Cowboy Who Came For Christmas (Harlequin Romance) (3 page)

“She’s been living on this mountain alone since her husband died about fifteen years ago. She can take care of herself, but...if there is someone out there lurking around, I’ll be worried about her.”

His mind raced ahead as he did another visual. It was near impossible to see beyond the banks of thick white snow. “Should she stay with you, too?”

“She won’t. Bettye likes her privacy, same as me. Most of the people who live up here keep to themselves unless we plan to have a dinner or get-together. But Bettye has been a good friend to me.”

“I’ll keep watch between the two of you,” he said on a decisive note. And in the meantime, he’d try to decipher who was telling the truth and who wasn’t.

“You two gonna stand by that fire all night or are you gonna walk a feeble old woman home?”

“Coming,” Sophia called.

He watched as she wrapped her bright blue scarf around her neck and tucked it into her coat. “Oh, she also has a dog that usually tags along with her. She won’t let him out too long in this weather, so he didn’t come over here with her tonight.”

“He mighta bit you,” Bettye added. “Only he can’t see and he can’t really hear good. A lot like me, I reckon.”

“But he protects you,” Sophia said on an empathetic breath.

Bettye nodded. “Bandit’s his name. He can still bark warnings.”

“Good.” Adan took that comment as a personal warning to him. Or maybe to anyone in hiding around here.

He mulled it over and then put on his own coat and opened the door. The storm was full-blown now. Fat white flakes danced around under the porch light like bits of lost lace. The soft sound of snow hitting the woods didn’t bring him any peace. It was a bitter, unforgiving night.

And it didn’t help that a man who’d long ago given up on any decency might be somewhere out in those woods. If he was, he probably wouldn’t survive for long. And like a dangerous animal, he’d turn on anyone who encountered him or tried to stop him.

They all stood on the porch while Bettye got her bearings.

“I shoulda marked the way,” she said, squinting into the night, her flashlight beam hitting dark tree trunks and thick hedges. “I guess we’ll find our way if we hold on to each other. That’s what my Walter used to say to me. Too bad it didn’t work out for us.”

“We’ll make sure we get you home,” Sophia replied. She leaned close to Adan. “She says that no matter the weather.”

Adan took Bettye’s flashlight, pain throbbing in his temples. “Let me lead and y’all hold to each other and follow.” He waited for them to huddle behind and then turned to search them with the light. “Just shout the directions to me as we go.”

“What are you doing?” Sophia asked with a frown.

“Looking for frying pans and shotguns,” he replied.

Bettye let out a hoot of laughter. “It’s gonna be a good Christmas this year. I just know it.”

CHAPTER THREE

S
OPHIA
HUGGED
B
ETTYE
and petted her big hound dog. “Bandit, take good care of Bettye for me, okay?”

The chocolate-colored hunting dog whimpered a reply and then pushed his nose against Bettye’s worn overcoat.

Bettye nodded and kissed Sophia on the cheek. “You’ll be all right, sugar pie.” She sent Adan a stern glance. “I don’t know a thing about a criminal on the loose around here, Mr. Ranger-Man. But this girl means the world to me and she’s been a friend to me since she moved up here a few years ago. Be kind to her.”

“We’d better get back inside,” Sophia said before Adan could form a reply.

Bettye meant well, but she could take care of herself. This man showing up had confused and surprised Sophia even though she should have known someone would find her sooner or later.

“I’ll check on you in the morning,” she told Bettye.

The older woman stood silent and waved, a knowing smile beaming on her withered face. “I’ll be right here, honey.”

Adan said good-night to Bettye, then followed Sophia, his hand on her elbow making her too aware of the fact that he would be in her tiny cabin all night. And making her all too aware that his presence did make her feel safe in spite of her fears.

She didn’t need him or anyone else taking care of her, though. She’d been on her own for so long she wouldn’t know what being taken care of might mean...and she wasn’t even sure she deserved anyone’s attention or concern. She turned and hurried off the porch before Bettye could add any more information.

“Keep your porch light on,” Adan called to Bettye. “Just in case.”

Bettye chuckled and nodded. “I’ll do that, Mr. Ranger-Man.”

Then she shut the door and turned off the light.

As they shuffled through the ankle-deep snow, he turned to Sophia. “So who else lives on this mountain besides two stubborn women?”

Sophia didn’t want to trust this man, but even though he hadn’t charged in on a white horse, she could tell he was one of the good guys. She wished she could ask him who he was looking for, but if she showed too much interest he’d see the truth in her eyes. But she could be honest with him about Crescent Mountain.

“This spot was named by a trapper who traveled the summit of the hills and decided he’d walked in a curve that made him think of a crescent moon. That somehow stuck and so this curved hillside became Crescent Mountain.”

Adan had studied several maps of the area. “It circles west of the lower White River. I can see how it got that name.”

