breeze invigorated him as he galloped across the pasture. When he reached the ranch, he spotted Maddox outside with a woman. Moonlight played off the front yard, and he yanked on the reins to slow his horse as he realized he was intruding on a private moment. He steered the animal behind a cluster of trees, waiting in the shadows.
Maddox was on his knees, and so was the woman he was with. They were kissing like they couldn’t get enough of each other.
The two of them finally pulled back for a breath, and Brett froze as he saw Maddox slide a ring on the woman’s finger.
His brother had just proposed.
He should be glad for Maddox. His older brother had taken his mother’s death hard, and he and their daddy had been close.
Maddox had obviously found love. Good for him.
He tightened his fingers around the reins, turned the gelding around and rode back to the stables.
Something about seeing Maddox with that woman made him feel even more alone than he had before.
* * *
WILLOW COULDN’T STAND to look at Leo’s dead body.
She needed to call the police. But what if the killer was watching her and the sheriff came, and he saw her and hurt her son?
She paced to the living room, frantic. She needed help. She couldn’t do this alone.
But calling Sheriff McCullen was out of the question.
Brett’s face flashed behind her eyes. She hadn’t talked to him since he’d left five years ago. When they’d made love that night, she’d thought that Brett might be rethinking his career, that he might have missed her. That he might have contemplated returning to her.
But the next day he’d left town without a word.
Still, he was Sam’s father. Even if he didn’t know it.
Heaven help her...he’d be furious with her for not telling him. Although years ago, he’d made it plain and clear that he didn’t intend to settle down or stay in Pistol Whip. A wife and a child would have cramped his style and kept him from chasing his dreams.
And Willow refused to trap him. He would only have resented her and Sam.
Would he help her now?
She picked up Sam’s photo and studied her precious little boy’s face, and she decided it didn’t matter. It might be a bad time for Brett, but her son was in danger, and she’d do anything to save him.
Her hand trembled as she phoned the McCullen house. Mama Mary answered, and she asked to speak to Brett.
“He’s out riding, can I take a message or tell him who called?”
“It’s Willow James. And it’s important,” she said. “Can you give me his cell phone number?”
“Why sure thing, Ms. Willow.” Mama Mary repeated it and Willow ended the call abruptly, then called Brett’s mobile. Nerves gripped her as she waited on him to answer. What if he didn’t pick up? He might not want to talk to her at all.
The phone clicked, then his deep voice echoed back. “Hello.”
“Brett, it’s Willow.”
Dead silence, then his sharp intake of breath. “Yeah?”
“I’m sorry about your father,” she said quickly. “But I...need to see you tonight.”
“What?” His voice sounded gruff, a note of surprise roughening it.
“Please,” Willow cried. “I...can’t explain, but it’s a matter of life and death.”
Brett clenched his phone in a white-knuckled grip as he paced the barn. He hadn’t seen or talked to Willow in years, and she hadn’t attended his father’s funeral today. Even as he’d told himself he didn’t care if she came, he’d looked for her.
But now she wanted to see him?
It’s a matter of life and death.
What the hell was going on?
He cleared his throat. Once upon a time, he’d have jumped and run at a moment’s notice if Willow had called. But she was a married woman now. “What’s wrong, Willow?”
“I can’t explain on the phone,” she said, her voice strained. “Please, Brett... I don’t know what else to do. Who to call.”
His gut tightened at the desperation in her voice. “Willow—”
“Please, I’m begging you. I need your help.”
“All right, I’ll be right there.” He didn’t bother to ask for her address. He knew where she lived. Mama Mary had managed to drop it in the conversation once when he’d had a weak moment and had called home.
He’d already unsaddled his horse, so he jogged back to the house and climbed in his pickup truck.
Thankfully, Maddox and his lady friend had gone inside, and he had no idea where Ray was, so he didn’t have to explain to anyone. Not that he had to tell them where he was going.
He hadn’t answered to anyone in a long time.
Well, except for his publicist and fans and the damn press.
He drove from the ranch, winding down the drive to the road leading into town, the quiet of the wilderness a reprieve from the cities he’d traveled to. A few miles, and he drove through the small town, noting that not much had changed.
At this late hour, the park was empty, the general store closed, yet country music blared from The Silver Bullet, and several vehicles were parked in the lot. He wasn’t surprised to see Ray’s. He was probably drowning his sorrows.
Inside, the booze and music was always flowing, the women footloose and fancy-free. Just his type.
Another night maybe...
He turned down the street toward Willow’s, anxiety needling him. He’d never stopped loving her. Wanting her.
But she was taken. And he had a different life now. A life he’d chosen. Another rodeo coming up, another town...
Children’s bikes and toys dotted the yards, suggesting the neighborhood catered to young families. The house at the end of her block, a small rustic log cabin, was Willow’s and was set way back from the road, offering privacy. A beat-up pickup truck that had obviously run over the child’s bike sat crooked, half in the drive, half in the yard.
His father had said Willow had troubles... Did it have to do with the man she’d married? Judging from the sloppy way the truck was parked, and the fact that he’d run over the bike, maybe he’d been drinking...
Not
