Page 34 of Hot For You

Dawn was just lifting the dark sky, graying it out, the sun starting to peek over the horizon. It promised to be a beautiful day, yet what had happened yesterday cast a shadow over everything.

He fed the cattle and horses, checked the water troughs, saw to the trees being irrigated around the ranch, and generally made sure everything was running smoothly. When he headed back into the house, the smell of coffee and sausages filled the air and he heard the meat sizzling on the stovetop.

When he went to the entryway to the kitchen, he leaned against the doorframe, watching Carilyn as she busied herself. She hadn’t noticed him and he smiled to himself as he thought about what it would be like to come in every day to find her cooking breakfast for them. She looked cute in her jeans and T-shirt, her feet bare, and her damp red hair pulled back in a ponytail. From her wet hair, he guessed she’d just taken a shower.

She glanced over her shoulder and smiled. “Good morning.”

“Good morning to you, sunshine.” He pushed away from the doorframe and walked closer to her. “Smells great.”

“Coffee is ready.” She nodded toward the coffee maker. “I’m just about to make omelets. Two eggs or three, and what do you like on yours?”

He looked over the plate of grated cheddar cheese, chopped onions, fresh tomatoes cut into small pieces, and bell pepper sliced into small pieces, too. “Three eggs and I’ll take everything on it,” he said.

“You’ve got it.” She beat eggs in a bowl with a whisk. “They won’t be pretty but they’ll be edible.”

He laughed. “Edible is what counts.” He studied her as she poured the egg into the nonstick pan. “How are you feeling?”

“Better.” She glanced at him. “Still have a headache and sometimes I’m a little unsteady on my feet, but I think I’ll be fine to go back to Leigh’s later today or tomorrow.”

“Don’t rush it, Carilyn,” he said as she put cheese and veggies in the omelet. “There’s no hurry to leave and it may not be safe to go to Leigh’s.”

She looked up from the omelet. “I don’t want to be a burden.”

He tweaked her ponytail and caught a whiff of the soap she’d used when she’d taken a shower. “And I told you that you are not a burden.” He gave her a little grin. “Besides, what cowboy doesn’t want to come in to a warm breakfast rather than eating cold cereal on his own?”

“There is that,” she said with a smile.

While she made breakfast, he made himself a cup of coffee, black. He set the table for two, including glasses and a jug of orange juice. He also took a jar of salsa out of the fridge along with a tub of sour cream, something he liked on his omelets. When she was finished, she was right, they weren’t pretty, but they smelled great and tasted even better.

Over breakfast they talked about her plans for the day. “I need to start setting up my laptop as much as I can without the software,” she said. “There are some things I can download off the Internet.”

“I don’t think I’d be much of a help there,” he said as he cut into his omelet with his fork. “I’m doing good to utilize whatever software I need for work at the fire department or here for the ranch.” He ate the bite of omelet. After he swallowed, he said, “So you know how to track people down on the Internet?”

She nodded. “Even people who try to cover up their tracks. Eventually I will find them.”

“You must be good at what you do,” Cody said.

With a shrug she said, “It’s what I was trained to do and something I have a knack at doing.”

“How did you get in that line of work?” he asked.

“I majored in computer science when I was in college.” She smiled, finally deciding to tell him what she actually did. “I did post-graduate work in programming and I got involved with an elite group of programmers—hackers—who taught me a whole lot about what I do now. You could say I have a gift for it.”

Cody raised his brows. “You’re a hacker?”

She gave an impish grin. “For the good guys.”

“That’s pretty cool.” Cody took a drink of juice and set the glass down, thumping it on the tabletop. “So you think you can find Firebug?”

“Eventually.” Her brow wrinkled. “Firebug did a credible job covering his tracks, but I’ll be getting software that will help me get to him.”

Cody gave a satisfied nod. “As soon as we find him, I’m going after the bastard.”

Carilyn was taken aback and her eyes widened. “You’re not going after Firebug on your own, are you?”

Cody looked like he was considering it. “I’ll call Reese,” Cody finally said. “He’ll likely let me in on the action—or at least watch it.” His gaze met Carilyn’s. “But if the bastard tries to hurt you all bets are off.”

Again, he looked as if he wanted to say more, but didn’t. Some kind of connection was between them and she knew he felt it too.

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