“Yes, and it also has a reputation for being a kind of retreat since it’s so near a big national forest. Few people know about our little community. We’re pretty self-sufficient. We take turns going down the mountain to town for supplies and groceries and if someone is in need, we either take care of them or get them help at the regional medical center about forty miles from here.”

Adan didn’t respond. Maybe he thought she was issuing him a warning. Good. He needed to back off and leave her alone. She’d only give him as much information as she thought he needed.

They followed the beam of his flashlight and stayed on the path, retracing their earlier footsteps. When they reached Sophia’s yard, he moved the light over the path and out into the nearby woods. The eerie yellow glow shined brightly against the stark ghostly white curling around the trees, making Sophia feel as if shrouded fingers were reaching for her.

Sophia shuddered, the cold wet wind piercing her skin. How could anyone survive out here tonight? The temperatures had dipped well below freezing.

“We don’t normally get snow this heavy,” she said, glad to have a warm place to stay. “A rare winter storm right here before Christmas.”

She was about to go inside when she thought she saw a moving shadow just past Adan’s beaming light. He must have seen it, too. He stopped, held up the light again. Then he walked toward the encroaching woods and held the light up and out.

Nothing but trees and snow. The blanketed woods held no sounds except that of the occasional dripping of snow off drooping branches.

Sophia didn’t want to think about who might be out in those dark woods. She’d escaped death once and this isolated mountain community had taken her in, no questions asked. The Crescent, as the locals called the mountain, was known for accepting quirky characters who wanted to get away from the world. She wasn’t all that quirky, but she did want to stay hidden. She had no other choice.

Now a mountain of a man had come pushing into her quiet, safe world. And he was a man of the law. Which could only mean trouble was sure to follow. If Adan Harrison found out the real story about her, he’d haul her off in handcuffs without another word.

“What did you see out there?” she asked, trying to sound brave. But her teeth chattered from the cold. And from that deep fear she’d tried to hide for so long.

“I don’t know. Probably nothing.” Adan stomped the snow and mud off his boots. “Just the wind pushing at a tree.”

Sophia cast one last look out into the darkness. The hills and valleys beyond the level lane glistened in an eerie shimmer against the dark night. The woods were hushed and still and the snow fell in soft lacy threads that covered the ground like an icy white blanket.

How could anything evil be in such a beautiful setting?

“Let’s get inside,” Adan said, his hand on her arm.

Sophia normally didn’t allow strangers to touch her, but she didn’t push his hand away. They’d reached a tentative unspoken truce and she intended to keep it that way until this storm was over and she could decide what to do with this cowboy who’d invaded her space.

They shook off the snow then went inside to take off their coats and scarves. Sophia took Adan’s big still-warm coat and hung it on a peg by the door, her actions making her think of the kind of life she might not ever have. A life that included a husband and a family. A real Christmas.

“Want some more coffee?” she asked, tongue-tied now that she was alone with Adan Harrison.

“Yes.”

He did a quick visual of her cabin, his gaze sweeping and serious. Whoever he was after, he seemed intent on getting the job done. And intent on finding out her secrets, too.

“Can you talk about this man, the one you’re tracking?” she asked after she brought over two cups of fresh coffee.

They settled by the fire, him on the sofa and Sophia in her favorite old leather chair between the Christmas tree and the fireplace.

“That depends,” he responded. “Can you tell me if you’ve seen anyone suspicious around here?”

She shook her head, her fears about her past at bay now that things had quieted down. “Like Bettye said earlier, you’re the first stranger we’ve had all winter. We usually get lost hikers or vacationers thinking they can rent a cabin for the night, but most of us live here year-round except for one or two couples. The Burtons—one of those couples—are here now, at least through Christmas.”

“How many people?” he asked, his expression serious now.

“Bettye and me,” she said. “Jacob Miller—he’s got a bad crush on Bettye and she doesn’t even realize it. David and Karen Harper. Mostly retired people or...people who’re single. It’s a mixed bag. I’m an artist and Bettye is a collector—mostly junk, as you saw if you looked in her cabin—and Jacob builds stuff and helps us keep up the cabins. The Harpers fish and go for long walks, and the Burtons—Maggie and Arnie—they go on more rigorous hikes all over the mountain. We have a few more who rent part of the year, but they usually only show up in the summer. We come together for meals and picnics and holidays and we leave each other alone other times.”

“No odd person lurking about?”

Sophia got that uneasy feeling in her gut again, a stabbing, sick feeling. “No. We’d notice that, trust me. We’re all accounted for and we watch out for each other.”

Something snapped outside.

“The tree limbs are starting to crash,” she said, hoping that was all they’d heard. Her stomach clenched in a jittery snap of its own.

When another snap echoed against the porch, Adan got up. “Limbs, maybe, but I’d better check.” He set his coffee cup down and put a finger to his lips. “Don’t move.”

Sophia’s heart hit her chest and caught against her ribs. Was someone out there? She didn’t want to have a panic attack, but between this rugged Ranger and whomever he’d been tracking, she couldn’t help but fear the worst. And if her fears overtook her, she’d get that racing heart feeling and lose her breath. Taking a deep, calming gulp of air, Sophia willed herself to go into a silent strength.

