16. Cord
16
CORD
I leveled my gun and aimed at the sonuvabitch who pressed his weapon to Sam’s side. His eyes met mine, and in them, I saw pure evil. I was about to pull the trigger when, instead of Sam, Jimmy held the gun against Juni.
“No!” I shouted, racing toward him. “No!”
“Cord! Wake up! You’re dreaming.”
I opened my eyes and looked into Juniper’s. “He had you.” The words caught in my throat.
She cupped my face with her palm like she had earlier, then stroked my forehead with her fingertips. “It’s okay. It was just a dream,” she whispered.
“I wanted to kill him.”
“But you didn’t, and now Sam is safe, and so am I. Go back to sleep. I’ll be right here, next to you.”
I didn’t want to, but the exhaustion I felt was too much for me to fight against. Especially when Juni gently ran her fingers through my hair like my mama used to do. I remembered that now. When I couldn’t sleep, she’d sit beside me and do exactly what Juni was.
The next time I woke up, I could hear beeping coming from the kitchen. I moved the blankets, tightened the belt of the robe I still had on, and padded into the kitchen, where Juni was fussing with the microwave.
“Sorry,” she said. “I can’t get it to shut off.”
“It does that after the power comes back on.” I hit the button to set the clock, which would make the beeping stop. “What time is it, anyway?”
“A little after seven.”
“Shit.” I went over to the window and looked outside. Or I would’ve if it wasn’t obscured by a wall of snow. “I need to check with the guys.” I glanced around, trying to remember where I’d left my phone.
“It’s here,” Juni said, picking it up from the dining room table. “It was in your jacket pocket.”
I went into the bedroom and got dressed. When I returned to the sofa, I noticed all the clothes I’d had on the night before spread out on the hearth of the fireplace.
“Shit,” I repeated when I swiped the screen and saw how many messages had piled up. One said the crew had already checked and the cattle were still secure where we’d herded them the night before.
By the time I’d gotten out to the main barn last night, I realized there was no way in hell we could take the horses out. Instead, we’d piled into trucks and got every one of the herd we could find moved to the closest shelter. I’d driven out the main gate, remembering a back road that would get me to the farthest pasture. Right as it closed behind me, I saw a car drive up and park. When I stopped and asked the kid who had climbed out if I could help him, he told me he was Buck, who I’d spoken to earlier. Rather than sending him to the barns, I told him to climb in, and he rode out with me.
Thankfully, the estate had five large barns in various places on the property where we’d herded as many animals as we could before trying to get the rest to the next closest. I doubted we’d been able to locate them all last night and get them sheltered, but we’d done the best we could.
I read the next message. It was from my brother Buck, saying Maverick Morris had made it through surgery. He was still critical, but they expected him to pull through. His text was delivered at three my time. Since it was five their time now, I didn’t return the call. I would later, though.
Holt had sent a message too. I put my head in my hands when I read that Porter was in jail. “Fucking Port,” I said under my breath. I felt Juni sit beside me and reached for her to sit on my lap instead. “Do you know how grateful I am for you right now?” I said, burying my head between her shoulder and jaw.
She didn’t say anything, but she held her soft body against mine, and that’s what I needed more than anything right now.
“Cord? What happened yesterday? Can you talk about it?”
After the nightmare I’d had, I figured telling Juni might help me work it out of my system. I sighed. “Sam and I had our DNA tested, then got lunch before returning to the Lilacs. Since Decker confirmed no one from Schultz would be at the winery, Beau wanted to see the layout and inspect the equipment. Sam and I went with him. Maybe a half hour later, she said she wanted to go up to the house and make some calls.”
“With you so far,” she said softly.
“She was gone less than five minutes when alerts from the security system went off on my cell and Beau’s. The surveillance footage loads immediately, so we could see a live version of the breach.” I rolled my shoulders when every muscle in my body tightened. “Jimmy Rooker had Sam with a gun held to her side.”
She gasped. “Oh my God.”
