Cowgirl Rescue (Selkirk Family Ranch Book 3)

by Irene Vartanoff

  He’d have to get over wanting to keep her super safe all the time. A life of restrictions wasn’t for her. And the jealousy, him thinking Davis would want to mess with her. Or maybe it was frustrated desire? She understood that. If Becky Lang had been at the honkytonk the other night and even looked at Rolf twice, Tess might have started a brawl. Rolf was her man. The sexual frustration was killing her, and he likely was feeling it, too. Soon, maybe they could be together. Life with Rolf would be so marvelous…

  “Put your hands in the air!”

  Chapter 17

  The man’s voice repeated, “Hands in the air!”

  “Uh, sure,” she said. She raised her arms obediently, then made to swivel and face him.

  “Don’t turn around,” the harsh voice barked at her.

  “How about we talk this over?” she asked. She hadn’t heard the cattle truck. She hadn’t heard any vehicle. The man had used the same tactic she had, walking here. The closest place he could have left a car and been unnoticed was Green Gables. His accent wasn’t local, either.

  “Keep your hands up where I can see them.”

  Something prodded her in the back. A gun? The moon came out from behind a cloud and he grunted in surprise. He grabbed her gun from her hip holster. “That’s better. Now walk to the cabin.”

  She walked slowly toward the line shack. Had she met him at the veterans’ home? “Who are you? Why are you out here in the middle of the night?”

  “I could ask you the same.”

  That dry response. Educated. Maybe she should raise the stakes. “I’m Tess Selkirk. My family owns this land. Are you one of the rustlers?” she repeated.

  Silence.

  “I’ll take that as a yes.” She stopped walking. Was that his gun prodding her in the back, or hers? She had the safety on and she hadn’t heard the click, which was good.

  “Keep moving.” His voice was cold.

  She resumed her amble. “Why not leave now, while you can get away?” she asked in her most reasonable tone of voice. He didn’t reply. They were almost at the cabin. She remembered what the instructor told her self-defense class, to never let someone take them anywhere. She slowed her pace even more, thinking hard.

  The hard object prodded her back again. “Move.”

  She took the first rickety step up slowly, then stumbled on the second. The prodding in her back slipped sideways as she turned fast and kicked out high with one heavy cowboy boot.

  She caught him clean in the face. He fell back. She bolted up the last step and slammed the door, frantically barricading it by dropping the wooden bar into brackets mounted on either side.

  “Go away!” she yelled. “I’m calling the sheriff right now!” A minute passed as she urgently called Matt Logan. When the unknown man didn’t immediately break in, she called Rolf, too. She cowered in the corner where the fast food garbage lay, wondering how the man would try to break in. This so-called cabin was in such dire shape he could kick in a wall if he didn’t want to expose himself to attack by coming in the window.

  Minutes later, her assailant had made no move, but neither Matt nor Rolf had replied to her calls or texts. Then she heard the sound of the cattle truck.

  Dang. The rustlers were returning with their haul. Would they stop here or keep going? Was the man still out there, fixing to meet them? If only she’d been wrong about them using this cabin to pass money to a confederate.

  Ten minutes had passed since she’d locked herself in. Was he still lurking outside? Should she risk trying to escape, or would he be waiting to grab her, or worse, shoot her?

  The truck stopped. It was too late to try to escape now. Men’s voices. Cursing when they found the door locked. More cursing and then the wall next to the door was kicked in. She stood as two strange men climbed in, one of them wielding a flashlight. They were armed.

  “Uh, hi,” she said, trying to keep her voice from wobbling.

  The shorter one asked, “What are you doing here?”

  “Taking shelter from some guy. Is he still out there?”

  “Nah,” he said.

  The taller one switched on a phone flashlight and went right for the hidey hole. He cursed when he discovered it was empty. He addressed her angrily, “You scared him off.”

  Which meant they were being paid by the unknown man. Her mistake.

  Nothing to do but play the hand as dealt. “I was just trying to get away from him. Are you the ones who’ve been rustling the cattle?”

