Chasing Trouble (Texas Trouble) (11 page)

"Yeah, you're right...it's just so damned sad," Jenny said.

"He'll be fine, Joel is pretty strong even though he doesn't look it right now."

Chase's phone rang and he dug in his pocket and pulled it out then glanced at the screen and pressed talk.  "Yeah?"

He hesitated a minute listening and she saw his jaw tighten.  "We're on our way back, about four hours out," he told whoever was on the phone, then added.  "Call Logan and let him know.  I met with him this morning and filled him in...no, Dad, look I've got to go."  Chase pushed the end button and threw his phone down in the cup holder on the dash.

Chase was damned tired of these senseless fires.  There had been four over the last two weeks,
six total now, and until now they'd been lucky and nobody had been hurt.  Their luck had just run out.

"Everything okay?"
Jenny asked him. 

He glanced over at her and ground his teeth.  This was not the way he wanted
Jenny to start her new job, a christening by fire...literally.

"No,
someone set another well fire and this time somebody got killed."

"How many have there been?"
she asked him.  "How do you know they were intentional?"

"The
private investigator we hired told us that charges, explosives, were being used.  So far, there have been six fires in a month.  That's as many as we've had in two years before now."

"Wow, are they investigating?"

"Yeah, but they're not likely to find anything...none of our workers saw anything supposedly.  Dave Logan, the investigator is trying to figure things out. He has some of his men working on our rigs, just not the right ones so far."

"Who could want to do that to the company?"

Who?  Any number of drilling and exploration companies who were going to have to spend a fortune retrofitting their derricks or paying fines, if the legislation they were pushing for was passed.  "We're pushing for higher fines against companies that aren't complying with new safety regulations, and we haven't made a lot of friends in the process.  Dave thinks they might be trying to take our safety record down to make theirs look better."

"That's admirable, but why?  Doesn't that cost you money?" Jenny asked and shifted in the seat to face him.

"No, because we're complying.  We pushed for the new safety retrofits, and got that passed.  It's not fair to other drillers who have done the same to let bigger companies who just don't care get away with ignoring it.  My grandpa invented the device that's causing all the uproar.  It's saved countless lives, but those companies just don't give a rat's ass bout their employees."

She sat there staring at him a moment as if considering what he'd said then finally told him, "Makes sense...you have to keep them safe, so you can keep your rigs running.  No workers, no more money."

"Everything isn't about money, Jenny," he corrected shortly.  "Those men have families and working on our rigs is their livelihood.  If they get hurt on our rig, their family doesn't eat."

"I know..." she said quietly and he glanced over to see her eyes shining with emotion.

"I forgot...you do know.  Let's change the subject to something lighter.  There will be plenty of time week after next to bring you up to speed on derrick safety."  Jenny wouldn't officially start her new position until the following Monday.  He'd given her a week off to get settled and look for a place to live.

"That's gonna take longer than a week, I'm afraid...you sure you want me for this job, Chase?" 

He heard the insecurity and fear in her voice and said firmly, "I'm positive, now stop worrying, you're gonna be great.  I'll make sure you know everything you need to know so you can do a good job."

CHAPTER EIGHT

Surprisingly, Jenny nodded off when she rested her head against the passenger window.  She had no idea how long she'd been sleeping when Chase gently nudged her awake.  "Hey sleeping beauty are you hungry?" he asked with humor in his voice.

With a yawn she opened her eyes and stretched her arms over her head.  "Starving...where are we?" Jenny asked groggily then looked out the window and saw the parking lot where he'd stopped was filled to capacity with all kinds of vehicles from eighteen wheelers to subcompact cars.

"About an hour outside of
Amarillo at a truck stop cafe.  I know this is the last decent place to stop before we hit the outskirts of Amarillo, and I'm starving too.  We need gas anyway..."  Chase put the truck in park, then turned off the engine and unfastened his seat belt.  Jenny unfastened hers too.

"You snore," he informed her with a chuckle as he pocketed the keys.

"I do not!" Jenny replied indignantly and turned to face him.

"Yeah, you do," he repeated seriously, but his beautiful blue eyes sparkled with laughter.  "You even made a couple of cute little snorts."

Jenny pinched her lips together and glared at him.

"I have a better use for those lips, sweetheart," he said then scooted over the seat toward her.  Jenny backed into the door and fiddled behind her for the handle.

"You tell me I snore like a pig, then you think I'm gonna kiss you?" she hooted incredulously as her fingers found the handle and she pulled.  The door opened and she felt herself falling backwards and yelped.  Strong arms closed around her and kept her from falling on her butt.

"Whoa, sugar, you don't want to bruise that gorgeous backside of yours..." Joel drawled near her ear, then set her away from him.  He certainly seemed to be in a better mood than he'd been in earlier, Jenny thought. 

