Thunder Horse Redemption (4 page)

Her other hand groped for the top button of his jeans, fumbling with the hard metal rivet. His head rose and he stared down into her smoky blue gaze, seeing the woman he’d fallen in love with, the woman who was his equal, his soul mate, the only one for him. He pulled her hard against his chest and held her, giving in to the way it felt to have her back in his arms. He wanted her so badly his entire body shook with his need.

He had difficulty forcing his thoughts beyond the moment. If he followed his base instincts, he’d throw caution to the wind and take her there, in the darkness of the cave, their naked bodies writhing in the firelight.

But if he did that, she’d never forgive him. When they both came to their senses, Roxanne would remember all the reasons she had to despise him, all the reasons they would never be a couple again, never have a future together.

Pierce dragged in a deep breath and let it out, loosening his hold on her.

This was Roxanne. The woman he still loved with all his heart. The sister of one of the men whose death was his fault.

Pierce couldn’t change the past or undo what had happened to Roxanne’s brother. He couldn’t stop her hating him and hadn’t been able to keep her from leaving; nor had he tried. Today was the first time they’d managed to even have a conversation since ending their engagement, and it had been more than enough to show him how angry she still was. Right now, she was cold, and scared, and hurting and she was willing to let his touch make the world go away for a while, but it wouldn’t last. Making love to her wouldn’t change anything. She still hated him and no matter how perfect she’d been for him, Special Agent Pierce Thunder Horse was the wrong man for her.

He tugged her bra straps up over her shoulders and eased them both down to sit near the campfire, holding her close to share his body warmth.

“That shouldn’t have happened,” she said, her voice not much louder than a whisper.

“No. It shouldn’t have.” He didn’t try to kiss her again.

She leaned her head against his chest. “It won’t happen again.”

“Count on it.” He held her into the night as she fell into a troubled sleep. She clung to him, her body shaking, her head twisting back and forth as nightmares disturbed her slumber. Because of her possible concussion, he had an excuse to wake her from her dreams every two hours.

In the small hours of the morning, Pierce spooned her body against his, his gaze on the dying embers of the fire, his thoughts swirling around the shooting, the dirt bike, Roxanne and the bullet and wrapper they’d found in the cave.

Sleep escaped him with her body close to his and the wad of evidence in his pocket. The more he mulled over everything, the more dread filled his chest, crushing him with worry.

Whatever Roxanne had stumbled on that had caused the shooter to attack, it was much bigger than some idiot taking potshots at wild horses.

If he wasn’t mistaken, the piece of plastic and the claylike substance clinging to it wasn’t a candy wrapper for gum, but the packaging used around plastic explosives.

Chapter Four

A horse nickered, stirring Roxanne awake. Her eyes blinked open to the muted light of predawn filtering through the window. Only it wasn’t a window, and the cool air brushing across her skin wasn’t coming from outside her house.

Her back was warm. An arm draped around her middle and the solid mass pressing against her generated enough heat to chase away the chills, keeping her from freezing in the cool morning air.

Then it all came back to her and she jerked to an upright position, her hands covering her breasts. She breathed a sigh of relief when her hands connected with her bra.

Pierce Thunder Horse pushed up on one elbow, a wary expression on his face. “Morning. Sleep well?”

“Fine.” She leaped to her feet, snatching up her T-shirt and jeans. Turning her back to the Lakotan, she jammed her feet into the jeans and shivered as she shimmied the cold but dry fabric up her legs. Thank goodness her shirt and jeans had dried in the night, or moving about in the cool North Dakota morning air would be very uncomfortable. She finger-combed her hair to smooth the curls before she felt confident enough to face Pierce.

Good Lord, what had she done? She’d almost made love to this man.

Without looking him in the eye, she faced Pierce.

He’d pulled his denim shirt over broad shoulders, leaving it hanging open, exposing his smooth, dark chest.

Roxanne realized too late that staring at his chest was every bit as dangerous as looking into his eyes.

“I need to get back to my ranch.” The sooner she got away from Pierce, the better.

Pierce frowned as he buttoned his shirt. “It’s not safe to go there without an escort. And I’ll need to go with you, anyway, in order to bring Sassy back with me.” She started to protest, but his jaw tightened and he held up a hand. “Give it up, Roxanne, I’m not taking no for an answer. You’re still in danger, and I’m not going to let you ride around this area by yourself.”

Roxanne fought the urge to scream in frustration. She couldn’t deny that he was right about the danger of riding alone, but she hated to think that she was dependent on him, that she needed his help or protection. She’d spent the past two months convincing herself that she was fine on her own, that she didn’t need Pierce or anyone else. Then on the very day that he rode back into her life, she found herself forced to rely on him. And worse, in spite of all her strong, fervent resolutions, she’d even ended up falling back into his arms.

“Just because we…”

“Almost made love?”

“Just because we almost had sex,” she corrected him firmly, “doesn’t change anything between us. It was a mistake that will never happen again.”

