Falling for Owen (32 page)

O
WEN CLASPED
C
LAIRE’S
hand and stopped the truck in the driveway.

“I need to feed the horses again. I’ll be back in about half an hour.”

“Okay. Tonight was fun. You’ve got a really great family.”

“Yeah. So, when do I meet yours?”

She smiled and let loose a nervous laugh. “We’ll have to go for a visit.”

“Invite them here.”

“No way. If we go there, we can escape.” He laughed with her. “I love my parents, but they can be a little much. They’ll be supportive. They’ll love you. But . . .”

“They’re your parents and will grill you about how we met, what’s been going on, and whether or not I’m the best choice for you.”

“Yes. Exactly. See, you get it. When are you going to tell your mother?”

“Oh, that’s not going to happen until the last minute. You don’t want my mother showing up here, taking over . . . everything. She’s a force unto herself.”

“You like her.”

“I do, in small doses. She’s got the best of intentions, but she’s a steamroller.”

“She’s in Florida with her podiatrist husband. He has magic hands.” She laughed at his screwed-up face. “Brody said you make that exact face whenever you talk to her.”

“As bad as things were with my dad, my mom is a whole other kind of crazy. But yes, I love her, despite the fact she drives me nuts.”

“Let’s wait on both fronts then. I’m happy to keep things quiet and simple as long as possible.”

“Things haven’t been easy.”

“No, but that’s not your fault,” she reassured him.

He wondered how this had gotten so out of control, but put those thoughts out of his mind for tonight. Though nothing was official, she’d agreed to marry him.

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed her palm.

She pressed her hand to his jaw, and he held it there.

“I’ll see you soon.”

He slid from the truck and she dropped down next to him. He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. She headed into the house, and he walked down to the barn. Something disturbed him. The barn door was left slightly ajar. Maybe Claire forgot to close it all the way. Maybe the latch hadn’t caught and the wind blew it open.

Still, something else bothered him as he reached the door. The horses didn’t nicker and whinny like they always did when they heard the truck at this hour. They’d expect him to come and feed them.

He entered the open door and still heard nothing but the wind blowing through another open door. Bo and Luke didn’t come to their stall doors to greet him. He rushed to Luke’s open stall and looked in. The rope had been left down, the straw disturbed, Luke’s lunch still in the bucket. He hadn’t eaten.

Owen checked Bo’s stall and found the same scene, except the door leading out to the paddock was open. He raced out, thinking the two horses were out in the paddock, though he’d have seen them when he drove up. He didn’t find them, but one of the gates to the open pastureland stood open.

Nothing added up. Did someone come and steal his horses? Not likely anyone would want the two old guys. He didn’t even ride them anymore and had left them to their retirement. Worried about their health and safety, he ran back into the barn and checked the tack. None of the saddles were missing, but two bridles and lead ropes were gone. Someone had definitely come in here and taken the horses. But why?

He didn’t know, but he had to find them.

He ran up to the house and burst through the door, scaring Claire, who rushed out of the kitchen to see what happened.

“Owen?”

“Did you leave the barn door open after you fed the horses?”

“No. You said it sticks sometimes, so I made sure it shut.”

“Did you open the outside door to Bo’s stall?”

“I left him inside to eat. Why? What’s happened? Are they all right?”

“They’re gone.”

“Gone? But how can that be? I swear, Owen, I took care of them just like you taught me.”

He drew her close and held her. “I know you did, sweetheart. I’m not blaming you. I’m just trying to figure out what happened. It looks like someone set them free, but they put a bridle and rope on them, so maybe they rode them bareback out of here. Neither Bo or Luke is used to being ridden, so I’m not sure how the riders accomplished that without getting thrown, but either way, I need to find them and make sure they’re safe.”

“Yes. Of course, but how are you going to do that?”

“I’ll run up the road to my friend Grant’s place and borrow a horse and ride out.”

“Call Brody. Have him help you. Don’t go alone. Maybe Dale is trying to draw you out, so he can do something to you.”

“Or maybe he’s trying to draw me away, so he can do something to you.”

The tremble that shot through her echoed in him. He rubbed her back and tried to think.

“I’ll ask Brody to come and stay with you. I’ll go find the horses.”

“Should I call the police?”

“And tell them what? Someone let the horses out?” he snapped, pissed off this was happening.

“Owen, honey, I didn’t . . .”

“I know you didn’t. I’m just mad as hell this is yet another of Dale’s stupid attempts to rile me for something I didn’t even do.”

“Well, it’s working.”

He held her close by the neck and rubbed his fingers under her soft hair. “Yes. It is. I wanted to come home and make love to you and hold you and dream about our future together. Instead, I’m chasing after horses, worrying about whether something is going to happen to you.”

He kissed her, then pulled out his phone and hit the speed dial for Brody.

“It’s me. I need you to come to the house and guard Claire.” He explained to Brody about the horses, though it wasn’t necessary. If he called, Brody would come.

“Give her your gun, go get the horses. Tell her not to shoot me when I get there,” Brody teased, trying to lighten Owen’s mood. Not working, but Owen appreciated the effort.

“Will do. Hurry up. I don’t want her alone longer than necessary.”

“On my way.” Brody hung up. No doubt he’d be here in the next twenty minutes.

Owen went into his office and pulled the gun out of his desk drawer. He checked the weapon, assured all was as he left it after he cleaned it last, and made sure the safety was on. He found Claire in the kitchen, making a cup of tea.

“Here. Take this.”

“I don’t want that.”

