Evidence of Trust (5 page)

She laughed, considering she’d spent two days on the trail and needed a shower. “Next summer.”

“You won’t be here next summer.”

She mirrored his cheeky grin. “Precisely.”

Mark introduced the two new wranglers; Kelly Stevens, who was there for his second summer in Estes Park, having spent the previous one at a neighboring ranch, and Mandy Cole, a petite girl from Texas with brown hair and brown eyes. She’d just graduated high school, and it was her first summer job before attending college in the fall. Britt wondered if she’d looked as nervous as Mandy her first summer.

As Mark explained the rules and procedures of the barn that she could recite in her sleep, Britt’s attention wandered. Her gaze rested on Mitch and Kelly’s dark hair. Joel’s was a touch darker…and it had a bit of a curl in the longer strands on top. Soft and—

What in God’s name are you doing? Don’t think about the man.

She gave herself a mental shake to bring herself back to reality as the meeting concluded. Afterward, she talked to Mitch, Jon, and Mandy for a few minutes before scooping up her gear to head to her truck. When she stepped away from the barn, her backpack was lifted from her shoulder, and she turned to find Kelly Stevens smiling at her.

Her first inclination was to take the pack back, but she didn’t want to be rude. “Thanks. I’m not heading up to the dorms though.”

“No problem.” He fell into step beside her. “I remember seeing you around town last summer.”

She glanced over at the casual statement, but didn’t remember him beyond meeting him a few minutes ago in the meeting. “Did I hear you worked at The Lazy R last year?”

“Yep. I like this area.”

“What brought you to Highlands?”

After a slight hesitation, he answered, “Closer to the park. You guys have access to some of the best trails around.”

“I know. It’s my favorite place to ride.”

She couldn’t explain why, but something about the guy made her uneasy. He seemed perfectly nice, and hadn’t said anything to spark the sudden disquiet in her gut, but something in his tone made her grateful when they arrived at her truck. He kept her backpack on his shoulder as he faced her.

“Listen, now that we’ve met, I was wondering if you’d be interested in getting a drink later?”

The invitation caught her off guard. “I’m sorry, I’ve got other plans.”

“Tomorrow night then. Maybe we could do dinner?”

She shook her head. “Tomorrow night is the Kick-Off party at The Watering Hole. And I—”

“We could go together.”

“I’m meeting friends.”

His stance stiffened. “Of course you are.”

Conscious of the fact they had to work together for the next three weeks, she offered an apologetic smile. “Sorry, Kelly, but it’s just, I don’t date while I’m out here. Things get too complicated in the summer crowd, and the casual thing isn’t
my
thing.”

“You know what, forget I asked.” He dropped her backpack at her feet and stalked away.

After a moment, she closed her slack jaw. Wow,
o-kay
. Guess her gut was right on the money. And suddenly Joel Morgan seemed kinda nice.

An hour later, she sank into the steaming water of the hot tub. The jets massaged muscles sore from camping on the hard ground and a rousing game of racquetball, prompting a sigh of contentment. This was almost as relaxing as her nap in the meadow—before Ranger Morgan had shown up.

“Who won?” Gina asked as she slipped into the water beside her.

“Jayne did.”

“She’s tired,” Jayne said with a laugh. “I took advantage because that’ll probably be the last time I win all summer.”

“No, I think you’re getting better.”

“Sure I am.”

Britt grinned, then glanced at Gina’s shoulder-length hair piled on top of her head. “I kinda miss the purple.”

“It was bodacious burgundy, not purple.”

“It was so you. Why the change after five years?”

She shrugged. “My natural auburn presents a more professional image.”

Britt noticed Gina avoided both her and Jayne’s eyes. “Jackson say that?”

Jackson Brady was the hot-shot computer programmer Gina had started dating a couple months ago. Britt hadn’t met him yet, but a few things had given her pause. Little things, so as long as Gina was happy, she kept quiet. Besides, after Daniel, who was she to give advice?

“Well, he’s right,” Gina replied. “And GAllen Designs is still new. Until I’ve built up my portfolio, anything that gives a prospective client one
less
reason to say no is a good thing.”

Across the parking lot, Britt watched a group of guests entering the resort bar. Turning back to Gina, she said, “Tell you what, if I go back to Chicago, you can come decorate my office.”

“
If?
”

The wide-eyed question came from both her friends, echoing her own surprise once she realized what she’d said. It started her heart pounding so fast she quickly amended, “I mean
when
.
When
I go back.” She couldn’t help but laugh. “Can you imagine? After six years of school, my dad would
really
freak if I didn’t.”

“But is that what you want to do?”

Gina would be the one to ask. She’d gone against her parents’ wishes to start her own business in Colorado instead of returning to Michigan.

“Of course,” she stated, as much for herself as them. “I’m only here to help Mark out until Eve has the baby. I mean, sure, distance from Daniel right now is a bonus, but after that, you bet I’m going back to show the jerk exactly what he threw away.”

“That’s our girl,” Jayne quipped.

She smiled again, then changed the subject to something more fun, like when were Casey and Jayne going to have a baby? As they talked and teased each other, it was as if the past nine months had flown by in a blink. She’d missed them, especially through the last month of upheaval in her life, and savored their warm, unconditional friendship.

So why then, in the occasional moments of silence, did she find her thoughts focused on a certain dark-haired ranger?

Because ever since Casey asked how far she’d
made
Joel walk, she dreaded the thought of meeting up with him again. Just like Jayne had said. Taking his horse had been childish and petty, and all because she was angry at herself for letting him kiss her, and even more annoyed she’d enjoyed it so much.