  The shorter one said, “Yeah. So what? You’re not going to stop us. Anyway, we’re about done with this ranch. We’re ready to move on to another state.”

  “Shut up,” said the tall one.

  Tess said, “That’s what I told my brother. You know, JD Selkirk? He’s my brother.”

  “Get a rope from the truck so we can tie her up,” the tall man ordered the talkative one.

  “Let’s have some fun with her first.” He ogled her as if she were a naked centerfold in a girlie magazine.

  Uh-oh. His idea of fun wouldn’t be hers. She deliberately wiped her nose to seem less appealing, but he wasn’t looking at her face. He focused his flashlight on her breasts.

  The other man cursed at him. “We’re here to get the cash, moron. Not to mess with the daughter of the richest man in the state.”

  Cowed, the shorter man removed the bar from the door and left the cabin. The tall one stared at her impassively. Hopefully, not deciding he needed to kill her to leave no witness.

  She shivered. She was in deep trouble if he decided to be less than businesslike.

  The rustler said no more as the seconds ticked by, but he watched her carefully. He was between her and the door, blocking any chance she might have of sprinting out of the shack. She was too far from the hole in the wall to launch herself through it. Maybe the window? No, that wouldn’t work. Too high. She’d have to think of something else.

  The sounds of footsteps on the old wooden stoop heralded the other man’s return.

  “Hands on your head,” Rolf’s steely voice ordered.

  Her captor whirled around.

  Rolf had a revolver trained on him. “I know how to use this. Your friend won’t be coming back. Hands on your head, and then kneel down.”

  The rustler did as ordered.

  Tess whipped out her phone. “Should I call the sheriff?”

  Rolf said, “He’s already on his way. You can tell him the situation. I’ve got this guy’s partner tied to a tree.”

  “Hard to find a tree around here,” she giggled, all the tension leaving her. Rolf had saved her. The rustlers had been caught. It was over.

  Within a few minutes, Sheriff Logan arrived, and so did a deputy. They read the rustlers their rights, handcuffed them, and put them in the cruiser.

  Tess told Matt everything she could remember about the man who had almost captured her. Matt agreed he probably walked or biked from Green Gables. “We might find tomorrow that the veterans’ home is missing someone.”

  He turned to Rolf. “I’ll impound their truck, but you’re welcome to your cattle.”

  Rolf called Davis and directed him to bring two ranch-owned trucks and several men so the cattle could be safely returned to their pasture.

  After the deputy drove off with the rustlers, Sheriff Logan said, “Not quite the plan we had in mind. We wanted to catch their confederate if they had one. It’ll have to do. Maybe they’ll implicate him.”

  “I can’t identify him. I only saw his face for a brief moment.” She told them what had happened. “I’m really sorry about spoiling the trap.” She scuffed the toe of her boot in the dirt. “I just couldn’t stay in my hidden position a moment longer. I messed up.”

  Matt Logan shrugged. “Lots of times, things don’t go to plan. I didn’t have enough men to cover the road and this cabin, and I should have.”

  “That’s being very kind, but I don’t deserve it,” she said.

  Rolf had stood silent the whole time. “Do you think th
is was part of a bigger operation?” he asked Logan.

  “Bound to be. Too organized to be amateurs.”

  “One of the two you arrested seemed very…professional,” Tess said. “The other, not so much.” She shivered.

  Rolf looked concerned. “Did he touch you?”

  “I made sure they knew I was a Selkirk. I think the taller one didn’t want the family to go after him if something happened to me.”

  Sheriff Logan gave her a long-suffering look. “Tess, you were unwise to come out here alone.”

  “And stupid to leave my safe surveillance spot. If I’d stayed put, I would have been okay.”

  “If we’d encouraged you to be part of the team, you wouldn’t have been here alone,” Rolf said, heavily. “We should have dealt you in. Our mistake.”

  Tess looked around. “Where’s JD?”