And then another sound outside. A tap at the back door, maybe?

Adan’s hiss hit the air. “Where did you put my gun?”

She rushed into her bedroom and came out with his big, heavy handgun. “And here’s your badge, too.”

Taking both, he checked the gun then stashed his badge in his pocket. Grabbing his coat, he glanced back at her. “Stay here,” he said. “I’m going out to check.”

Sophia’s emotions ran the gamut between scared and anxious to sad and full of regret. She’d only known Adan Harrison for about three hours, and in that time, she’d held a gun on him, watched her friend knock him out and they’d tied him up and put tape over his mouth. Now, she was so glad he’d come to Crescent Mountain. The man exuded confidence and power and made her feel secure. But those traits didn’t hide the one glaring thing Adan’s presence had brought out in her—the solid fear she’d managed to keep at bay by sheer force and willpower.

For the first time in years, she didn’t feel safe here.

* * *

A
DAN
SLID
ALONG
the rough plank walls of the square brown cabin. He’d checked around the big front porch and found nothing. But here on the side of the house, he hit the ground with a penlight and saw fresh footprints by the back window of one of the bedrooms.

Someone snooping, or someone leaving through a window. He checked the windowsill but it didn’t look as if the window had been opened. Fresh snow was encrusted over the bottom of the glass and the thick wood casings. He did see a couple of imprints. Looked as though someone had placed a hand against the outside sill. Then he heard a crunching sound out in the woods.

Adan cut his light and turned to stare into the swaying trees. Something was definitely out there. Or someone. Had ol’ Joe seen his truck down on the road and followed the path Adan had taken to get up to the cabin?

Or had the man he’d come to find been here all along? He waited in the shadows, his breath hitching in the cold, his hands freezing against the steel of his gun. A shuffling and rustling in the distant woods had him on the move again. He reached the edge of the cabin’s garden and stood silent behind a giant oak tree.

More thrashing about and then the woods went quiet. Deciding to circle back around, he trotted from tree to tree, hiding behind snowdrifts and limbs heavy with ice and snow until he thought he’d cleared the area in the woods where he’d heard the noise. But the heavy snow and the midnight darkness kept him from finding anything. Following his own footsteps, he could imagine how easy it would be to get lost out here at night. Maybe whoever’d been snooping around had gotten confused and crashed into a ravine. Or they’d purposely caused a distraction to lure him away from the cabin.

When he heard a scream, he started running through the knee-deep snow, falling and getting up again until he hit the porch and rushed inside the cabin.

Sophia stood there staring at a piece of paper, her face as pale as the night. Adan hurried to take the paper from her. “Where did you find this?”

She pointed to the back door. “Inside the screen. I heard someone and I thought it was you.” She shuddered, took in a breath. “When I opened the door I found this.”

Adan stared at the artist’s rendering of the man he was chasing. “Do you know this man, Sophia?”

She sank down on a dining chair, shock evident in her eyes. Holding her chest, she gave him a frightened stare. “I... I don’t know. I mean, I just got scared when I saw that someone had left that there.” She gulped in air and shot a worried glance at the door.

Adan’s gut told him she was lying. This woman who’d been so strong and sure was now shaking and uncertain. Fear colored her skin white. Her hands were cold, her actions jittery and unsure. She kept staring at the mug shot in the picture with a shocked expression on her face.

“You know this man, don’t you?” Adan asked again. “Sophia, did you help this man escape earlier tonight?”

She hurtled out of the chair and crossed her arms as if to stop the shaking. “Why do you keep asking me that?”

He grabbed her, his hands rubbing her arms over her heavy sweater. She stared up at him but she couldn’t seem to speak.

Finally, she asked, “The man you’re tracking? You said he’s a wanted felon. What did he do?”

Adan decided it was time to come clean. Someone had left that poster on this woman’s door on purpose. That same person had obviously broken into his truck and found the flyer. If Joe Pritchard was here, the battle had just begun, but Adan had to take on that battle.

“He robbed a gas station near the Texas border and killed the cashier. He’s been robbing people left and right all the way from Austin to the Arkansas border and some locals had him cornered, but he escaped. Based on maps we found in a vehicle he stole and abandoned, we believe he was headed here. He’s got a long rap sheet that stretches over years, but this time he’s committed murder and I need to find him.”

He held her there and looked into her eyes. “If you know him, if you’ve aided him in any way, you need to tell me now. Before he hurts someone else.”

She gulped a sob, held a hand to her mouth. “He killed a store clerk?”

“Yes, a woman. A single mother with two children.”

She let out another sob then pulled away from Adan. “I need to check on Bettye.”

Adan watched her, his instincts to protect her too strong to ignore. “We’ll check on Bettye. But you have to tell me what’s going on with you. Right now, Sophia.”