Eyelids closed, she pictured his gold-flecked eyes, fringed with those dark lashes. She remembered the feel of his muscled length against her, felt his lips caress—

“Britt? Hello? You still with us?”

She snapped her eyes open, embarrassed at the direction her thoughts had traveled. “Yep. What?”

“Gina asked how your camping weekend went,” Jayne informed her, her tone sweet and innocent.

Her cheeks warmed, and she hoped they’d attribute it to the steam rising from the hot tub. “It was fine. Uneventful.”

Jayne let loose a snort of laughter and Britt shot her a glare. Gina glanced between them with a confused frown. “What’s so funny?”

Britt sighed and glanced toward the bar again. “I ran into one of the—” She stopped abruptly as the object of her previous thoughts paused alongside his truck, gave a sweeping glance in their direction, then started up the stairs to the bar.

“
Shit
.”

“What?” Jayne swung around to see what held her attention.

Her pulse raced. Drawing a full breath became difficult with her heart lodged in her throat. “He’s
here
.”

“Who’s here?”

“Joel Morgan. Hurry—switch places with me.”

Jayne’s concern disintegrated into laughter. Britt threw her an indignant look and pushed her to the other side of the hot tub. “It’s not funny!”

Her laughter subsided to a grin. “If you could see your face right now.”

“Who’s Joel Morgan?” Gina craned her neck toward the bar.

“The ranger who’s horse Britt stole earlier today.”

Gina whipped around to stare at her.

“I didn’t
steal
his horse. I just…didn’t leave it for him where I caught it.”

“Thought you said your trip was uneventful?”

At her insistence, Britt was forced to relay the story once again. Casey walked up at the end, took one look at Britt, and smirked. “You saw who walked into the bar, didn’t you?”

“She sure did,” his wife confirmed.

Britt offered up her best pleading look. He enjoyed giving her a hard time, but his earlier comments told her he was on her side where the arrogant ranger was concerned. “Casey, please, I can’t face him like this. It has to be on even ground.”

He glanced toward Joel’s truck. “The pavement in front of the bar is fairly level—”

She splashed water at him as the girls laughed. “I’m serious. Just tell him I’m not here.”

“I won’t lie to him, Britt.”

She sighed with resignation. Though he wasn’t officially a ranger yet, he already thought like one. No matter how much he joked around, it wasn’t fair of her to even ask him to compromise his integrity. “Okay, then tell him the next time you see me, you’ll tell me he wants to talk to me. It’s not a lie.”

“It’s probably better to get it over with,” he advised.

“Probably, but not like this. Not in my swimsuit.”

“You never know, the distraction of that bikini could work in your favor,” Gina suggested.

“She has a good point,” Jayne agreed.

Casey raised his eyebrows in silent inquiry, but Britt shook her head. “No way.”

“All right, relax. I’ll handle everything.” As he walked away, his wicked grin did nothing to reassure her.

Chapter 6

Joel stood by the
Please wait to be seated
sign of Highlands’ Sunset Vista Restaurant as the sun began to slip below the mountain peaks. Through the windows, he noted the lake in front of the restaurant afforded diners and bar patrons alike a great view of the sunset.

“Explains the name,” he murmured wryly.

On his way inside, he’d spotted Casey Fuller across the parking lot, headed into the Sports Center. Now there was a guy he’d have to get to know better. He knew a lot of the locals and might be able to lend some insight to Joel’s case.

Problem was, the guy didn’t trust him.

“Good evening. Table for one, or are you waiting for someone?”

Joel turned around to face the short-haired redhead standing before him with a menu in hand. “Just me.”

She gave him a bright smile. “Right this way.”

His waiter appeared as the hostess finished reciting the specials, so he ordered a beer and the grilled bruschetta chicken. Alone once more, he turned his thoughts back to the man who hadn’t bothered to conceal his dislike from the moment they’d met. It was a welcome distraction from the other blond who’d been dominating his thoughts all damn day.

Being Estes Park was a tourist town, Joel suspected Fuller’s aversion was reserved for him alone. People who made a living off the money tourists brought in didn’t treat strangers with hostility.

Casey’s cold reception begged the question; did he have a criminal reason for resenting Joel’s presence in his town? One thing he’d discovered immediately upon his arrival, the gossip mill around town was alive and thriving. The wrangler likely knew why Joel was here, even though the rangers at the station had been instructed not to talk about the case.

He took a sip of his beer. Yes, he’d have to work on the guy. As with all his investigations, he had the time to work the angles. Unfortunately, the animals didn’t.

The waiter arrived with his dinner and left him to eat in peace. Except a few minutes later, Joel looked up from his grilled chicken to watch Fuller stride across the dining room and stop at his table.

“Morgan.”

“Hi, Casey.” He gestured him to an empty seat, wondering at this curious turn of events. “Can I buy you a beer?”

“No, thanks.” The guy flipped the chair around and straddled it, forearms crossed over the backrest. “Are you here on official park business?”

The direct question sparked his suspicion. “I heard this was a good place to eat.”

“Hmm.” He glanced out the window toward the Sports Center. “Did you guys have any trouble with the storm that blew through last night?”

Joel’s mind tripped over itself, trying to figure out what the other guy was getting at. “Nothing out of the ordinary.”

“We’re pretty slow right now, not many rides booked at the stable. But I bet the park already has a fair amount of hikers and campers.”

“It does.” He stabbed another bite of grilled chicken breast to avoid elaborating. He saw no reason to mention Ms. Brittany Lucas.

“They keep you busy?”

He shrugged at the slight emphasis on
you
and reached for his beer as he finished chewing.

Casey cleared his throat as a smile tugged the corners of his mouth. “Rumor is you’re here on special assignment. Does that mean you don’t have to deal with the campers and every day park stuff?”