Page 47 of The Cowboy's Unlikely Love

He knocked on Taylor’s bedroom door, and she answered it wrapped in a towel, having just come from the shower. His pulse picked up speed at the sight of her bare shoulders and the sensual curve of her arm. “Evans is here. Come when you’re ready.” He tore his eyes away and returned to the living room.

“Shall we begin with you?” the agent asked.

Colt nodded. “Go ahead.”

“Start from the second you became aware that something was wrong.”

“I was asleep, and then I heard Taylor scream. I keep my Glock at my bedside, and I grabbed it and raced toward her. In the living room, I saw the two armed men...” He continued until Evans stopped him.

“Now I want you to think carefully about that van you saw. Close your eyes and remember every detail.”

Colt closed his eyes and envisioned the vehicle again in his mind. He began at the front and scanned until he came to the back. Suddenly he realized that he’d missed something. The van had a large dent behind the back wheel well. He opened his eyes and told Evans.

The agent smiled. “This is why we go over everything again. We never know what details you might remember later.”

“I can’t believe I didn’t realize that in the beginning,” Colt said with a grimace.

“Don’t feel badly,” Evans said. “It’s not unusual for more details to come to mind when you go back and remember everything again.”

Taylor walked into the room and sat next to Colt on the couch. He clasped her hand and told her what had just happened.

“This is very helpful,” Evans said. “Now that you’re both here, I’ll share what else we’ve learned. Jeb and Abe grew up spending most of their time in the woods and mountains around Cumberland with their father, who grew marijuana as a cash crop. It’s very secluded there, and there’s a subtropical climate with hot, humid summers and mild winters, so it made for perfect growing conditions.

Abe and Jeb fled to Texas when their crop was discovered, and their father was arrested. Soon, their mother, cousins, and aunt moved to Texas as well.

“We feel that Jeb has returned to these backwoods with the baby. He knows them extremely well, and we’re sure that he has a dwelling there—hidden so well that he feels we won’t be able to find him,” Agent Evans said. “We’ve contacted the Cumberland Police Department and the Harlan County Sheriff’s Department, as well as our FBI agents in Harlan County.”

After the agent had spoken with Taylor and then left, she began to cry silently. “Colt, how will we ever find JJ if they take him into those woods?”

He held her close, wiping her tears with his fingertips. “We’ll find someone who knows the woods as well as those two do. Don’t worry, honey. We’ll get JJ back, no matter what we have to do.”

***

That evening, Taylor, exhausted from worry, turned to Colt as she stood from the couch. “Will you come to me tonight?”

“Honey, you don’t have to ask. I’ll sleep with you for as long as you want me in your bed.”

Her heart thrilled at his words, then she took herself in hand. He’d meant that in the most platonic way. “Thank you, Colt.” She turned toward her room before her eyes could betray her true feelings.

Later, when he came to her, she inhaled his clean scent, and the wonderful smell of his aftershave, then smiled to herself that he’d shaved after his shower. Surely he’d done that for her?

He pulled her close, her back to his strong chest and his arm around her waist. She drew his fingers to her lips and sighed her joy at being in his arms.

He kissed her softly behind the ear sending tingles racing through her. The corner of her mouth lifted, and she closed her eyes. Tonight, she’d sleep soundly in the sweet safety of Colt’s arms.

***

Colt sighed deeplyas he watched Taylor pace back and forth across the living room floor. “Honey, you can’t go on like this. You’ll drive yourself crazy.”

“But JJ’s out of breast milk now. I know he must be miserable. He’s probably crying a lot, and if that gets on Jeb’s nerves, I don’t know what that man will do.”

“But losing control won’t help your baby, honey.” He strode to her and drew her into his arms. “Take a deep breath and then let it out slowly.” He paused, then said, “Now do it again.” After a moment, he said, “That’s right, honey, just take it easy and keep breathing.”

“I want to go to Kentucky,” Taylor said in a tremulous voice. “If that’s where they’ve gone, then that’s where I need to be.”

“Taylor, I don’t know what we can do there that law enforcement isn’t already doing.”

“Don’t you understand?” she cried. “I feel so helpless here just waiting for word from someone else. I need to be there where my baby is. I need to do something. I can’t just wait around.”

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