Page 17 of Wyoming Bodyguard (Sunrise Security #1)

A stirring at Madden’s side broke into his slumber and tempted him to open his eyes. He didn’t want to be roused from sleep. Didn’t want to be forced from the bed to tackle the day. Not when he had a warm, beautiful woman next to him.

Last night had taken an unexpected turn. He’d planned to quietly nurse his injury and get some shut-eye. He’d never imagined confessing his secrets to Lily. Then she’d shocked the hell out of him more than once. First with her compassion and kindness, then when she kissed him.

He bit back a groan as the memory made his body burn.

He’d have loved nothing more than to strip her naked in her bed and do wicked things to her all night long.

But what was happening between him and Lily was new, hell, was special.

Instead of rushing and burying himself in her, he’d spent hours learning the curves of her body.

Tasting and teasing, leaving them both satisfied but with a promise of so much more to come.

Lily squirmed beside him, as if waging an internal battle against waking.

Needing to touch her, he hooked an arm around her waist and pulled her against him. The oversize T-shirt she fell asleep in bunched at her hips. Her bottom nestled against his groin, reigniting the flames of desire that hadn’t been extinguished the night before.

He swept her long, light strands of hair over her shoulder and pressed his lips against the base of her neck. His fingers inched up the soft curve of her side to find the now-hard nipple on her full breast.

She moaned and her ass backed harder into him, as if her entire body urged him for more.

He flicked his thumb against her nipple as his other hand skimmed over her flat stomach and slid into her panties. He glided downward until he dipped his fingers into her wetness.

Gasping, she reached up an arm to cradle the back of his neck.

He trailed kisses to her collarbone as he moved his fingers inside of her. The smell of her sex taunted his senses.

She bucked her hips against him, her breath now short and frantic.

He matched her pace, his heart in his throat. His member throbbing as she bounced against it.

Her muscles tensed and she threaded his hair between her fingers, tugging gently until her body went lax and she sighed and turned to face him. “Well, that was one hell of a way to wake up.” Grinning, she sealed her mouth on his.

He held her close, his internal pledge to take things slow evaporating into thin air.

No matter the pace they took, he had no doubt what he wanted.

Lily was smart and beautiful. Compassionate and sincere.

She was nothing like the woman he’d assumed her to be, and he’d kick his own ass for wasting so much time embroiled in some bullshit rivalry neither of them truly understood.

Lily broke their kiss and propped herself up on her elbow. Her lips were swollen, and cheeks flushed. Lust darkened the blue in her eyes. “Last night was amazing,” she said. “And this morning’s been pretty great already, but I think we can make it even better.”

He cradled her jaw in his hand. “Are you sure? I don’t want to push you.”

Turning his wrist, she pressed a kiss in his palm. “There’s a lot of things I’m not sure of, but you aren’t one of them.”

Something inside of him melted into a pile of mush and happiness. On a growl, he pounced, pinning her beneath him.

Giggling she tucked the tips of her fingers into the front of his gym shorts.

He hissed out a breath, anticipation beating a steady drum in his head.

The blast of the doorbell exploded into the moment, followed by heavy pounding on the door.

Eyes wide, Lily stilled.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” He fell to the mattress and took a second to compose himself. His entire body screamed to ignore whoever the hell was demanding their attention, but he couldn’t. Not with everything else happening outside of this perfect cocoon.

The bell rang again before the pounding continued.

“Something’s wrong. It has to be,” Lily said, sitting up and scooping her phone from the nightstand. She frowned. “No one called. Who’s here so early?”

Jumping to his feet, Madden searched for his own phone, then muttered curses under his breath.

With his haste in getting Lily’s ass into bed, he’d left his phone plugged into the charger in the living room.

“I need to look at the security app. At least the camera we installed should tell us who’s up there. ”

“Okay. I’ll get dressed really quick.”

He grimaced as she searched through her drawers for clothes, but he couldn’t linger. He hurried to the spot where he’d left his device and pulled up the app for the doorbell. Lily’s old ranch hand stood on the front porch, his weathered face puckered into a scowl and arms crossed over his chest.

