will, which had occurred right after Uncle William’s funeral. Now his jeans wrapped his lean hips and long legs like a Christmas present. His boots were well worn, and beneath a sheepskin vest was a beautiful pine-green sweater. It looked hand-knitted, and she couldn’t help but wonder if a woman had made it for him. The home where he’d been raised sat less than a mile from hers, and she’d had countless opportunities to watch him from afar, starting when she first became aware of him as a little girl. There had always been women in his life. Gorgeous women who seemed willing to do anything for him. She’d never liked any of them, not that it mattered.
His scent of leather and spice came to her on the breeze as he stopped in front of her. Funny. From the first time she had been this close to him, though she had tried her best, she had never forgotten the way he smelled. Or anything else about him, for that matter. “Good morning, Kit.”
“Good morning.” His sharp brown eyes seemed to cut to her very heart, and his deep voice resonated inside her. No wonder he won the majority of his cases. Just last week she had read that his latest trial had ended with a victory for his client. Most of the trials he conducted ended the same way. Opposing lawyers rarely had a prayer against him. “What are you doing out here?”
He paused, his gaze touching on her red hair.
“You really should have a phone installed out here.”
It didn’t escape her that he hadn’t answered her question. “Usually I’m not here that long.”
“Still, in case of an emergency, you should carry a cell phone.”
His tone was mild, not dictatorial or judgmental. Nevertheless, she instinctively defended herself. “It’s not like I’m out here all the time.” She swung an arm to indicate her surroundings, causing her jacket to shift partially open and reveal her sweater. His gaze dropped to her breasts, and she silently cursed as she felt her nipples harden. “Besides, the ranch isn’t going to fall apart if I’m gone for a few hours now and then.”
“Actually, I wasn’t thinking of the ranch. I was thinking about you. What would happen if you had an accident and needed help?”
She slipped her hands into the fleece-lined pockets of her jacket. “My managers know where the cabin is, along with my routine. If I was missing for more than a few hours, they’d come straight here.”
“What happened to your lip?” he asked, causing her to take a quick mental left turn.
Her hand flew to her mouth and the split lip that remained slightly swollen. “I must have bitten it.”
“Must have?” His gaze roamed her face, searching. “Don’t you know for sure?”
“I bit it.” She didn’t want to tell him the truth. Despite her reassurances to herself, she still couldn’t help feeling that she could have handled Cody better.
“It must have been a hard bite.” He reached out and gently touched the spot. “And it looks like a fresh wound.”
Heat flashed through her. She recognized the feeling from that long ago summer night when he had taken her in his arms. Why couldn’t she forget? She moved her head slightly, dislodging his touch. “It’s fine.”
In a casual move, he shifted the lapel of her jacket aside, baring the portion of her sweater he had seen when she had gestured. “Is this your blood?”
She glanced down at her sweater. She hadn’t realized her lip had bled so badly. That damn Cody. “What’s brought you all the way out here? If you had just waited, I would have been back soon.”
With a quickness that nearly took her breath away, he stepped forward and slid one hand along the side of her jaw, tilting her face up. “Kit, would you tell me if you were in trouble?”
His move and question took her by surprise. His touch warmed her skin. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”
“Are you in trouble? Because if you are, I’ll help.”
With his hand on her, she could barely think. Could he have heard about her argument with Cody? But no, that didn’t make sense. For better or worse, she had taken care of the matter. “Why are you here, Des?”
He let his hand drop away. “You’re needed back at the homestead.”
“Why? I don’t have any appointments scheduled until this afternoon.” She didn’t have a clue what he was thinking, and instinct honed over time kept her from trying to find out. With Des, it was better if she kept her distance. “Oh, never mind. I was about to head back anyway. I’ll just close up.”
“Wait.”
His grim tone halted her as she was about to turn. She eyed him cautiously. Because of her father’s cruelty in keeping her and her sisters under his thumb, and later, because of her wariness of Des, she’d never been close to him. But even she knew he wasn’t acting normally. “What is it?”
“Someone’s been killed, Kit.”
“Oh no! Who?”
Death on the ranch wasn’t a complete shock. Working with large animals, as well as heavy machinery and equipment, offered too many chances for accidents. But she always hated to hear about it.
“Cody Inman.”
She stiffened. How could that be? After she had left, he hadn’t even been supposed to go to work, only draw his check from the paymaster and leave. “Cody Inman?” she repeated to make sure she’d heard correctly. “But I saw him right before I rode out this morning.”
“That’s what Tio said. A little while after you left, Tio went into the barn to start his work and found the body in one of the empty stalls. Since you weren’t around, he came to me. I called the sheriff, then drove out here to get you.”
She nodded. “Of course.” How had Cody managed to get into an accident on what should have been his last few hours on the Double B?
“How awful.” However Cody had acted toward her, she felt a deep pang of sadness for him. Just last night he had been so alive, dancing and laughing with her. But then he’d begun to drink and come on to her, and then this morning…
Questions raced through her mind as she tried to grapple with the fact that a man she had argued with mere hours before was now dead.
“How did he die?”
“You don’t know?”
Confused, she stared up at him. “How would I know?” He didn’t answer. “Des? How did he die?”
“It looks like a blow to the head with a blunt object. Perhaps a shovel.”
The air went out of her. “Are you saying Cody was murdered?”
“That’s right.”
“But I don’t understand. How could such a thing have happened?”
“That’s what the sheriff wants to question you about.”
“Okay, I’ll close up here and be there as soon as possible.”
“No.
