Carla Cassidy - Safety in Numbers

He stared out the window at the passing scenery, wishing he were anywhere else. He couldn’t think of anyone who needed a vacation more than he did, but this wasn’t a vacation and he was here under false pretenses.

He glanced up and in the rearview mirror he caught Meredith West gazing at him. As he met her gaze, she quickly looked away and he looked back out the side window.

She’d been a surprise. Dalton had talked a little about his sister. In the days that Dalton and Chase had spent together, Dalton had talked about all of his family. He’d told Chase that his sister was tough, committed to her work as a bodyguard and preferred the company of her horse to most people.

But there was a wealth of things he hadn’t mentioned about Meredith. Dalton hadn’t told him she had eyes the color of an early-summer lawn or that her legs were long and lean beneath her tight jeans. He hadn’t mentioned that her hair was dark mahogany or that her skin was flawless.

In that first moment of seeing her, a quick electric shock had sizzled through him; a shock of physical attraction he hadn’t felt for a very long time.

It reminded him just how long it had been since he’d held a woman in his arms, felt sweet satisfied sighs against the crook of his neck.

He suddenly realized the women had gone silent and Kathy had turned her head to look at him expectantly. “Did I miss something?” he asked.

Kathy looked at Meredith and smiled. “You’ll have to excuse my son. He sometimes forgets his social skills. Meredith asked you what you did for a living, dear.”

Again those green eyes flashed in the mirror. Not warm and welcoming, but rather cool and wary. “I’m a Kansas City cop.” It was the first of many lies he’d probably tell over the next couple of days.

“And is that where you met my brother? In Kansas City? she asked. The eyes disappeared from the mirror once again.

“Yeah, he was working the Milton case last year and we coordinated with him. Dalton and I struck up a friendship. We’ve stayed in touch through e-mail since then.”

“When Chase decided to take his vacation time and mentioned he was coming out here, I just insisted he bring me along,” Kathy said. “He stays so busy we rarely have quality time together.”

“Our place is just ahead,” Meredith said as she turned off the road and down a lane. Chase once again looked out the window with interest. He knew the West family was one of the largest landowners in the county.

He’d researched their entire clan before taking the assignment. Red West, the patriarch, had come from California to Cotter Creek as a young man and had begun his business, Wild West Protective Services. The business had grown along with his family.

He and his wife had six children before Elizabeth West was murdered. Since her death, Red had worked to establish Wild West Protective Services as one of the most reputable bodyguard agencies in the country.

On the surface the family looked for the most part like the American dream. But a couple of anonymous tips phoned into the FBI office said otherwise. His job was to dig beneath the surface and find any darkness that might be hidden, a darkness that might have led somebody in the West family to sell out an entire town.

“Here we are,” Meredith said as she pulled to a halt in front of a large, sprawling ranch house. It was impressive, the big house with its wraparound porch. As far as the eye could see were outbuildings and pastureland.

As they got out of the car and Chase got the suitcases out of the trunk, a tall man appeared on the front porch, a smile of welcome on his face. By the time they reached the porch another man had joined him. The short, gray-haired man had blue eyes that held a touch of wariness. “Welcome,” the tall man said and held out a hand to Chase. “I’m Red West.”

Introductions were made all the way around. The short older man was introduced as Smokey Johnson, head cook and bottle washer for the clan.

As Chase followed him through the front door, he had a feeling that Smokey Johnson was a man who might not be easily fooled. He and Kathy would have to be careful around the old man. But Chase didn’t expect any of the West family to be fooled easily.

“Oh my, this is just lovely,” Kathy exclaimed as they entered the living room. “I hope we aren’t putting you out.”

“Nonsense, nothing we like better than company,” Red assured her. “Meredith, why don’t we get them settled in their rooms, then we’ll have Smokey rustle up some refreshments. It’s a long bus ride from Kansas City to here.”

“That sounds wonderful,” Kathy said.

“We’ll put Kathy in the guest room and Chase can go into Tanner’s old room,” Red said.

For the first time since they’d stepped into the house, Chase focused on Meredith. She had the face of a beauty queen, but if her hair were any indication of the local stylist’s expertise then he wouldn’t be visiting any of the town’s barbers. Although a luxurious black, her bangs fell unevenly across her forehead and the left side of the shoulder-length locks was definitely shorter than the right side.

There wasn’t an ounce of makeup on her face, that he could see, and she was dressed in a pair of jeans and an oversize man’s flannel shirt. Once again a small ball of unexpected tension twisted in his gut.

Her gaze met his and her cheeks pinkened slightly. “If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you to your rooms,” she said.

She led Kathy to a room decorated in cheerful yellow with an adjoining bath. Chase set Kathy’s suitcase on the bed, then followed Meredith down the hall. Even though the flannel shirt struck her below the hips, it didn’t hide the sensual sway of her walk.

The bedroom she led him to was smaller than Kathy’s and had obviously been occupied by a male. The bed was a heavy mahogany covered in a navy spread. A chest of drawers stood against one wall. “Tanner? Which one is that?” he asked as he set his suitcase down.

“Tanner is my oldest brother,” she said.

“The one who married a princess.”

“That’s right. Anna.” Her chin rose a touch and she met his gaze. “Tell me, what description did my brother give of me that made me so easy to find in the café;?”

“He said to look for the gorgeous, sexy woman who looked like she’d had a close encounter with a Weed Eater.” He gazed pointedly at her uneven hair.

She raised a hand self-consciously, but before she touched her hair, she dropped her arm and narrowed her eyes, obviously not pleased as she edged toward the door.

“The bathroom is just down the hall on the left. Feel free to head to the kitchen after you get settled in.” She slid out of the room as if she couldn’t escape him fast enough.

He pulled his suitcase onto the bed and opened it. He’d improvised a bit on what Dalton had said. Dalton had called his sister neither gorgeous nor sexy.

As he hung some of his clothing in the closet, he wondered how difficult it had been for Meredith West to be raised in a house filled with men. By the look of her she certainly didn’t seem to be in touch with her femininity. Not that it mattered to him. Not that he cared.

He wasn’t here to care about anyone. He was here to do a job. It was bad enough he was here to betray a friend’s trust; the only thing that could make it worse was if he also seduced his friend’s sister.

There was no way Dalton would have described her as gorgeous or sexy, although he certainly would have told Chase she looked like a woman who’d gotten too close to a Weed Eater.

Meredith thought about that all through dinner that night. Dalton had arrived at the ranch to share the meal and visit with his friends. Meredith had eaten quickly, then excused herself and retreated to the stables until bedtime.