Page 11 of Mystery at Rescue Ridge (Rescue Ridge #5)

T he intruder—stalker?—could be anywhere.

Owen kept that in mind as he walked out the front door with the gun at the ready.

He listened for any sounds of footsteps as he grabbed his rucksack and then returned to the house.

His cell buzzed almost immediately. After checking the screen, he answered the call from Travis.

It took all of three minutes to bring his acting sheriff brother-in-law up to speed on the events. “I took a picture of the footprints. I’ll send them.”

He did. Phones could work miracles when they needed to. Most of the time, he considered his phone an inconvenience.

“I’ll let everyone in my office know what’s going on,” Travis said on a sharp sigh.

A few tracks in the woods or near someone’s house wouldn’t have invoked high panic levels in the past. Everyone was on alert now.

“We’ll be sure to keep watch and send deputies on foot in the area to assist wildlife personnel with the mountain lion as well as the human threat. ”

Humans were responsible for more damage than any other living thing.

From habitat destruction to resource consumption, humans destroyed more ecosystems than any other creature.

It was a staggering thought. He’d witnessed the damage firsthand.

It was a large reason why dangerous predator attacks were on the rise.

They had nowhere to go, nowhere to hunt, and nowhere to thrive.

Animals adapted. Sometimes, that meant encroaching on human settlements. And, sometimes, that meant hunting humans.

But the mountain lion was only attempting to fill a biological need. A human stalker was far worse.

“I’ll need a list of anyone Evie might have had a disagreement with recently,” Travis continued. “And I’ll need to know where she works, along with the names of her co-workers, supervisors, et cetera.”

“Got it.”

Travis was the best. He would be thorough. Without a lucky break, investigations took time. Owen knew all too well, having been held captive for days before being discovered.

“I’ll let Evie know, and I’m sure she’ll be eager to get that information to you as soon as possible.”

Travis thanked Owen before he ended the call.

He plugged his cell back in, emptied the gun, and then set the weapon on the counter with the clip in a dish nearby. With small children in the house, he wouldn’t take a chance. Accidents killed too many folks when simple safety measures like this one saved lives.

“Hey.” Evie’s voice was soft as velvet, delicate almost. He’d missed that voice on the phone and in person.

Turning to look at her, his heart skipped a couple of beats. Her wet red hair fell just past her shoulders. Beads of water trickled down her neck. Emerald eyes took him in. He could stare into those eyes for longer than he cared to admit.

Owen cleared his throat to ease some of the sudden dryness. “I just got off the phone with Travis.” He read off the list of requests from the sheriff.

“Okay.” Her one-word response left him scratching his head. Evie responded with one word when she was nervous. Did he make her feel unsettled?

She walked over to a kitchen drawer and pulled out a pen and paper.

“I’ll grab a shower and be right back,” was all he could think to do or say.

Besides, she needed time to make a couple of lists.

He grabbed his bag and then headed toward the guest bath, stopping at the mouth of the hallway.

“I thought Simone led an anti-gun movement back in high school. Or am I remembering that wrong?”

“Yes.” Evie took a seat at the kitchen table. The oversized rock-n-roll concert shirt and body-hugging leggings revealed just enough curves to stir more of that attraction in his chest—and an ache that caught him off guard.

Since she wasn’t in the mood to elaborate, he registered the surprise that someone could do an about-face.

Then again, he probably shouldn’t read too much into it.

Simone had married a serviceman who’d been deployed.

He might have taught her how to use a gun in his absence, especially since she’d lived out here where the closest house was a ten-minute drive. That would be Ms. Bart’s place.

Owen shed his clothes and hopped into the shower.

He had one of those what-if moments. What if the two of them had taken their relationship beyond friendship as he’d been tempted to do that night at the lake?

What if she’d felt the same electrical current running between them?

What if they could have made a real run at a future together?

Would he still have gone through with the surgery to ensure he couldn’t have children?

He’d never given a second thought to becoming a father until playing with Luca.

Olivia still scared the hell out of him.

Little girls weren’t his forte. A little voice in the back of his mind said it would be different if the girl were his. But Owen wasn’t buying it.

