Chapter 30 #2
Mya must have noticed it too.
“What do you say we go bake a cake for dessert?” she asked Arianna. “In case someone doesn’t want cookies.”
A wide grin spread across the girl’s face. “Can I lick the spoon?”
“Of course!”
“Yes!” She skipped in front of Mya as they made their way to the kitchen. Sassy padded along behind them, probably hoping that something edible would find its way to the floor.
The room seemed noticeably quieter the moment they disappeared around the corner.
Shane removed his Stetson and sat on the couch beside Shylo. “We've got the cops looking for Troy. In the meantime, you can get settled here.”
She nodded.
“I'll need the key to your motel room,” he continued. “Tucker's going to take one of the guys into town and pick up your things.”
Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out the key card and handed it to Shane. “My truck's another story. It won’t start, so it's still sitting in the motel parking lot. Do you think they’ll let me leave it there for now?”
“I'll have Harlan Beck tow it over to his garage,” Tucker said, taking the key card from Shane. “He'll figure out what's wrong with it.”
“You really don't have to do that.”
“Don't worry about it. We'll take care of it.”
Shylo studied him for a moment. He wasn't as openly welcoming as Shane and Paige, but he wasn’t pushing her away either. Shane had warned her Tucker needed time to adjust to big changes. Looking at him now, she realized that hadn't been an excuse—it was simply who he was.
Even so, he offered to retrieve her belongings and ensure her truck was repaired. Whatever reservations he still had, they hadn’t stopped him from helping.
She gave him a grateful smile. “Thank you. The keys are on the dresser in my motel room.”
He acknowledged her with a single nod.
“You should call Lou and tell her you won’t be able to work tonight,” Shane said, getting to his feet. “Maybe not tomorrow either. At least until Troy isn’t a threat.”
She hated leaving Lou shorthanded, but Shane was right. The last thing she wanted was for Troy to drag the people at Bar None into this mess. “Okay.”
Within a few minutes, the house grew still again, broken only by the occasional giggle and the clatter of bowls and utensils from the kitchen.
Tucker had headed into town with one of the ranch hands to take care of Shylo's things while Shane returned to work in his office down the hall.
Before leaving, he mentioned that a few of the hands would stay close to the house until Troy was found, while the others tended to the cattle and horses.
The ranch couldn't simply shut down because one man had come to town making threats.
The smell of chocolate chip cookies drifted from the kitchen as Mya and Arianna worked side by side, punctuated every few minutes by the young girl's excited chatter. Upstairs, Ashley had awakened from her nap, and Paige had gone to get her.
For the first time all afternoon, Shylo found herself alone with nothing to do.
She took out her phone and found Lou's number in her contacts.
The bar owner answered on the second ring, asking if Shylo was all right.
Dean had already told her Lane had called about Troy.
After Lou was convinced she was safe, Shylo explained what Troy had done and why everyone was looking for him.
“I also wanted to let you know I won't be in tonight and maybe tomorrow night,” Shylo said. “Shane doesn't want me leaving the ranch until they find Troy. I'm sorry.”
“You don't worry about the bar,” Lou assured her. “We'll manage. You just stay put and let the Triple-R boys keep you safe.”
After promising she'd call if anything changed, Shylo ended the call, wandered to the back window, and looked across the ranch.
She couldn't make out many faces from that distance, only the familiar movements of men returning to work.
Shane climbed into one of the ranch's green utility vehicles as a pair of cowboys headed toward the equipment barn.
Another truck rolled slowly toward the south pasture.
She searched the activity for one particular face.
Seth wasn't there.
He couldn't have gone far. She knew that on most days, he worked around the ranch houses, barns, maintenance shop, and office building, fixing whatever needed fixing and keeping the landscaping in order.
Yet she didn't see him anywhere. Or maybe he wanted nothing to do with her and was hiding from her.
Her eyes stung with unshed tears at the thought.
She stayed at the window for another minute, watching the ranch return to its familiar routine.
Horses drifted through the nearest paddock, tails swishing lazily at flies.
The chickens strutted around their pen, pecking at the ground, while one of the barn cats darted behind the building that housed the Triple-R's office staff.
Everything around her seemed to know exactly where it belonged.
She wasn't so sure about herself.
What she did know was that there was one person she needed to talk to.
Whether he wanted to listen was another matter entirely.
Squaring her shoulders, she slipped her phone into her back pocket and headed for the door.
If Seth told her to leave him alone, she'd respect it.
But regardless, he deserved an apology.
Whether or not he accepted it.