side since grade school days when she’d informed the whole school that they would get married one day. He’d been annoyed then, but by the time he’d turned nineteen the idea hadn’t seemed so awful. Lorelei had become the belle of Peppin. She could have had any guy in town, but she’d made him think he was the one she wanted. Nothing had been said between them, but he’d started to plan for her. He’d left his family’s farm and accepted the position of sheriff to save up enough money to provide for her. He’d even carved a pitiful wooden promise ring.
He’d waited for the perfect moment to express his intentions. Then, just when the time seemed right, she suddenly chose his best friend. She’d become Lawson’s girl practically overnight, and Sean had finally gotten a glimpse of her true character—impulsive, unsteady and completely unreliable. He hadn’t said a word to anyone about her betrayal. Instead, he’d pretended she hadn’t just landed a punch to his heart that would leave him reeling for years.
He realized his pencil was tapping in cadence with the ticking of the nearby clock and threw it aside. He’d be better off pacing the streets than sitting at his desk. He was just pushing his chair aside when the door flew open. Richard Wilkins, the president of the town’s only bank and Lorelei Wilkins’s father, stepped inside with Lawson right behind him.
Sean’s eyebrows lifted at the grim looks on the men’s faces. He settled back into his chair, then motioned them to the seats across from him. He gaze bounced between their worried eyes questioningly. “What’s wrong?”
Richard settled into his chair with a dejected slump. “Something has happened to Lorelei.”
Sean frowned. “Is she hurt?”
“No.” Lawson shook his head. “She’s gone.”
Sean’s stomach dropped to his boots with a surprising amount of dread. He stared at the men. “You mean she’s dead?”
Richard abruptly straightened in his seat. “Of course not, boy! She just up and disappeared while we were all shutting down the wedding and packing up the reception.”
Sean sighed. That was exactly the kind of stunt Lorelei would pull in a situation like this. Nevertheless, he readied his notebook and grabbed a pencil. “She couldn’t have gone far. How long has she been missing?”
Lawson shot a glance at Richard. “Well, she isn’t missing exactly.”
The pencil hovering over the notebook hesitated as he glanced up at the men across from him in confusion. “Then y’all know where she is?”
“No,” Lawson said just as Richard said, “Yes.”
Sean lowered his pencil in tempered exasperation. “Well, which is it?”
“My daughter has run away.”
“You mean she truly ran away, as in she’s left town?” At Richard’s nod, Sean frowned. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure because she left this.” Her father handed him a folded piece of paper.
He studied the written note carefully. “She says she wants a new life for herself and is going to live with her great-aunt in California.”
“Keep going.”
“She begs you to let her go and—” he glanced up sharply to meet Lawson’s gaze before continuing quietly “—and not to send Lawson.”
Lawson nodded firmly. “That’s why we chose you.”
“You chose me,” he echoed as a sense of foreboding filled his chest. “To do what?”
“To bring her back.” Lawson swallowed. “Not to me, of course, but to her parents.”
Richard cleared his throat. “I’d go myself but my wife says I’d just end up letting Lorelei have her own way like I always do. As much as I hate to admit it, the Lord knows Caroline is probably right. That’s why you’ve got to do it.”
Sean leaned forward to set his arm against the desk. “Listen, I’m sorry, but I am not the man for this job. I’ll tell you what I can do instead. I’ll send my deputy—”
Lawson laughed skeptically. “Jeff Bridger? He’s the only man in town who’s gotten lost walking down Main Street.”
“His sense of direction isn’t that bad anymore,” Sean protested. “I’ve been working with him and he has definitely improved.”
“I’m glad, but do you really think I’m willing to trust that man to find my daughter, let alone bring her back? Besides, I think you’re a little confused here.” Richard’s fierce gaze told Sean he wasn’t to be trifled with. “This isn’t about you, Sheriff. This is about my daughter, who, as a citizen of Peppin, deserves your protection just like everyone else. She has no chaperone. She has no supplies and hardly any money. She’s a target for every charlatan from here to California.”
Sean cleared his throat as he tried to regain control of the conversation. “I understand that, Mr. Wilkins, but I can’t just leave town for several days to run after your daughter. I have a job to do here.”
“Actually, that seems like a good job for Jeff.” Lawson crossed his arms. “After all, the man can’t get lost just sitting in an office, can he?”
“I guess not.” Sean stared at the men before him with a mixture of bemusement and dread.
Lawson shifted forward in his chair. “Sean, I would go myself but you read the note. We both know it isn’t safe for her out there. Why, she’s never even traveled before. She needs protection. I know she and I aren’t going to get married, but that doesn’t mean I don’t care about her. I’m asking you to protect her not only because she’s a citizen of our town but for my sake, because I can’t.”
Sean pulled in a fortifying breath to push aside his misgivings. His voice filled with resolve. “I’ll leave first thing tomorrow morning. It will take that long for me to pack and coordinate things with Jeff.”
Relief painted Richard’s face with a smile. Lawson reached out to shake his hand. Sean didn’t bother to hide his frown. All he could hope was that he’d be able to head her off before she made it to California. It’d be a dandy of a fight to bring her all the way back to Peppin if she was already settled with her great-aunt. Nevertheless, he’d taken an oath to protect the people of this town, and it would take more than one particularly troublesome female to keep him from fulfilling that promise.
* * *
Lorelei eyed the gingerbread style white-and-green boardinghouse dubiously. She had no idea what she was going to do. She barely had enough money in her pocket to buy herself a meal and certainly not enough for the rest of the trip to California. She wasn’t even close to the Texas state line—any of them. She still seethed when she thought of that horrible man on the train. How dare he take off with her reticule?
She had to own that it was partially her fault for being thoughtless. She should have hidden most of her money in her boot or corset instead of leaving it all in her reticule for some villain to ride off with. It wouldn’t have been such a setback if the train went straight to California from Peppin. Unfortunately, she was supposed to transfer to another line. How could she do that when she didn’t even have money for a ticket?
She
