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Georgia had been adamant about her son’s special care. She was an overprotective mother, but with good reason. Ryan had lost his father, Lieutenant Joshua Hughes, while he’d been deployed in Afghanistan three years ago. Ryan never really knew him. Now his mother was gone, too.
Since Georgia’s murder, Shelby didn’t know whom to trust. Her thoughts turned to Sheriff Brannigan. The law was supposed to help you, but she’d learned that wasn’t always the case.
She pulled into the driveway and saw the sheriff’s car along with the familiar oversize black truck parked around the side of the house.
“Aunt Shellie, who’s here?” Ryan said, with fear in his voice.
“It’s okay, Ryan. Looks like Sheriff Brannigan and Mr. Landry.”
So the family was here to make sure she was moved out. What was she going to do now? She needed to figure out a place to stay. Maybe a small apartment, but her money was limited until she got her first paycheck. It would take everything she had to get together the first and last months’ rent, and she wasn’t sure if this job would work out here. Maybe she could find something that she could pay week to week. The savings Shelby had planned on, a lot had been spent on Georgia’s burial. So this job was all Shelby had.
She climbed out of the car, helped Ryan from his safety seat in back, then they walked the single step of the guesthouse porch. The door was open, and voices reached her before she saw anyone.
She hated to interrupt. “Hello, is anyone here?” she called out.
Soon a tall blonde woman appeared. “Hi, you must be Shelby.” Her green eyes sparkled when she smiled. “I’m Brooke, Trent’s wife.” She looked at Ryan. “And you’re Ryan. My niece, Addy, is about your age.”
The boy looked at his aunt and then smiled at the woman.
Shelby held out her hand and shook hers. “It’s nice to meet you, Brooke. I apologize for invading your house last night.”
“Not your fault.” Brooke waved her arm. “Trent talked with Jake Donaldson this morning, and he feels terrible about the mix-up. I hope the guys didn’t frighten you too much.”
After her dealings with Gil and his police buddies, the sheriff and Trent Landry were sweethearts. “No, they were very considerate about the situation.”
“Well, please come inside. The Donaldsons were great tenants, but still the house needs a good cleaning.”
“Wait. Are you saying you want to rent this place to me?”
Brooke paused. “That all depends. If you’re staying in Hidden Springs, and did you get the job at the café?”
She hesitated, then nodded to both.
“Then with your employment, I’m sure Trent and Cullen won’t have a problem renting to you.” Brooke gasped. “Of course, you want to see it first before you commit.”
Shelby looked around the small, but cozy, living area. There was a leather sofa, and a high-back chair with two end tables and lamps. An area rug covered the scarred hardwood floors. She was drawn to the brick fireplace, then followed Brooke down the hall to a retro bathroom with green and black tiles. The next stop was a small bedroom with a single bed and dresser.
“This could work for Ryan,” she suggested.
Brooke agreed. “Yes, he doesn’t need much room.” She looked at the boy. “Do you like it, Ryan?”
Her nephew nodded.
They went to the last bedroom, which was a little bigger and held a bare queen-size bed and a dresser. The windows were void of any curtains, but there were shades for privacy.
“If you add your own touches, it would really dress up the place.”
She would love to. Question was, could she afford this house? “It’s lovely, but I need to know what the rent is.”
“I guess we should ask the brothers that question.” Brooke smiled. “I love saying that they’re brothers. Trent and Cullen hadn’t been together in a long time. It’s time they were family again.”
* * *
WHEN CULLEN’S SHIFT ended he hadn’t been crazy about going back to his temporary residence at the motel. Instead, he’d stopped for breakfast and somehow he ended up talking with the Cummingses about Shelby Townsend, then called Trent and asked him about renting the guesthouse.
Trent told him it wasn’t a problem, but then Cullen would have to live in the main house. He wasn’t crazy about that, but it was temporary, like his job.
Damn. Why was he so gung ho on helping this woman?
Two years ago, he wouldn’t have lifted a finger to help. So many things had changed, and his life would never be the same. To be on the safe side, he’d run Shelby Townsend’s name through the system and found she’d checked out. She was who she said she was. Not even a parking ticket.
Now he was here, cleaning. And if Shelby and Ryan moved in here, they were going to be neighbors.
“So Miss Townsend intrigues you,” Trent said as he paused from cleaning the upper cabinet.
“She doesn’t have anywhere to go,” he said. “It was Hank Donaldson who brought her here for a job. A job that doesn’t exist anymore.” He continued to toss out all the packaged food and spices in the cupboard that had been left behind. “We’ve never had a problem about knowing where we’d live.” He couldn’t imagine having to do it with a child.