After a quick shower, he shook off the questions running around in his thoughts. What if was one of the most unproductive exercises. Owen didn’t believe in looking back, so why was he doing it?

Evie .

Ever since she’d turned her back on him, he’d wondered what he’d done wrong. Time had convinced him that he no longer cared. Seeing her again had dredged up the truth; he cared. He cared a whole helluva lot.

Probably too much for his own good.

With his protective instincts in high gear, he wouldn’t be able to turn his back on Evie. Not while she was in over her head with the kiddos, and certainly not while there was a stalker in the midst.

Throwing on sweatpants, he joined her in the other room.

“Hey,” she said again with a frog in her throat as she looked at him. Her jeweled gaze glittered in the low light and lingered on his bare chest. The ache expanded, burrowing deep in his soul if he had one.

As he approached, she diverted her gaze.

“Do you want to take a picture of the lists and send it to Travis?” she asked.

“Sounds good.” He did just that, retrieving his cell and then moving next to her to take the picture.

This close, her flowery and citrus scent assaulted his senses, causing his pulse to rise and desire to stir.

Owen issued a sharp sigh before moving away from her.

He studied the list, his gaze focusing on the line that read: no recent relationships. He sent the list to Travis. A response came moments later.

“Travis will stop by in the morning to speak to you,” he said to Evie, fighting the magnetic draw that made his feet attempt to move on their own to get closer to her.

“Okay.”

His muscles tensed, and his hands fisted after setting the phone down. “It’s good to see you again, Evie.”

“You, too, Owen.”

“I meant it when I said it’s been too long.” He took the nearest seat, which had them sitting next to each other. Would she ever tell him what had happened, or would he go to his grave wondering?

“Leaving Saddle Junction was hard,” she said, tapping the end of the pen on the notepad. “Not because of my parents, but because I knew I would miss you.”

“We could’ve stayed in touch.”

Head tilted, mouth clamped shut. She shot him a doubtful look.

“I would’ve stayed on top of charging my phone or called you back when I had battery,” he defended.

She shook her head and studied the notepad. “It’s all water under the bridge now. I’m back. You’re back.” She lifted her gaze. “Are you staying around?”

Telling Owen that hearing his voice might have broken her would do no good now. She leaned forward, half hoping he’d say yes.

“We’re all working well together at the horse ranch,” he said. “We changed the name, and a good portion of our operation involves rescue. No more shooting racehorses that don’t perform.”

“Your father would’ve hated that.”

Owen’s slow smile spread across his straight, white teeth. “We know.”

Beaumont Sturgess hadn’t had one kind word to say to Evie in all the years she’d known Owen, which amounted to most of her life. “Sounds like the perfect revenge.”

“Beaumont made more money than any of us can spend in one lifetime. He cared more about collecting money than anything else, unless you count disciplining his children.”

“He was a hateful man,” she agreed.

“And a terrible father.”

Evie probably shouldn’t go down this road with Owen while she was still feeling so vulnerable.

It was getting late. She should probably excuse herself and go to bed.

Except she feared closing her eyes. Her mind picked that time to think of every mistake she’d ever made and every awful thing that could happen to her.

The thought of leaving the kids without a family member to care for them haunted her.

But her mouth didn’t always obey common sense. “So, how have you really been, Owen?”

She reached over and touched his hand. Immediately, she pulled it back and stared at it. There’d never been a bigger jolt to her system than when she’d made contact with his skin.

Staring at her hand for a long moment after withdrawing it, she wondered how so little contact could create such a big response. The kiss they’d shared years ago, the way she’d known deep down it had been a game-changer, stamped her thoughts. Her lips burned to press against his again.

Sitting this close to the man was a mistake.

The air in the room changed, shifted. Electricity crackled between them.

The urge to lean forward and press her mouth against his was a physical ache—an ache that begged for attention even as she battled against the feelings threatening to consume her.

And that’s just what Owen Sturgess would be… an all-consuming fire.

Still, it was like all powers of decision drained from her, and all that was left was instinct. Raw and primal. Her instincts had her on the brink of taking what she wanted…Owen.

Her heart argued she could kiss him, sate the desire, and then move on. Her brain knew differently. It was anyone’s guess which side would win out.

“Evie…” Owen started.