Page 14 of Rawhide and Ransom

All three of us.

It felt like Annalee and Miley had crossed his path for a reason — like God Himself had put them there. He couldn’t have explained it to anyone if he’d tried, but it didn’t make it any less true.

Chapter 3: Cabin Fever

“It’s a miracle!” Annalee sank onto the sofa beside her daughter, raining happy-sad tears all over her. Yes, the two of them tended to think alike, so it wasn’t too surprising that they’d both decided to hightail it to the Comanche rez for help. However, the odds of them finding each other so quickly while being brutally targeted could only be described as a miracle.

Miley finally gave her a gentle push to give them both more breathing room. “I’ve already had a shower,” she joked, despite the fact that her own eyes were brimming. “You, on the other hand, look like you could use one.” She beckoned imperiously for her frappe, and their tall Native American host dutifully returned it to her.

Boy, did she have the man wrapped around her pinky finger! Annalee watched her daughter sip ravenously on it before tearing open the bag on her lap and pulling out the bottle of antibiotics.

She used the frappe to wash the first dose down. “What’s up with the tacky dry cleaning uniform?”

“It’s a long story.” Annalee stretched her legs out in front of her to grimace at the dusty galoshes. She was more than ready to see the end of her horrendous outfit.

Miley pointed imperiously across the living room. “Do us all a favor and tell us everythingafteryour shower.”

“Miley!” Annalee wasn’t sure how she felt about taking a shower in the home of someone who’d been a complete stranger to her an hour ago. “Don’t you think we’ve imposed long enough on the hospitality of Mr. er…?” Her face grew warm at the realization that she hadn’t bothered asking the name of her daughter’s rescuer before climbing into his pickup truck. She shot to her feet to correct the oversight, thoroughly embarrassed by how distracted she’d been up to this point.

“Hawk,” the owner of the cabin drawled, looking highly entertained by her flusteredness. “Hawk Chesney.”

Wow! His name was as hot as the rest of him. It wasn’t the most appropriate thought for a recently widowed woman to be having, but it was kind of his fault for looking like a walking commercial for bodybuilding. He was all bulging shoulders and chest with well-corded, coppery biceps stretching the short sleeves of his black t-shirt. One side of his shirt was loosely tucked into the waistband of his jeans. Though he was wearing black cowboy boots, he didn’t have on a belt or one of those ridiculously large belt buckles that so many Texans favored.

“I’m really glad we ran into each other at the diner today, Hawk.” He reminded her of her husband in so many ways, except he was bigger. Taller. More imposing. “I’m so grateful for everything you’ve done for my daughter. I—” She bit off the rest of what she’d been about to say, wondering why he was reaching for her elbow again.

“You’re about to fall over, Mom.” Miley’s voice grew anxious. “Were you hurt during your accident?”

Annalee blinked at her. “I didn’t stick around the hospital long enough to find out, but I feel okay.” She was mostly just achy and weak from being bed-bound for three weeks.

Hawk directed her attention to a basket resting at her daughter’s feet. “A friend of mine dropped off some clothes and supplies for Miley last night.”

“Your girlfriend?” The question slid out of Annalee as she scooted to the floor, where she was less likely to topple over in exhaustion. As badly as she wished she’d kept her mouth shut, his expression didn’t change.

“Don’t have a girlfriend.” The way he was sizing her up gave her a heightened sense of awareness of, well,him. “You look about the same size as your daughter, so the clothes Caro brought over might fit both of you.”

Caro.His friend now had a name. Annalee couldn’t help wondering if this “friend” of his wanted to be more than a friend. Lending a basketful of clothing and toiletries to a teenager she didn’t know felt awfully personal. Maybe her generosity had been more about impressing him than helping Miley.

Another thought struck her, bringing with it a fresh round of worry. “Who all knows my daughter is staying here?” She cast a longing look at the basket of clothing, hating the thought of passing up a warm shower. It would feel like heaven to be clean again, but did they truly have time for that? It was probably wisest to scoop up her daughter and her bottle of antibiotics and keep moving.

“Don’t worry, Mom.” There was a laughing note in Miley’s voice. “We’re safe here. All of Hawk’s friends are cops.”

“Says who?” Hawk rounded on her.

She jutted her chin at him. “Did you really think I was sleeping the whole time y’all were in the kitchen last night jawing about me?”

“She’s a brat,” Annalee said quickly. “If I’d made it into town sooner, I could’ve warned you.”

Hawk curled his upper lip at her daughter. “Only one of them was a cop, Miss Nosy Pants. Past tense. Her husband works at Lonestar Security with me. The other woman used to be an FBI agent, but now she’s an events planner. She switched careers to marry a dairy farmer.”

Annalee absorbed his latest revelations about himself. “You work for a security firm?” That could prove useful.

“Bodyguard.” He playfully flexed his arms for her.

“Nice.” His bodybuilder bod was starting to make a lot more sense.

“Is the friend who works with you a bodyguard, too?” She relaxed, feeling safer already.

“Nah, he’s a private investigator. Different department.” He pointed toward the hallway. “The bathroom is the first door on your right. You’ll find clean towels and wash cloths in the cabinet beneath the sink.”

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