Eight
"Did you steal the bull?" Mort asked.
"Yes," Jesse replied.
"Then where is it?" the rustler demanded.
"In a safe place."
"The Boss is waiting for that bull," Mort said. "You were supposed to bring it here." Mort spat chewing tobacco toward the horse trailer he had brought to transport the bull, and which would apparently be leaving empty.
"Plans change," Jesse said.
Mort's eyes narrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Jesse stared right back at the grizzle-faced cowboy. "I've decided to renegotiate the terms of our agreement."
"The Boss ain't gonna like that," Mort warned ominously.
"If he doesn't like it, I can find another buyer for the bull," Jesse said.
"Now hold on a minute," Mort sputtered. "You can't-"
"Tell your boss to be here at midnight tonight," Jesse interrupted. "I'll be waiting with the bull, but I'll only deal with him in person. Tell him the price is double what we agreed on. In cash-small bills."
Mort was clearly alarmed by Jesse's ultimatum. "You're making a big mistake."
"If he wants the bull, he'll come."
It wasn't a subtle method of getting to the top man, Jesse thought, but it inevitably worked. Greed was like that. Of course he would have to watch out for the also inevitable double-cross. There was always the chance that bullets would start flying. He hoped he'd have enough backup to ensure that the guys in the white hats won.
Mort drove away grumbling, and Jesse got into his pickup and headed in the opposite direction from the Flying Diamond. He felt confident that his business for the Rangers would soon be finished. Then he could concentrate on what really mattered-his relationship with Honey. First he had to see Dallas to confirm the details of their plan to capture the brains behind the brawn tonight.
Jesse might have had second thoughts about how soon things were going to be wrapped up if he had known that his visit with Mort Barnes had been observed by another very interested party.
Honey was sweeping off the front porch when Adam Philips drove up later that same afternoon. She felt a momentary pang of guilt, but it was quickly followed by relief that she had ended their relationship. Considering they were no longer romantically involved, she couldn't imagine why Adam had come calling.
Honey laid the broom against the wooden wall of the house-noticing that it badly needed another coat of white paint-and stepped over to the porch rail. She held a hand over her brow to keep the sun out of her eyes. "Hello, Adam," she greeted him cautiously. "What brings you out here today?"
It wasn't anything good, Honey surmised after one look at the grim line of Adam's mouth. His features only seemed to get more strained as he left the car and headed up the porch steps toward her.
"Have a seat," Honey said, gesturing toward the wooden swing that hung from the porch rafters. She set a hip on the porch rail, facing the swing.
Adam sat down but abruptly jumped up again and marched over to stand before Honey. "How much do you really know about that man you hired to help around here?"
"Not a lot," Honey admitted with a shrug. "He has a degree in ranch management and-"
"Did it ever occur to you to wonder why a man with a degree in ranch management is content to work as a mere hired hand?'' Adam demanded.
Honey stared at him. It hadn't, of course. She hadn't questioned anything about Jesse's story. Which was why his revelation that he was a Texas Ranger had caught her so much off guard. It was clear Adam was still suspicious of Jesse's motives. But there was no reason for him to be. "You don't have to worry about Jesse," she said.
"What makes you so sure?"
"Because he's a Texas Ranger."
"What?" Adam looked stunned.
Honey grinned. "He's working undercover to catch the rustlers who've been stealing cattle around here. I don't think he'll mind that I told you, but keep it under your hat, okay?"
Adam gave her a sharp look. "Did you know all along that he was a Texas Ranger?"
"I only found out myself this morning," she admitted.
Adam stuck his thumbs into the pockets of his Levi's. He pursed his lips and shook his head ruefully. "Looks like I've been a real fool. I thought that he- Never mind. I'll be going now. I've got some calls to make before dark."
"Adam," Honey called after him.
He stopped and turned back to her. "Yes, Honey?"
"Don't be a stranger."
A pained expression passed fleetingly across his face. He managed a smile and said, "All right. But don't look for me too soon, all right?"
"All right. Goodbye, Adam."
Honey worked alone the rest of the afternoon. She was grateful for Jack's absence because it gave her time to come to terms with Jesse's revelation that he was a Texas Ranger. Equally fortunate, she was spared Jesse's presence as well. He had left earlier to run some errands and hadn't returned.
Maybe it was better that they didn't spend too much time alone. Last night had been a moment out of time, almost too good to be true. It had certainly been too perfect to expect it to last. If only…
Honey thought about what she would have to give up to have Jesse in her life. Having a partner to share the responsibility of the ranch and to be there when she needed him, for one thing. She had sworn when Cale died that she would never marry another man who didn't put her needs, and the needs of the Flying Diamond, at least on an equal footing with his profession.
Although Adam's work as a doctor would have taken him away on occasion, his free time would have been devoted to her. He was wealthy enough to have hired a local man, Chuck Loomis, whose ranch had gone bust, to manage the Lazy S. Honey knew Adam also would have hired the help necessary to take care of the Flying Diamond and preserve it as a heritage for her sons.
Over the past fourteen years, Honey had fought the steady demise of her ranch. But her efforts alone-while Cale had been off fighting badmen-hadn't been enough to make all the repairs needed. The Flying Diamond was a shabby shadow of what it had been in the years when Cale's father had devotedly nurtured it.
She owed it to her sons to marry someone who could help her bring the Flying Diamond back to its former glory. Jesse could help her make it happen if he devoted himself full-time to running the ranch. But Honey couldn't imagine him being willing to leave the Texas Rangers for any reason, least of all because she asked it of him.
Even if she swallowed her pride and shouldered all the burdens of the Flying Diamond, she would still have to face the constant fear of losing Jesse to an outlaw's bullet. She couldn't bear the constant strain of not knowing whether he would come home to her at the end of the day.
The case Jesse was working on right now was a good example of what she could expect if he didn't quit the Rangers. He had told her the men he was hunting weren't just rustlers, they were murderers. They had killed a rancher in Laredo. If they ever found out a Texas Ranger had insinuated himself in their organization…Honey shuddered at the thought of what would happen to Jesse.
She hadn't forgotten what it felt like when she'd heard that Cale had been killed in the line of duty. She didn't ever want to suffer through that kind of anguish again. In the few weeks he had been around, Jesse had made a place for himself in her life and in her heart. She didn't want to contemplate how she would suffer if something went wrong and he was killed.
"Penny for your thoughts?"
Honey nearly fell backward over the porch rail. Jesse reached out and caught her, pulling her into his embrace. Honey's arms circled his broad shoulders and she looked into his amused face.
"Nearly lost you," he said. "What were you daydreaming about?"
She wasn't about to admit she had been worrying about him. "I was just thinking what good weather Jack has for tubing on the river."