The Colton Bodyguard

“Yes. She left for Tulsa to pack some bags and will be back here sometime later this evening.”

“Good. I’m glad she’s on board. She’s one of the best trainers in the area. If anyone can help that poor tormented soul, she can,” Raymond said.

“I told her you’d be available for whatever she needs,” Tyler replied.

“Of course.”

Tyler clapped the thin, wiry cowboy on his shoulder. “You’re a good man, Raymond.”

Raymond smiled at him, revealing a missing eyetooth that had been knocked out in a bar fight when he’d been young and stupid. “You’re an easy boss. I’m heading into the stable now to clean out the stalls. I look forward to learning from Greta.”

Tyler nodded and watched Raymond disappear into the stable. Raymond didn’t live on the property. For the past five years he’d worked for Tyler, he’d arrived each morning at dawn and left around six. Tyler kept four saddle horses and Raymond saw to their needs and kept the stable and riding equipment meticulously clean and maintained.

With a final glance at She-Devil, Tyler turned and headed back toward the house. Greta. His brain instantly filled with a vision of her. He’d been surprised to see her on his front porch, but nothing had surprised him more than her appearing in his room the night before.

He’d wanted Greta Colton long before Mark had ever met her. He’d sent Mark to meet Greta with the specific intent of getting her interested in his filly and close to him.

The moment he’d first seen her she’d stirred something inside him. Even after making love to her last night, he hadn’t had enough of her. He wanted more.

Once Mark had become engaged to her, Tyler had tried to spend as little time as possible around her, although there had been occasions when they’d all been together. Still, Tyler had kept himself distant, not wanting to ruin anything for his younger brother by giving away his own feelings about her.

Since the age of nineteen, when their parents had died, Mark had struggled with life. He’d squandered what little inheritance he’d received, and when he’d been flat broke, Tyler had offered him the position of vice president of the family company, along with a generous salary and few real responsibilities.

But Mark liked the good life and he rarely made it from payday to payday. When that happened, he’d come to Tyler for extra money, and it happened frequently.

Tyler entered the house by the back door, poured himself a cup of coffee and sat at the kitchen table. There were times he thought his brother hated him. Mark hated Tyler’s success, hated having to come to him for a handout. Mark had known of Tyler’s desire to meet Greta from the beginning. When they first met, his brother hadn’t mentioned the wild horse but had wooed Greta right into a relationship and eventually an engagement. Tyler suspected a lot of Greta’s allure for his brother was because Mark knew Tyler was interested in her.

Tyler hadn’t alibied Greta to ruin her relationship with Mark, although he’d known the odds were good that would happen. He’d alibied Greta because he couldn’t stand the thought of her being behind bars and he knew she didn’t have it in her to kill anyone. Most important, when he discovered that Mark hadn’t even visited Greta in jail, let alone attempted to help her in any way, Tyler had known he had to step forward.

He hadn’t seen or spoken to his brother since Greta’s release from jail, but he had heard rumors that Mark wasn’t crying in his beer and instead had been making the rounds of old girlfriends and partying it up. He must have found a sugar mama because normally by now Mark would be asking for an “advance” on his paycheck.

Thankfully, nobody’s heart appeared to have been broken by Tyler’s false alibi and the subsequent broken engagement. He’d accomplished what he wanted to do by getting Greta released from jail and last night he’d held her in his arms and made love to her.

It had been magic. Making love to her had been everything that he’d fantasized about and more. He had no driving desire to find a wife and build a future with her. He just knew he wanted Greta again...and again.

She not only drew him physically, but she also intrigued him. He wanted not just to know her body but to get into her mind, as well. She appeared to be so different from the superficial social-climbing women who normally surrounded him.

He didn’t know exactly where this would all lead, but for the first time since his parents’ deaths, he was willing to let fate take over and just go along for the ride. For the first time in a long time, he was allowing emotions to lead him rather than carefully planning and using his head.

