Evidence of Trust Read online

Joel’s attempt to diffuse the situation with humor earned him a surprisingly strong shove that landed him back on his side of the tent.

  She sat up, fire flashing in her eyes. “You kissed me.”

  “You kissed back.” A weak defense, but at the moment, all he had.

  The blush in her cheeks climbed to her hairline. “I was half asleep.”

  Bullshit. But, no sense letting a good fib go to waste. “Fine, so was I—now we’re both off the hook.”

  When he carefully pushed into a sitting position, she scrambled further away, then straightened her spine and held her ground. “Don’t do it again.”

  The imperial tone and haughty expression wiped out his remorse. “No problem.”

  She slipped on her boots and reached for her backpack. “Wait here until I get back.”

  “I’m not a peeping tom.”

  “I didn’t mean that, I—”

  “Just go, would you?” He reached over and yanked up the tent zipper. Snow fell in through the opening at the bottom.

  Once she’d left, Joel lay back on his sleeping bag and did his best to will his morning arousal away. Yeah, even after that lovely little scene, he was still sporting a hard on. Thank God for the bulk of their sleeping bags. He’d acted like a teenager, but hell, her soft lips so close to his had made him hunger for just a taste. And the sound of his name in that sexy, husky voice, added to the thought of her lying beneath him—

  Damn, not helping.

  With a snort of disgust, he pulled out some clean clothes and began to change. What the hell was he thinking? She reminded him of Deanna, and hadn’t he more than learned his lesson with her?

  Rich, beautiful, independent. Not bad attributes, per se. In fact, the last two had attracted him enough to Deanna that for the first time since his mother left when he was eight, he’d left his heart unguarded. A few weeks, and he’d fallen fast and hard.

  Only, when he’d told her he loved her, she’d laughed in his face. Said he was a wonderful diversion in bed, but she couldn’t marry a forest ranger when she was already engaged to a partner at her father’s law firm.

  His jaw clenched with the unwelcome memory. These days, he didn’t touch women like her—like his mother—with a ten-foot pole.

  Joel pushed away that particular ghost and pulled on his cowboy boots. Figuring he’d given Brittany enough time to take care of business, he exited the tent and went the opposite direction of her trail through the nine inches of pristine snow. When he tromped back a few minutes later, he found all their gear set off to the side as she cleared snow from around the edges of the tent and began pulling stakes.

  He cocked an eyebrow. “Going somewhere?”

  “It was your decree that I leave this morning. I’m just following orders, Ranger Morgan.”

  “That was before the snow,” he pointed out. “Once it starts melting, the trail could get slippery for the horses. It’s better to wait.”

  “Yeah…I’m going to let the snow melt all day, freeze tonight, and then leave first thing tomorrow morning on icy trails? No thanks.”

  Damn it all, she had a point. Once again, resentment was clouding his common sense. “Aren’t you at least going to make breakfast?”

  She kept working on the tent. “I have a protein bar for the trail.”

  “Well, I need coffee.”

  “Have at it.”

  She gestured toward the fire pit that was only discernible by the two log seats mounded with snow. In the time it’d take for him to start the fire and boil the water for a cup of instant coffee, she’d be gone. Guess he’d have to deal with a lack of caffeine today. He grabbed his things from where she’d set them in the snow and went to get Nobel ready.

  Watching her efficiency with the tent, he noted she was no beginning camper. By the time Nobel was saddled, she carried everything over to her packhorse. While she began to secure her gear, Joel approached her stallion.

  “I’ll take care of him,” she stated.

  His feet were getting cold in his boots, so he picked up one of her brushes and swiped it over the horse’s black coat. “I’m waiting on you. The sooner he’s ready, the sooner we can go.”

  “We?”

  “I’m going with you.”

  “It’s not like I need you to hold my hand down the mountain.” When he kept grooming her horse, she huffed out an annoyed breath in the frosty morning air. “Ranger Morgan, don’t you have poachers to chase?”

