Bestselling author Carla Cassidy brings danger and deception to Dead River Ranch for the Coltons of Wyoming

Ranch foreman Gray Stark and heiress Catherine Colton may live together on Dead River Ranch, but they’re from different worlds. She made that clear when she broke his heart years ago. With their passionate, complicated past, marriage is not an option. Until he finds out that she—and her unborn baby—are targets.

Making Catherine his wife is the best way to ensure her safety. But as desire resurfaces, it wars with the danger that hovers close. Is Gray ready to face his biggest threat yet to keep Catherine safe…and by his side…forever?

“Why did you leave, Gray? Why did you just disappear from the ranch, from my life, nine years ago?”

His gaze left Catherine’s face and focused someplace over her shoulder. “First love, teenage fantasies.” He looked at her once again, his eyes dark and unreadable. “What we had was just the lust and the wonder of young love. I did you a favor by leaving here and letting you get on with your adult life.”

“It didn’t feel like a favor at the time,” she said softly, remembering the aching pain he’d left behind. However, there were certainly bigger issues at the moment.

“Water under the bridge, right?” he said. “We can’t go backward, Catherine. We need to figure things out here and now. We need to make sure that you’re covered at all times. And the only way I can do that is if you marry me.”

The Coltons of Wyoming: Stories of true love, high stakes…and family honor.

Dear Reader,

The excitement and dysfunction of the Colton family makes the best kind of reading—addictive and a definite guilty pleasure.

There’s also nothing better than a Colton marriage…unless the bride is unwilling and the groom is reluctant. Add in a heavy dose of desire between the two and a kidnapper determined to claim the new bride for ransom and you’ve got a roller coaster ride!

I hope you enjoy reading The Colton Bride as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Keep reading!

Carla Cassidy

The Colton Bride

Carla Cassidy

www.millsandboon.co.uk

CARLA CASSIDY is an award-winning author who has written more than one hundred books for Mills & Boon. In 1995 she won Best Silhouette Romance from RT Book Reviews for Anything for Danny. In 1998 she also won a Career Achievement Award for Best Innovative Series from RT Book Reviews.

Carla believes the only thing better than curling up with a good book to read is sitting down at the computer with a good story to write. She’s looking forward to writing many more books and bringing hours of pleasure to readers.

MILLS & BOON

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Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Excerpt

Chapter 1

The three Colton sisters sat in the parlor area of Catherine’s bedroom suite, each of them pretending to carry on a casual conversation while ignoring the reason they were gathered together.

The pregnancy test Catherine had just taken was in the adjoining bathroom and none of them had looked at it yet to see the results.

The suite was three rooms: the sitting area, the bedroom and the bath. All were decorated in a splendor of pinks and black with silver accessories. This was Catherine’s haven, the place she felt most safe and secure, but at the moment her nerves screamed inside her.

“Jim Radar’s bull got himself all tangled up in a mess of barbed wire this morning. It took me hours to get him unwound and cleaned up,” Amanda said. At twenty-eight, Amanda had a successful large animal veterinarian practice and a six-month-old daughter, Cheyenne, who was the love of her life. “I gave Jim a lecture about the dangers of barbed wire, but I think it went in one ear and out the other.”

“How’s the barn project coming along?” Catherine asked her younger sister, Gabriella. Gabby had a dream of turning an old red barn on the property into a center for troubled teens. She was not only devoted to her project but also planning a Christmas wedding with Trevor Garth, head of security here at the Dead River Ranch.

“Slowly,” Gabby admitted, her green eyes sparkling with happiness. “I keep getting distracted by wedding plans. It’s already October and that doesn’t give me much time to have a perfect wedding by December.”

“It’s going to be a beautiful wedding and hopefully it will bring some joy into this place,” Catherine replied.

Amanda sighed with a touch of impatience. “We’ve only got an hour before dinnertime. Shouldn’t somebody go in there and check and find out if the answer is yes or no?”

Once again Catherine’s nerves jumped erratically inside her veins, as if attempting to make a hasty escape. How had she gotten herself into the situation where she’d even have to take a pregnancy test? Before the question fully formed in her head, she knew the answer. She’d been such a fool. They’d always been so careful, always had what she assumed was safe sex, but apparently it was possible that at some point a condom hadn’t done its job.

She stood from the dainty pink-and-white chair where she’d been seated, an anxious dread attempting to weigh her back down. “I guess I’ll go find out.”

Gabby jumped up off the chaise where she and Amanda had been seated. She grabbed hold of Catherine’s cold hand. “I’ll go with you, Cath.”

