by Jennie Marts
Chairs scraped the hardwood floor as the group stood.
“They’re here,” Mimi cried, clinging to Tess’s side. “How did they find me?”
“I have no idea.”
Mimi reached for Vivi’s hand. “I’m so sorry. I never meant to bring trouble to your family.”
“Nobody ever means to bring trouble or cause damage…” Mason muttered. “But they hurt you just the same.” He gave Tess a sideways glance, just a second’s look, but enough to cut her to the bone.
She hadn’t meant to hurt Mason, but she’d done it anyway. And now she didn’t know how to fix it. She didn’t know how to fix any of this.
She jumped as the screen door banged open.
Colt rushed into the house. “I don’t know what’s going on, but two guys just pulled up in a black Caddy, and something about them is real scary. They looked like extras from the set of The Sopranos.”
They backed toward the kitchen. Rock spread his arms, pressing the women behind him. Mason moved to the front window, standing to the side as he peered around the curtains.
“What are they doing?” Tess whispered.
“Nothing. They’re just standing next to the car looking around.”
“Do you think they’re the same guys who were at Mimi’s house?”
“I would assume so.” Mason tipped his chin toward Mimi. “One is tall and bald, and the other is shorter and has a crew cut. They both look like they could be linebackers for the Denver Broncos. Except they’re dressed in black suits.”
“Is the tall one wearing a purple shirt?” Mimi asked. “And do they both look like they’ve eaten way too much pasta?”
Mason pulled back the curtain and peered out the window again. “Yep.”
“That’s them, all right.”
“What’s happening?” Colt asked. “Are these guys really dangerous?”
Tess quickly filled him in. “Colt, this is my grandmother, Mimi. She got caught up in a financial fraud scam and lost all her money. So she borrowed money to pay the mortgage from a loan shark named Vinnie the Rake, and these are his two goons here to collect the debt. Oh, and she also spiked their tire and made them chase her all the way up the mountain so they’re probably pretty pissed off.”
Colt’s eyes widened as he looked from Tess to her grandmother.
Mimi shrugged. “That about covers it. Nice to meet you, Colt.” She leaned toward Tess. “Are all the cowboys in this town as handsome as these boys? No wonder you haven’t come home in days.”
“Could we just focus on the matter at hand?” Mason asked. “Like the two gangsters standing in our driveway. By the way, the garden gnomes must have worked because they’ve got one of those tiny doughnut-wheel spares on instead of a regular back tire.”
Her grandmother gave a tiny fist pump, then shoved her hand into her pocket when Tess gave her a disapproving glare.
“Will you just try to behave?” Tess hissed.
“They’re heading toward the porch,” Colt said. He’d joined his brother at the front window.
Mason dropped the curtain. “They’re not coming inside. Let me at least try to reason with them and get them to leave.” He put his hand on the screen door, then glanced from Rock to Colt. “If they won’t go, you know what we have to do.”
Both brothers nodded.
A grin tugged at the corner of Rock’s lip. “Operation Gunslinger.”
Mason dipped his chin. “Hopefully it won’t come to that.” He pushed through the screen door and stepped out on the porch. “Can I help you fellows with something? You appear to be lost.”
“We’re not lost,” Purple Shirt said. “We know exactly where we are. The Triple J Ranch owned by Vivienne James and her sons. You one of those sons?”
“I am.”
“How do they already know that?” Tess asked her grandmother. She, Mimi, and Quinn had taken Mason’s place at the front window while Rock, Colt, and Vivi stood by the door. “Did you tell them about Mason and his family?”
“No, of course not. Vinnie just knows things. He knew stuff about me. And you. He knew the name of the magazine where you worked and that you were in the mountains working on a story. He makes it his business to know stuff.”
Crew Cut pointed a finger at the Mini Cooper. “We’re not here to cause any trouble. We’re looking for the lady who owns that car. Our business is with her.”
“Well, she’s my guest at the moment,” Mason said. “So, apparently your business is now with me.”
Purple Shirt narrowed his eyes. “I don’t think this is the kind of business you want to get involved in.” He pulled back his jacket, flashing Mason the revolver stuffed in his waistband.
Tess gasped, and Rock and Colt hastened into action, rushing through the house to collect weapons.
“There’s no reason for things to get ugly, fellas,” Mason told them.
Tess was amazed at how calm his voice sounded and how steady he looked as he casually leaned on the post of the front porch. Her hands were shaking and her stomach was queasy, and she was standing inside.
“There are about three thousand reasons to get ugly.” Purple Shirt pointed at the small spare tire. “Over three thousand now, since somebody’s going to have to pay for that.”
“Yeah, over three thousand,” Crew Cut repeated. “And we’ve come to collect them. So why don’t you just send Ms. Mimi out here, and we’ll be on our way.”
“I don’t think Ms. Mimi currently has that kind of cash on her,” Mason said.
“Then I guess things are going to have to get ugly.” Purple Shirt pulled the gun from his waistband and pointed it at Mason.
* * *
Mason narrowed his eyes, staring at the gangster and the loaded gun with more bravado than he felt.