He finished his coffee and then headed for his bedroom. As he made the bed, he thought of how passionate she’d been, how eagerly she’d responded to his every touch the night before.

After making the bed, he checked in with his office and was glad to hear that there were no fires that needed to be put out. It would be a long day awaiting Greta’s return.

Tyler had few friends. Taking over the family business and making it successful and seeing to Mark’s welfare had taken up most of the time when young men hung out at bars or sporting events and built friendships.

Thankfully, he had one good friend, the rancher next door. Derek Underwood was three years older than Tyler, but the two had struck up an unlikely friendship that Tyler cherished.

He returned to the kitchen and punched Derek’s number into his cell phone. Derek answered on the second ring. “I was wondering if you wanted to come over and drink a cup of coffee and shoot the bull with me for a little while,” Tyler said.

“You’re at home? On a Wednesday morning?” Derek replied in surprise.

“I took the day off,” Tyler said.

“I’d better look outside to see if the sky is falling.”

Tyler laughed. “You want to come by or not?”

“Sure, I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

The two men hung up and Tyler made a fresh pot of coffee. By the time it had finished brewing, Derek was at his back door. On the surface the two men were exact opposites.

Derek’s wardrobe consisted solely of worn jeans and flannel shirts. Some days he shaved; some days he didn’t. His dark brown hair was long and shaggy and appeared to have not been acquainted with a comb for years.

“I hired Greta Colton to come out here and work with She-Devil,” Tyler said as he poured them each a cup of coffee and joined Derek at the table.

Derek frowned, his bushy brown eyebrows nearly meeting across the bridge of his nose. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? I have a good friend in Tulsa who is fairly friendly with the Coltons, and lately it seems there’s a lot of drama going on with that family.”

“What kind of drama?” Tyler asked. He knew about the murder of a ranch hand and Greta’s arrest, but he hadn’t really kept up with what was happening to the Colton family.

“Greta’s mother was attacked in her bedroom and was in a coma for a little while. They’ve had fires set in some of their outbuildings and fencing torn down. Then there’s the mystery of the murder of Kurt Rodgers. I’ve even heard rumors about Greta being on drugs.”

Tyler stared at his friend in surprise. He hadn’t heard anything about the problems at the Colton ranch. Mark certainly had never mentioned anything unusual going on there. Of course, Mark had been more interested in getting his photo in the paper with his lovely fiancée.

“Sounds like foolish gossip to me,” Tyler scoffed.

Derek shrugged. “Maybe. All I know is that from what I heard, where Greta goes, trouble follows. I mean, even her own brother had her arrested for murder.”

“Greta couldn’t kill anyone. I don’t know how her DNA got around the crime scene, but it wasn’t there because she killed somebody.”

Derek took a sip of his coffee and eyed Tyler over the rim of the cup. He set the cup back down and leaned back in the chair. “I heard you alibied her for the night of the murder. Is it true that she was with you that night?”

Tyler hated lying to anyone, especially a good friend, but he knew he had to stick to his story, not just to protect Greta but also to protect himself. “Yeah, it’s true. I was at the Regent Hotel for a business meeting, and when the meeting ended, I wandered into the bar. She was there and we shared a couple of drinks and one thing led to another and I wound up in her room for the entire night.”

Derek narrowed his eyes. “If that’s what you say.”

“That’s what I say,” Tyler replied firmly. “And where did you hear about the alibi?”

“I’ve got a friend in the police department in Tulsa. He told me and then warned me that if I repeated it to anyone, he’d shoot me.”

“If you repeat it again, I’ll shoot you,” Tyler replied with a grin.

“At least you’re getting the best when it comes to a trainer for She-Devil.”

Tyler nodded. “Greta is moving in here to work. She should be arriving sometime this evening and will stay as long as it takes.”

“Rumors or not, if I were you, I’d sleep with one eye open,” Derek said wryly.

Tyler laughed. “I’m sure it will be fine.”