Page 32 of Critical Alliance (Rocky Mountain Courage 3)

TEN

Even here at Stone Wolf Ranch, surrounded by a thousand acres of a working farm and ranch, cows, sheep and horses, equestrian therapy, and the friends he’d left behind when he fled Montana, Alex kept his protective instincts high. He wasn’t sure what to do about the warning signals going off in his brain when it came to Mackenzie Hanson.

Warning signals he had no practical knowledge of, even given his extensive experience as an RSO—regional security officer, the name given to DSS agents on foreign soil—in a high-threat region. He wished he hadn’t thought about that and took a few calming breaths to push those memories out of his mind. He had to focus on the here and now and be in the present.

With Mackenzie.

Protect Mackenzie.

He’d followed her back to the Hanson cabin and waited downstairs while she changed out of her cargo pants and T-shirt. When she returned, her hair was pulled high into a ponytail, the curled tresses hanging down her shoulders to reveal her long, elegant neck.

She stayed next to him as they approached the front door of the sprawling ranch house that sat in the shadows of Stone Wolf Mountain to the west.

She stopped. “Alex ... are you sure about this?”

He angled toward her. She hugged herself, and her eyes flitted around. Anyone could see that she was nervous and edgy.

No. Not sure at all. “Look, this is something I have to do. You need to eat too. In the meantime, I’m processing what you told me, thinking through possible questions.” He stepped closer and dropped his voice to a whisper. “And I’m protecting you. You asked me to help, remember?”

And he’d told her he would make a few calls. He’d been instructed to get some rest and relaxation, and also stay out of trouble. His SSA knew him too well, he guessed. While he was supposedly “resting,” the last thing he needed was to make another colossal mistake and totally destroy his career in the process.

He had a feeling he’d already stepped into this too deep.

She subtly nodded, still looking out of place.

“In the meantime, you need to relax. You look entirely too edgy.”

“That bad, huh?”

“That bad.”

Scared but determined, she was a woman on a mission. Making nice at a dinner with strangers obviously hadn’t been on her to-do list. His fault. He gently lifted her chin, and she rewarded him with a smile.

A nice smile that he couldn’t tear his eyes from.

“Better?”

“Yes, but don’t overdo it.” He winked.

She scrunched her face at him, then they headed for the house again. Alex glanced around at the farmland where corn, wheat, and alfalfa were grown. To the south behind the house, dense woods backed up to the national forest. He hoped he wouldn’t see a drone hovering in the trees. He suddenly realized that he’d stopped in his tracks and Mackenzie had continued on and now stood at the door, watching him.

“Are you coming or what?” Her wry grin said the rest ... After all, this was your idea.

He jogged forward until he stood next to her, then rang the doorbell. While they waited for someone to answer, he smiled at Mackenzie. Did she sense that he was the one who was nervous now? Bringing her to meet this crowd would raise a lot of eyebrows. He had moved away long ago but tried to keep up with the people who mattered most—his mom, Erin, and Terra. But he hadn’t spent a lot of time with them in the last few years. While he was out of their daily lives, Terra and Erin had found love. Terra and Jack would soon marry, and he suspected it wouldn’t be long before Nathan proposed to Erin.

They were couples who were meant to be together. He was glad they had found their way back into each other’s lives. And in their happiness, they would look at Alex and Mackenzie and gauge their relationship. He knew without a doubt that Erin and Terra were going to ask him questions about Mackenzie he couldn’t answer.

For one, he hadn’t thought through how to introduce her. Friend? Old acquaintance? Girl in trouble? His only thought had been that he didn’t want her to leave his side until they had both come up with a plan.

She arched a brow. “You’re going to say we’re dating, aren’t you?”

“What? No. I hadn’t—”

“Because you’re not going to tell them why I’m here or that you’re helping me.” She crossed her arms and gave him a practiced evil eye.

“Do you use that look on your students?”

“They’re in college. It doesn’t work on them.”