The Lionhearted Cowboy Returns Read online

  Jeff frowned. “Alone? I think I’ve had more visitors here than I did at the house.”

  “Comes with the territory in this family. You wouldn’t remember that because you’ve been gone so long.”

  “I guess I like my privacy.”

  “Isolating yourself isn’t a good idea,” Brandon pointed out.

  Jeff wanted to argue, but instead he walked inside the cabin. The place was stifling. He grabbed two sodas from the cooler under the sink and went back outside to where Brandon sat under the shade.

  “Thanks,” his cousin said as he took the can and popped the top.

  Careful of his leg, Jeff eased down beside him. Looking out at the horse grazing by the creek, he enjoyed the hint of a breeze from under the tree.

  Brandon turned to him. “Look, Jeff. You have a right to live wherever you want. I’m the last one to preach, since I avoided the family ranch for years.” His cousin gave him a sideways glance. “And I didn’t have anything as life-changing as losing a leg happen.”

  Jeff flinched. Since being home, he hadn’t talked about his loss, not even with his parents. Yet it seemed easier with Brandon. “I lost more than a leg. I lost my career. My identity. Special Forces was who I was.” He looked down at his soda can. “Man, you’d think this was a beer, as much cryin’ as I’m doing.”

  “I’m glad you’re talking about it,” his cousin said. “But you’re wrong, Jeff. You might have lost your leg, and a career, but no, not your identity. There’s a lot more to you, cuz, than being a soldier. And you have a family who loves you and we’ll support you any way we can.”

  Jeff took a long drink of the sugary soda, trying to get rid of the lump in his throat. He couldn’t lose it now. “Well, when you discover where I fit in, let me know.”

  “I think you’ve already found it. You own two fine quarter horses and you’re working with one of the prettiest and best trainers in these parts.”

  Jeff stiffened. He couldn’t think of Lacey in that way, not anymore. “She’s also my best friend’s widow.”

  “So that’s what’s bothering you?”

  “No,” Jeff denied quickly. “What’s bothering me is that I wasn’t here when Trevor needed me. Now Lacey needs me.”

  “So that’s why you bought two of her horses. To help her out?” Brandon stared out toward the pasture. “So are you going to be partners?” He turned to Jeff. “Are you going into the horse-breeding business?”

  Jeff shrugged. “I’m not sure I can do more than clean stalls and feed the stock.”

  “Why not?” Brandon asked. “Years ago you were an exceptionally good horseman.” Brandon smiled. “As I remember, you even broke a few mounts that summer we worked together.”

  That seemed like another lifetime ago. “I haven’t been on a horse since I got back.”

  Brandon nodded and glanced down at the leg. “Seems to me if you can drive a vehicle, riding a horse shouldn’t be difficult for a Special Forces guy. How much of your leg had to be amputated?”

  His cousin had finally cut out the finesse, causing Jeff to tense before he forced himself to relax. “A few inches below the knee.”

  Brandon nodded. “I bet being in the military, you got the most hi-tech prosthesis.”

  He had. What the heck—he’d show Brandon. Jeff tugged his pant leg up, revealing his Justin short roper boot and the titanium limb that was connected to a plastic boot that covered his knee. “It’s hard getting used to it. The hardest part is even after months, I still feel the loss, but it’s been less and less. They call it phantom pain.”

  “I can’t say I know how you feel, because I don’t. But look at it this way; you nearly lost your life on that last mission. Just think how your mom and dad would be suffering if you hadn’t made it back alive. All of us would be.” Brandon’s throat worked hard. “I never fought in a war, but I’ve known life-and-death situations. Far too many close calls over the years. Whatever you decide to do, I hope it’s around here. I’d like to get to know you again.” He broke out into a big grin. “I’ve never known a genuine hero.”

  Lacey was about at the end of her patience. When she got hold of Colin he was going to be grounded until the end of summer. If he lived that long.

  She pulled the truck off the road and up toward the cabin. The last thing she wanted to do was disturb Jeff, but there wasn’t any choice. Her son was missing and she had to find him.

