Rachel's Rescuer

“Nothin’.” Ben walked around to the back of her car and leaned down.

The woman took a faltering step to follow, but brought herself up short when he straightened, a license plate in his hand. Her mouth opened once, then snapped shut.

He rounded the fender and held out the tag. “This was just flappin’ in the breeze, about to fall off. Drivin’ around without plates will get you in trouble, even here in Montana.”

“You came after me with your lights flashing because my license tag was loose?”

Ben’s stern countenance deepened to a frown. “So you did see me behind you. Next time an officer attempts to stop you, you stop.”

Her head lowered. “Yes, sir.”

Impatient to get back to his chores before dark settled in and the storm put a halt to the work, Lucas stepped out of the shadows. “I’ve got some plate screws.”

The woman jumped, and her hand flew to her throat. “How long have you been there?” she demanded.

Lucas took three strides in her direction and stopped at the corral fence. “Long enough.”

Brilliant blue eyes narrowed. “And what does that mean?”

Lucas sucked in a breath at the sight of those eyes. “I saw you flyin’ up the road.”

She tugged on her shirt again, her nervous gaze going to the car for the second time. “I was lost.”

“You’ve got a bigger problem than that, little lady.” Ben pointed to the front tire of her car, where a soft hiss could be heard.

“Flat,” Lucas grumbled. He wanted her gone, blue eyes and all. Something was wrong, and he didn’t want to know what it was. He wanted her off the Blue Sage. “We’ll get it changed, and you can be on your way.”

“I—I don’t have a spare.”

Before Lucas could reply with a string of words unfit for a woman’s ears, Ben interrupted. “Where was it you said you were headed?”

Looking up, she tensed again. “I didn’t say.”

It couldn’t have been clearer that something was going on. Lucas glimpsed fear beneath the stubborn stance. He wondered if Ben noticed it. The sheriff might look a little slow to some, but the man didn’t let much get by him.

Lucas didn’t take his eyes off her. He quickly reminded himself that strangers couldn’t be trusted in the middle of nowhere. Even isolated areas like the Blue Sage Ranch were known to have their share of con artists and other misbegotten vermin. Never a trusting soul, especially when it came to women, he wouldn’t put it past her to be part of some sort of scam.

And he didn’t welcome the interruption. The weather was expected to get bad—real bad. The woman needed to be on her way. The sooner the better.

Lucas let his gaze take a slow journey over the stranger, checking out the chestnut brown of her hair and the slender neck holding up an obstinate chin. Skipping over the loose-fitting shirt, his gaze lingered on her slim hips and long legs encased in threadbare blue jeans. A pair of dirty, time-worn tennis shoes finished the trip.

“If you’re lost, I’ll give you directions,” Ben was saying, jerking Lucas’s attention away from the leisurely tour of her body.

“Just tell me where and how far I am from Deer-fork,” the woman replied. “I’ll find my way from there.”

“You’re headed to Deerfork?”

She hesitated. “Sort of.”

“Near Deerfork?”

Nodding, she said nothing.

“I’ll give Willie a call and have him bring the tow truck out,” Ben said, then turned for his patrol car.

“If you tell me where you’re headed, I can give you better directions,” Lucas offered, his patience wearing thin. His suspicion mounted as he watched her twist her fingers in the hem of her shirt. She was scared. And not just of the law.

“I’m headed to see my—my friend,” she finally answered. “She and her husband live near Deerfork. I must have taken a wrong turn.”

The glare she directed at him nearly brought a smile to his lips. She was too easily riled. And too pretty when she was. He shook off the thought. “A name would give me somethin’ to go on.”

Lowering her head, she hid her expression behind a curtain of hair. “Richmond. Jenny Richmond.”

He swore under his breath. “Jen and Pete left a couple of weeks ago for a vacation.”

“Oh, no!” She swayed, wrapping her arms around her middle.

He gripped the fence in front of him to keep from rushing to her. No way was he getting involved. “You okay?”

Her chin lifted again. “I’ll be on my way, as soon as the tow truck gets here.”

While they glared at each other, Ben returned. “There’s been an accident over on I-15 I’ve gotta get to. Willie’s on his way there now.” He turned to the woman. “You’ll have to stay here, until he’s done and can get here.”

“Hold on!” Vaulting the fence and crossing the short distance to where the pair stood, Lucas addressed them both. “She can ride back with you, and Willie can get her car tomorrow. We’ll find her a place to stay in Deerfork.”

The wind kicked up, swirling dirt into the sharply cooling air around them. Gesturing with a nod of his head, Ben led Lucas to the cruiser. “She’ll have to stay here, Lucas, unless you can take her into Deer-fork.”

“Can’t. I’ve got a new bull calf I have to keep an eye on. You’ll have to take her.”

“Nope, can’t do it. I’ve gotta get to that accident.” Ben climbed into his car and rolled down the window, shaking his head. “Bunch o’ wild kids drivin’ too fast. When a storm’s a’comin’, all hell breaks loose. Nothin’ but trouble.”

“I’d say she’s trouble.” Lucas silently counted to five as Ben started the engine. “She’s not stayin’ here, and that’s—”

“Mom?”

He spun around at the sound of the voice, while Ben pulled out of the drive. Too preoccupied with this new development to try to stop the sheriff, Lucas squinted into the blowing dust to see the driver’s door of the woman’s car swing open. Unable to make out who it was, he rounded the back of the car and stopped in his tracks.

“It’s all right,” the woman said, pulling a small boy of about five or six close to her. With her arms wrapped possessively around the youngster, she glared at Lucas.

Eyes full of distrust, the boy looked up at him. “Who’s he?”

If his life depended on it, Lucas couldn’t have uttered a single word. After a moment of dead silence, he cleared his throat and forced himself to speak. “I’m Lucas Callahan. And your name is?”

“Cody.”

Promising himself the satisfaction of blasting Ben the next time he saw him, Lucas looked at the sky, then nodded. “Guess we’d better get to the house.”

“Isn’t there something else we can do? We can’t stay here.” The woman kept the boy close and shivered, but whether from fear or cold, Lucas couldn’t be sure.