Chapter 8 The Delivery
M allory didn’t like how quiet Chip was in the backseat.
He was stretched across the whole seat with his feet propped up like Cruz had been on the first leg of the trip.
He was pretending to be asleep, but her gut told her he was faking it.
There was no way any of them could relax at a time like this.
Literally any moment, they could be ambushed again.
She watched out of the corner of her eye as he picked up his gaming device to fiddle with it for a few seconds. Then he tipped his head back against the seat and closed his eyes again. She continued watching him for the next several minutes as he checked and rechecked his gaming device.
It dawned on her that he might not be playing an electronic game after all.
Not for fun, anyway. Instead, it might be his way of communicating with the world outside the truck, and that could be a problem for her and Tucker.
Yeah, Chip’s calls and text messages were being tapped, but was his gaming activity also being monitored? Somehow, she doubted it.
Hoping to draw him into conversation, she stretched and yawned loudly the next time he opened his eyes. “I’m bored,” she announced to no one in particular. “Who would’ve thought that waiting for our next ambush would be this boring?”
Tucker sent her a look that was hard to read. “If you’d like a turn behind the steering wheel, darling…”
“I’m not that bored!” She stuck her tongue out at him. Work with me, cowboy. “I might be bored enough, though, to challenge you in a game of whatever it is you’re playing back there, Chip.” She swiveled around in her seat. “So spill. What has you so glued to your screen?”
“Nothing.” He shoved the electronic device beneath his knees. “I’m trying to nap.” There was a pleading edge in his voice for her to let it go.
Not a fat chance, my friend! Excitement shot through her at the realization that she was definitely on to something. “What’s the point?” she grumbled good-naturedly. “We’re almost there. Twenty minutes tops.”
“Thirty,” Tucker corrected, giving her another one of his hard-to-read looks.
Just having his gaze on her was enough to make her heart skip a beat. “Okay, maybe restless is closer to describing how I feel.” She made a pouty face at Chip. “Nervous. Twitchy. Scared.” She watched his expression for any reaction to the list of adjectives she was tossing at him.
The only word he responded to was scared .
Feeling emboldened, she posed her next question to him. “How scared should I be, Chip?” She was careful to infuse just the right amount of wheedling and despair into her voice.
“What’s there to be scared of?” He muttered the words in such a low voice that she had to strain to hear them.
“Really, Chip?” She shook her head at him. “We’re kind of living in our own little horror movie here, in case you haven’t noticed.”
He raised and lowered his shoulders dismally. “They had their chance with you, and nothing happened. I’d say your disguise is working just fine. My mom thinks you’re visiting a friend from college.”
Mallory elbowed Tucker. “Did you hear that? We can add incredible acting to my growing list of skills.” It was more information than she’d been expecting Chip to volunteer.
Her elation was short-lived, though. If she wasn’t the person the narco rustlers had been targeting, who was?
Chip wasn’t a likely candidate, which left…
Tucker? The thought made her queasy. Why Tucker?
She was the one who’d hired him to investigate the rustlers.
Why weren’t they coming after her instead of him? Or both of them, at least?
Questions were zinging right and left through her head, and it felt like her best bet at answering them was to keep Chip talking.
“All joking aside, I really am scared,” she confided in a threadier voice.
“I’ve lost two more steers on this trip.
” There was nothing fake about her damp sniffle.
“And I had to leave another one behind with Mr. Cavender. If my ranch goes under, I’m gonna lose everything.
” She paused a moment before adding, “Including you and your family, Chip.” Her voice cracked.
Surely, he understood they were at risk of losing their jobs. Did he even care?
“I know.” His mouth grew pinched. “I’m gonna hate leaving Heart Lake behind.”
The regret in his voice tore at her heart. So did his assumption that his leaving was inevitable. What wasn’t he telling her?
“Where will you go next?” she inquired softly .
“Don’t know. Don’t care.” His voice was bitter. “Staying at Evans Ranch is the first time I…” His gaze darted to the back of Tucker’s head. It wasn’t a nervous look. It was a strange one. Resigned and infinitely sad.
Mallory resisted the urge to lean closer to Tucker, sensing he was in grave danger. She tried to shake it off, reminding herself that all three of them were in danger.
But the feeling persisted to the point that she could no longer ignore it. “Chip, I’m gonna let you in on a little secret.”