  “Not at the moment,” he replied. “My truck and trailer are at the Long’s Peak trailhead, so I’m at your service for the day, Ms. Lucas.”

  “I don’t need you,” she ground out.

  He continued to brush her horse with light, sweeping strokes, but when he spoke, he made sure his voice was iron hard. “Like it or not, you’ve got me.”

  She finally clamped her mouth shut, and less than ten minutes later, she took the lead as they began their descent. The sun glistened off fresh snow, blinding in its brightness. He tugged his black hat lower on his forehead to combat the glare as she dug out a pair of sunglasses.

  Every day in the mountains brought new versions of the same scenery; a crimson sunrise, a cloudy day, sunshine, rain, misty mornings, brilliant sunsets. He may hate certain parts of his job, but a beauty like this was one thing he’d never tire of.

  In the next moment, he realized even as his mind journeyed the mountain vistas, his gaze remained fixed on the woman ahead of him. Not good.

  The faint sound of a motor provided a welcome distraction—until he saw Brittany’s alarmed expression as she searched the sky. Suspicion narrowed his gaze. Why did the helicopter have her so spooked?

  It rounded Storm Peak and headed straight toward them. Her horse whipped around as she jumped from the saddle. “Try to wave them off. Paelo’s not used to helicopters!”

  The bird drew closer and the stallion backed up, straining against her hold on the reins. Joel saw her groping for the packhorse’s lead line tied to her saddle. She’d never reach it. He vaulted off his horse and managed to unhook the lead line from the packhorse’s halter. The mare jerked back, then bolted down the mountain trail.

  His radio crackled to life where it was secured to the saddle on his horse’s back. Startled into obeying his natural instinct, Nobel took off after his fellow equine and disappeared from sight. Joel took a few strides after him, but realized he’d never catch them.

  “Get rid of that chopper!”

  The desperate edge to Brittany’s voice got through to him, and he spun around to wave off the helicopter. It banked sharp left, and moments later the whirring blades faded in the distance.

  Her soft words continued to calm her horse until she gave a firm command and rounded on Joel. “What took you so damn long?”

  “In case you hadn’t noticed, my horse took off.”

  “So did one of mine. Why in the world didn’t you radio the ranger station before we left? Did it not occur to you they might do a fly-by to check on us after the storm?”

  “I gave instructions yesterday to keep the choppers away, the damn idiots should’ve listened to me. And what are you so angry about? You still have a horse to ride.” He turned his glare from her, to the trembling black beast at her side, to the empty trail.

  She swung back into the saddle. “I’m going to try to catch the horses.”

  “Fine.” Joel stood to the side so she could pass.

  But she didn’t move, just sat there looking down at him as she rubbed a hand up and down her horse’s shiny neck. “You understand I can’t give you a ride with the trails like this? The extra weight would be too—”

  “I grew up in the mountains,” he snapped. “That’s just common sense.”

  Her mouth thinned, then softened. “Thank you for unhooking the line. That could’ve been a disaster.”

  He gave a brief nod and extended his hand for her to proceed ahead of him.

  “Do you want me to wait for you?”

  Frustrated impatience raised his vo
ice. “No, Ms. Lucas. Obviously, it’s more important for you to make sure one of those damn horses didn’t break a leg.”

  “Don’t yell at me. If you’d radioed the station—”

  “If you,” he jabbed a finger straight at her, “hadn’t been in the park without a permit, I wouldn’t even be here right now.”

  A flash of what looked like guilt crossed her face, but it disappeared too fast for him to be sure. Well, she should feel guilty. This was all her fault.

  “You know, you’re right,” she agreed with bright, false smile. “That ought to make you feel better on your hike down the mountain. Enjoy the walk.”

  She swung the black stallion around and urged him forward. “I’ll tie your horse to a tree when I catch him,” she called over her shoulder.

  “Don’t do me any favors,” he groused at her back.

  A couple miles later, he was still cursing her under his breath when the tracks in the snow changed. He stopped, surveyed the area with a frown, and then shook his head. The two horses had probably milled around before continuing down the trail.

