Chapter 20
Axe
What was it about the woman eating Cheez-Its, fingers covered in white cheddar powder while sitting cross-legged on ugly stiff sheets, wearing only my Henley shirt and a wicked smile that was more of a turn-on than almost anything I’d ever seen?
With several in her fingers, she was contemplating asking me yet another pointed question.
Meanwhile, I was lounged against the thin pillows, still asking myself why in the hell I’d forced her to stay in a cheap-ass motel with me.
Although I had to admit, it was a little kinky in a forbidden way, which suited our relationship.
Yet all I’d had on my mind was ripping off her tight jeans, indulging in every red-blooded American boy’s fantasy without hindrance. Still, the shitty location was beneath her beauty and intelligence.
However, she was obviously comfortable with herself and her surroundings, a personality trait that had always attracted me.
“What happened on that mountain?” she asked, the quietness of her voice unsettling.
“Some asshole started a fire at the old timber mill on the outskirts of town. It shifted up the mountain.”
She lifted her head, eyeing me. “The old timber mill. That’s where all the new development is going.”
“Yeah, close enough. Thankfully, the wind carried the flames up the mountain instead of toward the homes. It was rough for a while with the cold front, but we had help from a couple crews from Idaho.” When she looked away, I could tell she had something on her mind.
“Something else happened up there. Didn’t it? And I’m not talking about rescuing the member of your team.”
As soon as I took a swig of my drink, she leaned forward, touching my arm.
“You can trust me.”
I leaned my head against the pillow, staring at the damn canopy that I absolutely loathed.
“I do trust you, Kenzie. Probably more than you believe. We found a cabin that had burned in the fire. We don’t know if the owners got out.
The fire was too hot. We won’t know until the investigators are finished if… If we didn’t get there in time.”
“Oh, no.”
Just the way she was squeezing my hand was more comforting.
“Yeah, there was this damn stuffed animal. I had it in my hands. You know the kind I mean. Half of him was charred, but the other half was loved. You could tell by the matted fur and the ribbon that had been pulled out hundreds of times. A special toy for a special little girl.” I cinched my eyes shut, turning my head away.
“To think a fucking arsonist was the reason they lost everything and maybe their lives makes me so angry. So fucking angry.”
“I understand. Are the police working on catching the person responsible?”
“They can’t do much until the investigator makes the call. I keep thinking if we’d just gotten there sooner.”
“You need to stop blaming yourself for everything.”
At first, my reaction was to bristle, but seeing the care in her eyes, the way she was looking at me was a reminder of exactly why I’d pined away for her. “So everyone keeps telling me.”
“I’ll continue to do so until you get it through that hard head of yours.”
When I leaned over, tweaking her nipple, she laughed and swatted my hand. “So, let’s deal with the elephant in the room. What does your father want from you?”
I wondered if she knew just how many times she’d rolled her eyes and how often she did when her family was mentioned. “To drag me into a nightmare. He has a cockamamie idea about how to get himself out of hot water.”
“Legally?”
“Undoubtedly, as well as politically. I don’t know why he believes I can help with that.”
“What kind of corruption did he get himself in the middle of this time?”
Her hand stopped halfway to her mouth, her lips twisting. “So you know. I’m the only one in this room allowed to hate him and I have plenty of that to go around. My father has done some terrible things in his life, but he is still my dad.”
Sighing, I nodded. “You’re right. Is there anything I do to help him in this endeavor?”
After she shoved a small handful of crackers into her mouth, I almost immediately noticed a spark in her eyes. “Hmmm… Well, maybe.” She tapped her finger against her lips and she shifted back and forth on the sheet.
“Uh-oh. What? I can tell you have something on your mind. What did I just walk into?”
“You’d do anything for me. Wouldn’t you?” When I didn’t answer right away, she pouted, batting her eyelashes. I could easily tell she was hyped up on something.
“It depends. First, you need to be honest with me. I know you too well.”
“You don’t know me at all. You said so yourself.”
“Spill it.”
“Okay. You just sparked a great idea. It would seem that my father invested in some decent properties, but put way too much on the line, including the ranch. You know that huge stadium built outside the city limits?”
