Page 10 of Will (The Cowboys of Calamity, Texas #3)

Chapter Six

Will was halfway to Honey’s car when he realized something was wrong. The story she’d told her aunt Cynthia about seeing Ronnie just made little sense.

That bothered him.

He looked over at Honey. She hadn’t said a word since leaving the Baines’ house. Clearly, something was bothering her. Maybe she was tired, or tired of his company. After all, they’d been together for almost twenty-four hours now and not under the best of circumstances.

Unfortunately, that would not change until they caught The Destroyer.

In the meantime, they’d be staying in close quarters so he could keep her safe—and tell her his life story.

He winced at the thought of opening up to anyone, much less a reporter, but once Will Pierce gave his word, he kept it. He just wished Honey would open to him.

Then he had an idea. “Hey, do you mind if I drive?”

“You want to drive my car?”

“Well, if I’m going to be staying here and watching out for you, I should probably know my way around Calamity. And the best way for me to do that is to drive.”

“That makes sense to me.” Honey tossed him the keys. “Besides, I’ve been driving you around since yesterday, including a stop at the county ER and a perilous trek across a dry gully.”

“After all that, it seems only fair for me to have a turn behind the wheel.”

Once they were in the car, Will adjusted the driver’s seat, then strapped on his seat belt. “Where would you like to go first?”

“I suppose we should head to my apartment,” Honey said, “so you can get settled in.”

She gave him the address, and he typed it into the navigation app on his phone. Then he switched on the engine and started down the road.

From what he’d seen so far, Calamity was the prototype for what every small Texas town should be. The tree-lined streets were wide and well kept. There were cute storefronts and busy parks, and people waved as they passed by.

Maybe that’s what Honey was looking at while she stared out the passenger window, not saying a word. But it felt more like she was avoiding him.

He’d been in law enforcement long enough to know when someone was holding back information. The key was understanding the best way to extract that information from them, but in this case, should he even try?

Despite their agreement for him to stay at her place until the threat was gone in exchange for his story, she could still kick him out of her life at any time.

Will didn’t want to risk that happening—not when he was the reason, she needed protection in the first place but he’d been raised to not let things fester, whether it was a physical wound or an inner wound.

“Better to face it head-on,” his father had always said, “instead of letting it eat away at you.”

His fingers flexed on the steering wheel as he made a right turn that led to the Paradise Apartments. Probably the same turn that Ronnie had taken before he’d disappeared.

“My building is the one on the left.” She pointed it out.

But instead of heading in that direction, Will drove straight ahead, intent on his destination.

She turned to him, confused. “What are you doing? My building is on the left.”

“I want to do a little cleanup.” He pulled next to the large metal dumpsters, shifted the car into park, and let it idle so the air-conditioning could keep them cool.

“Huh?”

“For me to do my job right, I need to know the truth, Honey.”

“Truth about what?”

“When you were telling your aunt about seeing Ronnie in this parking lot, something about it just didn’t add up. Call it intuition or plain stubbornness, but we’re staying right here until you tell me the whole story.”

She unbuckled her seat belt, then popped open her car door. “Or I could just go up to my apartment and this whole arrangement could be over.”

Will knew she wasn’t bluffing. He loved a standoff as much as the next guy, but there was something about the stubborn set of her chin and the fiery amber sparks in her brown eyes that made him want her to stay right here.

“Okay, you can keep it to yourself. Especially if you think that will help Ronnie.”

Her shoulders slumped, and she sank back against the seat. “I should have left you in that bar.”

“Well, that’s probably true, but it’s too late now. You should probably just tell me what you know, and we’ll go from there.”

She turned to face him. “I hid in the dumpster.”

For a moment, Will thought he’d heard her wrong. “What?”

“You’re really going make me say it again?” She sat up straighter in her seat. “Fine. I saw Ronnie coming, and I jumped inside the dumpster with my trash bag. Then I hid there until he was gone.”

“You… voluntarily got inside a dumpster?”

“Yes, and that’s the only part I left out when I was telling Aunt Cynthia about it. It’s not a big deal.”

“I disagree. There is an enormous difference between standing outside a dumpster or choosing to get inside a dumpster. How long were you in there, anyway?”

She shrugged. “A good five minutes, although it seemed much longer and there’s something else you should know.”

“Is it worse than hiding inside a dumpster?”

She hesitated. “I would say… maybe? Because when I was hiding in that dumpster, I saw Ronnie through a small hole. He’d seen me in the parking lot and knew I was there somewhere, so he got out of his car and ended up standing right in front of that hole.”

This was not the story that Will had been expecting, but he was fascinated all the same. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her expressive face. “Did he know you were hiding in there?”

