Not what he was expecting.

  “I’ll pay you, of course,” Dani added, as he tried to figure out what was going on here.

  “You must be looking at the wrong card. The Double M is not an escort service.”

  “I realize that. I’m not looking for an escort. I think—I mean it’s possible—I mean…Look, I’ll explain it all later, but the truth is I’ll feel better if I know the girls and I are in your hands tonight.”

  That was more like it. “Are you in danger, Dani?”

  “I’m not sure. Probably not. It’s just that…”

  The woman was a wreck, and she hadn’t seemed the irrational type. “Are you sure you’re okay? I’m right here on the grounds. I could probably catch up with you in minutes.”

  “No. Look, I really can’t talk now, but I’ll explain everything tonight.”

  Somehow he doubted that. But even if she continued to skirt the issue, he’d get the truth out of her eventually. That actually was one of his specialties. Women trusted him. He used to trust them. “When and where do I pick you up?”

  “We’re staying at a bed-and-breakfast in Magnolia, but you can just meet us here.”

  “I’m old-fashioned. I like to pick up my date at her door.”

  “This isn’t really a date.”

  “Humor me. Besides, I work better with a full lay of the land.”

  “I don’t want the girls to know I’ve hired you. I was thinking we could just make it look as if we hooked up at the party.”

  So he was to be a secret date. A warning bell sounded. More often than not when a woman was running scared, a husband or lover was involved. “Does this situation have to do with your significant other?”

  “No, of course not. I wouldn’t be hooking up, pretend or otherwise, if I had a significant other.”

  “It’s been done.”

  “Not by me. I’m divorced and have been for years.”

  And that was probably all he’d get out of her until tonight. “According to the schedule, the festival is not open at night, so how do I get in to this party?”

  “Invitation only.” She sighed. “You’ll have to attend as my guest, so maybe it would be best if you pick me up at the B and B. I’ll think of some way to explain all this to Celeste and Katie, but I definitely don’t want them to know that I’m hiring you.”

  Not surprising since she hadn’t even told him the why as yet. “How about I pick you up at seven-thirty?”

  “That would work. The invitation encourages guests to come in the style of the Elizabethan period.”

  “There I draw the line. I don’t do costumes.”

  “Frankly, at this point, I’m not sure I do, either.”

  She gave him the name of the B and B she’d booked and the directions she’d gotten on the Internet. Then she said a quick goodbye and broke their connection before he could ask more questions.

  Too bad, since dozens stalked his mind. He figured there was at least a ninety-nine percent chance his being hired as a protector was connected to the fainting spell she’d experienced that morning. Judging from the look in her eyes at the time, he’d have sworn she was wrestling demons.

  But what or who had her spooked? A stalker? An ex-lover? Someone in costume that she might not recognize until it was too late? That could present a few problems.

  Nothing he couldn’t handle. He wouldn’t take his eyes off her for a second. That part would be easy.

  Remembering this was a job and not a date with a beautiful, sophisticated woman might take a bit more skill.

  A ROAR ROSE from the crowd as Dani entered the amphitheater. The tiers of concrete benches surrounded a dirt performance area that four partially armored knights circled on magnificent steeds. Behind them a viewing stand filled with exquisitely dressed lords and ladies. Cheers and jeers rose from the crowd as each knight and his cheerleader lady tried to drum up support for their quest.

  She glanced around, looking for the girls. The sea of faces became a blur.

  “Over here, Ms. Baxter.” Katie’s high-pitched voice barely carried over the din. “We saved you a seat.”

  The twelve-year-old with her wild mass of red hair only partially tamed by a base
ball cap was sitting on the end of a bench just a few rows up from where Dani was standing. Alone.

  Unexpected anxiety rolled in Dani’s stomach. “Where’s Celeste?”

  “Buying cotton candy.” Katie pointed to their left where Celeste was counting out bills to a vendor whose colorful bags of sugary sweets floated above him like balloons, each secured to his long pole.

  Safe, of course. This was a family festival meant to lift the spirits, not some Halloweenish house of ancient horrors. Dani was freaking out over nothing and everything. And now she’d hired a bodyguard who’d surely think she was a certifiable nutcase.

  Dani slid to the seat beside Katie. “What did I miss?”

  “The introduction of the knights. We’re rooting for the one representing France. He has the best horse and the prettiest lady leading the cheers for him. But the rider from Spain has our school colors, so we’re kinda for him, too.”

  Celeste rejoined them and held out the cone of blue twirled sugar for them to share. “You got here just in time, Mom. I was afraid you were going to miss the jousting. You already missed a lot of the fun.”

  “I’m here now. Let the games begin.” Dani forced a carefree cheerfulness into her voice and tore off a bite-size piece of the froth. Her irritation with herself swelled.

  For once Celeste was truly enjoying their day together, and Dani was the one putting a damper on the excitement.

  The crowd began to cheer as the four knights returned. Each wore an armored chest piece. Jointed armor covered parts of their arms and legs as well.

  The horses were draped in the same vibrant hues as their riders’ flowing tunics. One was dressed in black and silver and had a sinister air about him. The jovial air of pageantry and the crowd’s fervent reactions were truly impressive.

  The knights circled the arena on the horses, waving to the spectators and pumping up the enthusiasm. One, a young blonde with a disarming smile, tended to steal the show.

  “That’s the contender from France,” Celeste said when he waved in their direction.

  Dani was sure the show was scripted, the winners and losers predetermined on a rotational basis, but that took little from the performance’s exuberance. The excitement arced even higher as the announcer proclaimed that the tournament was to begin.