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At the gas station where she filled up her car, she paid at the pump, in case someone inside was friends with Scarlett and would want to chat.
Her car! Oh, no. She hadn’t thought about that until right this second. Scarlett drove a Jeep. Someone was bound to notice the strange vehicle and ask questions. The three-mile drive along the highway to the ranch gave Ruby time to concoct a plausible story.
A rental car. Because her Jeep was in the shop. Yes, that sounded good. She repeated the fabrication three times over so it would flow more naturally off her tongue.
Perspiration formed on her brow. This leading a double life wasn’t going to be as easy as she’d first thought. Maybe she—Scarlett—should call in sick for the week after all. Scarlett had actually suggested it, but Ruby dismissed the idea, not wanting to give her sister’s boss a reason to fire her.
Ruby had her doubts about this rekindled romance with Demitri. If he and her sister broke up again, which was likely given their history, Scarlett would need a job.
When Ruby pulled into the ranch, she drove slowly, visually comparing the buildings and landmarks with those her sister had described. Spotting the barn, she headed straight there and pulled in next to a pickup truck parked along the side. This, Scarlett had advised, was where the wranglers left their vehicles.
Standing outside her car, she paused. The horse corrals were across the way. Beyond them, the arena, bunkhouse and, on the nearby hill, a half-dozen guest cabins. She should head toward the corrals. Scarlett had told Ruby to check in with the trail boss first thing upon arriving.
At the sight of so many people gathered at the corrals, she momentarily lost her nerve and ducked into the barn instead. Just for a few minutes, she told herself. Until she felt calmer.
The smell of hay and horses triggered memories of years gone by when riding had been part of Ruby’s daily life. She made her way to the four box stalls standing in a row. According to her sister, the working trail horses were housed in the corrals, and the barn served as a sort of infirmary.
Two stalls were empty. A third contained an old, swaybacked mare and the fourth a pony that poked its nose over the side of the stall and nickered at her. She couldn’t resist and reached out to pet the whiskered face.
“How you doing, little fellow?”
In reply, the pony pressed its warm nose into her palm.
“Hey, Scarlett, what’s going on?”
Ruby spun, alarm shooting through her in waves, and faced the woman who had come up silently behind her. Hoping her smile didn’t appear too nervous, she tried to place the woman from her sister’s descriptions. The owner’s wife? In her current disconcerted state, Ruby couldn’t remember.
“H-hi. I’m...ah...checking on the pony.”
“Mooney’s fine.” The woman smiled in return. “Her thrush is much better.”
Ruby mentally repeated the pony’s name and ailment for future reference.
“Lyndsey’s been taking care of her,” the woman continued. “Cleansing the hoof and medicating it.”
Lyndsey? That was one of the owner’s little girls. Could this woman be Annie, his wife? Ruby wished she could be sure. She didn’t dare call the woman by name for fear she was wrong.
“Well, good,” Ruby replied. “I’ll just mosey on over to the, ah, corrals, then.”
She shoved her hands in her jeans pockets, and then whipped them out, deciding the stance made her look uncomfortable. Which, she was, but she didn’t want to appear that way
“Stop at the house first,” the woman instructed. “I got a call a minute ago. Someone’s here to see you.”
“Who?”
There was a twinkle in her eyes. “Who do you think?”
“I don’t know.”
“Cliff, of course.” The twinkle brightened. “He’s waiting in the kitchen. Come on, I’ll go with you. The first trail ride isn’t for another hour. You have plenty of time for a visit.”
Time, but no desire. Not until she was more acclimated to her surroundings.
The kitchen, Ruby recalled, was in the main house. Halfway there, she and the woman passed an SUV. She noticed the official logo on the side and came to a sudden stop, the alarm from earlier zapping the strength from her knees.
“Is that the sheriff’s vehicle?”
“What else would Cliff drive?” The woman took hold of Ruby’s arm to hurry her along.
“Why is he here?” Had the Las Vegas detective phoned the sheriff? Told him of the switch? If so, wouldn’t he have alerted Ruby?
Beside her, the woman blew out an exasperated breath. “Because that’s what men do when they’re dating a woman. They show up unannounced and surprise her.”
“Dating!” Ruby squeaked.
“Unless you have another definition for when a couple goes out six times in the past month.”
Scarlett had a boyfriend. Another boyfriend besides Demitri. And he was the local sheriff!
