Page 17 of The Cowboy Comes Home

“Yes. About the incident at the school.”

“With the bullies?” He smiled then. “Good for Jackson.” His smile widened. “You’re on his good list now. And believe me, that’s a helpful place to be.”

“He’s helped you out, then?” She wasn’t sure why she asked, except she wanted to keep the conversation going. Why she wanted that was something she didn’t want to delve into at the moment.

“He has before, and he is again, now that I’m out of a job.”

“But…isn’t he why you’re out of a job?”

He drew back slightly, and his gaze narrowed. She’d thought she was just stating a known fact, but there was obviously more to this. He stared at her, and she suddenly had the feeling she was seeing the tough, determined competitor who had blown up the rodeo scene not all that long ago. His eyes had gone steely, and his jaw was set.

“He had no choice. He was losing his son. I’m not sure what would have happened to Jeremy if Jackson hadn’t read his little clues and realized he needed to get out and away from where it all happened. He did it for Jeremy, and it was the right thing to do.”

By the time he finished, adamant on those last five words, she was feeling an inner warmth unlike anything she’d experienced before. It must have shown on her face because his jaw tightened even more.

“You think it was a mistake? You think—”

“I think what you just said was a beautiful example of a true friendship.”

“And that it is.”

The deep, resonant voice came from behind her. Because Lobo had alerted and she’d given him the “relax” signal, she wasn’t totally surprised, and was able to turn around fairly calmly. And in some uninvolved part of her mind she registered that Jackson Thorpe looked just as good in person as he did on screen.

“Don’t mind Tuck,” he went on. “He’s a little defensive on my behalf, since a lot of people aren’t too happy with me for exactly the reason you said. And aren’t in the least hesitant to say so.”

She hadn’t thought of it quite like that, but she did now. “And in a town where everybody’s got a megaphone, it must get pretty loud.”

“Exactly that.”

He grinned suddenly, and she found herself grinning back. She’d never been one to be overly impressed with stardom, but he was hard not to like. She glanced at Tucker, who seemed to be studying the toes of his boots. Jeremy, meanwhile, was on his knees in the dirt, one hand stroking Lobo, the other wrapped around the big golden retriever by his side. The two dogs were nosing each other curiously, but she didn’t see any sign of animus or anything to be on guard about.

She looked back at the famous face. “That you made that decision speaks volumes. More quietly without the megaphones, but much more powerfully.”

Tucker’s head came up, and oddly, she knew he was looking at her.

“Thank you, Officer Stratton,” Jackson said.

“She said I could call her Officer Emily, like I can call the chief Chief Shane,” Jeremy said, looking up at his father.

“Well, that’s quite an honor,” Jackson said, reaching down to tousle his son’s hair, a loving gesture Emily didn’t miss.

“Yup,” Jeremy said.

“Cops here,” Tucker said, “are very different from L.A.”

She looked at him then. “Because Chief Highwater is different. He’s invested in Last Stand—his family was at the battle. This isn’t just a job for him, it’s helping his town. It’s a loyalty to everyone who lives here. It’s…preserving history, including his family’s history. And everybody here in Last Stand knows it.”

“Speaking of loyalty,” Tucker said, looking a little stunned at her unintended speech.

“He’s earned it,” she said. She flicked a glance at Jackson, then back to Tucker. “Sort of like you did, I gather.”

He looked surprised, but Jackson chuckled and answered her. “That he did. If it hadn’t been for Tucker, getting me that job on the horse crew, I don’t know where I’d be.”

“You wouldna’ saved Sorry, and we’d all be sorry,” Jeremy piped up.

That one stumped her. All three males were grinning now. “Tuck, I’ll let you explain that one. I need to go put in an appearance with the new group arriving.”

“Let me thank you first, Mr. Thorpe,” Emily said quickly. “For calling my boss.” She smiled. “As you might have guessed, his opinion means a lot to me, and I appreciate it.”

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