  Rolf said, “I think he didn’t want another confrontation with you. I hear you tore a strip off him today.”

  She hung her head. “But you both were right about me interfering.”

  “No, we were wrong,” Rolf said. “We didn’t give enough weight to what you’d found out. Plus, we should have backed you up regardless.”

  ***

  Rolf was glad when Davis arrived with his cowhands, so they could wrap up and leave. Rolf didn’t get riled up when Tess went over to speak to Davis. Trying to keep her away from other men was wasted effort. The important goal was for her to want to be with him at the end of the day.

  The cattle were carefully unloaded and reloaded into trucks where they had plenty of space and air. Rolf, Tess, and one of the hands climbed into the four by four and she directed them to where she’d left her SUV. The ranch hand drove Rolf’s vehicle away, and Rolf asked for the keys and took the wheel. She didn’t fight him. She was shivering sitting in the front seat.

  “Are you really okay?” he asked, as he maneuvered the vehicle down the track.

  “I could use a drink.”

  “Tess.”

  “Lemonade sounds about right.” She looked at him hopefully. “In your cozy cabin. What do you say?”

  He gulped. She’d almost been hurt out here tonight. For once, she wanted to lean on him a little. He was inclined to let her. “I’m for it.”

  “I won’t even try to seduce you this time,” she added.

  “You can go right ahead and seduce me. I’m tired of fighting it, Tess. I love you. I want to be with you on any terms. Tonight and forever.”

  “Stop this vehicle this instant,” she demanded.

  When he did, she jumped into his arms and started kissing him all over.

  He clasped her tightly. “I was terrified they’d hurt you before I could get to you.”

  He kissed her eyes and her cheeks and pressed her head against his shoulder.

  “I was terrified, too,” she admitted, nestling against his chest.

  She looked up at him and their lips met again.

  After awhile, Tess sighed. “You aren’t going to fight me anymore, are you? We belong together.”

  “That’s what I’ve been saying all along. We should be together.”

  She bit her lip. “But here, or somewhere else? I desperately want to have a say in how this ranch is run, but if the men in my family lock me out of it, I’m gone and I’ll never come back. Could you live with me somewhere else? Have you recovered enough from your PTSD issues?”

  “I’m going to work on them. I stopped hurting every day and thought that was enough, but I’ve got more to do. I want the nightmares to end.”

  Soberly, she said, “All I know about PTSD is it takes time.”

  “We can do rehab together. You can go to AA meetings and I’ll go to veterans’ meetings.”

  She snorted. “Right. Before we met, three years ago, I cut out the drinking entirely for six months. It was JD’s meanness that sent me back to the bottle, although that’s no excuse for my DUI.” She sighed. “People talk about veterans of war being harmed and changed for life, but they don’t talk all that much about what it does to the veterans’ families.”

  She moved restlessly. “I love my brother. I wish he’d love me back, but even if he won’t, I understand now what urges him to put me down. I can cope.”

  She smiled self-deprecatingly. “I’m not completely un-self-aware. One of my many activities in Hollywood was seeing a therapist.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  “There’s a lot of stigma about mental issues, but out in Hollywood it’s fashionable to be in therapy. I went at first just for fun, and then I decided it helped me feel better. Not enough, though. Not when I realized JD deliberately moved roundup so I couldn’t be here. He has hurt me a lot. That’s over. If he won’t change how he behaves to me, I’m strong enough to change how I react to him.”

  He tightened his arm around her shoulders. “I’m sorry I didn’t back you up with JD every time. I promise I will from now on. You’re too precious to be put down by your brother. If he tries to curse you out again, he’ll be swallowing his own teeth when I’m done with him.”

  She giggled. “And you can help me start a new good habit. Every time I want a drink, we’ll kiss, instead,” she said, a smile playing around her lips.

  “Does this mean you’re planning to stay here?”

  She shook her head. “I’ve got a one-off gig in California starting in a few days.”

  Rolf’s entire body reeled from the shock. She was leaving.

  “Tess,” he said urgently.

