Sudden Setup

He gave her an apologetic look.

“Best as I can remember, I was hiking pretty far out on the trail. Most of how I ended up here is fuzzy. Am I allowed to ask what you were doing out there?” Ella flinched again when the cold, wet cloth touched her skin.

“No more questions,” Blue Eyes said. He made a move to stand.

Ella caught his elbow.

“Please don’t leave. My father was killed and that’s the last thing I remember. I have no idea what happened or how I got here. I’m not trying to be a jerk, but I’ve just been told that I’ve been out of it for two days. I have a gash on my head that I don’t even know how it got there, and I’m so thirsty I could suck a cactus dry, and despite that, I really need to go to the bathroom,” Ella said, letting all the words gush out at once like a geyser whose time to erupt had come.

“Can you manage on your own?” He motioned toward the door and there was a storm brewing behind those blue eyes at the mention of her father.

“I believe so,” she said.

“Toothbrush and toothpaste are on the sink. Bathroom’s outside.” He turned and walked out.

Chapter Two

Holden needed air. He lifted his face to the sun. The Texas heat beat down on his exposed skin, warming him. Maverick Mike was dead?

For a split second Holden feared that he could be the reason, that the men who were after him had somehow connected him to his father’s friend. But that was impossible.

This was a wake-up call. Helping Ella had been a knee-jerk reaction and Holden could feel himself sliding down a slippery slope with nothing solid to grab hold of. He owed her father for offering him a place to stay when Holden was at a low point, and that was the reason he’d told himself that he stepped in with Ella. Speaking of her father, the news still hadn’t quite absorbed. Holden rubbed his chin through the overgrown scruff. How could Butler be gone?

The door opened and Ella froze as soon as she saw him standing there.

“I’ll give you privacy,” he mumbled. Someone needed to toss him a lifeline because the woman stirred feelings he hadn’t allowed in longer than he could remember—feelings he never wanted to experience again. Then there was the obvious fact that he couldn’t afford those feelings. They’d have him wanting to stick around and protect Ella Butler while they figured out who wanted to kill her. Holden reminded himself that he’d done his part. He’d kept her alive.

“Why did you help me? You could’ve walked away. Left me there. No one would’ve known any different.” She positioned her hands on either side of the doorjamb.

“No, I couldn’t have.” He made a move toward the door to indicate that he was done talking. She didn’t flinch.

“Sure you could. It would’ve been easy. My body would’ve been found eventually and no one would be the wiser that there was someone who could’ve saved my life.” She stared at him for a long moment without saying another word. “Something tells me you know how to cover your tracks, so there must’ve been some reason.”

“You’re welcome for saving your life,” he said, debating whether or not he should tell her everything. She needed to know that her fall had been no accident, but he’d keep the part about his connection to her father to himself. “Now that you’re up and around, I’ll drop you off in town tonight.”

“And then what? You’ll disappear?” Her gaze zeroed in.

She shouldn’t care what happened to him because she needed to be concerned about herself.

“Don’t worry about me,” he said.

“Too late for that.” She issued another pause while staring at him. There was something about her cornflower blue eyes that he couldn’t afford to notice. “I’d like to properly thank you for what you’ve done to save my life. Any chance I can convince you to come back to the main house with me?”

“Sweetheart, I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time. I really don’t need—”

“Obviously, you need a place to stay.” She glanced around as if for emphasis. “We’re always looking for a good pair of hands around the ranch. It’s clear to me that you’d make a good addition and we need more men like you.”

“You ought to be careful who you go offering jobs to,” he stated.

“I trust you.”

“That’s a mistake,” he said plainly.

“No, it isn’t. But even if it was, it wouldn’t be my last.” One of her balled fists was on her hip now. She had a lot of sass for someone in such a vulnerable position. He’d give her that.

This conversation was going nowhere so Holden did what he did best: went silent as he stared her down. She should be more afraid of him than she was acting. She had been earlier when she’d opened her eyes, and as much as he didn’t like it at first, her reaction was for the best. What had he done to make her so comfortable now?

