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  He sucked in a big breath and slowly opened the door. He might not be big and strong, but he’d try anyway.

  Chapter Five

  Rachel stared at the snake lying in the middle of her bed with revulsion. Her first instinct was to run.

  But running might make the snake strike.

  Suddenly the door screeched open, and she heard Johnny’s gruff voice. “Rachel?”

  In spite of the fact that she was desperately trying not to move, a tremor rippled through her and her legs wobbled.

  His boots pounded on the floor as he crossed the room coming closer. “Rachel?”

  She had to clear her throat to make her voice work. “In here.”

  His footsteps grew louder, then she glanced sideways and saw him at the doorway, his pistol drawn. He quickly glanced around, his expression worried.

  “What’s wrong? I heard you scream.”

  “There. The bed…” Rachel pointed to the snake. It was almost two feet long, with red-and-black coloring. “Is…it poisonous?”

  Johnny muttered a sound of frustration, then inched into the room and lowered his gun. “How the hell did that get in here?”

  “I don’t know.” Rachel fought a surge of tears. She had an idea, but she couldn’t tell him or he’d know the truth about her. That Kenny’s father was not only alive but a terrifying, cruel man who liked to torment her.

  That her worst fear might have come true. That Rex had found her and was trying to scare her.

  That putting a snake in the bed, sneaking inside her room and messing with her things, leaving mysterious presents, torn photos of her and Kenny, one of Kenny’s stuffed animals ripped and shredded, a dead rat, a black rose…they were all things he’d done before.

  Things his warped sense of humor and twisted sense of love found funny. Things he hoped would frighten her back into his arms and make her give him back his son.

  He was sick, demented, a psychopath.

  She would never go back to him or let him near Kenny.

  The mere thought that he’d been in the room made her ill, and a strangled sound gurgled in her throat.

  Johnny closed his hand around her arm to steady her. “It’s okay. It looks like a coral snake and they are poisonous, but this is a milk snake.”

  She was shaking so badly that she swayed, and Johnny pulled her up against him and closed his arms around her. She leaned into him for just a moment and took a deep breath, but his masculine scent made her dizzy in another way, and she pulled away. “How can you tell the difference?”

  He spoke in a calm voice. “The coral snake’s red and yellow colors touch, but the milk snake has red touching black and is harmless.”

  She chanced a look at him and saw that he was watching her with worried eyes. He was such a pillar of strength that she wanted to fall into his arms. But she couldn’t trust him or any other man.

  “They still bite, don’t they?”

  “Snakes strike back as a defensive mechanism.” Johnny moved slowly toward the bed, careful not to make a sudden noise and startle the snake.

  “I don’t care. I don’t want him in my bed.”

  “Don’t worry,” Johnny said. “We’ll take care of that.”

  His voice remained low, his footfalls light until he reached the bed, then he lifted the snake with his hands, carefully holding its mouth away from him, and crossed the room. Shivering, she followed him outside.

  Kenny came running up then, with Cleo trailing him. His eyes widened when he spotted Johnny with the snake. Then his gaze flew to her, and Rachel realized he’d heard her scream and had thought Rex had found them.

  Guilt slammed into her. Her poor little boy. He shouldn’t have to be afraid of his own father. “It’s okay, Kenny. A snake was in the house. You know your mother doesn’t like reptiles.”

  Kenny’s terrified look turned to childlike curiosity, proving he was resilient.

  Johnny knelt to show Kenny the snake. “It’s a milk snake and harmless,” Johnny explained. “But there are other snakes on the ranch that are dangerous, Kenny. Rattlers, cottonmouths, copperheads. You need to be careful when you’re out in the field, or if you’re by the river or creek.” He paused. “The counselors will teach you how to recognize the poisonous ones. Be careful when you pick up a stick or turn over a rock or log.”

  Kenny nodded, soaking in every word Johnny spoke. “Can I pet him?” Kenny asked, wide-eyed.

  “Sure, but you need to run your finger down his body. If you rub against his scales, it’ll hurt him.”