The whole thing felt surreal. When Catherine had missed her first period she’d chalked it up to all the stress and madness that had been taking place over the past couple of months at the ranch. When she’d missed her second period, she’d finally decided it was time to take the test. And now it was the moment of truth.

She squeezed Gabby’s hand tightly as they entered the large, plush bathroom. The plastic test container was on the back of the stool and within five steps of it she could see the result. The positive sign glared up at her.

She was vaguely aware of Gabby’s small gasp, but a curious numbness swept over Catherine. Pregnant. She was pregnant. The words went around and around in her head, but she couldn’t grasp the concept.

She picked up the test and threw it into the small trash can next to the commode and then she and Gabby returned to the sitting room. Gabby gave a nod to Amanda as Catherine sank back down on her chair.

“So, what are you going to do, Cath?” Amanda asked.

“I don’t know. I’m not sure. I need some time to think,” Catherine replied. “Neither of you can tell anyone about this. It has to be our secret until I figure things out.”

Amanda nodded solemnly. “My lips are sealed.”

“Pinky swear,” Gabby said. “You know your secret is safe with us.”

Catherine did know. She and her sisters had always been a team, confiding in each other, trusting each other, especially lately when there was such tension, such a sense of uncertainty and a faint simmer of danger in the house.

“I need to go check on Cheyenne,” Amanda said as she stood.

“And I’ve got some things to get to before dinner.” Gabby gazed at Catherine in concern. “Are you going to be all right?”

“Of course.” Catherine forced a smile to her lips.

“Do you need to talk or something?”

Catherine shook her head. “I just need some time to process everything. I think I’ll head out to the petting barn for a little while before it’s time to eat.”

She’d be able to think more clearly there among the little creatures that depended on her for their care. She’d always found peace in the petting barn and she definitely needed some peace at the moment.

Thankfully, as she made her way downstairs and to one of the back doors, she encountered nobody. She didn’t want to see anyone right now, didn’t want to have to indulge in idle chitchat. She needed to embrace the fact that she was pregnant by a man she’d thought she might be in love with, a man she now abhorred.

The Dead River Ranch was one of the most prosperous spreads in Wyoming. The two-thousand-acre ranch was located in the Laramie Mountains, forty miles from Cheyenne.

The enormous mansion housed not only the three sisters, but also their sickly father, other relatives and staff and ranch hands. It was an entire community unto itself, and for the past three months the community had been folding in on itself, but she couldn’t think about all that right now.

Not only was the house huge, but there were outbuildings everywhere and the remains of several that had burned in a horrible fire that had occurred two months before.

Old barns competed with new ones, stables and sheds dotted the landscape against a backdrop of blue endless skies and thick woods of a variety of trees.

As she stepped outside, she drew in a deep breath of the fresh, slightly bracing October air. It smelled of evergreen tinged wind from the mountains and of pastures browning with the cooler air. Cattle were visible in the distance, enjoying the late-afternoon sunshine while they grazed.

She headed toward the miniature barn where the petting area was located next to the huge stables building. The petting barn had been built two years ago when Catherine had found herself the unexpected owner of two friendly ferrets.

The owner of the ferrets, a friend of Catherine’s, was getting married and moving and she didn’t want to take her little babies to the local animal pound. Catherine had taken them and then had talked her father into building the petting barn.

She’d known her father, Jethro, would like the idea of a place where school and scout groups could come. He loved the idea of anyone visiting the ranch and admiring all that he’d built here.

The minute she opened the waist-high white gate that surrounded a small outdoor arena, Inky and Dinky, the two miniature donkeys brayed a greeting and competed with two sheep, three pygmy goats and a pot-bellied pig to get her attention.

She laughed as she was nudged and head-butted by the variety of animals all vying for an ear scratch, a belly-rub or the nuggets of grains she often carried with her before coming into the enclosure. “Sorry, kids, nothing for you this afternoon,” she said. Her words didn’t lessen the enthusiasm of the furry, fluffy creatures who loved her with or without treats.

It took several minutes for her to make sure that each and every one of them got a little special time and then she headed inside the miniature barn that housed the smaller animals. Rabbits ran in a fenced area and ducks quacked their happiness as they swam in a small pool that was continuously fed fresh water. A large cage held Frick and Frack, the two ferrets who were favorites among the school and scout troops that came to visit the hands-on animal barn.

During those visits, Catherine acted as spokeswoman, educating the kids on each type of animal and their natural habitats and origins. It was something she loved to do when she got the opportunity.

There were stalls to house the outdoor animals during the harsh, cold winters and the entire barn was heated to keep everyone toasty while the snow flew outside and the temperatures dropped to subzero.

Today, as she checked food and water containers, petted and stroked each and every animal, her mind was a million miles away.