“You want coffee?” he finally asked, shaking his head. She was as stubborn as the stories he’d heard about her father.

“That would be amazing, actually,” she said with a small smile.

“Then get out of my way.”

She twisted her mouth in a frown at his sharp tone but stepped aside. He walked straight past her without making eye contact even though she stood there expectantly for minutes afterward. And then she slammed the door shut. Not only was Ella stubborn but she had a temper. The nuances of her personality were none of his business. Period.

Holden refocused on the facts. Ella Butler had been missing for two days. His position at the cabin had been compromised from the moment he’d witnessed the attack, and he could see now that it was a miracle no one had shown up. The situation was declining. Fast.

There’d be a search underway by now. The news that “Maverick” Mike Butler was killed would be enough to create a full-scale media circus in Cattle Barge. Add a missing heiress to the equation and Holden couldn’t begin to wrap his mind around how out of control the coverage would be. He’d been so far off the grid that he’d missed all of it.

The news that her father had been murdered before an attempt had been made on her life sat in Holden’s gut like he’d eaten a pack of nails. The media attention surrounding her disappearance—and that would be big news—must be the reason the person who’d chucked that rock at her hadn’t returned. Holden had been watching out for the culprit.

She needed to know that the blow to her head wasn’t an accident. He wasn’t sure how she’d react, especially given the fact that she’d just lost her father. Normally, he’d suspect someone close to her, a family member. Money or greed would be motive for murder, and especially when considering the amount Maverick Mike had amassed. His fortune was legendary but so were his antics. He had a lot of enemies. Holden wanted to ask about the circumstances surrounding her father’s death but decided against it for the time being. He shouldn’t show too much interest in the Butler family. Once he settled into a new location far away from Cattle Barge, he could find out what had happened. Mike Butler’s death would be all over the news, so it would be easy to find.

Holden glanced at his watch. Ella had been gone a full ten minutes. Should he check on her?

A thousand thoughts rolled through his head. Adjusting while in action had always been Holden’s strong suit. He told himself this time would be no different. The door opened at about the time he’d made up his mind to mount his own search. She looked at him boldly.

“Coffee’s getting cold,” he snapped. She needed to be afraid. He set her cup on the table that he’d made by hand after he arrived last month. The cabin was the first place he’d bothered to put together anything that resembled furniture. His thinking had always been “get too attached to any one place and leaving would be that much more difficult.”

His plans had really gone south in Texas—but then he was beginning to see why the place was so appealing with its wide-open skies and thousands of stars at night.

Ella moved to the table and picked up the tin mug. She cradled it in her hands like it was made of pure gold when she sipped. A little sound of pleasure drew from her lips. “This is really good. How did you do this?”

“You haven’t had any for too long. Muddy water would taste good to you right now.” Holden kept the part that he liked giving her that small moment of happiness to himself.

“I promise the coffee’s not this good at the main house.” She paused and then her eyes brightened. “I don’t know what I’ve been thinking. My brothers and sister are probably frantic with worry right now. There’s no chance you have a working cell phone, is there?”

“No.” He was completely off the grid. There was no way to track him using technology.

“I need to reach them and let them know that I’m okay. I know what I said earlier about our money being tied up, but if you’re in some kind of trouble I can help.” The determined set to her jaw said she meant it.

Holden shook his head. The less she knew about his circumstance, the better.

“I’m more concerned about you right now,” he said. “Besides, you’re news and that’s bad for me.”

“You’re on the run from something.” She had part of that right.

More like someone.

Her gaze penetrated deep into him. “You know who I am, don’t you? You’ve always known.”

He nodded.

“And you’re not out to hurt me. So far, from what I can tell, you’ve been helping me,” she continued.

“I want you to listen carefully to what I’m about to say. What happened to you out there was no accident,” he warned.

She gasped. “Not you...”

“No, it wasn’t me. But someone did that—” he motioned toward the gash on her head “—on purpose.”

