Bobbi Smith (14 page)

“You were a fast learner,” she told him. She was amazed by the way his smile transformed him. She’d thought him handsome before, but this way, he left her breathless.

“I had a good teacher,” Hawk returned.

Randi wanted to go back into his arms and stay there. She wanted to kiss him again, but she knew this wasn’t the time or place. Anyone might come upon them there in the alley.

“If I’m so good, let’s go see how much you really just learned,” she challenged him, boldly taking his hand in hers. “Let’s have a real dance.”

“You sure you want to do this?”

“I’m sure.”

“All right,” he agreed. Any possible embarrassment he might suffer over his own lack of dancing skill was worth it if it meant having Randi in his arms again.

Randi drew Hawk along with her away from the alley; they reached the side of the dance floor just as the music ended. The musicians started a new song almost right away.

“Are you ready?” she challenged.

“I’m ready,” he answered in a low, sensual voice.

A shiver of awareness trembled through Randi as Hawk took her hand in his and drew her out onto the dance floor with the other couples. They had eyes only for each other as they began to move together.

Hawk was tentative at first, but only for a moment or two. Then he found his rhythm. They moved slowly but smoothly around the floor.

Dancing with Hawk was heavenly for Randi, and it ended too quickly, as far as she was concerned. As she was forced to move out of his arms, she felt almost bereft. Before she had the chance to say anything, though, Abe Ryan, one of the men from town, sought her out.

“I’ve been waiting all night to have a dance with you,” Abe said eagerly.

Randi liked Abe, but she wanted to stay with Hawk. She started to respond, but Hawk spoke up, taking charge.

“It looks like you’re going to have to keep waiting,” Hawk said, stepping between them.

Abe wasn’t a man who liked confrontation. He backed off and hurried away.

She smiled as Hawk led her out onto the dance floor again. “So you like to dance that much, do you?”

“With you.”

They said no more. They gave themselves over to the pleasure of the moment.

Jack had been keeping track of his daughter. He realized how much time she was spending with Hawk and that she wasn’t dancing with any of the other men. Knowing he had to do something, he waited through one more dance, then approached them on the dance floor.

“If I may?” Jack said, cutting in.

Hawk reluctantly handed Randi over to her father.

He walked from the dance floor, pausing only once to glance back before disappearing into the crowd.

When the dance ended and her father was escorting her over to join Sherri and Andy, Randi looked around for Hawk. She saw no sign of him anywhere. Somehow she managed to keep smiling, even though disappointment filled her. She wanted to be with Hawk.

Jack left Randi with her friends, while he went off to speak with another rancher.

“I think you owe me a dance,” Andy told Randi.

Randi laughed as she glanced at Sherri. “You’re not going to get jealous, are you?”

“Absolutely not. Enjoy yourself. Andy’s a very good dancer,” Sherri said. She knew Randi well enough to be able to tell that she was a bit unhappy right then and needed some cheering up.

“I know he is. I’ve been watching the two of you tonight,” Randi said.

“Well, now it’s our turn. Shall we?” he invited.

“I’d be delighted.”

“Where did Hawk go?” Andy asked as they moved smoothly around the floor together. “I saw the two of you dancing earlier.”

“I don’t know. He didn’t say.” She kept her tone light and indifferent. Sometimes she surprised herself by what a good actress she could be.

“It’s too bad he left. I would have enjoyed talking to him some more. He’s a very interesting man.”

“Yes, he is,” Randi agreed. She kept an eye on the crowd, but instinctively she knew Hawk was nowhere around.

When the dance ended, they found Sherri talking with Ernie Jackson, one of the men who worked on Pat Walker’s ranch.

“Here comes Randi now,” Sherri said as they walked up. “You have to tell her!”

“Tell me what?” Randi asked, wondering what her friend was so excited about.

“Go on, Ernie,” Sherri urged.

Ernie looked at Randi and explained, “She wants me to tell you about the phantom stallion.”

Sherri had been right. Randi did want to know.

“What about him?” she asked eagerly.

“I saw him. It was just a few days ago, out in the Black Canyon area.”

“Did you get up close to him?”

