Page 94 of Sheriff's City Girl

More silence.

“Emma, I swear I’m fine. I’m just trying to find Jess. She wasn’t at home, and not at school. I ran into Cody at the school, and it was about that time I realized that she’s probably out at the ranch—that’s what Cody said as well. I’m headed out there right now.”

“I’m going to meet you there,” she snapped, the sound of keys jingling in the background. “And then I’m going to drive you home. Lucas can bring your Bronco and then I’ll drive him back. You don’t need to be driving right now. It might set you back.”

Irritation burned in my chest. “Jess is missing, Emma. I need to find her.”

“Okay, and I’m sure she’s at the ranch,” Emma reasoned. “I know that you’re worried—and I understand—but that doesn’t change the fact that you can’t drive right now.”

“But I don’t want to lose her,” I finally admitted, shaking my head. “I just need to put eyes on her.”

“Okay,” Emma said softly. “I understand. Please just drive carefully, and like I said, I’ll meet you over there and drive you home.”

“Okay, that’s fine. I’ll meet you there.”

“Oh, and one more thing,” she added before I could hang up.

“Yeah?”

“While we’re over there, I think that we should talk to Lucas about the fundraiser. I’ve talked to everyone else about it, and they think there’d be a huge turnout… I think we should go ahead with it…”

I let out a sigh, hardly able to think about anything other than just Jess being unaccounted for. I had no idea how Emma was able to think about anything other than that as well… But she was always calmer than I was when it came to Jess and her shenanigans.

“Mason, I’m sure that Jess is okay,” she said to my silence. “If she’s at the ranch, the service isn’t so great and she’s probably just out of range…”

“I know, I know,” I agreed. “But I just have to make sure.”

Chapter Forty-One

Emma

Ipulled into the ranch, hoping that I had beaten Mason there. However, the sight of his Bronco at the barn left my heart sinking in my chest. I parked next to him, and climbed out, already hearing Mason’s voice inside the barn…

And he sounded angry.

“Why did you not answer your phone?” he demanded, his voice carrying through the evening air. “I tried to call you multiple times.”

“Dad, I’m sorry… I was just out riding…”

I stepped into the barn, my eyes falling on the back of Mason’s head and then to Jess, who was standing wide eyed a few feet away. “What’s going on?” I kept my voice nice and calm as I approached them.

“This isn’t your concern,” Mason snapped at me.

I raised my brows at him, reading the fatigued expression on his face. “I understand that… I was just asking.”

He shook his head, letting out a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry. I was just worried.” Mason looked back to Jess. “Please just tell me what your plans are from now on. I was worried.”

Jess nodded, her shoulders slumping under her braided hair. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve told you. It’s my fault.”

“It’s okay,” Mason said, running his hand along his jaw. “Let’s just not send me on a wild goose chase again. Freaked me out after everything that happened with Emma.”

“I know… I know,” Jess said in a quiet voice. “I’m sorry.”

Mason pulled Jess into a hug and kissed the top of her head before turning to me. “Thanks for coming.”

“Of course,” I replied with a smile. “So, what do you think about the fundraiser?” I had spent some time working on it with Lily after Mason and Jackson had left, and I was determined that it was a great idea to help save the ranch.

Mason was hesitant. “I don’t know how warm he’ll be to the idea, really. You think we can get the money?”

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