  She parked next to the familiar truck and headed up the rise, hoping Colin was here. Had Jeff been right? Did her son need a firmer hand? This was all new to her. She’d never had to worry about Colin’s behavior before. She knew he’d been angry since his father’s death, but it had only gotten worse. As much as she hated to, she needed to ask for help.

  Lacey came around the side of the shack and found two men sitting on the edge of the porch. She recognized Brandon Randell right away. She hesitated to disturb them, but maybe the sheriff’s detective could help, too. They were engrossed in conversation as she approached the porch. She saw they were both concentrating on Jeff’s leg. She got closer and could see that it wasn’t his leg, but a metal prosthesis. She gasped.

  Both men turned toward her, and Jeff quickly pulled down his pant leg.

  Brandon stood. “Lacey.” He walked toward her and took her hand. “It’s good to see you again.”

  “Hi, Brandon.” She tried to gather her thoughts, but it was difficult. She glanced at Jeff, then started backing up. “I didn’t mean to disturb you. I should go.”

  Jeff got to his feet and started after her. “Lacey, wait.”

  She did as he asked, but couldn’t look at him. Oh, God, his leg. All this time she’d been harping on at him about not being around. What must he have gone through? She blinked at sudden tears.

  Jeff’s gaze narrowed. “Did you need me for something, Lacey?”

  She opened her mouth, but her words were lost. What could she say?

  “Lacey? What’s wrong?”

  Suddenly she remembered her reason for coming here. “I can’t find Colin. I think he’s run away.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  WHEN Jeff drew Lacey into his arms, he couldn’t think about anything but calming her. Not how her soft and delicate body felt against his, or how many years he’d ached to hold her close like this. It was heaven and hell.

  Right now he needed to concentrate on the problem at hand. He released her. “It’s going to be okay, Lacey. We’ll find Colin.”

  “When was the last time you saw your son?” Brandon asked, breaking into the moment.

  Lacey’s eyes widened. “It sounds terrible, but I’m not sure. When he came in from doing morning chores, we argued.” She glanced at Jeff. “He talked again about working with the horses. I got upset with his attitude so I sent him upstairs.” She brushed her hair back from her face. “About noon, I fixed him a sandwich and took it up to him, hoping we could work it out.” She blinked back fresh tears. “He was gone.”

  “What about Emily?” Jeff asked. “Did she see him leave?”

  Lacey shook her head. “She’s been at her friend’s house all day.”

  Jeff watched as she tried to stay in control. “Did you check the barn?” he asked. “Maybe he was just hiding out.”

  She folded her arms. “I checked and found his horse gone, too. I don’t know how I missed him. I was in the kitchen most of the morning. He must have walked Buddy around the front of the house so I wouldn’t see him leave.” Her lower lip quivered. “He wanted to get away from me that badly.”

  “He’s had a rough year, Lacey,” Brandon said. “But we’re going to find him.” He frowned. “Are you sure you’ve checked all the places he would go?”

  She nodded. “That’s why I came up here. This was where he used to come with Trevor.”

  Jeff’s gut tightened. “Had he been upset that I moved in?”

  She began wringing her hands. “I don’t know any more. Colin seems to be mad at everything and everyone lately. He hated that I had to
sell Rebel and Fancy.”

  Jeff pulled out his cell phone. “I’ll call Dad and get some of the family out looking for him.”

  Brandon also reached for his radio and made a call to Granddad Hank. Jeff knew that the Randells wouldn’t hesitate to help in the search, especially for a lost child.

  Brandon hung up. “I think we’ll come up with enough manpower to search for a few hours. If we don’t find him by then, we’ll handle it as a runaway. I’ll need a picture of Colin and I’ll alert the sheriff of the situation.” He held up a hand. “It’s just a precaution for now.”

  Lacey wiped her eyes and nodded. “I have a school photo in my purse.” She walked off to the truck.

  Brandon faced Jeff. “I can make better time if I borrow your pickup.”

  “Sure, the keys are on the console,” Jeff agreed. “What about your horse?”

