Page 41 of Hiding in Montana

“Is that so?” He cupped her cheek. “The stars couldn’t compare to the bright light in your eyes.”

Her hand flew to her mouth as she actually giggled. “Sometimes you’re so corny it’s sweet.”

“It’s your fault. You bring out that side of me.”

“I’ll bet you say that to all the girls.”

His face grew serious. “I was never like this with Janice. We had fun, but what you and I have is easy. I don’t feel like I have to be someone you want me to be.”

She slipped her arms around him. Her heart ached for the man who had been left at the altar, feeling unworthy of love. “All I ask is for you to be exactly who you are. That’s the man I love.” She pulled back and looked into his eyes. “And I want you to stand with me as I confront whoever is out there hunting me.”

“Darlin’, there is nowhere else I’d rather be.”

Clint’s word was something she could count on until the end of time. Hopefully, she’d have plenty more when this was all done. A memory flashed. She could see herself running down a trail, looking back over her shoulder. Someone was following her. She ran faster. When she looked behind herself again, the ground shifted and her feet were going out from underneath her and she was falling. As she lay at the bottom of the ravine, she had looked up. Two men were looking down at her.

She squeezed his hands so tight. “Clint. I was chased and left for dead.”

20

Ten days later, Clint came out of the bedroom dressed to go camping.

“Polly?”

He entered the kitchen and saw a note lying on the table. Needed to pick up some things for the weekend. Be back soon. XO.

He set the note down and noticed their bedrolls were sitting by the door, along with two backpacks and a cooler. He checked inside, but it was empty. She must have gone to the dining hall.

Clint’s stomach was in a knot and had been for days, and it wasn’t any different as he walked into the empty dining hall. Everyone was either enjoying a day off the ranch or relaxing, but a few hands would be working. He walked through the swinging door into Quinn’s sanctuary.

“Morning, Quinn. Have you seen Polly?”

His friend didn’t look up from the newspaper. A steaming mug of coffee was at his elbow. “She was in about a half hour ago and said she needed to run home to pick up a few things. I offered to go with her, but she showed me her holster she wore under that chambray shirt she wears all the time. I figured she’d be okay. That woman is smart and coolheaded.”

His gut tightened. “She is. I hate that she needs protection, but until we get the guy stalking her, it’s the best solution. Besides, she’s a grown woman and I believe she’ll come through this even stronger.”

“Polly would kick butt and not bother taking names. You’ve got a keeper there.”

Clint felt his face break into a smile. “I’m a lucky man.”

Quinn gave his full attention to him. “How’s the shoulder?”

His hand went to the small bandage under his shirt. “Good. Polly did a great job insisting I stay put this past week and give it time to heal. It was her suggestion to push off our camping adventure by a week.”

“She’s a smart woman. But I’m worried about her. These last few days she’s had a haunted look hovering in her eyes. Anything I can do to help?”

Clint poured himself a mug of coffee and sat down. “My guess is the trauma of the shooting had demons resurfacing from her accident and she asked for time to deal with them. Even though we’ve been together at my place, she withdrew from conversation. I gave her space to clear her head. She knows I’m here when she’s ready to talk about it.”

Quinn nodded with understanding. “I figured as much. The man partly responsible for her being on the run shows up and you get shot. It triggered something.”

Clint wasn’t sure he liked the word trigger, but it was appropriate.

“You haven’t heard of anyone showing up here asking about her, have you?”

“No, and I check in with the men as they come in for meals. Nothing since we heard about her ex-husband pretending to work for the construction company.”

“We haven’t seen anyone on her security cameras either. I know she’s eager to get back to her place since she’s stayed at my cabin for the last week.” He smiled, remembering her sweetness. She had slept on the sofa even when he offered to have her sleep with him, just as friends, nothing more. But he knew lying next to her would have been testing his resolve to take things slow. Everything he knew and wanted to know about her made him want to be with her all the time.

“Man, you’ve got it bad.” Quinn got up and went to slap him on his shoulder and stopped. He grinned. “Like you said before, you’re one lucky man.”

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