He ran his hand down her back and didn’t think she even noticed. She simply kept talking.
“The volunteers at the firehouse are notifying everyone living along the creeks and river to move up. I just talked Rambling Randy into interrupting his usual ‘just music’ evening with weather reports. Lowland farmers will need time to move cattle up. People near the river will need to tie everything down.”
“They can’t just walk hundreds of head up the roads.” Colby’s worries were still on the cattle. Most of the farms and ranches were small, with gateless wire stretched between them.
“If it comes to it, they’ll cut fences. If the rain doesn’t wipe out farmers’ fields, the cattle will as they climb. Winter crops will be trampled.”
Colby sat up, finally getting into the conversation. “You think it’s going to be that bad?”
“We’ve had almost double our average rain this year. The creeks are all higher than I’ve ever seen them, and the ground is saturated. I’d call us lucky if we have only lowland flooding.”
Colby started putting on his boots. “How can I help?”
She stood. “We’ve got time right now. We need to pull together what we need. If the roads flood, we may not be able to depend on help from outside the valley. If you don’t mind, I’d like you to stay with Sam tonight at the station. If trouble does come, he’ll need all the help he can get. I’ll be next door with the sheriff. Pecos will have his hands full with calls coming in. Daisy is on vacation and none of the fill-in dispatchers can handle a heavy load of incoming calls.”
He reached to touch her but she stood.
“It’s going to be a long weekend. Not what I planned.”
Finally, he looped his arms around her, holding her gently. “I’m glad I’m here to help if the storm comes.”
“We’ve been put on alert before and nothing happened, but some of the fishing shacks were flooded.” Her smile seemed sad. “Maybe I’m worrying over nothing.”
Her body finally melted into him. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“There is nowhere I’d want to be other than with you.” He touched his lips to her forehead. “We’ll watch over your town, PJ.”
She finally kissed him. Not a passionate kiss, but more of a thank-you kiss. He could almost feel Piper slipping away, even while she was still in his arms. Maybe she was simply worried. Doing her job. But Colby feared he’d stayed away too long, or hadn’t done or said the right thing. Maybe she’d found someone else and was trying to choose between them?
If she had another man, half the town might know and not one would tell him. It didn’t matter that he’d saved her life, or that she’d kissed him in front of the whole town. Colby was still the outsider.
Now wasn’t the right time to ask questions. They’d talk later when this crisis was over.
He feared that it might already be too late. This time when he walked away, as he had when other relationships began to get too serious for him, Colby had a feeling he’d look back.
Chapter 14
Marcie
Marcie spent the afternoon at Brand’s ranch and loved every minute, but she knew she’d have to go back home soon. She didn’t belong here. This place wasn’t hers. Brand wasn’t hers. Even if she tried to make him love her, she knew she’d only bring him sorrow.
She guessed he’d had enough of that. Something in his past had molded him into the quiet man he was. Maybe everyone has secrets. Demons who haunt the corners of their minds. She seemed to wear them for the world to see, but Brand kept his buried deep inside.
He’d found his peace here on this rocky piece of land. He could fix her window and add locks to her doors, but he couldn’t fix her. If she stayed around too long she’d only end up hurting him.
He wasn’t going anywhere, and she was going nowhere. Two very different places.
She figured the man was probably ready for anything except her in his life. Wood was split and stacked by the side of the house almost to the roof. The pantry was packed. He even had enough light bulbs in the bathroom cabinet to last ten years.
The tall evergreens his father had planted fifty years ago blocked the north wind. To the east was a rolling pasture that had never been cut by a plow. Generations had lived here, planning their lives by the seasons. Marcie’s kin seemed to live their lives by the day, never planning, never preparing.
Brand was a private man who obviously liked his solitude. They talked of the weather and what was happening on the ranch, but he asked no questions of her. The only time he smiled was when she played for him.
His ranch seemed a million miles away from her world. He stood in silence and watched the sun rise and set as if it were a miracle each day. There was an order to his life and she was a whirling thunderstorm.
But in this place, reality finally crept in. She had to go to work. Wayne had threatened to fire her if she missed one more night. It was time for Brand to drop her off at the bar. He’d insisted on replacing her locks while she sang at the bar.
They didn’t talk much on the drive. He carried her guitar to the door of the bar, touched the brim of his hat, and said simply, “See you later.”
Marcie nodded. She wanted to thank him, maybe kiss him on the cheek, but somehow it didn’t seem right.
Two hours later, when he walked in and ordered his one beer, she knew he’d finished his chore. Her trailer window would be fixed and both doors would have dead bolts.
Brand seemed to think that would be enough to keep her safe, but she knew there would be no safe place.
When he walked to his table in the bar, his gaze never left her.
She smiled. He was her one friend, and one is a long way from none.
The night was cold and the weekend crowd at the bar was smaller than usual because of the rain, but she played for Brand. He hadn’t made one advance toward her all day, but he’d held her when she cried and he’d covered her when it grew cold. In her book he ranked high.
She played for him tonight.
When she finished her set, he stood, leaving a full bottle on the table, and walked out on the steps with her. “You all right with me taking you home and showing you the locks?”
“Sure.” Her car hadn’t started in two weeks and the thought of walking home frightened her tonight more than she wanted to admit. But she didn’t want to tell Brand that. “My car has been sitting beside the bar long enough to collect a layer of dirt.” She pointed to the back of the lot. “It won’t start and I can’t afford to fix it. The good news is, I don’t live far from work.” She couldn’t manage a smile.
“You mind if I carry you to the truck? I might lose you in a pothole in this rain.” He grinned.
She hugged his neck as he lifted her. “And you said you didn’t want to pick me up.” Her cheek brushed his. An inch closer and she could have kissed him.
“Hold on tight.”
“I will.”
Brand didn’t say another word until he pulled up to her place. He cut the engine but didn’t open his door.
“Did you change your mind about coming in?”
He didn’t look at her. He just stared at the trailer. “I thought I left a light on inside.” He slowly opened his truck door. “Stay here.”