His eyebrows rose, though he didn’t say anything.
“I don’t despise Tucker as much as I may have led you to believe.”
The steering wheel jerked beneath Tucker’s hands, making the truck shudder. It could’ve been from the winter wind catching the trailer broadside, or it could’ve been from his reaction to her words. She hoped it was the latter.
“As a security guy,” again she watched Chip’s expression closely, “he undoubtedly picked up a few enemies along the way. Just wanted you to know I’m not one of them.”
Chip wasn’t good at hiding his feelings. When she said the word enemies , his grimace was undeniable.
“Truck stop ahead,” Tucker growled. “We’re gonna make one last pit stop.” He veered so abruptly onto the next exit ramp that she reached for the grab bar.
“Uh-oh,” she mocked, catching Chip’s gaze merrily. “Sounds like an emergency.”
His eyes twinkled back at her. “When you gotta go, you gotta go.”
Through her side-view mirror, she could see a number of vehicles exiting the highway behind them. It was impossible to tell which ones were regular folks and which ones were the Feds. The Lonestar Security team was circling in their helicopter overhead.
The moment Tucker brought the truck to a standstill in the parking lot, Chip jetted from the backseat.
Mallory watched him hightail it into the service station. A glance at the backseat told her he’d taken his gaming device with him.
Not good.
Tucker rested an elbow on the console between them and leaned her way. “What are you up to, Mal?”
“Protecting you.” She wrinkled her nose at him, embarrassed that he was forcing her to explain herself. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“Really?” He drawled out the word in a low, gravelly voice that made her heart race. “Because it almost sounded like you were flirting with me.”
“Yes, but,” she gestured wildly between them, feeling a wave of warmth sweep across her cheeks, “it was necessary.”
His expression made her break into hysterical laughter. “So, you are flirting with me?” He couldn’t have looked more astounded.
“Was,” she corrected between giggles. Past tense. “You should see your face.”
“Why?”
She made a pfft sound. “Maybe I can’t help myself,” she teased. “You’re like a walking commercial for western wear.”
His neck turned red. “You’re not just bored. You’ve lost your mind.”
“Probably,” she agreed cheerfully, “but in the spirit of full disclosure, you’re about to have your mind blown as well. ”
“Mal,” he warned. “Whatever you’re thinking of doing, don’t.”
“I have to.” All laughter left her. “Chip made it clear I’m not the one the narco rustlers are targeting.”
“For which I am very grateful.” Tucker scowled at her. “You should be, too.”
She was too fearful for his safety to take comfort in any such thing. “He never said you weren’t a target.”
He shrugged. “Investigators are always in the crosshairs. Welcome to my world.”
“It feels imminent, Tuck. If you saw the way Chip was looking at the back of your head a moment ago…” She stopped in mid-sentence, knowing how foolish she sounded.
“Listen, Mal.” Tucker straightened and opened his door. “I appreciate your concern. I do. But I can take care of myself.”
He leaped to the ground and hurried around the truck to open her door for her.
She pointed at the door, eyes growing wide. “Did you just—?” She stepped on the running board, then hopped to the pavement, chuckling. “Now, who’s flirting?”
Movement at the front entrance of the service station caught her attention. Chip was returning.
She swung into action before she lost her nerve, darting in front of Tucker to slide her arms around his neck. Chip needed to understand how important Tucker was to her.
He’d been in the middle of taking a step, so his hands settled on her waistline to keep from mowing over her. “Mal? What are you…?”
She tugged his head down to touch her lips to his.
His response was immediate. He slanted his mouth over hers, taking them deep. So deep .
The world faded. The rising danger, rumble of motors, and bite of December wind faded beneath the way his heart pounded against hers.
Tucker Pratt didn’t just kiss. He claimed. He possessed. He built a fence around it.
She felt like laughing, crying, dancing, and singing all at the same time. It took a second or two to realize she was doing the first two items on that list.
Tucker raised his head, looking all disheveled and blazing-eyed at her.
Emotions tumbled and crashed over her, too many to sort out. “Tuck, I didn’t mean?—”
“I know.”
“I was just so afraid.” She tightened her arms around his neck, tangling her fingers in his hair. “For us. For you.”
“I get it. It’s okay.” He sounded winded even though they hadn’t started walking yet.