Chapter 12 Devlin
TWELVE
DEVLIN
The next morning, I’m waiting to meet Jesse, Truett, and Carson in the Grizzly River Ranch barn. After we got home last night, and I tucked Atlee into bed, I texted the guys and told them we needed to have a serious conversation about Noah.
I’m sitting with my back against one of the horse stalls, sipping on my coffee, when the guys start slowly making their way in. First comes Truett, rubbing his face with his free hand. “Is there a reason you wanted to do this so fuckin’ early?”
“Didn’t want any of the ranch hands to see us, and Atlee had to be at work early anyway.”
He snorts. “Of course, it all comes back to Atlee.”
I finish taking a drink of coffee and give him a smirk. “Same way all of yours comes back to Nora.”
“Smart ass.” He doesn’t say anything else while we wait for Jesse and Carson.
Once we’re all here, I give them a rundown of what I heard Noah say to Atlee last night. “He’s looking for a reason, y’all. He knows he saw something that night, and he’s not going to stop until he gets us.”
“But we’re not rustling anymore,” Jesse argues. “We got rid of the cattle that had the different brands. We’ve covered our tracks, and now we’re committed to being legit. No matter how difficult that’s going to be.”
Truett grunts his agreement. “We have a little bit of savings to fall back on, but we have to make sure we’re prepared for next year. None of us wants to have to go back to where we started next year.”
“We’ve got the money from the land sale,” I remind them. “And we sold off fifteen acres too. For the first time since we took over our parents’ ranches, we actually have money. We just have to be smart with it.”
Carson clears his throat. “So if he asks where we got our money, we do have a cover story with that. You can’t deny we sold land, and that land was worth the money we got for it.”
I inhale deeply before blowing out a breath. “But he’s got his suspicions, and no matter how careful we’ve been, there are cameras everywhere these days. We really need to figure out what he’s got.”
“I could hack in,” Carson offers, moving his neck back and forth on his shoulders. “I haven’t done it in a while, but y’all know how I used to love to do it as a teenager.”
We do. He got in trouble and barely escaped jail time. “I don’t know.” I rub at the whiskers on my jaw. “What do y’all think?”
Truett takes a drink of his coffee. “Can’t hurt. I mean, just make sure it can’t be traced back to you or us.”
There’s a part of me that wants to tell them all that we don’t need this.
We’re legit now, and all we have to do is move past what we were doing previously.
The other part of me that knows we have to be prepared and never goes into an op without knowing what I am facing, knows this is the right thing to do. “All right,” I agree.
Carson finishes his coffee. “Give me the day off. I’ll be back to let y’all know what we’re facing.”
“Go,” Jesse tells him. “Get it done as quickly as possible and then get your ass back here.”
Carson nods, already turning to leave. He’s always been the tech guy in our operation, the one who could make anything digital work for us. If anyone can figure out what Noah has on us, it’s him.
As he walks out, Truett grabs my arm. “Follow him,” he says quietly, making sure Jesse can’t hear. “Not because I don’t trust him, but because if something goes wrong, he needs backup.”
I study Truett’s face. The concern there is real. Carson might be the smartest of us all, but he’s also the most reckless. “Yeah,” I agree. “Good call.”
Jesse is organizing feed bags on the far side of the barn, and I head over to him. “I’m gonna head into town,” I tell him. “Got some errands to run.”
He looks up, wiping sweat from his forehead. “Now? We’ve got work to do here.”
“It’s important,” I say, keeping my voice low. “Trust me on this.”
Something in my tone must convince him, because he nods after a moment. “All right. But be back by afternoon. We’ve got that fence in the north pasture to mend.”
“Will do.” I clap him on the shoulder and head out, careful to take my time so it doesn’t look like I’m following Carson.
By the time I get to my truck, Carson has already disappeared down the road in his beat-up Chevy. I give him a five-minute head start before following. The road into Grizzly River is long and winding, making it easy to keep a decent distance while still keeping him in sight.
When we hit the town limits, Carson doesn’t head toward the library like I expected.
Instead, he drives to the edge of town, pulling up outside a rundown warehouse that used to be a distribution center for farm equipment.
It’s been abandoned for years, but rumor has it some tech company bought it recently, planning to turn it into a server farm or something.