He let the revelation sink in for a minute.

“It wasn’t you and it wasn’t an accident,” she said so quietly that he had to strain to hear.

Holden handed her another cup filled with beans he’d warmed in the fire. “You’re used to better food, but this is protein and it’ll keep your stomach from growling.”

Ella took the offering with trembling hands as his message seemed to be taking seed. “Who would want me dead?”

He didn’t like that momentary lost look in her eyes.

“I’m telling you because you’re going to want to be careful from now on. Take necessary precautions and don’t wander off alone.” Holden leaned his hip against the counter.

She took a bite of food and chewed.

“You said that your father was killed,” he continued.

“Yes.”

“You’ll want to look at people who stand to gain from your death after his to start. Scrutinize those closest to you,” he said, figuring with her money she could hire proper security who could keep her safe until the law found the man trying to kill her.

“I have no idea. I mean, I think what you’re saying is that my brothers or sister might want me dead to get me out of the way or take my share of our inheritance, but I trust them with my life,” she said.

“What happened to your father?” he asked. The look he shot her must’ve been interesting.

“He was shot twelve times while he slept naked in the spare bedroom attached to his office in the barn,” she informed.

“No one heard anything?” he asked, thinking that someone had wanted to make a point. An act like that came across as anger motivated.

“The barn isn’t near the main house. Dad liked to keep home and work separate,” she said.

“Which is difficult, considering you do live your work when you own a ranch,” Holden said. “Your family would know everyone’s sleeping patterns and where your father would be on a given day.”

“He spent a lot of nights in the barn. What makes you so sure it’s one of them? Did you used to work in law enforcement?” She turned the tables.

“No.” Holden had no plans to elaborate on his background. The less she knew, the better for both of them.

“We leave as soon as the sun goes down,” he said, closing the bag to the coffee grinds.

* * *

ELLA REALIZED SHE’D been gripping the coffee mug so tightly that her knuckles were white. She reminded herself to breathe as she tried to absorb the reality that had become her life. Her brothers would not try to hurt her. For one, the Butler kids had had each other’s backs since childhood after their mother had taken off and left them with their father. They’d had to. Their father wasn’t exactly skilled in the parenting department. He’d loved them in his own way, Ella thought defensively. She’d always felt the need to protect her father. But he wasn’t the problem this time.

Thinking made her brain cramp.

Ella eyed the stranger carefully. By nightfall, she’d be done with him. He’d be out of her life forever. She should be happy about that, and yet the thought tugged at her heart. Maybe it was because she’d lost so much already with her father’s death. Or it could be her soft spot for lost causes. There’d been countless stray animals that she’d made space for in the barn only for her father to tell her they had to go. Usually, they were injured and she knew they’d never survive on their own. Her brothers or sister would come to her rescue and help her keep them hidden until she’d manage to nurse them back to health and then find a new home.

A few were worked into the menagerie of pets on the ranch. Oftentimes one of the hired hands would end up with a new pet to take home to his family. And many of the employees at Hereford Ranch covered for her to help with her causes. No one went against Maverick Mike’s wishes directly, but everyone pitched in behind the scenes to help Ella.

Looking back, it was probably difficult for them to turn away such a persistent little girl. Ella had been told more than once that she had the campaigning abilities of a politician.

Her gaze drifted to the wounded person standing before her with no name. If anyone needed to find his way, it was the man across the room. She told herself that was the reason she felt an unexplainable draw toward the mystery man and it had nothing to do with the inappropriate surge of attraction she felt every time she glanced his way.

“What will you do once you drop me off? You can’t stay here anymore, can you?” she asked.

“You need to worry about yourself. Use some of that money you have to hire extra security,” he snapped.

Ella bristled.

His voice softened when he said, “You’re in danger and you owe it to your father to be careful.”

“Why do you care?” she asked.

“I don’t,” he said. “But you should.”

A noise sounded outside and Blue Eyes dropped into a crouching position in half a second flat. The remarkable thing was that he made no noise with his movement, and that made her think he might have a military background.