Pregnant.

She was pregnant.

Catherine admired Amanda her veterinarian business and Gabby for her commitment to troubled teens. At twenty-six years old Catherine hadn’t yet figured out what she wanted to do with the rest of her life.

All she’d ever really dreamed of was being a wife and a mother. She’d once believed that would happen with Gray Stark, one of the ranch hands whom she’d loved with every fiber of her being when she’d been a teenager. Then one day she’d awakened to discover that he’d left Dead River Ranch and her behind without a word of explanation.

It had taken her a long time to realize he wasn’t coming back, that whatever they’d shared was over and eventually she got on with her life. Thank goodness she hadn’t waited around for him. He’d been gone from the ranch for five long years.

She lowered her hand to stroke a small circle across her still-flat lower stomach. Pregnant. Be careful what you wish for, she thought ruefully as she headed back toward the gate. She’d gotten half her wish, but the timing couldn’t be worse.

She and the father of the baby had broken up two months ago and nothing and nobody would fix that particular relationship. She didn’t want it fixed under any circumstances.

An attempted kidnapping, a couple of murders and a dozen other crimes had created a houseful of distrust and wariness. Her father was on his deathbed and she and her sisters had been working hard in an attempt to locate their half brother Cole, who had been kidnapped over thirty years ago.

Now wasn’t the time for her to be an unwed mother, and yet that’s exactly what she intended to be. The minute she had seen the positive sign on the test she’d known she was going to have this baby.

She paused at the gate, nervously twirling a strand of her hair with one hand while the other moved to her stomach once again.

Despite the fact that she’d grown to hate the man she’d been dating, the scoundrel who had fathered the baby, she already loved the life growing inside her. This was her baby and there was no way she’d let Dirk Sinclair know anything about it. He’d shown his true colors and she didn’t want him anywhere near her or her baby.

A wave of light-headedness swept over her as she stepped out of the gate. She clung to the fence, waiting for it to pass, but it seemed to get worse.

Stress.

It was all too much.

Her head spun with memories of the night somebody had attempted to kidnap her little niece, Cheyenne, and the unsolved murder of the governess Faye Frick who had tried to intervene. Poor cook’s assistant Jenny Burke, murdered in the ranch kitchen pantry and her killer not yet found.

Flashes fired off in her brain of her father in his bed, looking like death as he drifted in and out of comas because of the cancer that ate at him. So much, there was suddenly too much spinning around in her head.

And now, in all the chaos and uncertainty, she was pregnant. Everything whirled faster and faster in her mind and then light-headedness overwhelmed her. She slumped to the ground with her back against the fence. She just needed a minute to rest. She’d be fine if she could just rest a bit, she thought as darkness claimed her.

* * *

He smelled her long before he saw her. Ranch foreman Gray Stark had a history with that distinctive fragrance of exotic spices and mysterious flowers. Catherine Colton had worn it for the year and a half he’d loved her, for the five years that he’d hated her and now for the past four years of his cold indifference toward her.

He only had to take a couple of steps out of the stable and he knew she was someplace nearby. The scent eddied in the air, rising above the smell of animals and hay and oiled leather.

She was probably at the petting barn. He glanced at his watch and noted that it was nearing dinnertime. He wondered if she knew how late it was getting.

Although his usual pattern was to avoid being anyplace where he thought she might be, he decided to walk over to the small barn and let her know that it was almost time to eat.

He knew she often lost track of time when she was tending to the ranch’s animals. She’d always loved the creatures of the earth and was a natural at nurturing all the ones in her care.

As he ambled toward the small barnlike structure, he steeled himself to see her. He’d believed he’d cast her out of his head, out of his heart in the five years that he’d been away from Dead River Ranch and working on a ranch in Montana.

Four years ago when his father, the former ranch foreman, had become ill, Gray had come back to Dead River Ranch and when his father had passed, Gray had become the new foreman.

In all that time there were moments he almost forgot that he’d once loved Catherine Colton, there were increments of time that he almost forgot the depth of her betrayal. But, seeing her always wrought myriad emotions in him, emotions that he consciously schooled to indifference.

She had no place in his life and he had none in hers. He’d learned that lesson when he’d been eighteen years old, a hard lesson that he was likely never to forget.

Any indifference he might have felt for her fled as he rounded the corner to the petting barn and saw her slumped on the ground against the fence.

Adrenaline roared through him as he raced to her side, his gun pulled and at the ready. Had she been attacked? He hadn’t been that far away in the stables and he hadn’t heard her cry out, hadn’t heard anything that would warrant action or warn of any danger.