  A few minutes later, he halted again. Three sets of uniform tracks were visible, not like further back where it was obvious two of the animals had been running. No sir, these tracks were all spaced quite equally as if the animals were being led.

  She wouldn’t have.

  After another mile, there was no other explanation—the witch had stolen his horse! Anger simmered and escalated to a full-blown rage as he hiked mile after mile. Sure, they’d broken a path through the snow, but his toes were pretty much numb by now.

  Oh man, when he found Ms. Brittany Lucas—if that was her real name—the woman would be sorry she ever met him.

  Chapter 5

  Britt was brushing Paelo in his stall at the ranch, trying not to think about a certain ranger and that hot kiss in her tent, when she heard a familiar voice from the aisle.

  “You go soft over the winter, girl?”

  She straightened and saw her boss leaning his arms along the top of the stall door. “Hey, Mark,” she greeted with a grin. “What are you doing here? How’s Eve doing?”

  “Good. Her sister is here for a week, so she gets a break from me.”

  “Come on, she loves having you around.”

  “Not when bed rest means she can’t walk away when I annoy her. She says I hover too much.”

  Britt laughed, but knew he hovered for a good reason. This was their third pregnancy, the first two having resulted in devastating miscarriages. Being able to spend time with his wife during her third trimester was the reason he’d called and asked Britt to come back to Colorado for another summer.

  “Well, you’ve got two more months to go, so this probably is a good break.”

  “What are you doing here? I thought you weren’t coming back ’til tomorrow. You let a little snow chase you down?”

  After exiting the stall to give the tall cowboy a hug, she stepped back. “I was escorted out of the park by a Ranger Morgan. Just my luck, too, because anyone else would’ve known me.”

  Mark frowned. “I’ve met Joel Morgan. He knows the ranch has restricted trail access.”

  The earlier twinge of guilt hit twice as hard. “I didn’t exactly tell him I work here.”

  “Why not?”

  “Well, when he tackled me, I—”

  “He what?”

  “He showed up in my camp with his gun drawn and I thought he was a poacher, so I ran.”

  Mark lifted his hat, ran a hand through his hair, and resettled the Stetson. “You forget what a ranger’s uniform looks like?”

  “He wasn’t in uniform.”

  “And why didn’t you just tell him who you were?”

  “Tell who who she was? Is. Are?”

  That curious voice prompted a silent groan. Casey Fuller, the barn’s assistant manager and one of her best friends, was gonna love this one. She turned to discover his wife Jayne was also at his side. As she offered them both hugs after the long winter, Mark caught them up to the point where they’d walked in.

  At the mention of Joel Morgan, a frown crossed Casey’s brow.

  “Which leads us back to the question of why didn’t you tell him who you are?” her boss concluded.

  “I did tell him my name and that I was camping, I just didn’t tell him I work here.” She shrugged, wishing she was still in the stall brushing Paelo so she could avoid their speculative gazes. “He was a real jerk. I was…well…he made some smartass remarks about my new camping gear and how rich people think they don’t need permits and can do whatever they like. The gear was a graduation present from my sister and brother-in-law.”

  “Did you tell him that?” Jayne asked.

  “No.” Now she was beginning to feel like an idiot. But they weren’t there, she justified silently. After Joel had ordered her to leave in the morning, she hadn’t expected to see him again, much less have him show up and insist she share her tent. She hadn’t exactly lied to him, but she hadn’t given him all the relevant information, either.

  Her cheeks warmed as she added, “He made all these assumptions without letting me explain, so…I let him. It’s his own fault, really.”

  “I’d have to agree with Britt,” Casey said. “I wasn’t impressed with the guy the one time we met.”

  Mark ignored him and pinned her with a hard look. “What’d you do when he left you here?” You didn’t pretend to be a guest, did you?”

  “No.” She avoided his gaze. “Um…long story short, one of the park helicopters did a fly-by, my horses got spooked, and when Joel got off his to help, the packhorse and his gelding took off. He blamed me, I rode ahead to catch the horses, planning to tie his to a tree for him, but…” She trailed off, suddenly wishing she could go back in time a few hours.