  Rachel clenched her hands as she watched the gentle way Johnny handled the reptile and her son. But the scent of that cologne in her cabin and the fact that she had found the snake in her bed made her chest clench with fear.

  Kenny really liked it on the ranch.

  But if Rex was here, they would have to leave Cleo and the pups and his new friend and idol Johnny behind.

  SUSPICIONS REARED THEMSELVES in Johnny’s head, making his temper come alive, but he bit his tongue to keep from voicing them aloud.

  Rachel was definitely lying to him. About her name. About the reason she had been traveling from town to town. Maybe about everything else.

  Something had her spooked, bad, and it wasn’t just that damn snake.

  Which raised suspicion number two. How the hell had it gotten in her bed? Sure, they found snakes in the barn and on the ranch, but so far they hadn’t managed to worm their way inside any of the cabins. And if Rachel had locked the cabin up when she’d left and the windows were shut…

  “What are you gonna do with him?” Kenny asked.

  “Let him go.” Johnny frowned, then stood. “You see, Kenny, farms and ranches need snakes to eat smaller rodents. It’s God’s way of balancing nature.”

  Rachel watched him, her arms folded around her waist as if she was trying to hold herself together. Some people had an aversion to snakes, but her reaction seemed over-the-top.

  Kenny tugged at his shirt. “Can I help you let him go?”

  Johnny looked up at Rachel. “Sure, buddy. Then I’ll check the cabin to make sure it’s clean.”

  The wary look that flickered in Rachel’s eyes made him wish he could retract his statement.

  He wanted a moment alone with her.

  Maybe to pull her into his arms again?

  Watch out, Johnny. This woman is trouble.

  And you have a ranch and a bunch of children to protect.

  Relief softened her face. “Thank you. I’ll sleep better if I’m certain there are no more predators inside.”

  Her word choice struck him as odd but telling.

  Just what kind of predator was after Rachel and her son?

  Kenny tagged along beside him as they walked to the pasture to release the snake.

  “My mom don’t like bugs or spiders, either,” Kenny said, jerking Johnny from his thoughts.

  Johnny smiled at the boy. “Most girls don’t, bud.”

  Kenny squared his little shoulders. “Yeah, but us guys, we gots to protect the girls. That’s what real men do.”

  Real men? “What do you have to protect your mom from?”

  Kenny angled his face toward the dirt as if he’d said something he shouldn’t, and Johnny’s heart ached. He sensed the kid wanted to tell him more.

  “Kenny?” Johnny said softly. “I’m your friend, and your mother’s friend. If you need someone to talk to, you can talk to me.”

  The little boy looked up at him with such a grown-up expression that Johnny wanted to take the weight of the world off his small shoulders.

  But Kenny simply shrugged. “Thanks, but me and Mama, we take care of each other.”

  Johnny’s chest constricted. God, he understood how the kid felt. When his mama had left and his daddy had gone on his drunken raging tears, he had taken care of Kim.

  And they had kept the beatings a secret.

  He hated to think that Kenny and Rachel were dealing with the same kind of monster he and Kim had lived wit
h. And that they suffered the same shame.

  Shame they didn’t deserve.

  “Looking forward to your riding lesson tomorrow?” he asked as they headed back toward the cabin.

  “Yes, sir.” Kenny’s face brightened, excitement replacing the earlier fear.

  The boy’s hesitation once again reminded him of his own sorry childhood, and he wanted to sweep Kenny in his arms and promise him he’d never have to worry again.

  But first he’d have to figure out who had the kid and his mother so spooked.

  Then he’d get rid of the problem so that Kenny and Rachel would never have to be afraid or run again.

  RACHEL WATCHED JOHNNY search the cabin, beneath the bed, in corners, the closet, and inside the bathroom and kitchen cabinets.

  “No more snakes,” he said, glancing at the bed where Rachel had stripped the covers and replaced the sheets with fresh ones from the linen closet.