I park a block away, watching as Carson gets out of his truck and heads inside, looking over his shoulder twice before slipping through a side door. Interesting choice of location. It must have better internet than his place at the ranch.
Now I need a cover story for being in town. Atlee is working at the pharmacy today, and it’s almost lunchtime. Perfect.
I drive over to Murphy’s General Store, parking right out front where anyone passing by can see my truck. Inside, the store is busy with the usual morning crowd. I make my way to the pharmacy section at the back, nodding at a few people who recognize me.
Atlee is behind the counter, her dark hair pulled back in a neat ponytail, wearing those blue scrubs that somehow make her look both professional and sexy as hell. She’s helping an elderly woman with her medication, her face focused and serious. She hasn’t seen me yet.
I lean against the counter, waiting until she finishes with her customer. When she turns and spots me, her whole face lights up, and damn if that doesn’t do something to my insides.
“Devlin,” she says, surprise and pleasure in her voice. “What are you doing here?”
“Thought I’d take my girl to lunch,” I say, keeping my voice casual despite the warmth spreading through my chest at the way she’s looking at me. “If she can get away for an hour.”
She glances at the clock on the wall. “I was just about to take my break.” Her eyes meet mine, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. “Lucky timing.”
“Very lucky,” I agree, watching as she tells her coworker she’s heading out for lunch.
She comes around the counter, and I resist the urge to pull her into my arms right there in the middle of the store. We’re still figuring out what we are to each other, but in this small town, people talk, and with Noah sniffing around, I don’t want to give anyone more ammunition.
“Where are we going?” she asks as we head outside.
“The diner,” I say, placing my hand on the small of her back as we walk to my truck. It’s a possessive gesture, one that marks her as mine to anyone watching. “Thought we could get some of those burgers you like.”
“You remembered,” she says, looking pleased.
We talked about it on our ride together to get the medication for Truett. “I remember everything about you.” The words come out before I can stop them, more honest than I intended.
She blushes, climbing into the passenger seat of my truck. “Smooth talker.”
I grin, closing her door and walking around to my side. As I start the engine, I scan the street, looking for any sign of Noah or his patrol car. Nothing yet.
The diner is the busiest lunch spot in town, which is exactly why I chose it. The more people who see us together, acting like a normal couple, the better. It helps solidify our cover and makes it clear I’m not up to anything suspicious. I’m just a man taking his woman out for a meal.
We’re seated in a booth by the window, prime real estate for being seen. Atlee doesn’t seem to notice my strategic choice of seating, already looking over the menu.
“So,” she says, setting down her menu. “Not that I’m complaining, but what brought this on? You don’t usually show up at work.”
“Can’t a man surprise his woman?” I counter, reaching across the table to take her hand.
She tilts her head, those blue eyes of hers too perceptive for comfort. “He can. But I get the feeling there’s more to it.”
Damn, she’s good. “Maybe I just missed you,” I say, which isn’t a lie. Even though we live together and sleep in the same bed, I find myself thinking about her when we’re apart. It’s pathetic, really, how much I’ve come to need her presence in my life.
Her expression softens. “I missed you too.” She squeezes my hand. “But seriously, is everything okay? After last night with Noah—”
“Everything’s fine,” I interrupt, not wanting her to worry. “Noah’s just a pain in the ass with a chip on his shoulder.”
She looks like she wants to say more, but the waitress arrives to take our order. As predicted, Atlee gets a burger. I order the same, plus a side of chili fries for us to share.
As we wait for our food, I keep one eye on the door, watching for Noah. It’s his usual lunch hour, and the diner is one of his regular spots. Sure enough, just as our food arrives, the bell above the door jingles and in he walks, uniform crisp, expression sour as usual.
His eyes scan the room, landing on us almost immediately. I feel Atlee tense across from me, her gaze following mine.
“Don’t look,” I murmur, reaching across the table to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. The gesture is intimate, deliberate, meant to be seen. “Just focus on me.”
She nods slightly, but I can see the question in her eyes. I’ll have to explain this later, but for now, I need her to follow my lead.
“So,” I say, loud enough to be heard at nearby tables. “I was thinking we could go away this weekend. Just the two of us. Maybe drive up to that bed-and-breakfast I heard you talking to Lennon about.”
Her eyes widen slightly at my uncharacteristic volume, but she catches on quickly. “The one in Black Hills? With the hot tubs in each room? You heard me talking to her about that?”