He pressed the button to connect to the sound system on the doorbell. “Charlie, it’s Madden. I’ll be there in a second.”

Charlie’s head reared back as if the voice coming through to him came from the heavens. If Madden’s nerves weren’t stretched so damn tight, he’d laugh.

Lily came out of her room just as he pulled a T-shirt over his head and stepped out of his shorts and into a pair of jeans.

“Did you say Charlie’s here?” she asked.

“Yeah. Told him I’d be up in a second. He doesn’t look happy. Is it normal for him to stop by and speak with you or your dad first thing in the morning?”

Worry creased her forehead. “Not at all, and I’m going with you.”

Before he started up the stairs, he gathered her close and gave her a quick kiss. “I wouldn’t expect anything else.”

He kept the image of her saucy grin in his mind as he bounded up the stairs, Lily at his heels. He made a beeline to the door and yanked it open. “Morning, Charlie. What’s going on?”

The hard look Charlie gave him made his skin crawl, as if Lily’s trusted ranch hand knew exactly what he interrupted and didn’t approve. “I need to speak to Ms. Tremont. Now.”

Lily stepped around Madden and squinted against the sun. “I’m right here.”

“There’s something you need to see,” Charlie said, frowning.

Lily slipped on a pair of sandals while Madden pulled on his boots.

Charlie waited until they were ready then led them down the porch steps to the big red barn. He didn’t speak, which only heightened the tension. He rounded the corner to the back of the large structure then flicked his wrist toward the side.

Lily gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.

Madden stared up and rage heated his blood. Someone had left a message in big, white letters.

YOU’RE NEXT .

* * *

Angry tears flooded Lily’s eyes. She held them back. She was done letting some asshat swoop in and try to destroy her and her family—tired of the pain and fear.

Now she was mad.

“Does your app show who did this?” she asked Madden as she struggled to keep her voice from shaking.

Madden fiddled with his phone then shoved it in his pocket. The pissed-off expression on his face gave away his answer before he even spoke. “No. I didn’t put cameras up on the back side of the barn, and the camera on the front didn’t catch anything.”

She turned to Charlie with clenched fists anchored on her hips. “Did you see anyone when you got here?”

He shook his head, his scowl broadcasting his own fury. “Not a soul.”

Madden moved his jaw back and forth, his narrowed gaze staring at the ugly message. “How’d you know to come over here?”

Charlie focused all his negative energy on Madden.

He glowered, face pinched and red. He stalked toward him, his finger raised and shaking.

“I’m sick ’n’ tired of you and all your questions.

If I had anything to do with this or anything else that’s going on around here, would I have woken Ms. Tremont? Would I have run and told her?”

“Not sure,” Madden said, tilting his head to the side. His hair stuck up in a disheveled mess. “Maybe you wanted to see her upset? Could be you want to throw suspicion off yourself. There’s a whole slew of reasons for bad people to do stupid things. That’s usually why they get caught.”

“You little son of a bitch!” Charlie lunged forward and grabbed Madden by the front of his shirt. “It’s about time someone taught you some manners.”

“Stop it!” Lily screamed.

Madden threw his palms in the air, but a sinister glow lit his eyes.

Charlie drew back his fist, and Lily latched on to his elbow.

“I said stop. We have enough problems to deal with around here without any more trouble. Charlie, I already told you that Madden’s here to help, so stop taking his question so damn personally.

And Madden, try to be a little more diplomatic.

Charlie’s a good man who has my trust and respect.

No reason to question him like a criminal. ”

“Like Daniel?” Madden asked, hands in the air.

Charlie kept a firm grip on Madden’s shirt, but his shoulders dropped as his initial anger leaked from his system. “What’s Daniel got to do with anything?”

Madden stared around Charlie to lock his gaze with hers. “You want to tell him, or should I?”

Charlie spun toward her. “What’s he talking about?”