“Beau and I took off running, and by the time we reached where they were, Decker and some of the other guys had them surrounded. I aimed right at the fucker’s kneecap, and when I saw his trigger finger move, I shot him. Looking back on it, Decker was right to be pissed at me for doing it. In the split second it took for the bullet to hit him, he could’ve shot Sam.”
“But he didn’t.”
“No. He didn’t. But I gotta tell you, my instincts told me, if he killed her, I’d be next on his list.”
“You did what you believed you had to.”
“All I could think afterwards was how in the hell did I get here? I’d gone from riding our ranch in Colorado, wrangling cattle and doing other shit like mending fences, to thinking my life might be in danger. Not to mention, fearing for the life of a woman who I might be related to.” She squeezed my hand, and I leaned into her. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
“Me too.”
“It was the look in his eyes that really got to me. I saw so much hate. I can’t say I’ve ever encountered anyone I believed was pure evil. Not even my dad, and he was one of the biggest assholes I’ve ever known.” I scrubbed my face. “Sorry, can we change the subject?”
“Of course.”
“What do you say we make breakfast?”
“Sounds great.” When she smiled, I felt warm all over. How was it that a woman I’d known less than a month could come to mean so much to me? I wouldn’t say it out loud, but right now, I never wanted her to leave.
“I’d offer to make it on my own, but I have a feeling you’re a better cook than I am.”
She smiled. “Before we get started, is your brother okay? Have you heard anything?”
I told her that the driver of the other vehicle had made it through surgery and the prognosis was good. I also said that I was waiting until later this morning to call for an update on Porter, but Holt told me he’d spent the night in jail.
I took eggs and bacon out of the fridge. Thankfully, everything was still cold. I checked the freezer too, and it didn’t show signs that anything had thawed. Looking at the snow covering most of the kitchen window, it didn’t look like anything was melting outside either.
“I, uh, am not sure when I’ll be able to take you home,” I said, setting the stuff on the counter.
“I know, but as I told my mom, I’m safe and warm and would rather my dad and brother refrain from trying to come get me.” Her forehead furrowed.
“What?” I asked.
“Clothes.”
“You’re welcome to wear some of mine. You’ll swim in them, but if you don’t mind, I won’t either.”
“Maybe just so I can wash what I’m wearing.”
Picturing Juni in nothing but one of my flannel shirts made me instantly hard as a rock. “Come here, girl,” I said, pulling her into my arms. “I gotta kiss you.” I put my arm around her waist and pulled her closer, just not enough that the lower half of our bodies touched. I cupped her cheek with my palm and stared into her eyes. “I’m gonna need you to tell me what’s okay and what’s not.”
She put both hands on my chest. “I was going to say the same thing to you.”
I chuckled. “If you leave it to me, I’ll have you naked and in my bed—the hell with breakfast. ”
Her cheeks flushed, and her eyes bored into mine.
“ But the last thing I want to do is push you into a physical relationship you might not be ready for.”
“There are so many uncertainties,” she murmured.
“I agree.” I kissed her forehead, then released her.
“When you said you had to kiss me, that isn’t exactly what I had in mind.”
I was about to give her one more like what I’d had in mind when I heard a snowmobile outside. Seconds later, I received an alert on my phone from the security system. I checked the live footage, but couldn’t tell who the person getting off the sled was until he removed his helmet and I saw it was Beau. He grabbed something from the back and walked toward us, carrying a shovel. “Beau’s here to dig us out,” I told Juni.
Based on how high the drifts were by the windows, I figured they were equally as high outside the door, so I knew better than to open it.
“Sam sent a message twenty minutes ago, saying he was on his way to check on us, but it didn’t come through until just now,” said Juni. “I guess they tried to call, but didn’t get an answer.”
I had my phone on and the volume up in case I heard from any of my crew or from one of my brothers. I walked over and checked, but didn’t see an alert. “Cell coverage must be intermittent.”
