Page 34 of The Unbuttoned Ranger (Texas Heat: The Heart of a Texas Ranger #1)

Two hours later, they were well out of the city, having made two stops.

One, for gas and coffee, and another at a Western apparel shop off the interstate.

Mateo instructed her to stay in the truck while he went inside.

She probably would have drawn too much attention in her ripped and dirty dress and bare feet.

He returned with three plastic bags and a travel bag adorned with horses and lassos for handles. He laid the items in her lap.

He wasted no time in getting back onto the highway.

She sifted through the bags, examining each article of clothing, each one less her style than the last. “I’m unsure if I’ll be in a safe location or an episode of Yellowstone .”

She slid the pair of flip-flops on her feet, glad they were her size.

“I don’t think you’re in the position to be choosy.”

“Noted.” After putting the items into the overnight bag, she zipped it and tossed it into the backseat. “Since we’re stuck in this truck, I have you cornered. How’s Adriana?”

“What about her?” A tense undercurrent filled his voice.

“She is your wife.”

“We haven’t talked in a while.”

“Is she coming home?” Mercy and Adriana formed a close friendship when Mateo first introduced her.

She seemed like the ideal partner for him.

While Mercy was uncertain about the issues in their marriage, she hoped her brother would make the effort to save his relationship with his wife. He could be bullheaded at times.

“I don’t have the energy to talk about her.”

‘So that means you two aren’t even discussing getting back together?”

“This isn’t the time for a lecture,” he said irritably.

“That’s never stopped you in the past,” she said flippantly.

“She doesn’t want to be married to someone who is married to his job. I can’t change who I am.” He rolled down the window, allowing the cool evening air to come in.

“She knew who you were when she married you. Where are you taking me?” She didn’t recognize any of the landmarks.

“You’ll be safe. Just promise to stay out of trouble.”

“Are you keeping the location a secret? I have a right to know.”

“No, I’m not keeping it a secret. I’ve asked a friend to meet us —someone I know I can trust, someone you can trust. I think I’ve done a good enough job of safeguarding that no one is trailing us.” He reached into the backseat and placed a brown paper bag into her lap.

“I can’t wait to see what else you've got me?” She looked inside. “Why did you give me a gun? Is it necessary?”

“In my line of work, we know there are never too many precautions we can take. I know you don’t like weapons, but take it. You remember how to use one, right?”

“Daddy always said shooting a gun was like riding a bike. Once you learn, you never forget. Thirty years in the police force meant everyone around him knew how to use a gun. Who’s the friend?”

“Promise me you’ll hear me out.”

“Do I have any other option besides jumping out of a moving vehicle?”

He chuckled. “You’ve done a lot of stupid things in your lifetime, but I’m sure that’s a line that even you won’t cross.”

“Excuse me? Says the man who jumps out of airplanes and climbs big mountains for a rush,” she retorted.

“Jag.”

She almost jumped out of her skin. “I think I misheard you? I thought you said Jag as in Constantine Jagerson, which can’t be happening because the last I heard, he was in special ops getting shot up in Kuwait.”

“He was, but now he’s retired from his contract and living in some small town working a ranch and for a security company. The perfect place for you to be safe.”

“Not happening. Turn this vehicle around or I will jump out.” She placed her hand on the door, making it clear she was serious.

“I thought you might say that, so I flipped on the child’s lock.”

“You think you’re cute, don’t you?”

“You don’t have a choice.”

“If you stick Jag and me together, we won’t have to worry about some dangerous criminal. I’ll strangle Jag with my bare hands.”

“I know you two don’t get along, but the only one I know I can trust is Jag.”

Mateo would feel differently if he knew the complete story.

A part of her wanted to blurt out to him that she and Jag had a complicated history.

After having a crush on him since she was eighteen and having him ignore her for just as long, she and Jag tested the waters at Mateo’s wedding.

After an evening of drinking and dancing, they found themselves in her hotel room, having the most incredible sex she’d ever experienced.

She’d been foolish to think he’d finally see her as more than Mateo’s little sister because she woke to an empty bed the next morning. Jag had disappeared without so much as a goodbye or kiss my ass.

When she ran into him again, which had only been unavoidable on those occasions , she gave him the cold shoulder. What type of man gives a woman the night of her life only to disappear the next morning?

Constantine Jagerson, that’s who.

Telling her brother that she and his best friend slept together would only break up their friendship.

“You two are adults. I’m sure you can get along for a week or two. Lives depend upon this,” he said.

“He has the emotional capacity of a rock.”

“Maybe, but he’s trustworthy. He’s one of the best.”

“I can’t do this. I refuse to be near him,” she said, her words echoing into what she felt like were deaf ears.

“This is the only option.”

“So you say.”

“I do say.”

“Fine! I’ll agree to do this if you speak to your wife. You know, the woman you married because you were in love.”

“Mercy—”

“No,” she cut him off. “If you want me to trust Jag, then you need to trust me when I say you and Adriana need to talk. You both have too much pride.”

“I don’t know what you think speaking to her will gain—”

“I just want my brother to be happy.”

“Okay. I’ll speak to her. We’re almost to the drop-off point.”

She pulled down the visor and checked herself in the lighted mirror. She looked exactly like a woman who’d been kidnapped, crawled through an air vent, and was shot at in some dank alley.

This day just kept getting better and better.