His brothers needed to get out here. Now.
The screen door banged open, and Rock stepped out, two shotguns cradled in his arms. He passed one to Mason. “You all right there, Brother?”
“Yep.” He hoisted the shotgun to his shoulder, his heart pounding as he pointed it toward Purple Shirt. “I think it’s about time for you fellas to be on your way.”
“We’re not leaving without what we came for,” Crew Cut stated, drawing his weapon as well. “We want the money, or we’re taking the old lady back to our boss.”
“Who are you calling ‘old’?” Mimi’s voice shouted from inside the house.
Mason heard Tess shushing her. “That’s not going to happen.”
“It appears we’re at a standoff then. It’s your two guns against ours,” Purple Shirt said. “You comfortable with those odds?”
“Three guns against yours,” Colt said, stepping out on the porch with the antique revolver lighter.
Ahh hell. Leave it to Colt to bring a lighter to a gunfight.
“Make that four,” his mom said, coming out behind him, holding one of his dad’s old hunting rifles at her shoulder.
“Make that five.” Tessa stepped out on the porch, a hockey stick in her hands. Seriously? Why didn’t she just stay inside where she was safe? And what was she going to do with the hockey stick? Shoot a puck at the bad guys?
Purple Shirt studied the group of them, as if trying to decide how far this family would go to protect one little old lady they didn’t even know.
How far would they go?
How far would Mason go?
Mimi was Tess’s grandmother—her family, not his. And he’d just told her he didn’t want anything else to do with her. So why was he even involved with this?
Why was he putting his own family at risk to help the family of a woman who’d lied and deceived him and who he’d just broken things off with?
Because it was the right thing to do.
Purple Shirt waved his gun at the front porch. “You pretty confident in your little army?”
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“This isn’t my whole army,” Mason said.
One of the barn doors banged open and a ranch hand stepped out, a shotgun pressed to his shoulder. Another man came around the side of the house, cocking the barrel of his gun as he appeared.
Colt must have notified the cavalry. Two more hands appeared, each with either a rifle or a shotgun.
“Still think you have business here?” Mason asked.
The two men looked at each other, then lowered their weapons. “You’re making a mistake, you know. You might have more guys right now, but we’ll be back. With more men and bigger guns. We can make things a lot uglier than you and your little band of cowboys and your mom can. Hope that little old lady is worth it.” He reached for the car door.
“Wait.” The screen door banged open again, and Mimi rushed out. “I’ll go with you.”
“No, you won’t,” Tess cried, grabbing her grandmother’s hand. “You can’t.”
Mimi glanced around at Mason’s family standing guard over her. “I appreciate what you’re doing. I really do. But I’m not going to let you nice people put yourselves in danger for me. This is my battle. And I’m the one who needs to fight it. But don’t worry. I’ll be giving Vinnie the Rake a good piece of my mind when I see him.”
Mason had to admire the woman. She was all of five foot nothing, but she had the gumption of a giant. He could see where Tessa got her fighting spirit.
He could admire her, but no way in hell was he letting her get in that car with those criminals. He lowered his shotgun. “Tess is right. You can’t go with them. But there’s also no way that we can let them leave like this. Because they will be back. I believe them.”
Mimi’s eyes widened. “Are you suggesting we kill them?”
He shook his head. “No. No one’s killing anyone.” He gestured to the lighter in Colt’s hand. “Especially with that. I’m suggesting we pay them.”
“With what?” Mimi asked.
“With cash.”
“I don’t have any.”
“I do.”
“Mason, we can’t take your money,” Tessa said.
“I’m not giving it to you. I’m giving it to her,” he told her. “And I’m doing it because it’s the right thing to do.” He called out to Purple Shirt and Crew Cut. “Stay where you are. I’ll get you the money. Three thousand, right? Then you’ll leave, and leave us and Ms. Mimi alone. For good.”
Purple Shirt squinted at the back tire of the car. “Three thousand plus an extra two hundred for the tire.”
“Fair enough. But I want your word that this will be the end of it.”
“You have it. We’ll be happy if we never have to see that woman again.”
Mason turned to his brothers. “Keep an eye on them. I’ve got some cash in the safe in the office.”
Rock put a hand on his arm. “You don’t have to do this. I can pay them. I’ve spent that much on a night out downtown. It’s no big deal to me.”
That’s why Mason wasn’t going to let Rock step in and be the hero. Not this time.
He knew his brother had the money. Rock could easily cover the debts and not even flinch. But it wasn’t his battle. And Mason wasn’t going to let his brother come out as the victor.
“No. I’ll take care of this. I’ve got the money.” He peered at Tess. “I’m not going to let you pay for my girl’s mistake.”
Except she wasn’t his girl.
She was just a girl. A girl who had pretended to like him. Pretended to care. When all she was really interested in was getting to his brother.
He looked away as Tess’s eyes filled with tears. “I’ll be right back.” He hurried into the house and into the study, setting the shotgun on the desk. They did the majority of the ranch business out of this office and kept some cash in the safe.
He had the money to give. He had plenty in his savings. Not plenty like Rock, but plenty for a normal non-rock-star, nonathlete kind of person.