  “Could you put Shadow in the lean-to? I’ll send a ranch hand up to get him.”

  Lacey returned and handed Brandon the wallet-sized picture of Colin.

  “Good-looking boy.” Brandon smiled as he examined the photo. “I know it’s useless to tell you to go home and wait, so I won’t.”

  “We’ll go look together.” Jeff nodded to Lacey. He hated feeling helpless. Hell, his job in the military had been tracking people.

  Brandon walked to the truck and took off. Once alone, Jeff glanced at Lacey and caught her looking at him. It just wasn’t the way he’d always hoped she would.

  He might as well get it out in the open. “I haven’t been on a horse since I lost my leg.” There, he’d said it. “But we can search a lot of territory by truck. We both know the area pretty well.”

  Stunned, Lacey watched as Jeff started off toward the creek. Focusing her attention on his stride, she finally noticed the slight limp. She closed her eyes, thinking about all he must have gone through. Especially the pain.

  Oh, God. The terrible things she’d said to him. All the time he’d been in a hospital, going through his own hell. No one had said a word to her and Trevor about it.

  Well, there were going to be words now. She caught up with him as he took hold of Shadow’s reins.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  He didn’t look at her as he led the large animal up the slight rise toward the cabin. “What was there to say, Lacey? Oh, by the way, I lost a leg during my last mission.” He shot her a glare. “There are thousands of men and women who’ve come home in worse shape them me. I only lost the lower part of my leg. Some lost both, some lost arms…so I’m one of the fortunate ones.”

  “You are,” she told him. “You made it home.” She hesitated. “But, Jeff, I said some awful things to you.”

  “So because now you know I’m an amputee you’re going to be nicer to me?”

  She cringed. “No. I just couldn’t understand why you weren’t here. I thought you stayed away because you just couldn’t face coming back to see Trevor.”

  “Forget it, Lacey. I deserved it. I didn’t come and see Trevor as much as I should have. But don’t ever doubt that I loved him like a brother. I’ll always regret that I couldn’t be here for him, or you.”

  Lacey stiffened. Had Jeff ever regretted not being there for her ten years ago?

  They made it to the rough wood lean-to, and Jeff tied the horse to the post, then flipped the stirrup over the saddle and began to loosen the cinch. Once finished, he pulled the saddle off the horse and put it on the railing.

  “Deep down I knew that,” she said, wondering how much her husband had wanted to see his friend. “I guess I wanted you there to ease Trevor’s fears.” She felt her emotions stirring again. “You were the level-headed one, never afraid of anything.”

  Jeff’s dark gaze met hers. “Hell, Lacey, we’re all afraid sometime. And I’m afraid right now that my moving up here might have pushed Colin away more.”

  Lacey shook her head. She was the one feeling threatened that Jeff was back, and living so close. “No, my son has been angry for a long time. He misses his dad. At one time we were a close family.”

  Jeff studied her. “Of course. You and Trevor have loved each other since high school.”

  She avoided his gaze. There had been many rough patches in their marriage, but what was the point of dredging that up now?

  He patted the horse. “You were the perfect couple.”

  “We all know how looks can be deceiving,” she said quietly.

  For the past two hours, Jeff had driven around the area, going everywhere possible. If Colin was on horseback, he doubted they’d find him along the road. He called Brandon, who informed them that several of the Randells were out looking for the boy. The only problem was that nightfall was closing in on the search efforts.

  Jeff pulled Lacey’s Jeep up beside the cabin. They got down as Lacey took out her cell phone and called back to her house.

  He walked to the cabin, praying that the boy had come to his senses and was waiting for them inside. When he saw the empty room he knew from experience that there was a possibility Colin could be in trouble. He sincerely hoped the child was just plain stubborn.

  Lacey appeared behind him. “Brandon told me that there’s quite a group of people at my house.” She sighed, leaning against the table. “I can’t face them, Jeff.”

  He felt completely helpless. He wasn’t used to standing around and doing nothing. “Are you sure there isn’t anywhere else the boy could be? Did he and Trevor go riding anywhere special?”