  “I don’t know how it got in. Maybe a door was left open.”

  “Not by me,” Rachel said. She was fanatical about checking locks and doors and windows.

  Johnny shrugged as if he had no answer, but she’d already kept him long enough and was beginning to feel like a fool for overreacting.

  Damn Rex for making her so paranoid that she was behaving like a crazy woman.

  Kenny had crawled along beside Johnny, searching each corner and crevice with him and mimicking every movement Johnny made. Now they stood side by side, Kenny trying to look big and tough like the cowboy he admired.

  Like the one she was beginning to admire, as well.

  A big mistake.

  She squared her shoulders. “Thank you for checking,” Rachel said. “I didn’t mean to get hysterical.”

  A smile quirked at the corner of his mouth, making him look even more handsome, and he tipped his hat. “No problem, ma’am.” He patted Kenny’s back. “Thanks for helping me, Kenny. Now you’d best go to bed. We start early tomorrow.”

  Kenny grinned and ran to give Rachel a hug. “Mr. J.’s going to teach me to ride. And I’m gonna help him make posters for the rodeo.”

  “We have a lot to do to prepare for the big day,” Johnny said, then watched Kenny run to his bedroom.

  Rachel’s heart swelled at the excitement in her son’s face. And when she looked back at Johnny, a flutter of sexual awareness rippled between them. He’d been kind to her son and to her.

  He was nothing like Rex….

  It didn’t matter. Her life was too complicated for any kind of relationship with a man. Even a friendship.

  “Is there anything else you need before I leave?” Johnny asked.

  Rachel clenched her hands together. Yes, she wanted him to hold her. To remind her that men could be kind and loving. To purge the memory of Rex’s vile touches from her mind.

  But that was impossible. So she shook her head. “I’m fine, just really tired. Like you said, we start early tomorrow.”

  Johnny’s eyes seemed to bore into hers as if he wanted to say more. As if he knew she was holding something back.

  But he didn’t ask. Instead, he walked out the door with a husky good-night.

  For a brief second, Rachel considered running after him. Pouring out her heart and confiding about Rex. Begging him for his help.

  But admitting that she had married a man like Rex meant revealing she’d been a fool. It meant reliving the shame she’d experienced in her marriage.

  And confessing the truth might endanger Johnny.

  She couldn’t live with herself if Rex hurt him to get to her. Not after he’d been so nice to Kenny.

  She hurried to tuck Kenny into bed, but he was already asleep. The fresh air, outdoor activity and chores had been good for him. He was thriving on the BBL.

  She stroked a lock of his dark hair away from his forehead, then dropped a kiss on his forehead and tiptoed from the room.

  Exhausted, she pulled on a nightshirt, then crawled beneath the covers. Surely she had imagined the odor of Rex’s cologne earlier.

  But when she closed her eyes, she saw his face as if he was hovering above her. And for the millionth time she tried to figure out how she’d made such a mistake in marrying him.

  He’d seemed so charming and handsome when they’d first met in Alabama. She’d lost her parents as a teenager and had struggled over their death and the grief and loneliness that had followed. She’d worked as a waitress at a local bar to pay her way through college.

  But her junior year, Rex had walked in, ordered a scotch, then turned on the charm. The promises and gifts that followed had snowed her into a whirlwind romance. Rex had money, power and connections. He was a prominent businessman, had political connections, was going places and promised she’d go with him.

  So she’d quit school and married him.

  The first year of marriage had been filled with romantic getaways, sex, surprises and cocktail parties where she met all the movers and shakers in his business world.

  But then she’d gotten pregnant and he’d become irate. He’d accused her of doing it on purpose. A child would interfere with his life, his plans.

  She’d promised it wouldn’t.

  So he’d settled down for a while, but slowly his temper had edged its way into their daily lives. He was obsessed with cleanliness, with appearances and being in control.

  Then one night she’d forgotten to arrange for a babysitter and had missed one of his parties. He’d been furious. Had had too much to drink. Had shouted that he’d married her to show her off. That she had promised a child wouldn’t change anything.