  “But?” Mark urged.

  “As I rode away, he muttered not to do him any favors, so…I led his gelding all the way to his trailer in the parking lot.”

  Casey chuckled, but the look on Jayne and Mark’s faces made her feel bad. Even she had to admit now, saying it out loud, it sounded bad.

  Mark shook his head and pointed his finger at her. “You, young lady, are going to get yourself into trouble.”

  His stern voice came across like a father scolding his daughter, though he was only about twelve years older than her. Her guilt doubled. He frowned, then waved a hand and sighed in resignation as he turned away.

  “Since you’re back early, you might as well attend the staff meeting in ten minutes.”

  Though worded like a suggestion, clearly she didn’t have a choice. Why didn’t his orders rub her the wrong way like Joel Morgan’s did?

  “How far did you make him walk?”

  Casey’s smile said he enjoyed the thought of the ranger’s discomfort, but she cringed inside. “About nine miles.”

  “You’d better hope you don’t meet up with him anytime soon,” Jayne warned.

  “She’s got—”

  “Let’s go, Casey,” Mark barked from the office door. The two exchanged a look and Mark gave a barely perceptible shake of his head as Casey headed in his direction.

  Britt’s stomach took a nose dive as she wondered what the heck that was about, but Jayne distracted her.

  “You too tired for a game of racquetball after the meeting? Then Gina’s meeting us for a soak in the hot tub.”

  “Racquetball sounds great. I’ll meet you at the Sports Center.”

  They parted ways at the stable’s combination employee lounge/guest check-in area, and she slid into the empty chair next to Mitch Levins, a year-round employee, and Jon Taylor, a seasonal wrangler returning from the previous summer.

  “Britt!” Mitch greeted her with a one armed hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Gorgeous as ever. When are you going to come to your senses and go out with me?”

  She laughed, considering she’d spent two days on the trail and needed a shower. “Next summer.”

  “You won’t be here next summer.”
/>   She mirrored his cheeky grin. “Precisely.”

  Mark introduced the two new wranglers; Kelly Stevens, who was there for his second summer in Estes Park, having spent the previous one at a neighboring ranch, and Mandy Cole, a petite girl from Texas with brown hair and brown eyes. She’d just graduated high school, and it was her first summer job before attending college in the fall. Britt wondered if she’d looked as nervous as Mandy her first summer.

  As Mark explained the rules and procedures of the barn that she could recite in her sleep, Britt’s attention wandered. Her gaze rested on Mitch and Kelly’s dark hair. Joel’s was a touch darker…and it had a bit of a curl in the longer strands on top. Soft and—

  What in God’s name are you doing? Don’t think about the man.

  She gave herself a mental shake to bring herself back to reality as the meeting concluded. Afterward, she talked to Mitch, Jon, and Mandy for a few minutes before scooping up her gear to head to her truck. When she stepped away from the barn, her backpack was lifted from her shoulder, and she turned to find Kelly Stevens smiling at her.

  Her first inclination was to take the pack back, but she didn’t want to be rude. “Thanks. I’m not heading up to the dorms though.”

  “No problem.” He fell into step beside her. “I remember seeing you around town last summer.”

  She glanced over at the casual statement, but didn’t remember him beyond meeting him a few minutes ago in the meeting. “Did I hear you worked at The Lazy R last year?”

  “Yep. I like this area.”

  “What brought you to Highlands?”

  After a slight hesitation, he answered, “Closer to the park. You guys have access to some of the best trails around.”

  “I know. It’s my favorite place to ride.”

  She couldn’t explain why, but something about the guy made her uneasy. He seemed perfectly nice, and hadn’t said anything to spark the sudden disquiet in her gut, but something in his tone made her grateful when they arrived at her truck. He kept her backpack on his shoulder as he faced her.

  “Listen, now that we’ve met, I was wondering if you’d be interested in getting a drink later?”

  The invitation caught her off guard. “I’m sorry, I’ve got other plans.”