A rush of anger steadied Ruby. Of all the details not to share, her sister had to pick the most important one.
* * *
CLIFF DEMPSEY SAT at the long oak table, a steaming mug of coffee in front of him. The next moment, he sprang to his feet and began pacing. What, precisely, was he doing here?
“Something wrong?” Sam asked.
His friend and owner of the Gold Nugget Ranch had joined Cliff in the empty kitchen. As recently as last week, a dozen guests would have competed for elbow room at the crowded table. Since completion of the new dining hall, the kitchen belonged solely to the staff.
“I probably shouldn’t bother Scarlett when she’s at work,” Cliff said.
“Don’t worry about it.” Sam nodded at the bouquet of fresh flowers lying on the table. “You asking her to the square dance this weekend?”
“Yeah.” Cliff nodded, wiping his damp palms on his khaki slacks.
As the law in these parts, he’d handled every situation from breaking up fights between drunken wranglers to singlehandedly taking down an armed bank robber to talking a possibly suicidal woman off the cell-phone tower at Grey Rock Point. Yet the prospect of inviting Scarlett McPhee to the dance had him sweating like a pig.
This was hardly their first date. It was, however, their first date after a recent lull. He and Scarlett had started out strong enough but this past week, she’d seemed to lose interest, not returning his calls and sounding distant when they did talk.
Cliff wasn’t sure what to make of it. Could be something simple as her having a case of nerves. Just because he was considering taking their relationship from casual to serious and wanted to test the waters didn’t mean she was, too. He was determined to find out.
“Nothing like waiting till the last minute.” Sam dropped into an empty seat. “The dance is the day after tomorrow.”
Cliff sat across from him. “I wasn’t sure I could get the evening off.” In truth, he’d stalled, doubting the wisdom of showing up unannounced. She may not appreciate it.
If he could go back in time to five minutes ago, he’d head straight to the station rather than call Sam’s wife looking for Scarlett because, par for the course, she hadn’t answered her cell phone.
“It’s none of my business,” Sam said, “but you want to tell me what’s really bothering you?”
Cliff pushed his cowboy hat back on his head, then took it off and set it on the table. “My aunt Hilda thinks I should get married.”
“It’s a nice state to be in with the right woman. I can vouch for that.”
“She thinks I should get married at the Mega Weekend of Weddings in June.”
“Whoa!” Sam sat back. “Kind of soon, isn’t it? That’s only six weeks away. You and Scarlett haven’t been dating very long.”
“Real soon. Hilda has it in her head the local sheriff marrying will be a big draw. Bring more tourists to town for the event. Registration is only about half of what the town council hoped for.”
Cliff’s aunt not only owned the Paydirt Saloon, Sweetheart’s most popular watering hole, she was also the mayor and a driving force behind the Mega Weekend of Weddings extravaganza.
The town of Sweetheart had a colorful history. It was founded by a pair of young lovers who met on a wagon train passing through. They married in California and returned to Sweetheart to settle down and raise a family. The man promptly discovered gold in the nearby mountains, and the town experienced its first boom.
Around the turn of the twentieth century, young couples began eloping to Sweetheart, their marriages officiated by a judge who didn’t inquire too deeply into a person’s age. The surrounding natural beauty drew tourists and outdoor recreationists, eager to hike, fish, horseback ride and, during the winter months, cross-country ski.
For the past fifty years, until the forest fire last summer nearly destroyed the town, the citizens of Sweetheart had capitalized on the wedding and tourist trade. Most of the local economy had depended on it for their livelihoods. When the tourists stopped coming after the fire, the economy died. Cliff’s aunt, along with Sam and several dedicated others, was leading a fierce fight to restore Sweetheart to its former glory.
“She also thinks it will help with my reelection this fall,” Cliff continued. “Hers, too. Not that anyone would run against her.”
“You, either.”
Sam had a point. A Dempsey had held the office of sheriff since the 1860s. It was a long-standing tradition the citizens were more than happy to continue.
“The mayor may be right, however.” Sam sipped at his coffee. “You could be a draw. But is that any reason to get married? It’s a huge step. Are you even in love with Scarlett?”
“No. But I like her. She’s fun. Pretty. Smart. Good with kids.”
“You sound like you’re picking her out of a catalog. Might be why you’re jumpier than a toad on a hot sidewalk.”