His gaze locked onto hers and the look he shot her warned her to be quiet. She froze, fearing that whoever had tried to kill her was back. Would they have returned to verify that she was dead and then go hunting for her when they didn’t find a body?

Her pulse raced.

With effort, she slid off the chair and made herself as small as she could on the floor. Movement hurt despite the couple of pain relievers he’d supplied earlier. Ella knew Blue Eyes had this under control. And it struck her as odd that she felt safe with the stranger.

Thinking about the attempt on her life made her realize that there could be others coming to town to get a piece of her father’s will. Hadn’t his attorney, Ed Staples, warned that there could be a lot of surprises forthcoming? Even though he couldn’t possibly have meant this, Ella was beginning to fear that the actions of her father would haunt her and her siblings long after his death.

When the silence had stretched on for minutes, Blue Eyes moved to the window and checked outside. Without speaking a word, he slipped out the door.

Ella moved to the window to get a look for herself, watching as he moved stealthily. There was a certain grace about him.

Despite his untamed appearance, his muscles gave the impression he maintained a disciplined workout schedule. In fact, looking around the room, it was obvious that he liked things tidy. Something had made him want to drop out of civilization for a while. He couldn’t be a doomsday prepper because he seemed to have on hand only what he needed for a couple of days. She wanted to offer him some type of reward for saving her life but he’d already refused work. What else could she do? Offer a reward?

Ella thought about her two brothers, Dade and Dalton, and sister, Cadence. She wasn’t kidding before. They’d be frantic with worry about her by now. Even though her siblings had left town to escape the media circus in Cattle Barge, one of the employees would’ve contacted them about her disappearance. She’d been out of communication for two days...and with a total stranger. He could’ve done anything he’d wanted to her. A shiver raced through her. But he hadn’t.

For that reason and a few others that she didn’t want to overanalyze, Ella intended to figure out who this man was and why he was running.

Chapter Three

Blue Eyes walked back into the cabin, glanced around and then picked up his duffel bag. “Finish your coffee. We’re leaving ahead of schedule.”

“Everything okay outside?” Ella asked.

He didn’t respond.

“Is someone out there?” Her heart rate jumped a few notches higher.

“Not now. There will be,” he said and mumbled, “I should’ve gone a long time ago.”

That statement implied he wouldn’t have been around to help her and she didn’t appreciate the sentiment. “Well, I, for one, am glad you outstayed your welcome. I wouldn’t be alive otherwise.”

She was getting indignant. She couldn’t help herself. He wouldn’t tell her anything about himself and she wasn’t trying to take advantage of him or turn him in to the FBI. All she wanted to do was find a proper way to thank him. The guy was working her last nerve and her head still pounded.

“Why don’t you come to work for me on the ranch?” she asked while watching him pull out bleach wipes from his bag. He wiped down the dishes before placing them inside the duffel. Now he really had her curiosity heightened.

“I already said that I don’t need a job.” For the irritated sound that came out of his mouth next, she would’ve thought she’d just asked him to scrub the toilet with his toothbrush.

Ella made a production of glancing around. “Are you being serious?”

He shot her a warning glance. It said to tread lightly.

She ignored it.

“Because as far as I can tell, you very much need a paycheck. And a decent place to sleep.” She waved her hand around.

“I had one until you came along and messed it up for me,” he quickly countered.

“You can’t be serious,” she said.

“Try me.”

“Is that a threat?” She planted her balled fist on her hip. It was probably the fact that she’d almost been killed that was giving her this new bravado. She didn’t care. The guy had some explaining to do and he was squatting on her family’s land.

“No. If you haven’t figured it out already, I’m trying to help you,” he said, opening up a knife and cutting the rope he’d used to hold together the table. The metal sparkled in the light. He wiped down each leg.

“Why won’t you let me return the favor?” she asked.

Another frustrated noise tore from his throat. “You don’t have anything I want.”