“I think he knew I was close by somewhere, although I was hiding. I’d been having problems with him interfering with my stories. He’s like a puppy when he’s excited—enthusiastic, but cheerfully unaware of the messes he makes.”

“And what mess was he trying to make that day?”

“He knew I was writing a story about you, but couldn’t find you for an interview. He was desperate to be involved. When I was hiding in the dumpster, Ronnie told me had a lead about Will Pierce.”

Will froze. “What kind of lead?”

“I’m not sure. But possibly one dangerous enough for someone to want him to stop talking about it. That’s why I didn’t want Aunt Cynthia to know what he’d said to me. I didn’t want her to worry more than she already is. Maybe that was mistake, but—”

“No, you were right.” Will nodded. “We can’t tell her about The Destroyer or the fact that Ronnie might now be in danger, too. The best thing we can do for her is to find her son as soon as possible.”

“You’re right.” Honey said. “But can we eat first because I am starving . Then we can go back to my apartment and get you settled in. Sound good?”

“Sounds great,” he said, his stomach rumbling.

Honey pulled her seat belt back on and snapped it into place. “Let’s go figure out what to do next while enjoying the best pizza in Calamity.”

“You’re on.”

* * *

Later that evening, after a delicious feast of pizza and appetizers, they were both enjoying a second beer at the tavern.

“That was the best pizza I’ve ever had,” Will proclaimed. “How was yours?”

“Wonderful, but I ate way too much.” She leaned back in her chair. “Can you explain something to me?”

“Sure, if I can. What do you want to know?”

“Well, you’re on leave because you have a target on your back. But why aren’t you using a different name or some kind of disguise?” She tipped her head to one side. “Was that your choice? Or the choice of the Texas Rangers?”

“My choice,” he said without hesitation.

“Their choice would’ve been to put me up in some anonymous hotel in North Dakota.

And then I’d have to stay there until it was safe to come home.

I don’t live my life that way.” He gave a small shrug.

“Besides, it’s a time-consuming process to change your identity, and I really wanted to spend my time with Joyce and Dave. ”

Honey smiled. “I can think of another reason you used your real name, even if you’re not aware of it.”

He arched a brow. “I can’t wait to hear your theory.”

She leaned forward, propping her chin on top of her folded hands. “Because some part of you wants The Destroyer to find you and provoke a confrontation. That way, you can catch him and get back to work.”

He nodded. “That’s not a bad theory.”

“Whoa, there, cowboy.” She held up one hand. “I’m not done yet.”

“I should have known.”

“The only reason that you didn’t make a move on Mr. Whiskey Sour at the bar that night was because Steed interfered.

And bar was filling up with people, because of the rain.

People that might have been hurt if you’d confronted Mr. Whiskey Sour.

” She settled back in her chair, almost certain that she was on the right track.

“In fact, you used Steed to get the two of us out of there and removed the threat of Mr. Whiskey Sour altogether.”

Will stared at her for a long moment, then he smiled and lifted his beer glass in salute. “I think the B stands for brilliant.”

Her laughter suddenly turned to a low moan as her stomach cramped. She leaned forward, wincing at the discomfort.

“Are you all right?”

She stood up. “I think I will be.”

Will was at her side in an instant. “I know what you need.”

“An intravenous line of antacid?”

Smiling, he shook his head. “Sorry, but I don’t have any on hand. We’ll have to make do with good old-fashioned fresh air.”

Another cramp seized her stomach, and she bit her bottom lip to keep from crying out. Even worse than the discomfort was the fact that the customers were staring at them.

Will circled his arm around the back of her waist, offering support, then gently turned her toward the door. Too miserable to protest, she let him lead her out of the tavern.

The next thing she knew, they were standing outside the building. She inhaled the night air, then leaned against the sun-warmed brick of the building and closed her eyes.

“Feel better?” Will asked, standing beside her. One of his broad hands still lightly rested on her hip.

Honey took another deep breath of the sweet Texas air, then opened her eyes. “Much better, actually.”

“Good.” His smile made her heart skip a beat. “And just so you know, I like a woman who doesn’t pick at her food like a bird.”

“I’m trying to decide if that’s a compliment.”

“Of course it is! My mom would’ve kicked my butt from here to Waco if I ever insulted a woman.”

She gazed into his silvery-gray eyes and couldn’t seem to look away. “I think she’d be proud of the man you’ve become.”

A muscle flexed in his jaw, and he swallowed hard. The silent moment lingered between them just long to make her self-conscious. Honey had to remind herself that Will would have stayed at the Crossroads Motel instead of with her, if given the choice.

Honey pushed herself away from the wall. “I’m feeling better now. Let’s go home.”