A Bride By Summer: The Texas Ranger's Bride / From Best Friend to Bride / Once Upon a Bride

“Tell me the dates.”

Kellie heard him mention January, April, June and July.

“Do you send one technician at a time?”

“Almost always.”

Cy handed him the paper. “Have either of these men worked for your company within the last year? Take your time.”

The manager took it from him. Within seconds he looked up at Cy. “This one with the longer hair. His name was Denny Denham.” Kellie let out a soft gasp. “He applied for work in April, but only stayed until the end of June.”

“Denny Denham has many aliases. He’s on the FBI’s most wanted list and killed a woman.” The manager dropped his jaw in shock.

Kellie’s heart thudded painfully. Cy’s hunch had paid off. At this point she was in awe of his genius.

“Why did he quit?”

“He said his mother was in a hospital in Michigan and needed him.”

“Was he a good tech?”

“Very good. I didn’t like losing him.”

“Was he the tech sent to the WPRA offices on any of the dates you gave me while he was still working for you?”

“I’ll have to go through the signed receipts. It’ll take me a few minutes.”

“Go ahead.”

Cy flashed Kellie a smile meant to encourage her that they were on the right track. He could have no idea of the emotions that smile stirred up inside her.

The manager looked at Cy. “Denny signed the work order for June 20. It was right after that he had to quit work.”

The set of Cy’s hard jaw spoke volumes. “I want to see his application.”

“I’ll print it out.”

Cy took the paper and stood to shake the manager’s hand. “You’ve been very helpful on this case. Thank you.”

The manager still looked dazed as they left the office. Once in the car, Cy started the engine. “I’ve got everything I came for. We’ll head back to Austin in time for you to get in some training with your horses. En route to the airport would you like to stop for a hamburger at a drive-through?”

“That sounds good.”

“I got lucky today. That always gives me an appetite.”

“It’s not luck, Cy. You’re brilliant. Didn’t you want to study his work application before we left?”

“I’ll pore over it with Vic after we get back. It’ll be filled with lies, but maybe there’ll be something in it that will be valuable to the agents working on the other murder cases.”

She stared out the window. “That poor manager looked shattered. Surely he did a background check.”

“I have no doubt of it. The trouble with criminals is that they’re human beings just like everyone, and for most of the time they drift in and out of the shadows without anyone realizing it until it’s too late.”

Kellie’s gratitude for Cy and all he was doing caused her throat to swell. “I’ll never be able to thank you enough, and don’t tell me it’s nothing.”

A low chuckle came out of him. “I wasn’t going to. Since taking your case, I’ve become a husband. I never dreamed it was such a responsibility.”

“You’re probably sorry you got involved to this extent.”

“I wouldn’t have done it if it wasn’t exactly what I felt needed to be done.”

“But I feel guilty because it makes it difficult for you to have a personal life.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ve had a personal life and barely escaped getting married.”

Her head swung toward him. “Seriously?”

He nodded. “Her name was Eileen Richards. We were engaged, but it didn’t feel right to me and I broke it off.”

“How long ago?”

“I was twenty-one and halfway through undergraduate school.”

Kellie imagined he was in his early thirties now. “That’s young.”

“Yup. But my parents and her parents were all for it. As I told you before, they had my life planned out to be an attorney. To everyone’s displeasure, once I’d said goodbye to her, I left school and signed up with the Austin police department. I discovered I didn’t want to defend criminals, I wanted to catch them.”

“Thank heaven,” she whispered. “How long have you been a Ranger?”

“Almost three years and I’ve never regretted my decision. To answer your next question, Eileen is married to a successful businessman. According to my mother, she’s expecting her second child, and I couldn’t be happier about it.”

Neither could Kellie.

Once they’d eaten a quick lunch, they dropped off the rental car and caught their flight back to Austin. They walked to the short-term parking for Cy’s car and headed for her parents’ ranch.

“We made good time, Cy. It’s only four o’clock.”

“That’s why I wanted to get away early this morning.”

She gave him directions and soon he’d pulled up in front of their ranch house. “Would you like to come in? I know my parents would like to talk to you.”

“Another time and I will, but I’ve still got a lot of business to do. Don’t forget that one of the crew always keeps you in his sights.”

“I know. I’ll ask my parents to drive me to the town house tonight.”

“Give me a call. I’ll be waiting for you.”

He had no idea what that meant to her, but he was probably tired of hearing it and she could tell he was anxious to leave. She climbed out of the car and hurried to the front door. Opening it, she called out, “Mom?”