Page 59 of Tempting Fate
Raylene was digging a few feet away from where they’d found the musket ball when he got to the property. She was covered in mud, and her pants were wet from kneeling in the melted snow. It was a hell of a day to be searching for buried treasure. Even though the sun was out and the temperature was a balmy fifty degrees, the ground was still slushy and, in the shady spots, blanketed in a layer of ice.
She gazed up at him. “I don’t need your help.”
From where he was standing, what she needed was to have her head examined. Wasn’t it enough that she’d make a small fortune from the entertainment company who wanted to buy her land?
“I told you I’d help you, and I keep my word.”
“Maybe I don’t want you around.” She sounded like a petulant child.
He grabbed the shovel out of her hand. “Let’s get this over with. Where’s the map?”
She stomped off and came back with the map a few minutes later. So much for her not wanting him around.
“FYI: I found a temporary home for your horse. Griffin said he’d sponsor you at Sierra Heights. You’re welcome.”
Her eyes filled and he turned away so he wouldn’t see her cry. He was feeling pretty low on sympathy for her but Raylene had a way of sucking him in. Not today, he told himself. He was standing firm, despite their night together.
“I don’t know how to thank you.”
“Hire someone to care for him and go back to LA.” Out of the side of his eye, he saw her flinch.
He took the map and spread it out on the hood of his SUV, looking for something he might’ve missed the first time. Of course, there wasn’t anything he’d missed, because there was no gold. But at least if they covered enough ground, he could persuade her to call off this fool’s errand.
She sat on a log and kicked at a berm of snow. “I’m broke. Last I looked, I had two thousand four hundred and fifty-two dollars and fifteen cents in the bank. That’s it.”
He knew how much Logan got from Ray’s will, and it was a hell of a lot more than a few thousand dollars. They’d built L&G Security with Logan’s inheritance.
“I think we should start looking over there.” He pointed to a new spot on the other side of the grove of trees. There was nothing on the map that indicated the gold might be there, but it was as good a guess as any.
“You don’t believe me?”
He didn’t know what he believed, but it was best not to get too involved in her crazy life. “So being broke is a good excuse to get even with your old boyfriend?” Lucky’s dude ranch wasn’t likely to survive with a motocross track next door. His guests didn’t pay hundreds of dollars for the privilege of noise pollution. They could get that at home in the big city.
“I’m not trying to get even with anyone, I’m just trying to come through for a worthy cause.”
“The women’s shelter?” It sounded a little too convenient to him.
“Lucy’s House. It’s had some financial problems and will shut down without enough funds to keep it running. It’s a good place, and without it there will be one less shelter for women in need.”
Gabe had heard enough. He swiped the metal detector from the tree where Raylene had left it resting and turned it on, hoping she’d take the hint. End of conversation. He didn’t know what to believe where she was concerned. What he did know was that she shouldn’t be using the shelter as an excuse to hijack her neighbors, even if said neighbors hated her guts. She’d brought that on herself.
He moved the detector halfheartedly across a new swath of land, forcing himself not to look at her. Occasionally, he’d get a hit. So far, he’d dug up a few quarters and an old tackle box. Raylene had planted herself at their original search spot, trawling through the snow and mud.
Gabe heard a motor over the low hum of the detector and shielded his eyes from the sun. In the distance, a pickup truck was coming toward them. Raylene stopped what she was doing and looked up.
“You expecting company?”
She shook her head. He tried to make out who it was, but with the sun reflecting off his shades he couldn’t identify the truck. He hid the detector and shovel behind a tree, not wanting anyone to think he was gullible enough to have fallen for the foolish legend. Raylene quickly shoved the map in her jacket.
As the truck got closer Gabe saw who it was. A few minutes later, the Dodge Ram screeched to a halt, and the first thing to exit the cab was a pair of custom boots. Then two hundred pounds of angry cowboy. Gabe moved swiftly in front of Raylene.
“We don’t want your money.” Lucky flung a white envelope at her. “I just saw Dana in town. Is it true?”
Well, that hadn’t taken long. Then again, Gabe knew that news traveled faster in Nugget than the speed of lightning.
Raylene shuffled out from behind Gabe’s protective cover and stood nose to nose with Lucky. “The money is for Tawny’s dress.”
Gabe had to give her credit. She was taking the bull rider by the horns, so to speak.
