Barb Han - Sudden Setup

Ella needed a plan. Her thoughts shifted to the compelling stranger in her father’s cabin. He was strong enough to defend her. She told herself that was the only reason he entered her thoughts and not because of something deeper, something like missing him. Missing a stranger sounded ridiculous, even to her. How much blood had she lost? She had to be delirious if she was thinking about Blue Eyes.

One thing was certain. If she surfaced in the open, she’d be killed the second her chaser caught sight of her. The shotgun that had been fired at her shot real shells, as evidenced by the blood on the outside of her thigh where shrapnel had grazed her. Speaking of which, she needed to clean her wound before it got infected.

She couldn’t go home. There was too much chaos going on since news of her father’s murder broke and she’d be an open target.

She had no idea what the person targeting her wanted. Ransom? Revenge?

She and her siblings were close-knit. They’d had to be since it was generally up to the four of them to handle things at home. Their father had been tougher on the twins. She’d been protective of Dade and Dalton when they were young. They’d long since grown into men who could take care of themselves and everyone around them. Ella and the twins had always looked after their younger sister, Cadence.

Speaking of her siblings, she needed to warn them but had no way to contact them. Thankfully, they were tucked away, far out of town, having left immediately after news broke of their father’s murder. They’d decided to get away from Cattle Barge until this whole mess blew over and life returned to normal, whatever that would be now that their father was gone. With his unconventional lifestyle, she and her siblings had feared people would come out of the woodwork to claim stakes in his vast fortune. Based on the traffic she’d seen coming into town and the resulting chaos, the others had been smart to leave. Someone had to stick around and make sure the ranch was still running, and Ella had convinced them it should be her.

But being in town was dangerous. So was the ranch. She didn’t suspect any of the workers who’d been around for years. There were a few new hands. She couldn’t rule out the team her father had put together even if she doubted he’d put anyone questionable to work on his ranch. He loved his family and was fiercely protective of them even if their relationships with him were highly individual and complicated. He’d never knowingly put them in jeopardy. Knowingly might be the key word. Could her father have put his trust in someone who’d duped him?

Her brain hurt. Her body ached. And some of her memories were patchy thanks to the blow she’d taken. At present, she was exhausted, hungry and bleeding. Her mind was going to places that she wouldn’t normally consider. She knew exactly where she needed to go so she could take a step back and think this through but had no idea how to get there. Her Jeep was parked near Devil’s Lid, which wasn’t doing her a lot of good. Blue Eyes had ridden her into town on his motorcycle.

There was no way she could make it to the sheriff’s office. The person who was after her could be watching. If she got anywhere near—

A hand clamped over her mouth. Ella gasped. She tried to bite but whoever was behind her was too fast at securing his grip—and it had to be a man. His hand was huge. He’d been stealthy, too. She hadn’t heard a peep. Her pulse pounded and adrenaline caused her body to shake.

“Be quiet and I’ll get you out of here,” said the familiar voice—the voice that belonged to Blue Eyes. “Can you walk?”

Her pulse raced from fear mixed with another shot of adrenaline. She nodded and his other hand slipped around her. A second later, she was being helped to her feet.

“I’m shot,” she said and could feel the physical impact of those words. No matter how much Blue Eyes tried to deny he cared about what happened to her, his body language belied his words when his muscles pulled taut with the news.

“How did you find me?” she asked as the initial shock began to wear off while they were on the move.

The motorcycle was parked at the end of a quiet street.

“I saw the news story about the attempt against your life,” he responded without missing a beat. “I recognized this area as close to where I dropped you off and tracked you by the blood trail I found.”

He made it sound easy but it couldn’t have been. How had this stranger become so good at hunting down a person? She decided this wasn’t the time to ask. By all accounts he was helping her...but he was so secretive before and it had her imagination churning against all logic. She didn’t like the confusing feelings she had toward him.

“How do I know you’re not going to hurt me?” she asked.

A frustrated-sounding grunt tore from his throat. “Seriously?”

Now all her defenses flared. “Yes. I’m a woman. I’m injured. Basic survival instincts kick in at some point. I have no idea who you are. I don’t even know your name.”

“If I wanted to hurt you, I would’ve already done it.” That deep voice reverberated through her, sending a trill of awareness coursing through her. “We’ve already covered that.”

Okay, she could concede that point.

“Who are you?”

“My name is Holden Crawford. Now that you’ve heard it, forget it as fast as you can. Knowing my name will only end up hurting you more,” he said. “That’s why I didn’t tell you before now. It’s not because I’m trying to hide something from you or don’t trust you. I haven’t had a real conversation with someone in more than two years. So I’m guessing by your reactions to me that I’m pretty bad at it. Can’t say I was especially good with idle chitchat before, so...” He shrugged massive shoulders. “And the last person I really cared about ended up dead.”

She gasped.

“Not telling you my name has been my way of trying to protect you,” he continued. “Your father was good to me, offered to let me stay on his land, and I figured I owed him one for it. That’s the reason I helped you and didn’t walk away. I’m not that good of a person to stick around for pure reasons. It was a debt. One that has been paid.”

“Sounds like you’re a better man than you want to admit,” she said.

“Me? Nah. I know exactly who I am, what I am, and it’s not good for someone like you,” he stated. “You’re better off without me.”

A frustrated grunt tore from her throat.

He turned to face her.

“I’m sorry about that.” He glanced at her thigh and a trill of awareness blasted through her, which was unwelcomed. There was something primal and magnetic that pulled her in when she was near Blue Eyes. Sex appeal over standard good looks? “That was my fault, and I came back to make it right.”

“You’re on the run from something you didn’t do.”

“That’s what I said.” He held out a helmet and waited for her to make a decision.

“Maybe I can help you,” she offered.

The look on his face said he doubted it.

“It’s now or never, sweetheart. The choice is up to you. Go with me and I can’t take you to the law.”

Ella figured her options were pretty limited at the moment. She had no idea who was after her. Going to the sheriff was logical, but getting there safely wasn’t guaranteed and the man who was after her would most likely expect her there. Striking out on her own wasn’t even a consideration. She was injured and had none of the necessary skills to survive. Go back to the ranch and she couldn’t be certain that she’d be safe.

“Let’s go,” she said, taking the offering. “And my name is Ella, so you can stop calling me sweetheart.”

She slid onto the seat behind him. He took her hands and wrapped them around his chest.