“You may not want it, but you may need it. So come here and take it.”

She frowned, but drew closer and took the gun from his hand, holding it away from both of them. He smiled, appreciating the fact she respected the weapon.

He grabbed her hand and turned it so that she held the gun out to her side, ready to shoot. He pointed to the safety.

“Green dot. The gun is safe and can’t be fired.” He switched the small lever. “Red dot. The gun is ready to fire.”

“Red. As in, warning, you’re dead.”

“Yes. Brody is on the way. I need to get going. Night is closing in fast and I’m losing the light to find those wayward beasts.”

“Don’t horses know their way home?”

“In most cases, yeah, they probably would have found their way back to their stalls, but if something scared them bad enough, they might have run and gotten themselves lost.”

“The property is really big.”

“Over fifteen thousand acres.”

“How will you find them?”

“I’ve got a pretty good idea which direction they went. I’ll do my best to find them tonight, otherwise I’ll have to keep searching in the morning when there’s more light.”

“It’s getting colder at night.”

“Another reason to find them. They’re spoiled old goats, used to being pampered. It’s been a long time since they were left to their own devices out in the pastures. They’ll need food and water. They’ll crop grass, but water is more scarce on the property.

“Keep the gun and phone close. There’s another handgun in the nightstand drawer upstairs if you need it. Anything happens, lock yourself in our room, call the cops, and anyone comes through that door, you shoot. Don’t hesitate. Shoot and keep shooting until they’re down. Promise me.”

“Owen, I don’t know if I can.”

“If this is a setup and Dale is coming here to hurt you, you must. I can’t live without you, sweetheart.” He kissed her long and deep and held her close, praying nothing happened to her. “Brody will be here soon.”

“What about you? Don’t you need a gun?”

“I’m taking the shotgun and another handgun with me. Lock up behind me.”

“You’re like a one-man army with all these weapons in the house.”

“I’m a country boy, darlin’. Horses and shooting are what we do.” He led her back into his office and opened the gun safe in the closet and pulled out the guns he needed.

“Soon, you won’t be able to leave guns out everywhere.”

“I always lock them up when Dawn and Autumn are here. Safety first,” he told her, smiling because it was so easy for them to talk about having a family.

He kissed her at the door, but waited to leave until he heard the snick of the deadbolt sliding into place.

C
LAIRE SETTLED IN
the living room with her cup of tea, the gun at her side, and the quiet. She listened to every little sound, her nerves on edge, her mind conjuring one horrendous fate after another for Owen and her.

She thought back to this afternoon, her time in the barn, feeding the horses and tending to their needs. She went over everything she did and couldn’t remember ever going near the back door of Bo’s stall.

She went through the scene with the rake and Shannon showing up. She couldn’t believe Shannon had anything to do with what happened, but maybe Dale had followed her here. After she and Owen left, he let the horses out as a prank to rile Owen.

If he’d followed Shannon, maybe she was in danger. With that thought in mind, she went into Owen’s office and clicked on his computer screen. She found Shannon’s file and opened her contact information. She dialed Shannon’s number and waited for her answer.

“Shannon, it’s Claire. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Why do you ask?”

“I think Dale might have followed you here today. Someone let out the horses. Owen’s gone after them, but I thought if Dale had been here to cause trouble, he might have gone to see you again, too.”

“It’s quiet here. I haven’t seen or heard from him.”

“Okay, well, I just thought I should check on you.”

“It’s tiring, isn’t it? Always being on guard, reacting to every little thing he does, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Makes you just want to run away and leave it all behind.”

Claire didn’t know what to say. She did feel that way sometimes, but then she thought about Owen and her life with him and it gave her the strength to stand and fight for them. No one was going to take him away from her, or the life they were building together.

“Be careful, Shannon.”

“You too.” Shannon hung up on her.

Claire left the office in favor of the living room sofa to wait for Brody. She thought he’d be here by now. The clock on the mantel ticked off the time. Every second she worried more about Owen. She wanted to call and check on him, but he’d have no cell service out in the hills.

Someone tapped on the glass by the front door. She held the gun tight and launched herself off the couch, staring at the dark figure past the glass.

“Brody. Thank God.”

She rushed to the front door and unlocked the handle and deadbolt, swinging the door wide.

“Give me that, sweetheart,” he said, taking the gun out of her hand and tucking it down the back of his jeans.

She looked past him at the empty driveway. “Where’s your truck? How did you get here?”

“I parked it at your place and walked up the road. I’ve checked the perimeter. We’re alone. There’s no one out there.”

“Are you sure?”

He gave her a deadly look that made her take a step back.

“I’m sure. Got anymore brownies or cupcakes?”

“I kept a couple of cupcakes here. You want one?”

“Sure do. I didn’t eat any of Rain’s cupcakes. She loves them, and I hate to take them from her, even though they are really good. Mind if I watch the game?”

“Uh, no. Go ahead. I’ll get you the cupcake and something to drink.”

“I’ll take a cup of that tea you’re drinking.” He pointed to her cup on the coffee table.

“Really?” she asked, surprised he’d want that and not a beer.

“What? I like tea.”

“Okay. Make yourself at home.”

They settled on the sofa together. It made her smile to see the huge man enjoying his tea and cupcake like nothing in the world spoke to the absurdity of him enjoying it with a gun at his side in easy reach while he watched a baseball game. He kept the sound low, no doubt aware of everything around them. She remained on edge despite Brody’s outward show of ease. He projected no worries, but that didn’t stop her from jumping six hours later when he patted her leg and said, “Owen’s back.”