  But it had changed everything for her.

  And so had his erratic mood swings.

  Of course, no one else ever saw that dark side. He was like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. A charmer on the exterior, a showman.

  An evil stranger at home.

  She couldn’t raise her son with a controlling, abusive man, so she’d asked for a divorce.

  She shuddered, a panic attack threatening as the chilling memory washed over her.

  Nausea rose in her throat, and she sat up in bed and took several deep breaths to calm herself. Darkness bathed the room and, for a moment, she thought a shadow moved in the corner.

  Her heart started drumming, and she flipped on the lamp, then peered around the room. Thankfully, it was empty.

  Still, she was trembling, so she checked to make sure her gun was locked in the box in the closet, then brought the box and hid it between the bed and the wall. Then she tucked the key beneath her pillow.

  Finally, she crawled back in bed, but sleep eluded her.

  The scent of that cologne haunted her. Had Rex been in the cabin?

  Finally, unable to sleep, she retrieved the key to her gun case from beneath the pillow and clutched it in her hand. If Rex was here and broke in, she’d be ready.

  And if he tried to hurt her or take Kenny, she wouldn’t hesitate—she’d kill him.

  FROM HIS PERCH ON THE HILL, Rex watched the cabin where Rachel—or whatever the hell name she’d assumed this time—and his son slept.

  The money he’d paid to find her was worth it. She’d be shocked at how easy it had been.

  But he wouldn’t let her know he was here yet.

  A smile curved his mouth. No, he’d toy with her first. Watch her squirm. Worry. Torment her with reminders of his love.

  And that he would never let her go.

  If she fought him, he’d end it once and for all.

  Then he’d take Kenny and hightail it to Mexico, where he could live the good life. Away from anyone who might come after him.

  The lights flicked off and he smiled, picturing Rachel undressing, naked, lying in bed.

  She had been a bad girl by breaking her vows and stealing his son from him. A very bad girl.

  And bad girls had to be punished.

  Chapter Six

  Johnny barely slept for thinking about Rachel and Kenny. Their situation triggered the recurring nightmares he’d suffered for years.<
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  The beatings his old man had given him. The drunken rages where he’d broken furniture over Johnny’s head. Where he’d driven the car into the middle of the shack and caused it to set fire.

  The time he’d come after Kim.

  Johnny had grabbed a knife that time and stabbed his old man in the leg. That had earned him a broken arm and nose, several busted ribs, plus scars that he still had today. Scars and three weeks of barely having food.

  Kim had tried to sneak him meals, but their father had caught her and thrown her against the wall. After that, Johnny had made her promise not to do anything to upset their old man.

  Johnny had also vowed he’d kill the son of a bitch if he ever laid a hand on Kim again. He’d made the threat with one of his old man’s rifles pointed at his daddy’s head when his father had roused from one of his drunken stupors.

  It was the first time his father had actually looked scared. And the first time Johnny had realized that he had it in him to kill a man.

  Now he lay in bed sweating and staring at the wall.

  He should have pushed Rachel for the truth about her name and her past.

  But he hadn’t had the heart. Not after witnessing the terrified look on her face when she’d seen that snake.

  Kenny troubled him even more.

  The sun wove through the blinds and he rubbed his eyes, then climbed from bed and showered, tugged on jeans and a denim shirt, then headed to the dining hall. Since Rachel had started work at the ranch, he’d decided to eat with the other hands and campers instead of in the main house.

  Building relationships and trust took time, and letting the boys and workers see him as accessible, not some wealthy rodeo star who just dropped in to make an appearance, was a first step.

  Besides, the clock was ticking. His volunteer time on the ranch was limited. Soon he had to return to his own spread and take care of business. Spring roundup and breeding was upon them. And he had cattle to move.

  When he stepped inside the dining hall, the scent of sizzling country-fried ham and red-eyed gravy wafted toward him. He damn near burst from the intoxicating smell.