by Cora Seton
“I only saw one.” Lacey looked at Kendra. “Wish I had woken sooner.”
Detective Anderson’s steady gaze turned to her. “And why did you wake up then? Did you hear something?”
She shook her head. “No. I just had a bad dream and decided to have a cup of tea on my patio before going back to sleep.”
He looked at her oddly before scribbling on his pad.
If he had had the same kind of dream she had, he wouldn’t have wanted to go back to sleep right away either.
“Do you think there is a connection between the fire and this theft?” Kendra brought the detective’s gaze back to her.
“It’s too early to tell yet. I found an empty bottle of Tequila at the burn site, as well as a piece of clothing which looks to be a female’s.”
Kendra smirked. “Can’t say many of our female guests wear clothing, but some do bring something to cover their shoulders because of the air-conditioning, though I can’t imagine them hanging out at the construction site unless…”
“Unless what?” The detective’s gaze turned sharp.
“Unless the guest was flirting with one of the construction workers.” She looked over at Lacey and wiggled her brows.
Lacey felt heat rise to her cheeks. The detective studied her, so she explained. “What she is intimating is that sometimes I delivered Selma’s snacks to the construction crew and there is a gentleman there who I conversed with.”
“And had lunch with yesterday.” Kendra nodded approvingly.
She looked at her boss. “I don’t think the detective really cares about my love life.”
“I might.”
She snapped her gaze back to him and quickly checked his left hand. A well-worn gold band was evident on his ring finger. She met his steady gaze with her own. “Why?”
He ignored her question and spoke to Kendra. “I will need to talk to each staff member separately.”
“That’s not a problem.” Kendra laid her hand on Lacey’s shoulder. “Lacey can let you know where everyone is, depending on the time.”
“Good. And I will also need the contact information for the guests who were here the night of the fire.”
Kendra stiffened. “You think a guest could have set it?”
“I don’t know yet, but I need to cover all bases.”
“If you don’t have to contact my guests, I’d prefer you didn’t.” Kendra raised her hand as the detective opened his mouth. “I understand you may need to. All I’m saying is if the trail leads elsewhere, I prefer they not be bothered. Is there any chance the fire wasn’t started by human means?”
Detective Anderson shook his head. “No. It was definitely started by someone. This was no lightning strike or electrical arc.”
Kendra’s shoulders fell and Lacey laid her hand on her boss’s arm. “Don’t worry. None of your current staff would ever do anything to harm Poker Flat.”
“So there has been trouble with staff before?” Detective Anderson’s shrewd blue gaze zeroed in on her.
Darn. Her stupid loose tongue. “There was one person. He was let go. He may have bad feelings, but I believe he’s in jail at the moment.” She pinned Anderson with her own gaze until he backed down. So there. It would be tough to start a fire from jail.
The detective scribbled more in his pad before flipping to a new blank page. “I might as well start with you.” He looked directly at her before turning to Kendra. “I’ll talk to you next and then the bartender.”
Kendra took the hint that Anderson wanted her to leave and she stood. “I’ll check in with Adriana. She may still be asleep. It’s been a long two days for all of us.” She stared hard at the officer, but Lacey doubted he cared what she thought or how much sleep they’d had. He probably figured if they were tired they would slip up and give themselves away.
Her gut twisted as familiar pains roiled through her stomach. She’d hated being accused of something she hadn’t done back in Orson, but now this detective appeared to be accusing everyone on staff. She hoped in the end the fire was caused by anyone but a staff person, just to prove that working at a nudist resort didn’t mean they had no morals.
“Do you own a white shrug?”
She snapped her attention back to Anderson. “Yes, I do. I couldn’t find it this morning. Why?”
He didn’t even write that down on his pad. “Because I found it at the burn site.”
No. No. Not again!
Chapter Five
‡
Cole tamped down the need to shout like a teenager who just got the girl of his dreams to go to the prom with him. It looked like he’d be selling four good horses to the Poker Flat resort. He led Elsa out of her stall toward Wade, who was inspecting Romeo. “He’s a mellow horse and should work perfectly for new riders.”
“What was wrong with him? He looks as good as Sam.” Wade moved to the other side of Romeo.
“He suffered from malnutrition. Poor guy was only days from collapsing. The re-feeding was touch and go for a while especially in the first month. If my grandfather wasn’t here, this horse would have never made it because I work twenty-four-hour shifts at the fire station and Romeo needed a constant watch.”
Wade pet the quarter horse’s nose and the animal leaned his head toward him. “How long have you had him?”
Cole tied Elsa and stepped closer to give Romeo a pat. “He’s been with us ten months now. He’s been eating well for four months and his weight has remained constant. He’s ready to move on. If he stays here much longer, he’ll get fat from lack of activity.”
Wade looked up at that then shook his head. “I doubt that. You have a nice spread here. I’m sure Romeo could get plenty of exercise.”
“Possibly, but he likes to be ridden and I’m too busy to spend the time needed to be sure all these horses get the right amount of exercise. And my grandparents are getting up there in years. Though they both still ride, I can’t expect them to exercise all the horses.”
