Page 39 of A Ranger for Christmas
“Sleep’s good for you.”
So is love and human contact. The words echoed as he drove to room number six.
As the headlights shone on the door, she smiled. “In ancient cultures, six is a lucky number.”
“That so?”
“Means prosperity.”
He grabbed the bags of barbecue, realizing she found the positive in most everything expect Christmas. “Here’s to prosperity.”
She burrowed into the folds of her coat as he opened the door and switched on the light. The rustic double beds were made with plain light quilts that appeared to be made by hand.A television, not the flat screen kind but the old box kind, dominated the dresser hewn from poplar. Carpets were tan and the curtains a dramatic print that reminded her of another era. “Shower’s in the back if you want to clean up.”
“That would be great.” She shrugged off her jacket and dropped it on the first bed. Her jeans fit her well, hugging her hips and narrow waist. She tugged off cowboy boots and headed, sock-footed, into the bathroom. “I promise not to take all the hot water.”
“No worries.” He might not like a cold shower, but it might be exactly what he’d end up with tonight.
He unpacked the food on a small round table just to the left of the door, setting out and opening the containers. By the time he’d shrugged off his own jacket and tossed it next to hers, the bathroom door opened and, from a fog of steam, she appeared.
She’d finger-combed her long hair and redressed in her jeans as well as a fresh white T-shirt embossed with the word ARCHAEOLOGY. Her skin was dewy and pink. “Smells delicious.”
He pulled out a chair for her and when she’d taken her seat, he sat. He watched as she smoothed out a napkin in her lap. “I’ve never seen so much food.”
“They always load me up. They know I can put away the grub.”
“You travel a lot for your job?”
“On the go a good bit of time. Though now that I’m in Austin, the pace might slow.” He unwrapped a tamale. “Promotion.”
She reached for a soda. “Big promotion?”
“Of sorts. My work with the cartels, well, it was noticed.”
She sipped her soda, clearly savoring the cool liquid on her throat. “I’m not sure what you did with the cartels.”
“In a nutshell, I closed down a major trafficking ring.” It had taken him five years. Lives of key informants had been lost, and he’d distanced himself from his family to protect them.
“That was why you were in Mexico looking for me.”
“There is a new drug supplier and some believe he’s associated with the cartels. Word was, you could read the coded message.”
“You came all that way to find me.”
“It was important the code be broken.” His level tone gave no hint of what had been a dangerous, difficult operation.
“And these messages discuss the new drug shipment.”
“Exactly.”
“What if the drugs get through?”
“They’ll bring trouble and violence.” The words carried the weight of worry and frustration.
A frown furrowed her brow. “I will remember what I figured out about the code. I will.”
His gaze held no hint of judgment. “Don’t sweat it. You’ll remember.”
A casual shrug didn’t soften her frustration. “How do you know?”
