“I don’t mind if he checks the CPU and the email,” she answered. “Goodness, I have nothing to hide. I’m going back into town, so I can drop it off at his office.”
Tom smiled, then went back to talking to the sheriff for a minute before ending the call. “We’ll go by his office. I’ll help you get your CPU.”
“That’s fine. How do you suppose someone got that picture? Do you remember who took it?”
“There was some guy, about seventy years old, staying at the bed-and-breakfast. He was taking pictures. I’m sure he didn’t know any of us.”
“Well, then, how did Maverick get the picture?”
“The guy was using a camera. Maybe he got the prints made at a store. Those can be handled by several people. It wouldn’t be hard to get a copy.” He tilted his head to look at her. “Do you have plans tonight?”
“Not at all,” she answered.
“Good. Because I’m moving back in,” Tom announced in an authoritative voice that she assumed he’d developed in the Rangers. “I want to stay close, because no one knows Maverick’s ultimate intentions.”
* * *
Startled, Emily stared at him. “I appreciate your offer but it’s not necessary. I’m not staying on the ranch any longer. I’m going to restore Uncle Woody’s house and move in there. I’ve put a cot in a bedroom and I’m already living in Royal.”
“You’ve moved off the ranch?” Tom said, frowning. “Look, Maverick isn’t getting the reaction from us that he, she or they expected, which will increase the hatred and anger toward you. Move back to the ranch until this Maverick gets caught. You’ll be safer here.”
She might have been tempted to do what he asked, except he was asking for the wrong reason. She wasn’t moving back because of an email message. And now that she knew the truth and Tom still was the same Tom she had always known, she had lost her anger toward him. But they still had all the problems they’d had for the past five years. She was going to move into town and Tom wasn’t going to stop her.
As she calmed down, the feelings and responses she had always had began to return, including noticing his thick black hair that was a tangle over his forehead but always looked appealing to her. She could remember running her fingers through his hair. Her gaze slid down and she thought about his strong arms holding her against his rock-hard chest.
She sighed, because the memories were a torment and she couldn’t keep them from happening. The breeze caught locks of his hair and blew them slightly. Everything about him made her want to walk into his arms and hold him close. She had always thought he was good-looking, and as the years went by, he seemed more handsome than ever. Or did she feel that way just because he was more off-limits than ever? She wasn’t staying on the ranch no matter what he said, because they had been too unhappy together there. There were too many bad memories in the big house on the ranch.
“I’ll be fine in town,” she said, knowing that was the best place for her to be. “I’m working at my studio four days a week now, and the other days, I can work on the house.”
“Okay, I’ll get a sleeping bag and stay with you in Royal. You don’t know if you’re in any danger from this troll. Just because nothing’s happened in the past doesn’t mean it won’t in the future.”
Startled, she stared at him. “You can’t live in Royal—you have a ranch to run,” she blurted, feeling a sudden panic that they would be in close quarters. No matter what problems they had, when they were together, the physical attraction was impossible to resist. She had been trying to get over him and build a new life. If they lived together, she wouldn’t be able to resist him.
“You don’t need to spend all that time driving back and forth every day from Royal to the ranch,” she said. She was pleased that he was concerned and had made the offer, and overwhelmingly relieved to discover that the troll’s message hadn’t been true and Tom was still the same trustworthy person she had always thought he was, but her panic about spending nights under the same roof again began to revive. She gazed into his thickly lashed hazel eyes, which made her get a tightness low inside and think about his kisses that could melt her.
“If you’re in danger and something happened to you in Royal while I’m out here on the ranch,” he said, “I couldn’t live with it. You’d do the same if the situation were reversed.”
She had to smile at the thought of being a bodyguard for Tom. “That’s such a stretch of the imagination, I can’t picture it. Don’t even think about moving to Royal, but thank you for the offer, which is nice of you,” she said, running her fingers along his forearm, feeling the solid muscles. She had meant it as a friendly gesture of gratitude, but the minute her fingers touched his arm, a sizzling current spiraled in her and she thought again of having his strong arms around her.
As she drew a deep breath, she saw his eyes narrow. Either he felt something, too, or he knew that she had—or both.
She dropped her hand instantly and stepped back. “Thanks anyway,” she said, dismissing his offer.
“Give some thought to this. For all we
know, you might be in danger. The safest possible place would be in the guesthouse. I can protect you the easiest there.”
“I don’t think that’s necessary at all. According to the rumors I’ve heard, Maverick hasn’t done anything except send terrible messages, trying to blackmail Royal citizens and stir up trouble. I need to work in town and I don’t want to drive back and forth. I’m staying at my uncle’s. Thank you for your concern, but you don’t need to stay with me,” she said firmly.
“I’ve already lost one of the most important people in my life,” he said in a tight voice. “I don’t intend to let anything happen to you.” His hazel eyes looked darker, as they did when he was emotional or making love. “I’m going to ask Nathan to have someone drive by Natalie’s and check on her to make sure she and her family are protected and okay.” Tom removed his phone from his pocket again. Emily wondered who he was calling now until she heard him say hello to their foreman.
“Hey, Gus. I need to be away from the ranch for a while.”
Even as she stepped in front of him and shook her head, trying to discourage him, she knew the futility of her efforts. Tom had made up his mind that she should have protection and she wouldn’t be able to stop him. She threw up her hands and walked away as he gave instructions to Gus. How was she going to be able to resist Tom if they were under the same roof? Maybe he would stay downstairs and she could stay upstairs, or vice versa.
“There, now,” he said when he finished talking to the foreman. “I’ll bring my sleeping bag and stay in the old house with you. I won’t be in your way, and I can help you with the restoration.”
Exasperated, she stared at him. While she was annoyed, she knew this alpha male attitude was part of why she had been drawn to him in the first place. He was decisive and got things done. In high school it had been part of his appeal. Now she was glad he could make a decision and solve problems, but this time she really didn’t want him interfering in her life by taking charge. Each time she thought about being back under the same roof with him all night, her heart pounded. If he was going to help with the restoration of the old house, they would be working together. And she couldn’t trust her physical response to Tom. He would stir up all those latent longings again. Tom had a virile, sexy body. He was superbly fit from the Rangers and from ranch work.