“No. Uncle Sam took care of me for over a dozen years. And then Dad left me the Lucky Bar L.” Trent gave him a big smile. “And I finally found my home.”
Cullen had to admit he was a little envious of his stepbrother. “And that pretty wife of yours.”
“I think I heard my name.” A smiling Brooke walked into the kitchen, followed by Shelby and Ryan. He felt a sudden awareness as the woman glanced in his direction.
Trent was the first to speak. “Hey, there, Ryan.”
The boy’s eyes widened, but he stayed glued to his aunt’s side.
Cullen’s attention stayed on the pretty aunt. Today she was dressed in a pair of dark slacks and a pretty pink blouse with a long tan coat sweater.
“Hello, Shelby,” he finally greeted her.
“Hello, Sheriff,” she returned.
“I’m off duty, so call me Cullen.”
Trent chuckled. “Heck, he’s only been sheriff what, ten days? Call him Cullen all the time.”
That got a smile from her, and he wished he’d been the reason for it. “How about Sheriff Cullen?” she joked, and even Ryan laughed.
Cullen looked at the boy. “So you like that, huh, buddy?”
He was rewarded with a bigger grin and a nod. Why did that make his day?
He looked at Shelby. “Did you go to the café?”
She nodded. “Thank you for recommending me for the job.”
Trent shot him a look, but he ignored it. “I only told Bess that you might be in today.”
“Well, she hired me part-time for the restaurant now, then more hours for the catering side. They have several weddings booked starting next month.”
Cullen nodded. “That’s good.”
She didn’t look as happy. “I’m worried about Ryan. We’re in a new area and I need someone reliable to watch him. When we planned to work the roundups, he would stay with us.”
Brooke spoke up. “I have a few names we use for our son, Chris. There’s also St. Francis’s preschool. My niece went there last year. I’ll get my phone and give you all the info. So does that help you make the decision about staying?”
Shelby nodded, but she was pretty sure she couldn’t afford to live here. “I guess that depends on the rent for the cottage.”
Trent looked at Cullen, then his brother said, “Why don’t we go a hundred a week until you see if everything works out with the job?”
Her eyes grew wide. “Oh, no. I can’t accept that. That’s...too generous.”
Trent raised a hand. “This was our mother’s ranch.” His voice grew husky. “I have no doubt she’d offer you the same arrangement. Sometimes we all need some help to get started.”
Brooke stepped in, and slipped her arm around her husband’s waist, then said, “How about we give you a trial period, then increase the rent then?” She looked at Cullen. “Do you both agree to that? A trial period then if Shelby wants to stay you’ll raise the rent.”
Cullen looked at the pretty brunette, suddenly hoping she’d take the agreement and stay around.
* * *
THAT AFTERNOON, SHELBY had their meager belongings moved over to the cottage. With the brothers giving her a cut in rent, she agreed to take the place only if she’d be the one to finish cleaning it.
She looked around and saw the beauty of the place. Okay, it was small, but the brick fireplace and the hardwood floors, scarred or not, gave it character. She’d mostly lived in apartments, with roommates, but after finishing culinary school, she’d hoped to finally put down some roots. Could Hidden Springs be that place?
She could see the brothers both wanted to help her, but she didn’t want to be beholden to anyone. Most of her life, she and her older sister had been in the foster care system. A lot of those years she’d lost touch with Georgia. They’d found each other only about a year ago when she’d learned about the hell her sister had been going through with Gil Bryant. Shelby had seen firsthand what Georgia’s ex-boyfriend could do when angered. She’d shown up one day and found Georgia beaten and bruised, but her sister refused to go to the ER.
Since Gil was a cop in the small Southern town, his fellow officers protected their brother. Even after Georgia broke up with him, he still got away with coming into her apartment and terrorizing her. He swore that she could never leave him.
Not having the option to call for any protection, Georgia had no choice but to take her son and disappear, and Shelby was going with them. They’d planned to leave Kentucky and come to Colorado to work on a ranch.
Then came the day they were to leave town. At five o’clock, Shelby had her car packed with all their possessions. She picked Ryan up at preschool, then drove to the designated meeting spot at the strip mall. When nightfall came and Georgia hadn’t shown up, Shelby got worried, and knew in her gut something had gone wrong.
After dropping Ryan off at the babysitter, she drove to the house, but a block away she saw the police car and flashing lights, then the coroner’s vans. Panic took over and she jumped out of the car and ran to the house, but it was too late. Gil had gotten to Georgia. He’d killed her. There wasn’t any proof that he’d been the one who shot her. Of course he had an alibi. Several of his fellow officers backed him up.
She’d never trust a cop again.
She swiped at a tear. That was when she heard her name. She swung around to find Cullen Brannigan. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and a henley shirt. She couldn’t help but look over the expansive chest, then realizing what she was doing, she looked at his somber face.