Dread soured her stomach. As close as she was with the other ranch hand, Charlie was even closer.

The two of them had spent countless hours side by side, working the land and helping her family keep their ranch afloat.

“We found out last night Daniel’s a person of interest. Deputies are looking for him, and he’s nowhere to be found. ”

Charlie stared at her as if her words hadn’t registered.

“Have you spoken with him since yesterday?” she asked.

Maybe Charlie had information he hadn’t provided before because he didn’t want to get his friend in trouble.

But now, Daniel was knee-deep in this mess whether he meant to be or not.

Charlie might have knowledge that could help uncover the truth.

“No,” he said, averting his gaze.

Something about his hesitation had her narrowing her gaze. She was tired of secrets. “Charlie, I need you to be honest. If you know where Daniel is, tell me. If he’s innocent, then we can clear his name. But withholding anything right now won’t do anyone a lick of good.”

Blowing out a breath, Charlie raised his eyes to the sky before finally looking her way.

“I’m not lying. I didn’t talk to him. But I drove by his place after I left here and saw him with a big duffel bag, climbing into his truck.

He was gone before I got a chance to flag him down.

I know that bag. It’s the one he always uses when going away for a few days. ”

“Do you have any idea where he might have gone?” Madden asked. “Friends or family who’d take him in if he was in trouble?”

Charlie shook his head. “He ain’t got many people in his life. He doesn’t speak with his brother, and his parents have both passed.”

“No friends?” Lily asked, an overwhelming sadness pressing down on her at the thought of someone she assumed she knew so well being so lonely.

More hesitation.

“Charlie,” Madden said, gaining the ranch hand’s attention.

“Right now, the sheriff’s department is only labeling him a person of interest and not a suspect.

That could change if we find him and get to the bottom of things.

Daniel’s name can be cleared, and the deputies can focus on other leads.

You’d be helping everyone, not ratting out a friend. ”

Charlie dropped his head and kicked at the ground with the toe of his boot.

“I really don’t know where he went, but he’s been acting different since his mama passed away last year.

Moody and distant. Lost weight. Things you’d expect when grieving a loved one.

But then his behavior was more erratic, more unpredictable. ”

Lily locked eyes with Madden, and it was clear he’d come to the same conclusion. Charlie was right, people often behaved differently when grieving, but what he’d described also pointed to someone with a drug problem. “Did you ever talk to my father about this?”

Charlie nodded. “Brought it up once or twice. Then I minded my own business. I didn’t want to bring any more trouble to Daniel’s door. He was having a tough time, but it never affected his work. If anything, he worked harder. Was here more than ever before.”

“Did he spend a lot of time in the barn alone the last week?” Madden asked.

“Of course,” Charlie spat out. “We both do. Not like we babysit each other when we’re getting our work done. Why does that matter?”

Lily pressed her hands to her stomach as if the motion could stop the sinking feeling. “Someone cut the cinch on my saddle.”

“What?” Charlie’s hound-dog eyes nearly popped from his head. “How’d you know it was cut?”

Madden snorted. “Was pretty easy to put the pieces together when her saddle slid off Queenie. Luckily, she wasn’t hurt too bad, but someone’s tampering with equipment.

Someone who could go in unnoticed and knew how to handle the gear.

And now, someone with the ability to vandalize the outside of the barn without detection has come onto the property. ”

Red crept up Charlie’s neck until it engulfed his entire face. “Someone will pay for this, and if it’s Daniel, so help me God…”

She rested a reassuring hand on Charlie’s arm. “I know.”

That’s all she could say, because she understood the pain and confusion at suspecting someone she trusted being the one behind so much suffering and betrayal.

“We need to call the sheriff’s department,” Madden said. “They’ll take a look at the scene before we can clean it.”

Lily stared up at the threatening message as Madden fished out his phone and made the call.

They had better get here soon. Her life was in danger, her world in turmoil and her property destroyed.

She might not have control of the first two issues, but she’d scrub the stain off her barn if it killed her.