That sounded personal. She tried not to take offense. “I’d like to offer a financial reward. Surely, you could use some money.”

He didn’t look up but waved her off.

“At least tell me your name,” she persisted. Why was he being so obstinate? Was it really that difficult to give her something? Granted, she was used to getting what she wanted and with enough persistence she was sure that she could wear this guy down, too. She didn’t have the luxury of time and she wanted to send a proper thank-you or reward for his help.

“I’ve already told you that’s not a good idea.” He broke one of the legs in half and then tossed it into the fireplace.

“I disagree.” She stood there, fist planted.

“You always this stubborn when you’re wrong?” he asked, breaking the second leg and tossing it on top of the last.

“I’m usually right,” she said. Ella glanced around. It wouldn’t be dark outside for hours.

“Since you’re feeling better, I’ll take you to town. Go to the sheriff and tell him what happened. I’d appreciate it if you left me out of your statement. That’s how you can thank me for saving you.” Another broken table leg, more tinder for the fireplace.

“I thought we weren’t leaving until the sun went down,” she said, a moment of panic crushing her. Her father was gone. Nothing at the ranch would be the same without him. She hadn’t even begun to deal with his murder. An attempt had been made on her life. Of course she would go to the sheriff but she wasn’t quite ready to return to town and the unknown waiting there.

“Plans changed.”

“You won’t tell me why? I mean, I realize that we heard a noise but everything’s okay now, right?” She was still trying to figure out why she was arguing for more time with the man who wouldn’t even tell her his name. Logic be damned. Ella needed to know he was going to be all right. At least, that’s what she tried to convince herself and not that there was something magnetic about this man that was completely foreign to her.

“Being seen anywhere near you is dangerous for me.”

“What have you done wrong?” she asked, figuring she might as well go for it.

“Nothing that concerns you.” He broke the final leg and tossed it into the fireplace. She might not understand his way of life but she appreciated his self-sufficiency.

“Then tell me what you’re running from,” she said in a last-ditch effort to get him to talk.

A moment of silence passed between them as they stared each other down.

Okay, he won. Ella wasn’t in a position to bargain and this stranger seemed intent on keeping his secrets. He’d helped her and she was grateful.

“I probably haven’t sounded like it so far, but I really do appreciate everything you’ve done for me,” she said as she moved toward him, toward the door.

She paused before crossing over. For a second, time stopped and they just stood there, staring at each other. A sensual shiver goose bumped Ella’s arms. The stranger had the most amazing eyes, piercing eyes. Eyes that she could stare into for days. As odd as it sounded even to her, the moment felt intimate.

The attraction she felt caught her completely off guard. Rugged mountain men had never been her type. It was probably the mystery surrounding him that held so much appeal and the fact that all her senses were on full alert.

Ella broke contact as she heard the whop-whop-whop of helicopter blades in the distance.

“Let’s go,” she said.

* * *

HOLDEN SAT AT the counter of the diner in neighboring Rio Suerte. Another couple of hours and he’d be out of Texas altogether. He’d dropped off Ella Butler two blocks from the sheriff’s office. She could retrieve her Jeep near Devil’s Lid once she gave her statement to law enforcement. Ella was smart enough to take it from there. He’d done his part, repaid his debt to Maverick Mike.

Time to move on, he thought with a heavy sigh. He hadn’t thought about the murders he’d been accused of for two days while he was with Ella. The initials, HA, hadn’t haunted him. He’d discovered them etched into the bottom of a chair leg at his father’s place—the chair where his father had been tortured and killed.

Holden shook off the bad memory. He was no closer to figuring out what had happened then he’d been two years ago.

The restaurant was a typical off-the-highway food stop and seemed like the place frequented mostly by truck drivers. Holden had befriended more than his fair share while crossing the country, making his way to Texas. The diner was shaped like a train car. There was one row of booths behind him matched by a long counter with bar stools for single travelers. Two families were in the booths, no doubt stopping off for a quick meal while on a road trip.