Cliff had to laugh. “Rest assured, I’m not asking her to marry me or even considering it. My aunt will have to come up with another gimmick.”
“Glad to hear that.”
“But I’d like to see where things go with Scarlett. Test our potential.”
Cliff had another, more personal reason for pursuing Scarlett he didn’t share with his friend. He was a family man without a family of his own. A homebody without a full house to come home to. Last summer, he’d moved his newly divorced cousin Maeve back to Sweetheart and was now helping to raise her brood of three. His involvement with them served to emphasize how empty his personal life had become.
With the town’s population of roughly one thousand, there weren’t a lot of available women for Cliff to choose from. His job, the long hours and potential for danger, required an understanding wife, which narrowed the field even more. Scarlett McPhee, new to town, was a definite prospect.
Sam stood and clapped Cliff on the shoulder. “Take it from me, don’t rush into anything. I married the first time for the wrong reasons, and we spent a lot of years making each other miserable.”
At that moment, Sam’s new wife Annie entered the kitchen. Cliff watched his friend’s eyes light up and his smile grow wide. That never happened when Cliff looked at Scarlett. At least, not to the same degree.
It could, though. They might fall in love. Eventually.
Scarlett walked in behind Annie. Cliff ran a hand through his hair and did his best to flash her a smile as wide as his friend’s. It froze, then waned. Judging by her wary expression, she wasn’t at all happy to see him.
Damn. What was going on with her?
Annie greeted him with a warm, “Morning, Cliff,” then winked at her husband. “Let’s get out of here and leave these two alone.”
Sam hesitated, his brows raised in question. Cliff shook his head. He didn’t need backup. If he was going down in flames, he preferred to do it without an audience.
Once they were alone, he waited for Scarlett to speak. After a lengthy and awkward pause, he muttered, “Hey.”
“Hi.”
“Coffee?”
“Sure.” Rubbing her palms together, she went to the counter and helped herself to a mug from the stack.
Cliff had been going to fix her the coffee. Instead, he watched, completely captivated. Scarlett glided across the room with an elegant—and subtly sensuous—grace he hadn’t noticed before. As if she were wearing heels and not cowboy boots.
She took her coffee black. That was different. Maybe he and his cowboy tastes were rubbing off on her. The leather belt was also different. She usually didn’t wear one. He found himself wishing she had. The belt accentuated her trim waist and ample curves, which were only hinted at before.
She raised the mug of coffee to her mouth, pursed her lips and blew on the liquid, then took a sip. A jolt Cliff hadn’t felt in Scarlett’s presence before arrowed through him. He’d always thought her to be attractive but not necessarily sexy. The sudden revelation unnerved him. He generally kept a firm grip on his emotions, a necessary skill in his line of work.
Picking up the bouquet, he said, “These are for you.”
“Thanks.” She accepted the flowers and, with both hands full, set them back down on the table. “You didn’t have to.”
“They’re a bribe. I was hoping you’d go with me to the square dance Friday night.”
The community center had finally reopened nearly a year after the fire. The barbeque and dance were in celebration.
“I...um...don’t think I can. I appreciate the invitation, though.”
“Are you going with someone else?” He didn’t like the idea of that.
“No, no. I’m just...busy.” She clutched her mug tightly between both hands.
“I’d really like to take you.” Fifteen minutes ago, he probably wouldn’t have put up a fight and accepted her loss of interest. Except he was suddenly more interested in her than before. These slight nuances in her were intriguing. “Think on it overnight.”
“O...kay.” She took another sip of her coffee. As she did, the cuff of her shirt sleeve pulled back.
He saw it then, a small tattoo on the inside of her left wrist resembling a shooting star. A second jolt coursed through him, this one of an entirely different nature. He hadn’t seen the tattoo before.
Because, as of seven days ago when he and Scarlett ate dinner at the I Do Café, it wasn’t there.
“Is that new?” He pointed to the tattoo.
Panic filled her eyes. “Um...yeah. It is.”
Cliff didn’t buy her story. There were no tattoo parlors in Sweetheart and, to his knowledge, she hadn’t left town. And why the sudden panic?
Before he could question her further, his cell phone rang.
“Tom Welch just called,” his deputy Iva Lynn said. “Seems some of his chain saws disappeared overnight from his garage. Though, knowing Tom, he probably lent it to a friend and can’t remember.”