“Oh, Cullen.” She went to the opened door. “Is something wrong?”
He shook his head, but held out the two big bags in his hand. “Brooke sent me over with some cleaning supplies. She was at the store and realized there weren’t any left here.”
She started to take the bags, but he shook his head. So she motioned him inside and led him into the kitchen. He followed her into the room lined with older white cabinets and butcher-block counters. The floor was worn but went with the rest of the house. She had boxes of pots and pans and her seasoning and spices on the table. And her extravagance had been her specialty knives.
“Thank you. This will help a lot. Once I get the kitchen organized and unpack my things, I was planning to go pick up some food, too.” She was excited that she would have an adequate kitchen to work in.
Their eyes connected, and there was a tightening in her chest that quickly spread through her body. She glanced away.
“I believe there’s shelf paper in there, so you can put away all your things.”
“It’s crazy, but the kitchen is important to me.”
He nodded. “Well, I’d hold off awhile on making too much food,” he suggested. “I have a feeling Brooke and Laurel will be bringing some food dishes by later.”
“Oh, they don’t need to do that.”
Cullen crossed his arms over his massive chest. “Sorry, there’s no stopping them. You may be a professional chef, but you’ll be getting some pretty tasty food.” He leaned forward. “Laurel’s mother is quite the baker, too. Her oatmeal cookies are out of this world.”
She nodded. “Sounds like you’ve sampled a few.”
“Of course. Luckily, since I’ve been here I’ve managed to work off the extra pounds by lifting hay bales for Trent.”
“So you don’t do any ranching like your brother?”
He shook his head. “I lived in Denver until this job came up. I really haven’t thought much about what to do with my share of this land. Trent likes that I’m here, and will probably talk me into getting some animals.” He looked out the window that faced the big empty barn. “I wouldn’t mind getting a horse or two.” He wasn’t sure right now. “I want to concentrate on my job and settle in.” He knew that since he was part owner of this property, Trent would encourage him to stay permanently.
Before she could ask, he said, “Trent’s mother was married to my father. She died suddenly last month.”
Shelby caught the sadness in his voice. “I’m sorry. She must have really loved you boys to leave you all this.”
He nodded. “It’s one of the reasons I took the interim sheriff job. Sheriff Ted Carson had a heart attack.”
“Oh, I hope he’s okay.”
“From what I hear, he’s doing fine, but he has to recover from his surgery.”
“So what are you planning to do after that?”
He shook his head. “Seems we’re in the same predicament, Shelby Townsend. I’m not sure what’s going to happen in the future.”
Chapter Three (#ubd453e21-e416-5cd6-956f-9f14bc757639)
The next evening after the sun had gone down, Cullen stood at his kitchen window looking toward the cottage. After Trent’s strong urging, he’d officially moved in to the ranch house. Now his attention was focused on the other tenants living about a hundred yards away from his back door. Bright lights illuminated the small structure, and with the lack of curtains, he could easily see inside.
Shelby Townsend was busy at the stove, maybe cooking one of her specialties. Her rich mahogany hair was pulled up into a big clip, but some wild curls found their way out. She had on an oversize T-shirt and a pair of jeans covering her trim figure.
He quickly shook away his wayward thoughts and turned his attention to the table, where the boy sat, going through his photo book. Shelby said something to the child that caused them both to laugh. A soft lyrical sound seemed to vibrate through his chest, causing that familiar ache, reminding him of his solitary life.
He turned away, knowing that Miss Townsend could be a distraction if he let her. He thought back to when his shift had ended this morning, and how he had to fight from stopping by the café. Even after one of the deputies came into work all chatty about the pretty brunette Bess had hired, he’d driven home. Well, back to the motel, but just long enough to pack up his things and finally move in to the ranch house. He didn’t want the new tenants to be out here all alone.
Something else nagged at him, causing him to want to know more about the attractive, blue-eyed woman who’d moved twelve hundred miles from her home for a temporary job. The cop in him was suspicious of her motives, especially after the recent death of her sister. So many questions.
The microwave buzzer went off, pulling him back to reality. He realized he’d been standing there in the dark looking into other people’s lives.
Hell, he was one pathetic guy who didn’t have a life. He turned away and took the casserole out of the microwave. Once the word of his move had circulated through the Hidden Springs family, the contributions poured in, starting with sheets and towels. Mysteriously, his refrigerator had been stocked with food staples; butter, eggs, bacon and milk. Brooke had added a chicken casserole, and she’d also taken some to Shelby and Ryan at the cottage.
Cullen walked over and flipped on the overhead light, then reached in the drawer and found a fork, then poured a glass of milk and sat down at the large table.