Pierce nodded slowly, his dark eyes black and intense. He looked as hurt and tormented as she felt, and in spite of all her anger and pain, part of her still longed to reach out to him, to comfort him and be comforted in return. But that wasn’t possible.

“I know,” he said, and walked away.

* * *

T
HEY
EMERGED
FROM
THE
cave cautiously, Pierce leading the strange little group of humans and horses. Roxanne blinked in the sunlight, her eyes adjusting from the shadows.

Cetan whinnied, shifting from side to side at the end of his lead.

The colt twisted and reared, tugging at the end of the rope Pierce used to lead her out.

A quick scan of the canyon floor revealed the presence of the herd of wild horses. Separating herself from the rest, Sweet Jessie trotted toward them.

Roxanne studied the way the mare moved. “She appears to be all right.”

“I can see where she was hit. She has a streak of blood on her right shoulder. But it doesn’t seem to bother her.”

Roxanne chewed on her bottom lip. “I’d like to inspect her more closely, but I’m afraid capturing her might cause further injury.”

The colt pulled hard against the lead, squealing in a high-pitched cry for her mother.

“We’ll keep an eye on her.”

“
I’ll
keep an eye on her,” Roxanne replied. “It’s not like you’ll be around once the wedding is over, anyway. You’ll be back to your FBI work.”

There was a pause as Pierce seemed to be wrestling over what to say. The foal took the decision out of his hands as she struggled against the rope until Pierce could barely maintain his grip. “In the meantime, this little one wants her mama. I can hold her, if you can loosen the buckle on the halter.” He held the frightened animal steady.

Roxanne slipped the straps free of the buckle and slid the halter over the filly’s head, her fingers brushing against Pierce’s arm.

As soon as the filly was free, Pierce let go. Without pause, the colt bolted for her mother, tossing her head as if in defiance of her time held in captivity.

Sweet Jessie met her halfway, sniffing, nuzzling and herding her errant baby toward the herd.

On a rise a hundred yards from where Pierce and Roxanne stood, the herd stallion rose up on his hind legs, calling out to the mares.

Cetan snorted, his eyes rolling back. He tugged on the reins Roxanne held.

Pierce relieved her of her hold, his hand rising to stroke his stallion’s neck, speaking to the animal in his native tongue.

“Come on,” Pierce said, his voice low, insistent. “We could do without a fight between stallions.”

Roxanne gathered Sassy’s reins, placed her foot into the stirrup and swung up into the saddle, her shoulder stiff from her wound and a night sleeping on the hard floor of the cave. She headed for the trail leading out of the canyon, without looking back over her shoulder at Pierce.

The work they’d done to help the filly had been challenging and worthwhile, seeing the colt reunited with her mother. But now that it was done, all of Roxanne’s other worries came crashing back in. The shooter who might still be after her. The financial problems she was facing at her ranch. And most troubling of all, the feelings she had for Pierce Thunder Horse that refused to die down.

That didn’t make Pierce any less guilty of talking her brother into joining the FBI, or sending him into the situation that eventually got him killed.

Roxanne pushed the past to the back of her mind, the dangerous trail her more immediate concern. She let Sassy choose her footing on the way up.

She waited long enough to ensure Pierce made it out of the canyon. Thankfully, the shooter wasn’t watching for them. Neither were the other Thunder Horse men. Based on the angle of the sun hovering over the horizon, it was very early in the morning.

If she was lucky, she could get in a good day’s work, despite having lost the day before to the attack. The cattle auction was coming up soon and she had to have her animals loaded and shipped before that day or she’d be in even worse shape financially than she was physically. The thought of the shooter still disturbed her, but it wasn’t as if she could go into hiding. She had a ranch to run.

As Pierce and Cetan cleared the rim, Roxanne nudged Sassy into a canter, headed toward the Carmichael Ranch. She could hear Pierce and Cetan
behind her, but didn’t rein in to wait for them. She was in too much of a hurry to get home. Having been out of contact for over half a day, she wondered if anything else had gone wrong while she’d been gone.

Thirty minutes later, she rode into the barnyard and dismounted.

Before Pierce could climb down off his horse, Roxanne handed over Sassy’s reins. “Thank you for the use of your horse. You can go now.”

Pierce’s lips quirked at the corners for a moment, but he quickly grew serious again. “You can’t dismiss me that easily. What happened with the shooter could happen again.”

“Yes, it could. But you sticking around won’t change that. He didn’t hesitate to shoot at me in front of you before.”

Pierce hesitated, his eyes narrowing.

“I have four ranch hands and a foreman running around the place. If that man comes back, he’ll definitely be outnumbered. I’ll be okay. You can leave now.”

Pierce didn’t budge.

“Fine,” Roxanne said. “I’ll make sure I don’t ride alone and I’ll carry my own rifle.” She planted her fists on her hips. “Satisfied?” She shook her head. “You’d think I didn’t have a mind of my own.”

“The man who attacked you didn’t give up easily. He might come back to finish the job.”

“Let me worry about that.” She dropped her hands to her sides. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a ton of work to do, and I want to get it done before I head back out to check on Sweet Jessie.” Roxanne strode toward the barn.

