“Max happened. You know him. If we’re interested in anything, so is he. I was getting myself a drink and he tried to stick his big nose into the glass. I yanked it away and…”
“Aha! You spilled it.”
“It was still his fault,” the slightly built, dark-haired, young woman insisted. “He made me do it.”
Paige continued to wiggle her fingers in the dog’s thick coat while she murmured to him as if he were human. “She was trying to blame you but I didn’t let her. No, I didn’t. ’Cause you’re the best dog in Texas. Yes, you are. You’re a good boy, Max.”
The black and white behemoth panted and wiggled happily all over in response to her loving tone. Since he lacked a tail to wag, he did the best he could with his whole rear half.
Laughing, Paige led him over to a faucet and held on to his collar while she tried, one-handed, to hose off the worst of the punch stain without getting him, or herself, too wet. Even in the shadowy light from the porch she could tell that the attempt was less than successful. Finally, still chuckling, she shut the dog in the fenced backyard for his own safety and ducked into the house without him.
Angela had finished cleaning up the spill and was wringing out a rag over the sink. She grinned sheepishly. “I still say Max deserves the blame.”
“I’ll let you two share it.” Paige eyed the packed suitcase in the hallway and her roommate’s navy blue flight attendant’s uniform. “You have another assignment tonight?”
“Yes. Austin to LAX via Dallas. I know it’s my turn to cook so I left your dinner in the fridge.”
“You ate? Already?”
“Let’s just say I defrosted something,” the perky twenty-something said. “And I only ate because you were so late. I have to leave here no later than eight-thirty so I didn’t dare wait. You could have called, you know.”
Angela’s quizzically arched eyebrow was amusing enough that Paige made a face. “Okay, I apologize for not letting you know I was going to be delayed. I got involved and then distracted.”
“By your work?”
“Of course. What did you think?”
Angela huffed. “Well, I have hopes that someday a handsome stranger will sweep you off your feet, but I guess that’s expecting too much, huh?”
“A handsome what?”
“Stranger. What did you think I said?”
Paige was not about to admit that she’d thought Angela had said Ranger. She knew she was blushing as she envisioned the good-looking man she’d just left. Every facet of their conversation was still so fresh in her memory that she could have recited it verbatim. And those dark, compelling eyes of his. Wow!
Her gut-level reaction was what was most astonishing. She worked shoulder-to-shoulder with literally dozens of Texas Rangers, yet Cade Jarvis stood out for her like a glittering, polished gem among a pile of plain old rocks.
That was ridiculous. Insane. No doubt he turned on the cowboy charm for all women, so why did she keep recalling the way his quiet yet strong, vibrant voice had made the hair on her nape prickle and raised goose bumps on her arms? Or was that just another consequence of being caught in the dark?
Angela waved a hand in front of Paige’s face. “Hello in there. Anybody home?”
“Barely,” Paige replied with a sigh. “I was just thinking about my new assignment. I have a feeling it’s going to be a real challenge.”
“Oh. Well, I have to go. You gonna be okay?”
“Sure. Fine. As soon as Max gets dry I’ll let him in to keep me company.”
“Just keep him away from the fruit punch. Believe me, it was all his fault that it got spilled.”
“Right. Have a safe flight. When do you expect to be back?”
“Not before Friday, unless I get another assignment or decide to fly standby.” Angela paused, frowning. “Why? You don’t usually care when I come and go. What’s changed?”
“Rough day at work,” Paige said, raking her fingers through her long hair to comb it back and let it fall around her shoulders. “Don’t worry about me. I’m just a little jumpy. The power went out in my office and you know how I hate the dark. If I hadn’t had a Ranger with me at the time, I might have lost it, right then and there.”
Checking her watch, Angela made a face. “A Ranger? As in too handsome for words?” She rolled her eyes. “Now you tell me, when I don’t have time to stay and listen to the whole story.”
Laughing, Paige shooed her with both hands. “Go on. Scram. I’ll tell you all about it when you get back.”
“Promise? All the romantic details?”
“There weren’t any of those but I will tell you everything, I promise.” She drew a finger across her chest for effect. “Cross my heart.”
“Okay. I plan to hold you to that.”
Paige was still chuckling softly and thinking of how she was going to explain her evening with Cade Jarvis when she heard Angela’s car drive away.
Cade had managed to talk the Troopers into letting him liberate his battered truck. It wasn’t pretty after the accident but it still beat walking. Besides, all his Ranger gear was in it and making a transfer to another vehicle would have wasted time.
Once he’d registered at the motel and been given a room, he powered up his laptop, made a short report to Benjamin Fritz, his captain, via email, then checked his messages. Outside of a few jokes and personal notes, there wasn’t anything important. At least nothing that required a reply.
He rubbed his eyes and noticed a headache beginning to thump in time with his pulse. Thinking he’d just rest for a few minutes before doing more, he unbuckled his gun belt and stretched out on top of the bedspread. His mind wandered to Paige Bryant and the way she’d over-reacted to an apparently simple power outage.
“Assuming that’s all there was to it,” he argued with a yawn as he let his eyes drift closed. In minutes, he was asleep.
Nearly an hour later, Paige opened the kitchen door and called, “Max.”
Waiting, she was puzzled to see no sign of him so she flipped on enough outside lights to brightly illuminate the entire yard. “Come on, Max. Aren’t you hungry?”
The lovable mutt didn’t respond. Paige frowned and stepped out onto the back stoop. The icy air made her shiver and fold her arms around herself. “Max? Max? Where are you?”
Nothing stirred. Slowly, deliberately, she descended the stairs to what was left of the sparse, backyard grass.
There was no valid reason for Paige to be fearful again, yet she was. Instinct kept insisting that something was amiss. Max had many faults, including being shy, but failing to answer her call had never been a problem. On the contrary, he was usually right there at her feet the moment she moved, as if she were his entire flock of sheep and guarding her was his only duty.
A rustling and whimpering behind the large evergreen bushes that grew along the house’s foundation drew her attention. She bent down to peer underneath. “Max? Is that you? Are you stuck?”
Momentary relief at spotting the dog’s white markings and hearing one sharp yelp was instantly replaced by shock, then dread, as she realized Max was being physically restrained.
The next moments passed in a haze of conflicting thought. Shoes? Yes, she did see shoes. Men’s dirty running shoes. And pant legs, ankles to knees. The rest of the shape of a large body disappeared into the