Wade stepped around Romeo. “I see your dilemma. But there will always be more abused and abandoned horses. How will you keep them healthy?”
Cole didn’t meet Wade’s gaze, instead focusing on Romeo. “I have a long-term plan, which includes staff. I’m still working out the kinks in between caring for the horses I have and my job.” What he really needed was a financial manager who could help him keep everything straight.
“I’ll definitely take him.” Wade walked over to Elsa. “Who do we have here?”
“That’s Elsa. She’s the only Arabian I have at the moment.”
Wade let the horse greet him and gently patted her side. “She has a lot of scars.”
Cole swallowed. Cases like Elsa’s were the toughest. “She’d been badly burned in a wildfire. The owners were going to put her down, but I offered to take her off their hands. They were happy to let me have her.”
Wade whistled low. “I’m surprised she made it. What made you take her?”
“It was her eyes. She was standing there with so much burned skin, shaking in fear, but she didn’t run. All she did was stand and look at me as if asking me to help her. I couldn’t ignore that.” He didn’t know how else to explain the feeling he had when he’d seen her.
“I understand.” Wade nodded.
In that moment Cole was absolutely sure that selling her to Wade would ensure her a caring home. That was important to him because she had a special place in his heart.
“Is she why you became a firefighter?” Wade’s question surprised him.
“No, I’ve only had her three years. No one wants a horse that looks so ragged even though she’s as healthy as can be and incredibly docile.”
“But it was a horse, wasn’t it, that caused you to become a firefighter?”
Cole leaned against the barn wall and crossed his arms. “Yeah, a horse was a big part of it. His name was King. He didn’t make it.” Cole swallowed, the pain of losing that horse after trying so hard to save it still knotted up his stomach. Wade didn’t
interrupt, his empathy clear in his silence.
Eventually, Cole’s stomach loosened and he continued, leaving out Lacey and her fire’s influence on his decision. “When I told my parents I didn’t want to breed horses but save them, they hit the roof.”
“I bet they did.” Wade’s chuckle relaxed Cole a bit more.
He shrugged. “I wasn’t surprised.” Though he had been hurt at their refusal to help him at all. Instead they promised his younger brother their ranch. “But my grandparents had this cattle ranch and had sold off the last of their cattle to enjoy their retirement. They were even thinking of selling this place. When I told them what I wanted to do, they fell in love with the idea. Actually, I think they were getting a little bored and my venture gave them new purpose.”
Wade left Elsa and stood in front of him. “I think it’s time to talk price, and a beer if you have one.”
Cole dropped his arms. “You want Romeo and Elsa?”
“I want them and the two quarter horses you showed me first, Blaze and Bella. Once I get them settled in, I’m pretty sure I’ll be back for more.”
Cole grinned, unable to contain his joy. That his horses would be appreciated was always a thrill, but in Wade he saw someone who believed strongly in what he was doing here. He hadn’t seen that since the day his grandparents had offered him their ranch. “Then I think I can find a beer or two.”
As he led the way to the front porch, his mind raced with possible prices and what the cash flow could do for Last Chance Ranch. “Make yourself comfortable. I’ll get the beer.”
After taking two bottles from the fridge, he grabbed a bag of tortilla chips and a jar of homemade salsa and strode back to the porch. “I brought a snack in case you had the munchies. It’s not half as good as Selma’s food, but I finished my grandmother’s pumpkin bread yesterday.”
“That’s fine. I’m not sure anything can live up to Selma’s cooking. She’s spoiled us. Kendra and I never go out to eat because we always compare the food to Selma’s.” Wade twisted the top from his beer and took a swallow.
Cole did the same. “Do you think you’ll be able to use Elsa for trail riding?”
“Of course. That’s what all these horses will be used for. They have the right temperament. Why? Is there something I should know about her?”
“No, it’s just that, she’s not the prettiest horse. I wasn’t sure if your guests would balk at riding her.”
Wade shook his head as a grin spread across his face. “You have it backward. I’ll bet she’ll be the most requested horse.”
Cole frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“I don’t imagine you do. I wouldn’t have either, but running a nudist resort opens your eyes to a lot of things.” Wade took another swallow and stared at the desert land. “Our guests, the nudists, are very accepting of the non-perfect. In fact they appear to embrace it. Even Kendra didn’t realize that before she opened, but the fact is, having a staff of less-than-perfect people has endeared them to the guests.”
Cole remained silent. He didn’t view Lacey as “non-perfect,” especially in looks. Then again his ex-girlfriend did have a reputation for starting fires. To be fair, one fire. The jury was still out on the latest, but what were the chances?
Wade returned his gaze to Cole. “Elsa will be in high demand because she isn’t perfect. She will be accepted as much as Sundancer or Romeo. That’s what’s so great about the nudist community. Looks don’t matter.”
“Then I’m glad she’s found a real home.” Cole raised his bottle. “To Poker Flat Nudist Resort.”
They clinked bottles and took a swallow.
“If you don’t mind, I’d like to pick the horses up in a week or so, but don’t worry, I’ll pay you as soon as we agree on a price.”
Cole raised a brow. “Why do you want to wait so long? I thought you said you had a lot of guests coming in next week and needed the additional horses.”
