Cowboy in the Extreme. Rita Herron

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       “Your Uncle J will always have time for us, sugar.” She kept the tears at bay. “And we’ll visit him and Rachel and Kenny all the time.” In fact, every time Brandon volunteered at the Bucking Bronc, they’d make the trek to Johnny’s ranch. She couldn’t be around Brandon and not ache for the life she’d dreamed they might share one day.

       Lucy’s eyes grew sleepy. “Pwomise?”

       “Promise.” Kim hugged her, then tucked Lucy’s lamb beside her and covered her with her favorite pink blanket. Lucy snuggled down under the covers, and Kim stroked her dark red hair until she fell asleep.

       Exhausted from helping reorganize and clean between camps, she went to her room and crawled in bed. But as she closed her eyes, images of Brandon plagued her.

       Brandon at age ten staggering up to the fort they had built, bloody from another beating from his old man. Brandon at thirteen teaching her how to shoot a BB gun. Brandon at sixteen galloping across the pasture and showing off the tricks he’d learned from the rancher who’d given him a job and some self-respect. Brandon entering into some extreme fighting contests hoping to make a buck to get him out of his hellhole.

       Then the night of the barbecue. The night Brandon had first kissed her. The night the budding romance and passion kindling between them had become more…

       But another memory intruded, one so painful it was like being doused with ice water. The night Brandon had broken her heart.

       She closed her eyes and drifted into a fitful sleep. In the nightmare, she was riding in the open pasture, but it was dark and she’d lost her way. She couldn’t see which direction to go and someone was chasing her....

       Suddenly she startled awake, her heart drumming. Outside, the wind shook the roof and something scraped the windowpane. A tree branch? One of the shutters loose?

       Then another sound echoed in the silence…a door squeaking?

       She vaulted up in bed, searching the darkness as she scanned the room. The dresser, the chair…the closet door was closed. Everything was just as she’d left it.

       A faint sliver of moonlight seeped through the blinds, making the silhouette of the trees outside look gigantic and ominous. Had she imagined the noise? Dreamt it?

       No…another sound…soft, muffled like footsteps. The floor squeaked in the living room.

       Her pulse pounded, and she jumped up, slowly cracked open her door, and peered through the dimly lit hall. A shadow moved across the den.

       Her breath caught as fear shot through her.

       Lucy…

       She reached for her cell phone, wishing she had a gun. But her shotgun was locked in the gun cabinet in the den.

       She tiptoed to the bathroom and grabbed her hair spray, then eased through the door and crept across the hall to Lucy’s room. The floor squeaked again, and fear nearly choked her.

       They’d had some problems with vagrants and a vandal on the Bucking Bronc property.

       Was one of them breaking in now?

       She eased the door shut and locked it, determination setting in. He could steal whatever he wanted. But she wouldn’t let him hurt her daughter.

       Lucy was still sleeping, and Kim lifted her in her arms and carried her into the walk-in closet.

       “Mommy?” Her daughter stirred, her face wrinkling with confusion, and Kim rocked her gently.

       “Shh, baby, it’s okay. We need to be quiet and hide for a minute.”

       Lucy clutched the lamb, squinting at her through the hazy darkness. Panic tugged at Kim. Her first instinct was to call Johnny, but he’d already left for his place.

       Her hands shook as she punched in Brody’s office number. Brody was the primary owner of the ranch and could get here faster than a 911 call could send somebody.

       A voice answered on the second ring, deep and gruff. “Bucking Bronc Lodge.”

       Kim froze, hand shaking. Oh, God…it wasn’t Brody. That was Brandon’s voice.

       “Hello?”

       The rattling sound grew louder. Whoever was outside was going to break down the door!

       Kim pressed her mouth to the phone’s mouthpiece, terrified the intruder would hear her. “It’s Kim,” she whispered. “There’s an intruder in my cabin.”

       Lucy jerked awake, her eyes wide with terror. “Mommy?”

       “Shh, baby.” Kim tucked Lucy’s head against her chest, her heart racing.

       Brandon made a shocked sound in his throat. “I’ll be right there.” The phone clicked to silence, and Kim closed her eyes and said a silent prayer that he would reach them in time.

       But a second later, the bedroom door rattled. Then came the sound of the doorknob being turned.

       “Mommy!” Lucy’s nails dug into Kim’s arms, and she braced herself to fight.

       A loud noise—a body slamming against the door—made her jerk her head up.

       Oh, God, he was going to break down the door…

      BRANDON’S THROAT clogged with fear as he jogged outside to his SUV. Dammit, Johnny said they’d had trouble on the ranch the last couple of weeks, but since Rachel’s ex-husband had been caught, he’d assumed the trouble was over.

       What if someone had broken in and hurt Kim?

       Pure terror seized him at the thought, and he stomped on the accelerator and raced toward her cabin, punching in 911 as he went.

       A second later a dispatch officer came over the line.

       “We have a break-in at the Bucking Bronc Lodge. Get the sheriff over here fast.” He stayed on the line long enough to give more specific instructions, then disconnected and swerved onto the road to Kim’s.

       Dust spewed and gravel flew as he bounced over the ruts, bypassing the stables and dining hall, then screeching to a halt outside Kim’s cabin. He looked out the windows, the dark exterior and woods.

       He didn’t see a car or stranger, only horses galloping across pasture land, but there were acres and acres of places to hide. Was the intruder still inside?

       Easing the car door open, he slid out, removed his gun and crept toward the cabin, wielding his weapon in case the culprit jumped out in attack.

       Seconds later, horse hooves pounded the dirt behind the cabin.

       Dammit, he wanted to chase the bastard, but what if there was more than one?

       He had to check on Kim and her daughter first.

       He held his breath as he inched open the door. Darkness bathed the interior, and he searched СКАЧАТЬ