Maybe Chase had been right and Terri's chattering had distracted him.  With a bright smile, she turned toward him.  He had removed the sunglasses he had on earlier, and she saw that his eyes were blue, darker than Chase's.

"
My hero," she said in a sweet and helpless tone, bringing her hands to her chest dramatically.

One corner of his lips ticked up sexily and his
eyes sparkled.  "Just doing my part for a beautiful maiden in distress."

A growl sounded behind her and she turned to see Chase slide out of the truck and slam the door.  "Back off, Joel
," he told his brother gruffly.

Joel snorted then asked, "Would you rather I let her land on her ass, big brother?"

"I'd rather you keep your hands off of her," Chase told him then slid his arm around her waist possessively. 

Jenny tried to step away from him, but he squeezed her hip
and turned her toward the cafe.  "Let's go eat," he said and led her toward the cafe. 

Joel and an unusually quiet Terri followed behind them.
  Her friend was never quiet, so Jenny wondered what cat had got her tongue.  That thought reminded her that Chloe probably needed water and food too when they finished their meal.

"So what's good to eat here?" Jenny asked
as she perused the dog-eared paper menu stained with things Jenny didn't want to contemplate.  They'd been seated in a booth and Chase sat entirely too close to her.  The ever present electricity between them hummed through her like she'd grabbed a ten-thousand volt line.  She scooted a little closer to the wall thinking to put more space between them, but Chase scooted over too.

"I always get a hamburger and fries," Chase told her then slung his arm across the back of the booth and her shoulders.  Warmth radiated from him along with the subtle intoxicating cologne he wore and she breathed it in like an addict, because she couldn't help herself.  He always smelled so damned good.
  When he looked down into her eyes and gave her that sexy smile of his, heat gathered between her thighs and she squirmed on the vinyl seat. 

Damn, how did he do that?  Turn her on with only a smile, even when she was slightly irritated with him.

"Sounds safe," she said and flipped her menu closed, then took a long drink of the water their waitress had delivered.

"So, you have any idea what you're gonna do about your business?" Chase asked Joel
abruptly.

Joel's face reddened and his lips pinched then he said, "I don't want to talk about that right now.  I don't know anything, except I've filed and it'll be final in a month or so."

"We could always use another staff attorney," Chase suggested then took a sip of his own water.

"You know that's not happening, bro..." Joel told him firmly and dragged his eyes to the napkin he was shredding between his fingers.

"Grandpa's ranch just sold, so that's not an option..." Chase reminded him.  Their mother's father, Grandpa Tillman. had passed away three years ago, and his huge ranch had been for sale since then.  Chase always wondered why Joel hadn't bought it and moved back home.  Ranching had always been his brother's dream growing up.  He spent every holiday and the summer out at their grandpa's spread, when their dad didn't have them working their asses off on a rig.

"Yeah, I know...but I'm considering
ranching.  I'm kind of burnt out on the attorney gig.  I was going to look around in Dallas...if I have any money left after Karen gets done with me."

"Whatever you need, I'm here," Chase told him seriously.
  He was sure that Joel was overexaggerating the outcome of his settlement with his ex-wife though. 

Joel had made a fortune handling oil and gas cases since he'd graduated college and passed the bar. 
He was a wonder kid of an attorney, and he and Larry opened their own practice right out of college.  His dad had sent them plenty of business, but it had blossomed from there, because he was that damned good. 

If
he did wind up busted, Chase had a substantial savings himself...and there was the settlement they were both going to get from their grandpa's estate.  "She can't touch your inheritance from grandpa."

"She'll try, you can take that to the bank," Joel assured him with a shake of his head.  "It's funny how you can be so blind to how someone really is for so long.  I won't put anything past her again."

"Can we talk about something else?" Terri piped in and slowly pinned each of them with her green eyes, stopping at Chase.  "Joel was feeling better, now you've put him in a funk again."

"I'm sitting right here," Joel said and looked her way then gave her a twisted smile.

"I know that," she told him.  "You have plenty of time to talk about this shit, let's just keep it casual, okay?"

Chase was surprised that she'd been so blunt, and smiled himself.  He glanced at Jenny and saw her eyebrows were raised too. 

"How bout those Aggies?" Chase said and chuckled.

"I hate football," Terri told
him with a lift of her chin, then turned her gaze to Joel again.  "So you like ranching, huh?  I bet you look damned yummy in Wranglers and cowboy boots."

Joel had been taking a sip of his water and spewed it across the table at Chase.  Chase and Jenny both burst out
laughing as Terri patted him on the back and then smiled and winked at them.

Thirty minutes later,
with their bellies full on burgers and fries, they walked back to the parking lot.  Again, Chase put his arm around her waist as they walked, like they were a couple.  It made her a little uncomfortable, but she couldn't make herself say anything to him.  Being close to him after missing him for a week felt too good.