I had to laugh. “Yeah, the one that will never sell enough tickets to make any money? Just head into any diner in town. People hate the monstrosity. The bastards took some park land.”
“I didn’t know that. It would seem he and his investors want to bring national rodeo championships to Missoula.” She cringed as soon as she mentioned the idea.
“You’re kidding me.” Wow. That was industrious but not possible.
She shook her head. “Nope. I didn’t know this until recently, but the Dallas stadium burned?”
“Yeah, right after the championships not long ago,” I told her. “Arson. From what I read, they never caught the person who did it.” What in the fuck were the chances of the stadium being torched and her father’s interest? “That means for the upcoming year, they’ll need a new venue.”
The two of us looked at each other and she sucked in her breath. “Just a coincidence.” It was obvious she was trying to convince herself.
“Maybe. Then where do you come in?” I had a very bad feeling about this.
“In both convincing the various national rodeo organizations to consider Missoula as an event location and to ensure the legalities are on the up and up. I already told him point blank that there will be nothing shady. Not on my watch.”
I could tell she was serious. “They’d need some proof that Missoula can hold an event people are willing to travel to.”
“Exactly what I told my dad,” she said as she tucked hair behind her ear. “His thought was to put on some tribute event with old rodeo stars.”
“Could work. There are a bunch of hams on the circuit.” The bad feeling continued to increase.
“Which is where you could come into the picture.”
The mischievous Kenzie had lowered her gaze.
“Oh, no, you don’t. What did you do?”
“I didn’t do anything. Yet. I just thought of a brilliant plan. All thanks to you.”
I tapped my head against the headboard several times out of frustration. “I cannot believe I’m asking you this, but what’s the plan?”
She crowded closer, excitement in her eyes.
“Forget a tribute. We could make the event for charity. For the most part anyway. Like fifty percent of the proceeds to local animal rescue organizations. Including the sanctuaries for retired rodeo animals. Or we could save funds for people displaced by fires. With the press we’d get, the good will, the rodeo associations would eat it up.
There’d be photo ops with the stars. That would be excellent for their reputations.
Think about it. Just think about how much money we could bring to the various organizations.
We could even have a few of the local places have an adoption event on the day of the charity.
Or for victims like the family of the little girl you mentioned. ”
Now she was pulling on the heartstrings. “Not a bad idea, but…”
“I know. I get it. I’m out of my league, but imagine what it would do for the city, including convincing the folks in town the stadium isn’t all that bad.”
“Okay, don’t get that cart before the horse. That’s a lot of work.”
“Yeah, but I’m up to the task. As long as I have a partner in crime.”
Huffing, I was going to balk at the idea, but I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was very excited about the prospect. “An amazing idea, but there are a lot of moving parts with a rodeo.”
“I know. Which is why…” She crawled her fingers up my chest, dragging her nail across the scruff on my jaw.
I snatched her hand, pressing kisses against her soft skin. “I can’t ride. You know that. If that’s what you’re asking me to do, you can forget about it.”
While disappointment crossed her face, her eyes flitted to the side.
“Okay. I understand that, but you are an expert with all those details you mentioned. You could help sell the rodeo to the city council and the two rodeo organizations even better than I could. You knew a lot of the riders. At the same time, you could talk about bringing the needed equipment to the fire departments. That’s something else.
We could get their involvement with the event, pictures and more with firefighters.
More good will and shaming the city council. ”
“You are a devious woman.”
“Yes, I am. My rodeo expert.” She could make me laugh like no one else.
“That was years ago.”
“And we want stars from the past as well. You’d be a grand stand-in for photographs.”
“Stand-in, my ass.” I couldn’t believe I actually thought it was a good idea. Although I had a feeling her father wasn’t being completely honest with her. Damn if she wasn’t excited. Still, the arson with the Dallas stadium stuck in the back of my mind.
So did the one at the old mill. The reason for the earlier look in her eyes was her understanding of the proximity of her father’s stadium to the old mill. I was no detective, but I was no dummy either. Something smelled and she was determined to walk right into the middle of it.
“This could really work. Your help would be invaluable.”