  She put a finger on his lips. “Listen, cowboy. I’m not giving up acting. Can you handle that?”

  “Guess I’ll have to.” He smiled, so she’d know he meant it.

  Her face lit up and she kissed him enthusiastically.

  Eventually, they reached his cabin. He handed Tess the SUV keys, then put his arms around her as they stood in front of the door. “I love you, Tess. If it comes to it, I’ll even brave living in California to be with you.”

  “You’d do that for me?” She pulled his head down to meet her kisses, joy blazing in her expression. “I love you, too.”

  Rolf held her off a little, his large hands on her shoulders. “When you walk in this door, Tess, you’ll be my fiancée. I’ll support you in everything you need, and I hope you’ll do the same for me as the years go by. This won’t just be hooking up, as you like to call it.”

  She smirked. “Most people call it sex. Let’s go burn up your bed.”

  Chapter 18

  Despite all the excitement and the deep pleasure of the night before, Tess and Rolf had to part early in the morning so he could get to work. She was back at the ranch house, having breakfast, when JD walked into the kitchen dressed for a business meeting. Suit, western tie, Stetson, and boots.

  “Going somewhere?” she asked.

  “Over to Utah. Probably coming home this afternoon.”

  Tess was horrified. “Do you expect Paula to fly you there?”

  “No, of course not. She’s in bad shape.” He wasn’t able to hide the worry in his voice or on his face. “The ranch pilot will fly me out.”

  “You should stay here. She needs you.”

  When he made no reply, just poured himself some coffee, she said, “If it’s ranch business, I could go to the meeting in your stead. I can even fly myself there. I’ve got my pilot’s license now.”

  JD’s expression was disbelieving. “Who’d you pay off to get it?”

  Tess bridled. “I took lessons, clocked my hours, and qualified.”

  “Okay. Fine, I believe you.”

  She straightened. “Being nasty to me won’t work anymore. I’m onto you.”

  JD got a strange expression on his face, one she couldn’t interpret. Was he thinking up some new insult?

  Finally, he said, “This meeting’s about veterans. But thanks for offering.”

  JD downed the rest of his coffee in one gulp and left.

  Tess sat stunned. JD had thanked her. He’d thanked her.

  She wouldn�
�t have missed this moment for anything. Not being able to spend the day with Rolf had been a blessing in disguise. JD had thanked her.

  Were those tears falling from her eyes?

  Chapter 19

  Tess had her morning swim, happily contemplating her future. Life was good at last. JD had thanked her. She and Rolf were together. She had a small part in a TV show.

  She was still blissfully paddling around the pool, thinking about Rolf and all the silly, loving things they’d told each other during the night, when she heard JD’s plane leave. A while later, dressed again, she got a text from her agent, asking her to call.

  When Barbara picked up, she said, “Tess, I’m in shock. Gerry and Ted have asked you to audition for the role of Sandra Dean, Heroine at Large. It’s their new superhero movie and everyone in the business has been trying to get a shot at it. Sounds like they’ve decided on you, but want you to go through the formality of testing. This is a huge break.”

  Tess felt the floor shift. “I could become a movie star. Then I could pick and choose from the scripts people sent me, and I wouldn’t have to do a weekly series.”

  “Right. Are you up for it?”

  Was she? “Yes!”

  “Get out here, then. No more dallying at the ranch.”

  “I—I didn’t expect this. What about all those pilots I’m in?”

  “This opportunity is why we sign contingent contracts. You can’t tie yourself up for something that might never happen.”

  “Right. I hadn’t thought of that.”

  “That’s my job, to plan for all possibilities.”

  They agreed that Tess would go back to California tomorrow. She needed time to say goodbye to Rolf so soon after they’d finally found each other. And she was worried about Paula, alone here with her husband flitting around. Somebody had to look out for her sister of the heart.

  She texted Rolf with the exciting news. He replied he was nearby and would come right over to hear the details. Tess was leaving her bedroom when Paula called out from the master suite. “Help me, Tess!”