He was frugal and a saver. Once he’d finished the renovations to the bunkhouse, he hadn’t had much else to spend his money on, so he just dumped everything into his savings. He could give the money to Tess and her grandmother. Then he’d tell her goodbye and never have to see her again.
The safe held several thousand dollars as well as important documents and some family heirlooms. Mimi had said she owed the loan sharks three thousand and the bank another two. He grabbed five thousand and swung the door shut. After stuffing two into his front pocket, he picked up the shotgun and walked swiftly back outside and down the front porch steps.
He held out the three small stacks of bills to Purple Shirt. “I have your word this will be the end of it.”
“You have my word.”
He let go of the bills, then reached for his wallet. He’d been to the bank a few days before and gotten cash for all the wedding hoopla. He was pretty sure he had a couple hundred left. Pulling out four fifties, he handed them over as well, then stuffed his wallet back into his pocket. “How good is the word of a criminal?”
“It’s the best thing we’ve got.” The man folded the bills and tucked them into his breast pocket. “Nice doing business with you.”
“Just make sure you tell Vinnie that our business is concluded.”
He nodded and climbed into the car. “I’ll let him know.”
“Smell you later,” Crew Cut sneered before sliding into the passenger side and slamming the door. The car engine roared to life.
Mason let out his breath as the Cadillac with the two criminals sped down the driveway. He waved at the ranch hands still standing guard around the yard. “It’s done. Thanks, men.”
The hands dispersed, and Mason walked back up the steps to the porch. His mom, Quinn, and his brothers went back into the house, leaving him standing outside with Tess and her grandmother. He pulled out the other two thousand dollars and handed it to Mimi. “Take this.”
She held up her hands. “No way. I can’t take your money.”
“You took money from a schmuck like those guys, but you won’t take it from me?”
“Good point.” She took the cash and stuffed it down her shirt and into her bra. “I’ll pay you back. I can leave my car. You know, as collateral.”
“I don’t want your car. And you don’t have to pay me back.”
“Yes, we do.” Mimi reached for his hand. “This was my mistake. My debt to pay. And everything I’ve done and everything my granddaughter has done have been my fault. Don’t take it out on her.”
Her hand looked so small clasped in his. “I appreciate that. But I think we’re all responsible for our own actions.”
“Grandma, we can’t take that money,” Tess said.
“Yes, you can,” Mason told her, letting go of Mimi’s hand and drilling Tess with a hard glare. “And you will.”
“But not after…”
“Especially after.” He leaned in and lowered his voice. “Take the money. Consider it payment for the article. Then you don’t have to turn in the one you’re writing.”
The color drained from her face. “I already turned the story in,” she whispered.
“What? How the hell could you have already turned it in? Have you been working on it this whole time?”
“No. I just wrote it this morning, but we needed the money as soon as we could get it. And you weren’t here. But I was going to talk to you about it as soon as you got back.”
“Of course you were.”
“I was. You’ve got to believe me.”
“No, Tess. I don’t have to believe you. And I don’t believe you. Not a single word out of your mouth.”
“I was just doing it to save my grandmother and her house.”
“I understand that, but it doesn’t change anything.”
She took a step toward him. “Can I call you? Maybe in a few days?
After you’ve had a chance to think about it. Can we at least talk about this?”
He took a step back. He had to. He had to make a clean break. “No. It’s over. We don’t have anything left to talk about.”
Mason’s chest hurt as he watched Tess and her grandmother walk down the porch steps and get into their cars.
Mimi pulled away first, speeding down the driveway in her little red car. Tess followed, pulling away slowly. She kept her eyes forward and her chin up, but Mason could see the white-knuckle grip she had on the steering wheel of the car. Dewey’s nose was sticking out of the passenger-side window.
Four days and five thousand dollars. He wasn’t getting either of them back.
Apparently five thousand dollars was the cost of a broken heart.
* * *
Tess tried to focus on the road, her heart breaking with every mile she drove farther away from Mason.
She drove slowly through town, one arm clutched around her middle as if trying to hold herself together. Mimi had sped off, and she was sure her grandmother was probably halfway to Denver by now.
Her phone rang, and a flutter raced through her belly. She pulled it from her bag, praying that it was Mason.
It wasn’t.
The caller ID showed an unfamiliar number. She tapped the screen and held the phone to her ear. “Hello?”
“Yes, hello. This is Anita. I’m a dispatcher for the sheriff’s office. Are you the one who put up the flyers about the lost dog?”
Tess gripped the steering wheel, her throat going dry, and she tried to keep the tremble from her voice. “Y-yes.”
“Well, I’ve got good news. The owners just showed up to claim it.”
Chapter 21
A wave of dizziness spiraled through her, and Tess pulled off to the side of the road. Her throat was painfully tight as she tried to swallow. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, ma’am,” the dispatcher assured her. “They brought the flyer in and had a picture of the dog as well. They’re here now. Any chance you can bring it down to the sheriff’s office?”
She looked over at the little dog standing in the seat next to her, his brown eyes staring up at her with such devotion. How was she going to give this dog back?