When they reached the truck, he opened the door for her and she leaned in and picked up Chloe's cage
from the floorboard and put it on the seat.  The orange and black marmalade cat stared at her with wary, accusing eyes. 

"I'm sorry, baby.  I have some food and water for you.  I know you hate this cage," she cooed then lifted the front door.
  The cat's muscles bunched up and she squeezed against the back of the cage.  With a hiss and a forward push, she launched herself through the opening, did a graceful jump to Jenny's shoulder then vaulted over her and landed on the ground running.

"Chloe!" Jenny yelled and took off running
after her, zigzagging through cars.

"Jenny!" Chase
shouted and she heard him running behind her.  She didn't look back, she kept her eye on her terrified cat and focused on not losing sight of her.  Jenny's side hurt and her breath was coming in short gasps, but she didn't stop when they reached the grassy edge of the parking lot that opened up to a wide field dotted with huge oak trees. 

Jenny hadn't had
Chloe declawed, because she felt like it was inhumane, and she hoped that her cat wouldn't get the idea to climb one of those trees.  Jenny was afraid of heights and there was no way she was climbing up after her. 

Of course, that's exactly where the frightened cat headed and Jenny watched helplessly as she shimmied up the tree and jumped from limb to limb until she was as high as she could go.

"Oh, god," Jenny groaned and felt tears clog her throat.  When she reached the tree, she leaned down on her knees and tried to catch her breath.

A second later, Chase stopped beside her, also breathing hard.  With his hands on his hips, he surveyed the tree then bent down to pull off his boots and socks.

"What are you doing?" Jenny asked and grabbed his arm
, her eyes filling with tears.

He looked at her like she was short a few marbles then said, "I'm going to get her out of the tree."

"It's too high, Chase...let's wait, maybe she'll come down."

He snorted then looked upward again.  "Not likely, sugar."

"But you could fall, she's way up there," Jenny didn't want him climbing the damned tree.  If he fell, she'd feel awful.  He'd feel worse though, because he'd probably kill himself.  She remembered their conversation about him not being most graceful man on Earth and her anxiety ratcheted up a notch.

"I'm not going to fall...you remember what I do for a living?"

"Sit behind a desk and go to meetings?" she said with a smirk.

"You think I'm soft?" he growled indignantly.

There wasn't a damned thing soft about Chase Rhodes.  He knew it and she knew it, firsthand.  "No, I don't think you're soft...you're just not, um...graceful."

"We've had this conversation, honey.  You just watch, I'll have Chloe down in a second."  Chase grabbed the lowest limb
then swung himself up on it and took a second to steady himself.  He shot that megawatt smile down at her, before he grabbed the limb above his head and pulled himself up.  A few more limbs and he was still five or so lower than where Chloe was perched looking down at them with fright-filled eyes.

Joel and Terri walked up beside her and looked up at Chase and Chloe.  "You'd think he
would have more sense, after breaking his arm the last time he climbed a tree," Joel said flatly.

Jenny
's glance swung to Joel and she swallowed hard.  "Seriously?"

"Yeah, he was thirteen, and one of Shauna's cats got up
a tree.  She was bawling, so he went up after it.  The cat made it to the ground okay, but he fell and cracked his arm on a tree root.  Mama was pissed."

Jenny groaned and cupped her hands around her mouth then yelled, "Be careful, Chase!"
  Fear shot through her when she saw him wobble on the limb he'd just pulled himself up to and she gasped.  "Oh, god..."

"He'll be fine, he's almost there now," Joel told her shading his eyes to look up at his brother.

"Hell, I could climb a tree better than him," Terri said with a snicker.  "Is he always this clumsy?" she asked and Jenny saw him sway then hug the smaller limb he'd just swung up to.

Joel answered, but kept his eyes on Chase,
"Yep, he's pretty accident prone...always has been, unfortunately."

"You guys aren't making me feel better..." Jenny told them.

"Facts, are facts, sweetheart.  Chase might be the good looking one in the family, but I have the coordination.  You should have seen him trying to play baseball."  Joel chuckled then added with a wink, "The girls always liked to patch up his boo boos though.  Guess that hasn't changed."

All kinds of gory scenarios flitted through her mind as she pictured Chase falling from as high as he was.  The doctor in her kicked in and she tried to remember where she'd put her first aid kit in the moving van.  It wouldn't help much as bad as he'd probably be hurt, but she could at least keep him alive until the ambulance arrived.

"Chase come down, we'll call the fire department!" she yelled in a last ditch effort to make him listen to reason.

"I'm almost there," he yelled back then reached for the limb where Chloe sat.
  She saw him stretch toward Chloe and heard him cooing softly to her cat.  Chloe scooted back on the limb and he arced his arm out trying to grab her.  Gracefully, the cat jumped onto his back then onto the limb below him and Jenny heard him curse, before he looked down and twisted to try and grab her again.

"Chase, it's okay, just get down here!" Jenny shouted up to him.