Page 13 of The Cowboy Who Looked Again

Chapter Five

Link rolled over when his phone buzzed. He didn’t silence it completely at night, because sometimes things happened on a ranch, and sometimes Uncle Ward or Uncle Preacher needed all cowboys on deck.

Irritation fired through him, because it had taken him forever to fall asleep. Misty lingered with him even now, and he felt like he’d been asleep for maybe five minutes.

“Holy stars in heaven,” he said when he saw Misty’s name on the screen. He sat up and threw his legs over the edge of the bed, and he didn’t have to keep his voice down when he answered with, “Misty? What’s goin’ on?”

She wouldn’t call him in the middle of the night for no reason, he knew that. Sure, she was a night owl and he was an early bird, but it was three-twelve in the morning. He glanced over to Mitch, who would only wake up if bright lights flashed in his face.

Still, Link got up and left the bedroom while Misty breathed into the receiver. “Can you talk?” His pulse rate spiked. “Where are you? I’ll come get you.”

“Say something,” another woman said, and Link tilted his head as he tried to place the voice. Had to be Janie.

“Lincoln,” Misty finally said, and Link would never get back to sleep now. He loved it when she called him by his whole name, and he pressed his eyes closed and let her pretty little voice say his name in perpetuity in his head. “We had an electrical fire in our apartment building.”

“You’re joking,” he said.

“I wish.” She heaved out a couple beats of laughter. “The cops are asking people to call family and friends to see if they might have somewhere we can stay. They’re setting up other shelters?—”

“Just ask him,” a man said. Ralf. “Do I need to do it? We can explain later.”

“I can do it,” Misty griped. “Just leave me be.” Scratching came through the line, and Link simply waited. He knew what Misty was going to ask, and he wanted to run down the lane to the first empty cabin and make sure it was ready for her and Janie to stay in tonight.

“We need somewhere to stay,” she said. “The cops are talking to ranches and farms who might have extra cabins, as I guess that’s something a lot of you guys have, not just Shiloh Ridge. But I thought—I don’t want to go sleep in the high school gym tonight.”

“I wouldn’t think so,” he said quietly. “I’ll drop you my pin. You’ve got your car?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “I know how to get to Shiloh Ridge.”

“It’s a big place once you get here,” he said. “My pin will lead you right to me, and I’ll go two doors down and make sure the beds are ready for you.” He drew in a deep breath, wondering if he needed to call Uncle Ward once he got off the phone with Misty. “You, Janie, and Ralf?”

“Yes,” Misty said. “Janie and I can stay in the same room or bed or whatever.”

“Not necessary,” Link said. “Unless that’s what you want.”

“How many cabins have you got? There might be more people who need somewhere to stay.”

Link definitely needed to get on the horn with Uncle Ward. “How many people are out of a bed tonight?”

“Hundreds,” Misty whispered. “All six apartment buildings in my complex, Link. We had an electrical fire in my kitchen.”

His heart seized, and in that moment, Link knew he’d do whatever he had to do in order to help Misty. Just because she didn’t want to get serious with him didn’t mean he wanted her hurt or scared or upset.

“Are you okay, Misty?” he asked.

She sniffled and said, “Yeah.” She took a breath. “Yes, sir, cowboy. I’m not hurt physically.”

“Then I’ll get the two cabins on this lane ready for you, Janie, and Ralf, and I’ll call my uncle and let him know there are others who could use our cabins.”

“Thank you, Link.”

“See ya real soon,” he said, and the call ended. His exhaustion thumped at the base of his skull, but Link had been raised to help others if he could. And it sure seemed like he and the rest of the Glover Family could help a lot of people who’d been displaced tonight.

He stepped outside and sent a map pin to Misty, which she could use to navigate right to him once she got on the ranch. Then he went past the third and fourth cabins, which housed cowboys, to the fifth, which didn’t.

The door was locked, but Link opened it with an app on his phone and left the door open to let out some of the mustiness that had gathered from unuse. He called Uncle Ward, who unsurprisingly answered on the third ring.

“Link, there better be something on fire.”

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