“Spooked,” he said, and nodded as he glanced back toward the hillside in the distance before turning to her. That was only one of the emotions ripping through him right now.
“I’ve always thought I was pretty strong and could handle most anything.”
“You are.” He’d never seen her this vulnerable. A part of him wanted to protect her, but there was no protecting her from this.
“I’m sorry how this day turned out for you,” he added, remembering that she’d said the reason she was screaming was because she had been in such a great mood. It was that free spirit in her that he’d seen when she was a kid that had endeared her to him.
Now he wanted to wrap her in his arms and tell her that everything was going to be all right. That he would help her get through this. But it would have been a lie. This was going to tear them apart before they even got the chance to be together.
“If you want, I could ride—”
“No,” she said with a shake of her head. “I’m fine. My mother’s isn’t far from here.” She started to rein her horse around to leave but stopped. “You know you did rescue me, Brody. Thank you. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t been here.”
He said nothing around the lump in his throat as he tipped his hat and watched her ride west. Just let her go. But it was the last thing he wanted to do. Unfortunately, he had no choice now. He looked back at the pine-covered hillside where the authorities were now loading the remains, and quickly turned away.
* * *
“WHO WAS THAT you were with?” Sarah Johnson Hamilton asked her daughter as she glanced out the window. On the phone, Harper hadn’t told her mother about what had happened earlier. She’d just asked if Sarah was going to be home and could she stop by.
Harper frowned. “I rode here alone.” Stepping to the window, she looked out to see Brody riding away. He’d followed her? With a pang, she realized that he’d been more worried about her than he’d wanted her to know.
“Then who was that?”
“Brody McTavish. We...ran into each other earlier.” Harper was surprised to see her mother’s disapproval and challenged her. “Why, what’s wrong with him?”
“Nothing,” Sarah said, and turned away from the window. Her smile never met her eyes. “What was he doing on the ranch?”
“He was mending fence on that lease property next to ours. If there is some reason you disapprove of him... But then, why would you? You don’t even know him. He was just a boy when you left.” She hadn’t said it to hurt her mother. She’d just been thinking out loud.
Her mother looked as if she’d been slapped. “I didn’t mean to find fault with him. I’m sure he’s nice.”
“He is.” Well, most of the time, she thought. She still couldn’t understand why he’d wanted to get rid of her so quickly after they’d found the body.
Her mother moved to her to brush dust off the shoulder of her shirt. “I’m so glad you didn’t get caught in that thunderstorm. You’re not even wet.”
“It went to the north,” Harper said distractedly.
“Let’s go into town and get lunch. A girl day, what do you say?”
Harper stepped back. She couldn’t help being annoyed. “Why don’t you want me seeing Brody?”
Sarah looked frustrated. Harper could tell that she wished she hadn’t brought it up. “I would hate to see you get interested in a boy so soon since returning home. I want to spend more time with you.”
She really doubted that was the reason. “Brody isn’t a boy.”
“No, he’s a grown man and quite a bit older than you,” Sarah said.
“Eight years. He used to come to parties that my sisters threw at the house. He seemed...nice.”
“These parties happened when your father was gone,” her mother guessed. “I don’t think he would have approved.”
“Approved of Brody or the parties?”
“I’m sorry if I’ve upset you. I didn’t mean—”
Harper waved away their disagreement. This wasn’t why she’d come here. “Don’t you want to know why I asked if I could come see you? When Brody and I were riding earlier, we discovered a body.”
“What?”
“That’s why I’m here. I didn’t want to go to the house with only staff there at best. I was upset—”
“What do you mean you discovered a body?”
“It had been buried on a hillside. I guess the rain washed it down.” She shuddered. “It was the creepiest thing I’ve ever seen.” Harper looked to her mother for comfort, but there was none coming.
“What hillside?” Sarah demanded.
Harper waved a hand in the direction of the other end of the ranch. “Next to the McTavish land. That’s where I ran into Brody.”
“Whose body?” Her mother had gone pale.
“The sheriff doesn’t know yet. I don’t want to talk about it. It was...gruesome.” She shuddered again. “I’m going to have nightmares.”
“That’s horrible,” her mother said as she moved to the window again.
Harper looked past her mother. Brody was a dot on the horizon, his horse kicking up a small cloud of dust that settled behind him. She couldn’t help but think of the kiss and the thrill of finally being in his arms. It had turned out to be the only good thing that had happened today.
“I suppose I should call Dad before he hears about it from the sheriff,” Harper said.
“Let me tell him,” her mother said, turning from the window.
She still couldn’t get over her mother’s reaction not only to Brody, but also to the news about the body. “Why is there bad blood between the Hamiltons and the McTavishes?”
“I didn’t say—”
“It’s clear from your reaction to Brody and the news about the body being found on our land.” Harper was just beginning to realize what a sheltered life she’d led so far. She would have laughed if anyone had told her that her family had secrets—until today. “Why do I get the feeling that you know who the woman was?”
JD HAMILTON SQUINTED in the sun as he cast his fishing line into the crystal clear lake. This high-mountain lake was his favorite one in the Crazies. It was where he came when life below these mountains started getting the best of him. He thought of himself as a reasonable man, but lately his life seemed to be spinning out of control.
He and Grace had argued again this morning. As he reeled in his line, he couldn’t help but remember some of the things she’d said about Buck’s bride.
“For hell’s sake, Grace, they’re married. Can’t you just accept Sarah?”
“Never. If you weren’t so blind, you’d see that she took advantage of him. You can bet it was her idea to elope. She trapped our son, the gold-digging—”
“Grace! When did you become so hateful?” he’d demanded as he’d stared at a woman he no longer recognized. Sarah, their son’s bride he’d surprised them with only days before, reminded him of Grace as she’d been when they’d first met. Both were petite blue-eyed blondes.
“Hateful?” Grace had laughed. “When do you think I changed?”