Page 14 of The Cowboy's Justice

“Not a chance. You know how much I love Chicken Parmesan.”

“I certainly do, and that’s why it’s ready to go in the oven.”

“I think want a cup of coffee and toast with marmalade.”

“You and your coffee,” he said with a grin, thinking about the vial of powder in his pocket.

“Yes, I know. I should probably have black tea now and then just to switch things up. In fact, that’s what I’ll do when I get in. I’ll have that instead.”

“But you love marmalade on toast with your coffee.”

“Yes, but I’m going to see how it is with tea. I’m feeling adventurous.”

Tightening his grip on the steering wheel William thought about the night ahead. Coffee or tea, it didn’t matter. He’d drop it into her mug, or even her wine later, and there was also the sauce for the chicken. It would be no problem adding the powder to that if he needed to. One way or another, Portia would be naked and lying next to him before sunset.

CHAPTER NINE

As Devlin rode up the trail his thoughts were consumed by the beautiful heiress. She was sexy as hell, and though she’d made a terrible error in judgement on the freeway, when he’d reviewed the video it had been obvious she’d been upset.

And he found her to be bright, very bright.

As he’d explained the working of the ranch she’d asked all the right questions and quickly understood his answers. He was also surprised how much she liked the cabin. She was living in a modern, sleek, spacious home, nothing at all like the rustic space she’d be moving into for a month.

But he was under no illusions.

In spite of her good qualities he had no doubt she could be difficult and defiant. The accident alone was proof of that, and he wondered how long it would take before she was over his knee. He’d give her fair warning, but he suspected she’d want to push the envelope and test him.

Following the bend in the trail that would take him on a parallel path above the neighboring properties, he smiled when he saw Brody King and Annie Baker riding in their outdoor arena. They’d been together since high school, but Annie possessed a rare talent. She could sing like an angel, and write songs with memorable lyrics. She’d chased her dreams in Nashville, only to end up in the clutches of a diabolical manager. But she’d managed to escape and had raced back to the man she left behind. Now she and Brody were married, and the psychopath who had made her life a misery was nothing but a memory.

A little further along was Andy Baker, Annie’s brother. He’d married a young woman named Helen Rutherford who had found herself unwittingly involved with a tough, drug dealing biker.

The last property belonged to Cade McLean, a cowboy who inadvertently found himself offering refuge to a girl being hunted down by a race horse trainer involved in illegal gambling. The trainer had brought a henchman to Smoky Hill to do his dirty work, but they’d both been caught.

“There must be something in the water around here,” Devlin said with a chuckle as he continued on. “All these gorgeous girls in trouble were rescued by my buddies. I sure hope it’s not contagious.”

A few minutes later he was above Portia’s newly built home. He’d only seen the front from the road and it was impressive, but gazing down at the pristine property he let out a low whistle.

“Damn,” he muttered, lifting his binoculars from his saddle bag. In addition to a tennis court, there was a swimming pool with an expansive terrace boasting a row of sliding glass doors leading into the house. “This place looks like it belongs in Miami or Malibu.”

He was about to place his binoculars back into his saddle bag and turn for home when he spotted Portia stepping onto the terrace carrying a mug. She had just sat down when William’s lanky body appeared holding a tray. As he placed it in front of her, she shook her head, which seemed to upset him. Though he couldn’t hear what was being said they began shouting, then Portia jumped to her feet and marched away. Devlin thought that would be the end of it, but what he saw next sent a chill down his spine.

William lifted a vial from his pocket, tipped the contents into the mug Portia had left behind, then picked it up and hurried after her.

* * *

Portia had marched into her room and was lifting her suitcase from her closet when William walked in carrying her coffee.

“Sorry, Portia, if you’re not hungry that’s fine. It’s such a lovely evening I thought an early dinner by the pool would be nice. Anyway, here’s your coffee.”

“No, William, I’m the one who’s sorry. I know you’re only trying to be nice. I’m just a bit nervous about working at Rainbow Ranch. Not nervous in a bad way. I mean, it’s just so different to anything I’ve ever done before and I don’t want to mess it up. I really like Devlin, and I mean, Ireallylike him. He’s not like any guy I’ve met.”

“Now hold on, Portia,” he began solemnly, placing the mug on her nightstand. “You don’t want to get involved with—”

“Shoot, my phone, hold that thought,” she said hastily, cutting him off and pulling it from her pocket. “Hello?”

“Portia, it’s Devlin.”

“Devlin, hello, I was just talking about you.”

---