Page 39 of Cowboy Under Siege

Her stomach rolled hard.

Heart thumping, she inched toward the door, hand extended toward the knob. Another knock had her jerking her hand back.

This is ridiculous.

Determination straightening her spine, she twisted the knob and immediately looked up to where Jaren’s face would be.

Except it wasn’t there.

She dropped her gaze to an unknown woman about her height with eyes that struck her as close to her own color. Her hair was a shade darker than Trinny’s and was piled on her head, a few loose tendrils framing her pretty face.

“Hi,” she said with a smile. “I’m Ari. Jaren said I would find you in here.”

“Uh…I’m Trinny.”

Ari twisted to show the big bag slung over her shoulder. It looked to be stuffed with items and quite heavy too. “I’ll be your personal stylist for the day.”

“Oh, thank goodness! I don’t have anything to wear.”

Ari offered another smile that felt like a life raft in the tumultuous sea Trinny had been dumped into. “I’ll just set this down on the bed and you can go through it.”

Trinny slowly followed, padding across the hardwood floor in the woman’s confident wake.

“Judd’s my significant other. He told me your things were all blown up.” She sent Trinny a sympathetic look and found a perch on the edge of the bed next to the bag she’d set there.

She drifted forward and reached into the bag. “All my belongings and a few new purchases too.”

Ari tilted her head. “I got an idea of your size from Corrine, but I brought a variety just in case.”

This was insane. Why would anybody want to help her so much? Of course Trinny would make a fat bank transfer to the WEST Protection team for their bodyguard servicesandany expenses incurred on her behalf. But Ari didn’t bring up costs or fine print.

She watched Trinny remove the items from the bag, including several pairs of jeans and a selection of tops. There was a sundress with a cute tiny, checked pattern just perfect for a backyard cabin BBQ. There were also undergarments, socks, a pair of flip-flops and strappy flat sandals.

She still had her cowgirl boots too, which would match everything.

“There’s more in the bottom,” Ari said, pushing a tendril of hair behind her ear.

Trinny pulled out a bag filled with a few makeup supplies including an expensive brand of lip balm. “I use this brand!”

Ari beamed. “It’s my favorite. One of the small boutiques that caters to tourists in town stocks it, and I always pick up a new flavor when I go.”

With the balm clutched in her palm, she turned to Ari. “I don’t know how to pay you for the time it took you to pick all these things out.”

“Pay me?” She laughed. “I wouldn’t take payment for helping out.”

She studied Ari’s face, taking in her genuine smile and the happy glint in her eyes that said she actually might be different from the friends Trinny knew.

She picked up a few items. “I’m just going to slip into the bathroom and get dressed.”

Ari nodded. “I’ll be here.”

Thrown a little more off kilter from that statement, Trinny went into the en suite and shut the door. Why was Ari waiting around? She hoped the woman didn’t expect girl talk. Trinny never quite figured out how to chitchat about mundane topics—unless it was horses or riding, which was why she hit it off so well with the rodeo crowd.

She quickly dressed and pulled the towel off her head. She ran the hairbrush she found in the guest supplies through her hair until it hung in a long, wet sheet around her. Then she stepped into the bedroom again.

Ari looked up with a smile. Her gaze washed over Trinny. “The clothes fit you pretty well.”

“They do. Thank you so much.” She smoothed her palms over her hips, trying not to question a big detail about both of them. But it was too glaring not to say something.

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