Page 6 of The Stranger's Code

The look on Cameron’s face when he was finally confident on the horse. His bright, green eyes. His smile that rivaled the sunlight in the valley.

Yeehaw.

I couldn’t get it out of my mind if I’d tried.

3

CAMERON

“What the hell—who are you?!”

I woke up with a start, halfway jumping out of bed. A stranger stood in the middle of my bedroom, with a huge backpack at his side. He had glasses on, but they looked designer and non-prescription, like he was wearing them to be fashionable instead of out of need. There was also the fact that his Polo shirt and pants looked designer, too, his whole outfit out of step with the rest of Stratton Ranch.

“Wait. Are you a Stratton?” I asked, before he could get a word in.

“What makes you think I’m a Stratton?”

“I don’t know. I’ve only met two and they’re either extremely normal or extremely eccentric,” I replied. “And you seem…”

“Exceedingly normal, naturally,” he joked. “And no, I’m not a Stratton. Although, it does seem like I’ve landed in the wrong cabin.”

“Who are you, then?”

“Teddy. Teddy Finch. And you?”

“Cameron Miller.”

“Nice to meet you, Cameron Miller.” Teddy smiled. “I’m a wildlife photographer. Well, an aspiring wildlife photographer. I come out to Montana from time to time because it’s teeming with beautiful creatures. Seems like the perfect place to get the perfect shot. What brings you here?”

“I’m a volunteer ranch hand. Just trying to learn the ropes of everything to do with ranch life.”

“I love that!” Teddy beamed. “What an incredible way to experience Stratton Ranch.”

He then took a quick glance around my cabin. “Ah, damn. This is definitely a cabin for the ranch hands. I swear, I could get lost in my own house if I’m not careful enough.”

“I could probably help you get where you’re going? I have a general sense of where things are now. We could maybe walk down the main trail and?—”

“I have an even better idea.” Teddy’s eyes shone with something behind them, something mischievous.

“Uh, what did you have in mind?”

* * *

“You’ve drivenwith Levi before, haven’t you?” I asked, as Teddy zoomed around the property. Apparently I needed to start asking questions before jumping into the passenger seat of trucks driven by mysterious men, the idea ofgoing too fastbeing a foreign concept out here.

“You know Levi?” Teddy’s tone was warm. “I love Levi! He’s the main reason I’m able to come out here so often.”

“Oh.” Something sank inside me. “Is he, like, your boyfriend? Or?”

“What? No.” Teddy laughed as he took a sharp turn. “He runs Big Sky Rescue! Whenever I get into a pickle or a jam, he comes and saves me. It happens more often than you’d think. Wildlife photography can lead you to some pretty remote places.”

“He runs an emergency rescue company?”

“The only one in the region,” he replied. “I keep telling him that one day it’s going to blow up and he’ll have so much business he’ll be sick of it. Which is good and bad. Good for him. Bad for everyone else. Fantastic for me, though.”

“How long have you and Levi—Wait.”

“Wait?”

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