  She shook her head.

  “Did he ever mention a name? A landmark?”

  She shook her head, but then her eyes began to widen. “Wait! There was a place that Trevor took Colin camping.”

  “Where?”

  “I’m not sure, only that it’s on the property.” She paused. “And they called it their secret place. I didn’t want to intrude, so I never pushed for a location.”

  Jeff tried to remember all the places he’d gone with Trevor when they were kids. They’d both loved to investigate everything, and they’d pretty much had free rein of the ranch. Suddenly he recalled a place along the back of the Guthrie property. A rock formation. It was so cool; they’d sworn never to tell anyone. He guessed Trevor had never even told Lacey.

  “Did Trevor ever mention a place called Three Rock Ridge?”

  She looked thoughtful. “I did overhear him mention that name once. Oh, Jeff, do you think Colin went there?”

  His spirits brightened, too. “I’m not sure, but I’m going to find out.” He walked through the door, around to the lean-to and Brandon’s horse. After tossing the blanket over Shadow’s back, he reached for the saddle before Lacey showed up.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  “I’m going to find Colin,” he told her.

  “You can’t, Jeff. I’ll call Brandon.”

  He turned to her. “Why? Don’t you think I’m capable of finding your son?”

  “It’s not that,” she said, then paused. “It’s just you’ve only gotten out of the hospital—”

  “And I don’t have a leg anymore so I can’t possibly do anything,” he finished for her flatly.

  “No, that’s not what I meant.” She gripped his hand. “You said it yourself, you haven’t been on a horse in a long time. What if something happens to you out there?”

  “Nothing is going to happen to me, I know where I’m going.”

  “Then wait for Brandon,” she pleaded.

  “I’m asking you to trust me on this. We don’t have time to lose, Lace. We’re running out of daylight, fast.”

  Jeff continued to tighten the cinch, adjusting the stirrups before leading the horse out. He slipped his right foot into the stirrup, grabbed the pommel and pulled himself up into the saddle. His heart raced as he glanced down at his left leg and guided it into the other stirrup. There was no doubt that it felt strange, but he quickly took control of the spirited animal. He tugged on the reins, putting the horse through long-remembered commands.

  He look
ed down at her. “Tell Brandon I’m heading northeast about two miles from here. I have my cell phone and I’ll call you when I get there.”

  Lacey came up to the horse and placed her hand on his leg, just above his knee. “Jeff…”

  Her touch bothered him more than he wanted it to. He’d hoped over the years that his feelings for her had faded. They obviously hadn’t. “I’ll bring your son back, Lacey. I promise.”

  “You don’t have to do this,” she insisted.

  She had no idea. “Yes, I do. I owe this to Trevor.”

  Thirty minutes later, Jeff’s muscles were tensed, and fatigue had set in. Man, he seemed to have forgotten his years of training. He’d run off without even a flashlight on him. Great, he could see the headlines now: Special Forces Soldier Gets Lost While Looking for Missing Boy.

  As the sun began to set behind the trees, he finally came up to the familiar rock formation. So far, there was no sign of the boy—then he smelled the smoke. A campfire. He swung his leg over the back of the horse, and carefully climbed down. Once he got his footing, he led the animal to the other side of the boulders.

  He stopped, and his heart lurched at the sight of the boy sitting by a small campfire in the clearing. His saddle and blanket were arranged in a makeshift bed. Nearby, his horse, Buddy, was hobbled and grazing in a patch of grass. So the kid knew how to take care of himself.

  Jeff stepped out into the open. “Looks like all the comforts of home.”

  Colin jumped up, looking guilty, then turned on the attitude. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’ll give you three guesses.” With a tug on Shadow’s reins, he walked into camp. “You have to know how worried your mom is.”

  The boy shrugged and sat down. “She treats me like a baby.”

  “Maybe that’s because you keep acting like one,” Jeff pointed out. “Pulling this stunt wasn’t a wise choice.”

  Colin threw him a killer look. “She won’t let me do anything.”