“I did and do, but we had a break-in Monday night and I want to wait now until the security guards have been hired.”
“Break-in?” Was Lacey okay? “Is everyone all right?”
“Yeah. They broke into the main building when no one was there and stole some high-end booze.” Wade held up his bottle, which was anything but top shelf. “If Lacey hadn’t seen the intruder, they might have gotten away with a lot more.”
“Lacey?”
“Yeah. She woke around three and noticed someone skulking around the back of the building. The thieves heard me coming and ran out the front door. I chased them, but they had an ATV and took off. So I’d like to wait a week or two unless Detective Anderson makes an arrest beforehand.”
Cole felt sweat form on his brow. Just the thought of Lacey in trouble had him on edge. For eight years, he didn’t know where she was or what she did, but now that he’d seen her again, he couldn’t ignore the plain fact that he still loved her, no matter what she’d done. And this time, he didn’t have his parents reminding him every day how dangerous she was to both him and his family’s reputation.
*
“Hey, Sean, mind if I come in?” Cole leaned against the doorway of Detective Anderson’s office, trying to look casual when every muscle in his body was tense.
Sean looked up from his computer. “Sure. What can I do for you, Cole?”
He sat in the chair at the side of Sean’s desk. “I was just heading over to the nudist resort. They’re buying a few horses from me and I thought I’d stop by and see if you’d come up with anything regarding the fire.” He didn’t want Sean to know he’d already heard about the burglary.
“I can tell you this.” Sean leaned back in his chair and rested his ankle on his knee. “It was started by someone. I just don’t know who or if burning down the new building was intentional.”
“Any leads at all?”
“Too many. I have vandals who may be the same as those who broke in there the next night or completely different ones. I have a bottle of top shelf tequila that belonged to somebody, and I have Lacey Winters’ sweater, half burned at the site. The only thing I don’t have is a single suspect.”
Cole felt like someone slapped him upside the head at the mention of Lacey. He should have known, but a side of him wanted to believe her innocent. How was she dealing with it this time? Would she run away like she had before? He stood, the need to see her again too strong to ignore. “Well, if there’s anything I can do to help, let me know.”
He expected Sean to say he had this, but instead he just stared at him and then a gleam came into his eye. Oh shit. Why did Cole feel like he wasn’t going to like Sean’s response?
“You said you’re heading out there right now?”
“Yeah.”
Sean leaned back in his chair. “Do me a favor. See if you can have a casual discussion with some of the employees. I’d like to get your read on them. Nothing official, but another set of eyes couldn’t hurt.”
He should come clean and tell Sean he didn’t want Lacey found guilty, even if she was, but he couldn’t do it. Instead, he mumbled a quick “sure” and left before Sean could ask him anything else.
What the hell was he doing? He’d never withheld information before. Had he changed that much over the years or were his feelings for Lacey coloring his judgement? Shit, he had no idea.
Stalking out of the police station, he refused to acknowledge the protective instincts permeating his brain. He had to go to Poker Flat and see her, maybe even see if she still had any feelings for him.
He grimaced as he jumped in his Silverado 3500 pickup truck. There was a good chance the only feeling she had for him was hate, but even that was better than indifference. It’d been three days since she’d seen him. Maybe she’d mellowed a bit. It had been quite a shock for both of them.
His gut told him they needed another chance. He turned the truck onto the highway and sped toward Poker Flat. Maybe it was their last chance, but she’d been his perfect match back in high school. Maybe like Wade said, he nee
ded to open his mind to her imperfection.
*
Lacey closed Kendra’s office door after showing the second candidate in for an interview. Wade’s friend Dale, who owned the temp agency Kendra used, had lined up six candidates for the two security guard positions.
Too bad hiring them wouldn’t help her sleep through the night. She was plagued with dreams of the fire, only they’d changed. Instead of waking up when she burst through the door, they continued with Cole calling her name as he fought the fire until the building collapsed on him. She should have never watched the construction site until the building collapsed. Now her mind combined the two fires, sending fear racing through her body every night.
She walked back to the front desk to find another candidate waiting for her. The black-haired man with bulging biceps stretching his black t-shirt gave himself away by the fact he was clothed, but he hadn’t exactly dressed for an interview. He hadn’t even taken off his black cowboy hat, which was strange. It was as if he didn’t really want the job.
“Hi, can I help you?”
He didn’t quite look at her. “Yeah. Hunter McKade. Dale Osborn sent me.”
She glanced down at her list and checked him off. At least he was on time, early in fact. “If you’d like to take a seat over there, I will call you when Ms. Lowe is ready for you.”
He nodded once then turned and walked toward the dining room, completely ignoring her instructions. As he walked away she could see he also wore black jeans and black cowboy boots that made no sound on the hard floor.
The man was definitely odd. She shook her head. If he forgot to come back, it would just make Kendra’s selection that much easier.
The lobby door opened again and Billy came in. “Afternoon, Lacey.”
She smiled. “Good afternoon, Billy.” The older man had a special place in her heart. He was so sweet. “Selma has your lunch all boxed up.”