I could hear Beau shoveling for several minutes, followed by a knock on the door.
“Hey, come on in,” I said, looking beyond him. He’d dug out a path from the snowmobile up to where we now stood. All around it, the snow had to be piled up at least four feet. I could see higher drifts too.
He stomped his feet and brushed the flakes off his jacket. “Sam sent me down to make sure you were both all right.”
“Hey, sorry about not bringing the SUV back up to the house last night,” I said.
He shrugged. “We wouldn’t be going anywhere, anyway. The roads are all closed, which also means a plow can’t get here to clear the driveway.”
“My weather app says more is on the way,” said Juni, walking over and handing her phone to me.
“Damn. It’s saying maybe another two feet.”
“We’re in for the duration,” said Beau, who then turned to Juni. “Sam was wondering if you wanted me to give you a ride up to the house. She thought maybe you could kill some time, going through Cena’s journals. ”
I had different thoughts about how we could kill time. In fact, if Juni had to stay a week or longer, I had plenty of ideas to keep us busy, none of which involved wearing clothes.
“It’s up to you,” I said when her eyes met mine.
“I could give her a lift, then come back for you,” Beau offered.
“Are there any more of those on the property?” I asked, pointing to the sled.
“At least three or four. My understanding is they’re stored in the back of the barn.”
“Which barn?”
“The one on the other side of the trees.”
Which was the closest to the cottage. I shook my head. Had I known that last night, I would’ve gone out on one myself and asked a couple of others to as well. We might’ve found more of the herd by utilizing both snowmobiles and trucks. Once this storm was over, it was time for me to clean house and hire a new group of cowboys.
I realized both Juni and Beau were looking at me as though they expected me to say something.
“I’ll check in with the crew, then come up to the house. ”
“I almost forgot. Sam asked me to inform you the main residence has a generator. Given there’s more snow on the way, it might be a good idea for you to plan to spend the night there,” said Beau.
Not exactly where I envisioned cuddling Juni’s sweet body next to mine later, or even now, but it was for the best.
“Don’t stay out in the cold too long,” Juni said, walking over to me. “Right now, it’s negative ten, and it’s supposed to drop even more.”
“Bloody hell,” Beau muttered.
“What’s wrong?” Juni asked.
“I can’t very well take you up to the house without something like this.” He motioned to the full-body snowsuit he was wearing.
“Maybe there are some in the barn,” I suggested.
“Or there’s the one I left at the house. I’ll be right back.” He put on the helmet and walked out the door.
“Are you sure you don’t mind?” Juni asked.
“Staying at the main house?”
She nodded.
“The truth?” I asked.
“Please. ”
I put my arms around her waist. “If I could spend every minute of the next few months alone with you, I would.”
She tried to hide it, but I felt her muscles tense. Why had I said months when what I really meant was every day for the rest of my life?
I dropped my arms from around her, took a couple of steps back, and scrubbed my face. The rest of my life? Jesus. Where had that come from?
“Juni, listen?—”
“I get it, Cord. You’re marking the days off on the calendar until you can return to Colorado.” She walked over to pick her jacket up from a peg near the door. Put it and her gloves and hat on, then stood near the window.
“It isn’t like that,” I said, standing next to her.
“No? If someone called and said you could go home right now, or as soon as the snow cleared, I bet you’d be on the first flight out. Wouldn’t you?”
“Probably, yeah, but not just because I’d want to leave. There’s a lot of shit goin’ on at the Roaring Fork right now. My brother’s in jail, and God knows what he’s gonna be charged with. He may even face a prison sentence. In the meantime, the roughstock business he and I partner in is going to lose the little momentum we’ve managed to build. We may never be able to regain it, either.”
“I get it. You have a full life in Colorado.”
“And you have a full life here.”
We both heard the snowmobile pull up. When Beau came inside with snow gear, she removed her jacket, and he helped Juni into the suit, not me.
“See you later?” he asked.
“Maybe,” I responded when Juni walked out without saying a word.