“No. He was gone before I even realized what I was looking at. I tried to track him down, but I couldn’t find his trail anywhere. It’s too rocky up there. From what little I did see of him, though, I can tell you he is one magnificent horse.”

Excitement grew within Randi. She hadn’t been crazy after all when she’d thought she’d seen the phantom the day Hawk had ridden in. The stallion really did exist.

“One of these days I’m going to catch him,” Randi said with certainty.

Ernie just chuckled at her. “I know Angel’s fast. She just proved that at the race, but even as quick as she is, I don’t think she has any hope of catching up with the phantom.”

“We’ll see,” Randi replied. She was already thinking about how she would try to locate the elusive stallion.

“Good luck to you, Randi,” Ernie said, grinning as he moved off. “I know you’re going to need it.”

Andy looked from Sherri to Randi, confused. “All right, what’s the story about this phantom horse?”

Randi quickly related the tale of the fierce Comanche warrior and his magnificent white stallion.

“That’s fascinating, but if the legend says only the finest warrior will catch him . . . you’re a lady. Doesn’t that rule you out?”

Sherri laughed good-naturedly at his observation. “I have to tell you, Andy, legend or not, when Randi makes up her mind to do something, she usually does it. She’s a match for any man.”

He was impressed anew with Randi. “Good luck to you. Maybe at next year’s Stampede, you’ll be riding the phantom stallion instead of Angel.”

“Wouldn’t that be wonderful?” Randi smiled. “I won today on Angel, but imagine how big my lead would have been if I had been riding the stallion. He’s incredibly fast. That’s why no one’s been able to catch him.”

“Yet,” Sherri emphasized for her.

“That’s right. I’m just going to have to take a ride up to Black Canyon and see what I can find.”

“Evening, Pat,” Wade said as he sought her out where she was talking with friends at the side of the dance floor.

“Why, good evening, Wade,” she greeted him.

“Would you like to dance?”

“I’d love to. Thank you.”

Pat allowed him to lead her onto the dance floor as a fluttering sensation filled her stomach. She’d been thinking about him all day. They’d had a wonderful time together at the social the night before. She’d felt young and carefree being with Wade, and now he was here, wanting to dance with her.

Pat went willingly into his arms. It had been a long time since she’d danced, but after the first few steps she discovered that she hadn’t forgotten how.

“Have you been enjoying your time in town?” Wade asked.

“Oh, yes. It’s been such fun.”

“That’s good.”

“You’re right. It has been good for me. I’ve been so worried about what’s going on at the ranch that I’d almost forgotten how to relax and enjoy myself.”

“Things will get better for you,” he reassured her.

“They already are,” she said. Then she looked up at him as she finished, “I’m here with you.”

Pat smiled at Wade.

He returned her smile. Everything was going just as he’d hoped it would.

Wade spent the rest of the evening with Pat. When it was almost time for the festivities to end, he escorted her back to her friend’s house. It was nearly midnight as they walked up the path to the porch steps.

“Thank you for a wonderful evening,” Wade told her, still holding her hand.

“No, thank you,” Pat said softly. Wade made her feel like a woman again. Her heart was pounding excitedly in the hope of what might be to come. Gazing up at him in the moonlight, she almost believed she was beginning to care for him. He had helped her so much on the ranch, and this weekend, just being with him had been a delight.

The soft tone of her voice was all the invitation Wade needed. He bent down and kissed her.

As starved as Pat was for affection, she didn’t hesitate to respond. She eagerly embraced him and kissed him hungrily in return. Excitement surged through her at the intimacy of the exchange. When they finally broke apart, she was breathless—and smiling.

“I’d better go in now.”

“Good night,” Wade murmured. He stayed where he was, watching until she was safely inside.

He was feeling most satisfied as he walked away. Things were definitely working out just right.

He headed for the saloon. There was one more thing he had to do before he could call it a night.

The Silver Dollar was crowded when Wade got there, just as he’d expected it to be. A lot of the cowboys had shown up there now that the dance was over. Wade took a look around and spotted neighboring rancher Pete Turner drinking at the bar.

“Evening, Pete.”