Nothing moved behind her, leaving her in no doubt that Pierce wasn’t heading home yet.

“My brothers and I will ride out this afternoon and check on Sweet Jessie and the herd,” Pierce called out. “No need for you to do it.”

Roxanne halted just outside the barn door and faced him, squinting up at him in the morning sunlight. “It’s my responsibility. I’ll do the checking.”

“And we’ll be there to help. Three o’clock this afternoon. Don’t go out there until then.” He waited for her response, glaring down at her.

“Three o’clock.” She turned to enter the barn, her gaze avoiding his. She’d go earlier, just to avoid the man.

Pierce’s voice carried to her in one last attempt, “Maybe I should stay.”

Her head poked out the door, her brows furrowing. “No.” With that final response, she entered the barn, refusing to go back out.

She waited for her eyes to adjust to the dim lighting inside the barn and for the sound of retreating hoofbeats to indicate the barnyard was clear of Pierce Thunder Horse.

As the interior of the barn came into focus, she gasped, her heart fluttering against her ribs.

Across the walls and doors, slashes of red spray paint marred the otherwise clean surfaces.

“STAY OUT OF THE CANYON!”

* * *

W
ITH
S
ASSY
’
S
LEAD
ROPE
tied to his saddle horn, Pierce headed toward home, reminding himself he was no longer a part of Roxanne’s life. The fact that they’d come very close to making love had changed nothing—at least, it didn’t seem to have changed anything for Roxanne. It was a different story for him. Having her in his arms again had only lengthened the time it would take to get over her. But he
would
get over her. There wasn’t any other option.

Pierce knew now that they weren’t meant to be together. Not just because they would both always blame Pierce for her brother’s death, but also because, with Mason’s death, Roxanne was the only Carmichael left. The woman needed a man who’d be around to help her manage the huge Carmichael Ranch. Not some adrenaline-junkie special agent who’d only drop in long enough to get her pregnant before he left on his next mission.

And she didn’t need the worry of waiting by the phone for the call that would inform her that yet another member of her family had given his life for his country. No. Roxanne deserved a better man than Pierce Thunder Horse. Even if she did forgive him for her brother’s death, he couldn’t add to her heartache by being an absentee husband and father.

The image of her lying near-naked in his arms on the floor of the cave flashed through his mind, weakening his conviction. He wanted to hold her again.

His jaw tightened, along with his resolve. Pierce Thunder Horse would have to get over Roxanne Carmichael. For her own good, if not his own.

As he rode into the Thunder Horse barnyard, his brothers streamed out of the barn, carrying bridles and horse blankets, in the middle of saddling their horses.

Maddox met him first, taking Sassy’s reins. “Did you run across the shooter?”

Dante held Cetan’s head as Pierce dismounted. “Where’s the filly?” he asked.

“More important, where’s Roxanne?” Tuck asked, bringing up the rear.

“No more encounters with the shooter, the filly was reunited with Sweet Jessie, Sweet Jessie is wounded but holding her own, and Roxanne insisted on returning to her ranch.”

“How was it, spending the night in a cave with your ex?” Dante chuckled. “Prickly?”

Yes, and also very much no
. Pierce tipped his head down, hoping the shadow of his cowboy hat would hide any expression on his face. “We made do.” He dropped to the ground and led Cetan into the barn. “What did you hear from the sheriff on the bullet casings?”

“Nothing.”

Pierce dug in his pocket for the bullet and plastic wrapper, unfolding the wad of cloth surrounding the items. “I take it you kept one of the casings?”

“I did.” Tuck’s lip curled upward on one side. “Whatcha got there?”

Pierce handed him the wadding. “Get the casing and this bullet and plastic wrapper to the state crime lab, personally. Have them check for a match between the two and see if they can lift prints or even partial prints on any of it.”

“Got it.” Tuck unfolded the cloth and stared down at the bullet. “Looks close if not exact on the casing. Is this what I suspect it is?”

Pierce’s gut clenched. “The wrapper usually found around plastic explosives? Yeah.”

Maddox whistled. “Where did you find it?”

“In the cave. Seems our shooter has been camping out on Carmichael property.” His fists tightened at the thought that Roxanne wasn’t safe on her own spread.

He loosened the girth around Cetan’s middle and slipped the saddle over his back. “What I don’t understand is why someone would target Roxanne.”

Dante replaced Cetan’s bridle with a halter and tossed a brush to Tuck, who started running it across the animal’s back. “I can’t figure that one out at all,” Dante said. “The Carmichaels have been a part of this community for a long time. As far as I know, they have no enemies.”

“For some reason, Roxanne does now.” Pierce hefted the saddle onto a saddletree in the tack room and hung the bridle on a hook. “And she doesn’t seem to understand how serious the situation is.”

Tuck grinned. “You, of all people, know she’s not going to let a little thing like being shot at slow her down. When she sets her mind to getting something done, hell better get out of her way.”

Pierce nodded. He remembered.