Page 30 of Cowboy Jeopardy

On the back deck, she glanced around for the dogs, hoping they could provide backup and scare away the intruder before her bravery fled. The dogs were nowhere to be found and Clarence hadn’t been let out of the barn yet. What kind of security were they?

She cast a glance upward toward Dylan’s bedroom window. Not seeing any movement there, she leaped off the deck and set off in the direction she’d seen the intruder. Heart beating like a galloping steed, slippers flapping and threatening to fall off, Dani stopped at the barn. She plastered her back against the painted wood and fought to control her breathing.

Common sense flooded in. What exactly did she actually think would happen if she confronted the man? That he would kindly go away and leave her alone? Not likely. This early in the morning, they might be the only two people awake on the ranch.

She frowned. No, there was always supposed to be someone patrolling the grounds. That was most likely who she’d spotted. Embarrassment heated her face. Wait until Dylan heard about this. Hopefully, he’d be more amused than mad.

Convinced she’d overreacted, she stepped around the corner of the barn in time to see someone disappear around the opposite corner. Dani followed, then froze as her gaze fell to a shoe imprint. Not a cowboy boot. A gym shoe.

Her breath fled her body, and she pressed against the building. She hadn’t imagined an intruder. Where was the cowboy assigned patrol duty for that hour of the morning? Had something happened to him? She needed to let Dylan know.

She couldn’t. If she headed back to the house, she’d be in plain sight of whoever skulked around. No, she needed to keep following him. Eventually, someone else would see and come help her. If she didn’t lose the man, they could catch him and hand him over to the sheriff.

Staying close to the building, she peered around the opposite corner in time to see the man duck under the corral fence and head toward the woods. He glanced over his shoulder, his baseball cap pulled too low for her to see his face and sent her tighter against the building.

She gripped the umbrella like a baseball bat and followed, using hay bales and farm equipment— anything she could as cover in order not to be seen. Once he moved past the bunkhouse, there was no way she could follow him without him seeing her. Not until he reached the tree line. Then, she’d have to move quickly in order to catch him.

Where were the dogs? Fear lodged in her throat. The boys would be devastated if something happened to them. The man wouldn’t have harmed an animal, would he? If he had, then nothing would stop him from hurting a human in order to get what he wanted.

She glanced back at the house. Still not seeing signs of anyone walking around, she turned back to the stranger. The moment he stepped into the shadows of the forest, she dashed across the wide-open expanse of the ranch in pursuit.

The sun had yet to penetrate the early morning of the woods. She paused to let her eyes adjust and to listen for human sounds that didn’t belong. The forest remained silent. No birds sang their morning song, startled to silence by someone trespassing their space.

After a few tense seconds, a squirrel chattered. A bird twittered.

Dani took a deep breath and headed deeper into the woods and tried to catch a glimpse of the man who had drawn her from her room so early in the morning. A twig snapped ahead of her. She froze and ducked.

~

Dylan almost dropped his cup of coffee in the sink when he spotted Dani, dressed in shorts a spaghetti-strap top, and slippers, race across the property and into the woods. He didn’t hesitate long. “Mrs. White, watch over the boys.” He grabbed the rifle he kept inside the pantry and barged out the back door, the screen door slamming behind him.

Why wasn’t the donkey in the corral? Where were the dogs? An uneasy feeling settled in his gut. Something had gone terribly wrong before daybreak.

Shiloh Sloan, one of his ranch hands, stumbled toward the main house. “Someone cold-cocked me, Boss. Hit me from behind with a shovel.”

“Have Mrs. White tend to your head and find someone to locate the dogs. I’ll check on you when I return. Have someone call the sheriff.”

“Where you headed?”

“After Dani.” He had a sinking feeling about what he’d find in the woods.

“I’ll rouse the guys before seeing Mrs. White.” He changed direction for the bunkhouse, holding a bandanna to his bleeding head.

Dylan sprinted for the trees. What was the crazy woman thinking heading out on her own? Didn’t she care about the danger to herself? He wanted to wring her pretty neck. Yesterday, he’d wanted to kiss her pretty neck.

The sun peeked through tree branches and dappled the path with bits of gold light. Dylan studied the ground around him to determine which way Dani had gone. He needed to catch up to her before she caught up to whoever it was she chased.

Since he knew the woods as well as he knew the cleared land in front of it, he didn’t doubt he’d find her. The question was in what condition?

He’d pause every few yards or so to listen and study for tracks. All he found was dried pine needles moved aside, a broken twig or two—nothing to show her exact location. He turned toward the creek. Seemed everyone and everything that entered the woods ended up at the creek eventually.

Dani was no different. He found her with her feet in the water and leaning back on her hands as if she hadn’t just scared the dickens out of him.

He tapped her on the shoulder.

She grabbed a nearby umbrella, jumped to her feet, and whipped around.

He shot out a hand to keep from getting whacked in the head and yanked the weapon from her hand. “Explain yourself.”

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