Page 56 of The Wrong Ride Home (Wildflower Canyon #1)

duke

T he barn and stables still smoldered, and smoke curled into the night air.

The scent of burnt wood and fear thickened in my lungs. Firefighters were hosing down the last embers. The fire chief stood near the fence line, hands on his hips, expression grim.

“This wasn’t an accident,” he declared flatly. “From what I can see, and I can’t see much, the fire started in three places at once. Someone meant for this place to burn.”

I clenched my jaw, my body a live wire of rage and unease.

Sheriff Dillon rubbed a hand over his face, looking just as pissed as I felt. “I’ll call in an arson investigator.”

I turned, eyes locking on Elena, sitting on the bed of an EMT truck, her face streaked with soot. She was stubborn as ever, barely wincing despite the burns on her hands, despite the bruises already forming from where she’d thrown herself at Ben to save him.

The sight of her wrecked me.

It was morning by the time everyone settled back. I told Hunt to let the hands take some time. The horses were safe, and thankfully, the cattle were up in the north pasture with some of the crew, well away from the fire.

This time of year, we kept them rotated on fresh grazing land, pushing them toward higher ground where the grass was still good. The fire hadn’t gotten anywhere near them, but if the wind had shifted just right, we could’ve been in a hell of a mess trying to move that many heads in a panic.

Hunt had already checked in—no injuries, no stampedes—just another thing to be grateful for.

I managed to get Elena into the ranch house and to Itzel.

It took me another few hours to get my ass to the house. Not wanting to wake up Elena, I took a shower in one of the guest bedroom bathrooms.

I carefully opened the door to our bedroom and saw her lying on her side.

“Duke,” she murmured.

“You awake, baby.”

“Hmm. Waiting for you.”

I didn’t know how she had the energy to be conscious because I was dog-tired, and I wasn’t recovering from a gunshot wound.

I got into bed next to her .

She was shot! Ben almost died. She almost died. The horses could’ve been hurt. So much could’ve gone wrong. And suddenly, I couldn’t fucking do this anymore.

I leaned against the headboard and closed my eyes. “You said Knox was giving you a job near Austin?”

“Huh?” I looked at her. Her hands were under her cheek on the pillow. She looked young and fucking exhausted.

“Take the job.”

“Huh?”

I growled. “Elena, you need to go…just get the hell outta here as you’d planned.”

She blinked, then let out a short, humorless laugh. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me.” I clenched my jaw, preparing for the fight. “Pack your things. You’re getting the hell out of here.”

Her eyes narrowed.

She sat up, the covers falling off her. She looked like a warrior, bruised, battered, her hair wavy around her gorgeous face, her breasts heaving under the tank top she usually slept in.

“You’re out of your Goddamn mind if you think I’m leaving.”

“Elena—”

“ No .” The word cracked through the air like a whip.

I dragged a hand over my face, frustration and fear tangling in my gut. “It’s not safe here. Someone’s trying to hurt me, and you?—”

“You think I don’t know that?” she snapped, moving closer, her eyes flashing with fire hotter than the Goddamn barn had been. “I was the one who got shot, you dickhead.”

I let out a short, irritated exhale. “Then why the hell are you still here?”

She stared at me, anger flickering in her expression. Then, softly, dangerously, she demanded, “Why are you?”

I stilled.

She leaned closer and put her hand on my chest. I could feel her heat and the lingering smell of smoke in her hair.

“You could’ve sold this place. Could’ve washed your hands of all of it. But you didn’t.”

“Elena—”

“I know why.”

I swallowed, my throat tight.

She tilted her head, her gaze piercing right through my damned soul. “Because you love the land.”

“The land isn’t going anywhere,” I managed to choke out. “But you are.”

She cuddled into me then and drew my arm around her, resting her head on my shoulder. “I thought we were done being afraid.”

I breathed out slowly. She wasn’t asking to hear what she already knew. She was asking if I had the guts to say it. I stroked her shoulder, avoiding the bandages that were still there.

“I can’t lose you.”

“Sending me away would be a sure way to do it. ”

“But you’d be alive,” I said desperately. “Look, it’ll be for a short time and?—”

“I’ll go if you tell me you don’t love me.” She nuzzled her face against me.

“You know I can’t do that.”

“Can we sleep now?” She yawned. “I’m hella tired. You can have your nervous breakdown another time.”

Despite myself, I let out a short laugh. Fuck, but she made me happy.

“So, you won’t go?”

“I’ll go if you do.”

“I can’t.”

“Hmm,” she murmured, her breathing even. “You love me, and I love you, and if you think I’m going to walk away, then you’re crazier than your mama.”

I chuckled at that.

“I’m scared,” I confessed.

“Join the club.” She raised her face sleepily to me, her lips pillow soft. I dropped a kiss and groaned into her mouth, one hand tangling in her hair, the other wrapping around her waist, holding on like she was the only thing keeping me grounded.

She pulled back just enough to whisper, “Say you love me.”

I smiled against her lips. “I love you.”

“Good. Crashing now.” Her head slumped against me, and I shifted so I was on my back, and she was as comfortable as I could make her without letting go.

It would take a while, I thought, before I could have her out of my sight, so it was a big fat joke that I thought I could stand to see her leave the ranch and me.

“I love you,” she mumbled, mostly asleep.

She did, I thought; happiness like I’d never felt shined through the dark, burning the past to ash.

Yeah, we were going to stay together and fight this—we’d move forward without fear.