Page 46 of Silos and Sabotage

Johnny curled his upper lip at her. “What about my feelings?”

She gave him an innocent look. “Bull riders have feelings?”

He pressed a scarred hand to his heart. “That cuts me deep, Ella. Real deep.”

Despite their verbal sparring, he didn’t stop his constant vigil over their surroundings. When a canoe drifted into view, he neatly stepped between her and its rower, careful to keep her out of easy viewing.

No motorized watercraft were allowed on the lake, so it remained relatively quiet. The highway running around the other side of the lake was far enough away for the traffic to be a distant hum.

“So, you have feelings.” Ella returned her attention to Johnny.

To avoid attracting unnecessary attention to the fact that she was accompanied everywhere she went by a bodyguard, Gage had insisted he start wearing jeans and boots. Since Johnny had grown up in jeans and boots, it was like asking a leopard to keep his spots on. The strands of his black hair waved out from beneath his Stetson, riffling in the wind.

“Yep. Big and tall Texas-sized feelings.” He gave her an assessing sideways glance. “So if you happen to have a single and lonely twin sister running around out there somewhere…” He left the suggestion hanging between them.

She turned his way, slack-jawed. “You mean you’re not actually married with six kids?”

“Six kids?” he scoffed. “Really, Ella?”

“You mean there’s more?” she returned quickly. “I should’ve known since we’re talking about Texas-sized feelings here.”

Before he could come up with a worthy comeback, the ground vibrated beneath their feet. Ella glanced up and saw Jordan hurtling their way on the back of Western Storm.

The two Golden Doodles started barking and pulling frantically on their leashes.

“What in the world?” Johnny wrapped Ollie’s leash around his wrist a few times to anchor it there.

Ella squatted down between the two dogs, crooning assurances in the hopes of calming them down.

Jordan slowed his break-neck speed as he reached them, riding in a circle around them. Western Storm’s hooves splashed through the shallow water flooding over the bank after last night’s rainstorm. The horse finally came to a halt beside them.

The dogs continued to bark, but the growls and whines coming out of their throats were less ferocious.

“Is the sanctuary on fire?” Johnny called to Jordan.

“Nope, but it was broken into a few minutes ago. The back door by the employee lounge was busted clean off its hinges.” Jordan pushed back his Stetson to peer worriedly at Ella. “As far as we can tell, the only thing stolen was your employee file.”

Ella exchanged a startled look with Johnny, who immediately leaped into motion.

“Let’s go!” He and Jordan traded a few hand signals.

The next thing Ella knew, she was being herded back to the animal sanctuary between Western Storm and Johnny’s hulking frame. The pair of dogs continued to bark and wag their tails in excitement. They had no more idea what was going on than she did. They were just enjoying the commotion.

They arrived back at the sanctuary right as one of Lonestar’s armored SUVs was braking in front of the entrance. The clouds of dust it kicked up from the gravel road were slowly drifting away on the breeze.

The driver’s door swung open, and Gage climbed out, leaving the motor idling. “Come on,” he hollered at them.

Ella’s heart raced at the sight of him, and it wasn’t just because of the danger hanging over them. There was just something about Gage Hefner that always got to her. It was probably part hero worship, since he was always coming to her rescue, but it was more than that.

Jordan and Johnny picked up the pace, keeping her snugly ensconced between them. At the last second, Jordan leaped from his horse to the ground. He reached for the Golden Doodles’ leashes. “I’ll take the dogs inside for you.”

“Thanks!” Ella gave him a grateful smile. She’d enjoyed every minute of her volunteer work at the sanctuary. She could only hope that the break-in wouldn’t put an end to her ability to continue working there.

He gravely nodded a goodbye. “Stay safe,” he called after her.

Gage’s steely arm snaked around her, drawing her against his side as he and Johnny bustled her into the back passenger seat. It happened so fast that she might’ve been mistaken, but she thought she felt one of his fingers slide across her cheek before he slammed the door behind her. Johnny climbed in front of her to ride shotgun.

“Thanks. Both of you. It’s a miracle I’ve lasted this long, huh?” Ella’s hands shook as she buckled her seatbelt and stared out the window. The lake still looked so peaceful, even though the world they lived in was not. It contained too many angry, scheming, vicious creatures like the one who’d murdered her father in cold blood. And now they were after her.

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