Page 22 of Will (The Cowboys of Calamity, Texas #3)

Very warm.

A low moan sounded in his throat, then he wrapped his arms around her waist and picked up her up off the floor in one easy motion.

“Will,” she breathed, “wait…”

He’d already begun to lower her onto the bed, and momentum carried her the rest of the way.

A dozen needlelike objects stabbed her lower back and hips.

She cried out in pain. “The miniatures,” she said through a tight gasp.

She rolled to one side to escape the sharp helmets and tiny swords, but the thumb-sized troops scattered across the bed prevented her retreat.

Before she could move, Will quickly swept her up in his arms again. “Honey, I’m so sorry. I didn’t see those on the bed. I just saw you and wanted—”

“I know,” she whispered, circling her arms around his neck. “Me, too.”

She melted against his bare chest as he kissed her again, but footsteps on the staircase forced a halt to Will’s much-welcomed advances.

“Honey?” Theo called out. “Are you okay?”

She groaned at the intrusion, and Will set her on her feet. Her brother must have heard her cry out when she’d been attacked by an army of medieval miniatures.

“I’m fine,” she called back to him. She didn’t bother to step out of the warm circle of Will’s arms. “I just poked myself with something sharp.”

“Okay,” Theo said. “I’m fixing lunch now. It will be ready in about ten minutes.”

“Perfect, thanks,” she called back.

One look at the disappointment on Will’s face, and she knew the moment had passed.

Will slowly loosened his grip on her hips.

“Now what?” he asked, tenderly brushing a lock of hair from her cheek.

Their moment of opportunity and distraction now gone, Honey took a deep breath and turned her attention to other matters.

Certain he was going think she was baffling, she said, “Now we investigate Ronnie’s socks.”

* * *

“Did you just say we need to investigate Ronnie’s socks?” Will asked.

He looked so bewildered that she smiled. “That’s exactly what I said. Look, I know it’s a long shot, but hear me out. We’ve already gone through Ronnie’s journal and all the other items in that shopping bag with a fine-tooth comb.”

“I think I’ve memorized almost every word of his journal,” Will said. “Now I’m just trying to forget most of them.”

“Exactly! So, let’s focus on something new.”

“His socks?” he said, his tone wry.

Honey could tell he wasn’t impressed with her idea. She could do this on her own, but she’d rather do it with Will by her side.

And not just because she was falling in love with him.

“Why not?” she asked. “We’ve examined everything else, and it’s not like we have any new clues to go on.”

His brow furrowed with concern. “Your idea sounds a little odd. You know that, right?”

“I don’t care,” she said. “And I’m not saying those socks are the key to solving Ronnie’s disappearance. But I’ve been an investigative reporter long enough to know that you follow every clue, no matter how insignificant.”

He looked unconvinced. “What kind of clues will we learn from his socks?”

“Clues like when did he buy them? Why did he buy them?” She shrugged. “Just looking at them through the package, they don’t even look like gym socks to me. Although I’m no expert.”

“Well, I’ve spent time in plenty of gyms, and I agree with you. Most gym socks don’t come with that fancy ribbon on the package, either.”

Will leaned in and studied the words on the gold foil ribbon. “Limited Edition.”

Honey tapped a finger on the toe of the sock. Under the clear packaging, the specialized logo on the ribbon was repeated on the fabric. The artistic element could have been a mountain or running legs. Maybe both.

“I bet that added half the cost to the socks,” he said. “It looks like it’s from a high-end store.”

She smiled. “You’re probably right. I did some quick research, and there’s only one store in Calamity that sells this brand of sock.”

“Maybe they’ll have a copy of the receipt,” Will said. “Because I didn’t come across one in the bag.”

“Neither did I. And I just looked through it again. If the store does have a copy, we’ll see the date Ronnie bought them and maybe even have time to talk to the clerk who sold them to him.”

Will took a step closer to her, his gray eyes darkening with concern. “Even after talking with Steed and Ronnie’s own mother, you still think he’s been abducted and hasn’t just run off on his own?”

“I don’t know,” she said, with a long sigh. “But I can’t stop looking for Ronnie until I know for certain that he’s safe, because—”

“Wait a minute,” Will said, “are you still blaming yourself for this? Because that dumpster dive you took to avoid him that day is not the reason he’s missing.”

“It might be, and that’s why we have to find him. Because if Ronnie stays missing, I’ll always wonder if I’m the reason why.”

He placed his hands on her shoulders, giving them a gentle, encouraging squeeze. “You’re something else, Honey B. Hallgren. And the B stands for…”

“Bad cousin,” she interjected. “Now I just want to make it right.”

She stepped into his arms and gazed up at him. “Silly idea or not, I’m going to that store after lunch. You can stay here at the ranch if you want. I won’t hold it against you, but I’m going there to see what I can scope out about Ronnie. And I’m going to keep asking questions until I find him.”

“Oh, I’m definitely going with you,” he said. “This is probably my one and only opportunity to investigate socks.” He laughed. “I guess there really is a first time for everything.”