“It’s about time you showed up,” Pete remarked, his irritation obvious. He’d been in a bad mood all day since losing the race to Randi and Angel.

Wade ignored his censure. “I’ve been working.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“I thought you might appreciate it.”

“I do, but I want to know what’s happening. What’s going on?”

“This isn’t the place,” Wade quickly cautioned him, very aware that men from the Lazy S were there at the saloon, too. “I’ll meet you out back in a few minutes.”

Wade paid the bartender for the whiskey the man had set before him. He picked up the glass and took a deep drink before casually moving away to mingle with the ranch hands for a while.

Pete remained standing at the bar a little longer. He finished off his own drink, then called it a night. Without drawing any attention to himself, he left the saloon and went to wait for Wade in the alley. It was dark and there was no one around, so he knew it would be a safe place for them to talk.

Time passed, and Pete got even more aggravated. He was about to go back in and get Wade when the other man finally showed up.

“What the hell took you so long?” Pete demanded. “I don’t pay you to keep me waiting.”

“No, you pay me to get the job done, and that’s exactly what I’m doing. There are a few things you need to know.”

“Like what?”

“Jack hired that Hawk Morgan to try to stop the rustling. We’re gonna have to be even more careful from now on.”

“Damn!” Pete swore under his breath.

“There’s one other thing, too.”

“What?” he asked in disgust, knowing it had to be bad news from the way Wade was talking.

“Fred went and got himself fired.”

“Son of a . . .” Pete swore under his breath.

“I know. It was stupid, but there’s nothing we can do about it.”

“How is everything going with Pat?”

“Just fine.” Wade smiled in the darkness. “No one suspects a thing. Jack and the boys think I’m sweet on her, so they’re not going to question my spending time at her place whenever I get the chance. I’ll keep her distracted, so she’ll never figure out we’re using that box canyon of hers for our work.”

“Good.” Pete was glad that something was going right. He looked at Wade with a little more respect. “That canyon worked out just fine the last time.”

“Yes, it did, but now that Hawk’s here nosing around—”

“Get rid of him,” Pete interrupted. His tone was cold and deadly. His meaning was clear.

Pete hated Jack Stockton and all his success. He wanted to cause the other rancher as much trouble as he could. One day, he hoped—if he was lucky enough—he might even drive Stockton out of business. That was why he’d recruited Wade to help him with the rustling. He liked having an inside man. He paid Wade handsomely, and he expected to get results in exchange for that money.

“Pete, I’m no killer,” Wade protested immediately.

“Do you want to hang?”

“No.” Wade was beginning to realize just how serious and complicated their situation was. Cattle rustling was a hanging offense, and they couldn’t risk being caught.

“Then find someone who can take care of this. We don’t need that half-breed ruining things for us.” It was an order.

“All right,” Wade finally answered.

“Good. Let me know what’s going on.”

“I will.”

Together they walked out of the alley, then went their separate ways.

As Wade started off across town to the Ace High Saloon, he didn’t notice Hawk watching him from a secluded, night-shrouded spot down the street.

Hawk had been heading out of town when he’d seen Wade come out of the Silver Dollar Saloon. He’d almost called out to the foreman, but before he could, Wade had quickly disappeared into the alley behind the building. Puzzled by his behavior, Hawk had reined in a little farther down the street. He found a place where he could keep watch without drawing any attention to himself. He didn’t know what the foreman was doing, but he wanted to find out.

Hawk hadn’t had long to wait. The foreman had emerged from the alley with Pete Turner. Hawk had watched as the two men split up and went in different directions. Something wasn’t right, but he knew this wasn’t the time to approach Wade.

Hawk had planned to spend the night at his campsite and then ride out to the ranch at first light. After seeing Wade’s odd behavior, he changed his mind. He was going to come back into town in the morning and try to learn what connection there was between Wade and Turner. There had to have been a good reason they’d met in secret that way, and he was going to find out what it was.

The Ace High was almost as busy as the Silver Dollar had been. It catered to a far rougher crowd than the Silver Dollar. The cowboys who frequented the Ace High were mostly drunks who were out to do some serious gambling and have a good time.