It took only a quick assessment to assure him that she didn’t appear to have any wounds anywhere. He tucked his gun back into the holster, sat next to her on the ground and pulled her into his arms.

“Catherine?” Everyone around the ranch called her Cath, but when Gray had returned to Dead River Ranch, he’d decided he’d never call her by that affectionate nickname again. He also refused to call her Miss Catherine as all the other staff did. Cath had been a woman he loved. Catherine was just one of his bosses.

He felt the side of her neck, where her pulse was steady and strong. “Catherine,” he said louder, as if by the sheer strength of the command in his deep voice alone he could bring her around.

It worked. She drew a deep breath and slowly opened her eyes. For just a moment he was eighteen years old again and she was seventeen. Her indigo-blue eyes held sweet softness and her long blond hair spilled over his arm like a sheet of honey-colored silk. As if in a trance, her lush lips turned up in a smile of such pleasure it ached deep inside him.

Like a time warp, it was as if they were both momentarily trapped in the past, in a time when they’d loved one another more than anyone else in the world, in a time when he’d been foolish enough to believe that a wealthy Colton might really choose a future with a dirt-poor ranch hand.

The moment snapped and she bolted upright at the same time he released her and quickly rose to his feet. “What happened?” he asked. Reluctantly he held out his hand to help her up, unsure if she’d accept his aid or not. They hadn’t exactly been on friendly terms for the past few years.

She slipped her small hand into his and he pulled her up, both of them breaking the physical contact instantly once she was on her feet.

She looked around, as if momentarily confused. “I don’t know. I guess I fainted.” She frowned and her hand went to her stomach. “I got really light-headed and sat down and that’s the last thing I remember.”

“Why would you faint? You’ve never been the fainting type before.” He looked at her in disbelief.

A new tiny frown danced in the center of her forehead. “I...uh...didn’t sleep well last night and I missed lunch.”

His disbelief deepened. A night of little sleep and a missed meal wouldn’t make somebody as healthy and strong as Catherine faint. There had to be something else going on with her.

“I’m pregnant.” The words blurted from her lips. Her eyes widened as she slapped a hand over her mouth. She slowly raised her hand to her hair and twirled a strand of it, a remembered indication to him that she was upset. “I took a test just a little while ago and it was positive. I’m going to have a baby.”

A whole new host of emotions flew through Gray. “I’m sure Dirk must be very happy. Is there a wedding planned for the near future?” He knew she’d been seeing society playboy Dirk Sinclair for the past six months or so. Their pictures had graced the society pages more than once in recent months.

“There won’t be a wedding,” Catherine said as she started walking toward the house. “Dirk and I broke up two months ago when he discovered I wouldn’t get my inheritance until I turned thirty years old.”

Gray fell into step beside her. Everyone who lived and worked at the ranch knew that Catherine’s father, Jethro, had stipulated that all heirs had to live at the ranch until they turned thirty years old and only then would they receive their inheritance, a substantial amount of money.

“Only my sisters know about the baby and I’ve sworn them all to absolute secrecy. Dirk will never know. He made it obvious to me that he was courting my money, not me, and I don’t want him in my life for any reason.”

“I’m sorry about you and Dirk,” Gray said, only because it was expected of him.

“I’m not.” She raised her chin. “I’m just grateful he showed his true colors before I accepted his stupid proposal.” Her hand slid down her light blue sweatshirt and lingered on her stomach, her eyes darkening. “This is my baby and nobody else’s.”

Gray’s stomach clenched with an unexpected tightness. He was surprised to discover that it bothered him more than a little bit that she carried another man’s baby. It was a stupid reaction that he refused to give weight. He was never meant to be the father of her children. Far better men than him were destined for that particular role in her life.

What her information did do was make him recognize that this would make her a particularly desirable victim to any kidnapper with a brain...two Colton heirs for the price of one.

“If you’re smart you’ll keep this a secret for as long as you possibly can. It puts a huge target on your back,” he said and then hurriedly added, “not that it’s any of my business.”

He thought she saw a faint flinch etch across her pretty features. “You’re right, it isn’t any of your business,” she replied coolly, making him wonder if he’d seen the flinch or just imagined it. He couldn’t imagine that there was anything he could say to her that would actually hurt her.

Whatever he’d thought they had together years ago had been nothing but an illusion and in the four years that he’d been back at the ranch she’d dated a variety of men befitting a Colton, confirming to him that she’d never really cared about him anyway.

Still, when they reached the back door where she would enter and he would continue on around the mansion to the entryway for staff, he took her by the arm.

He wanted to ask her what in hell was she thinking? There was danger all around them. This was the worst time to let people know a new Colton heir was on the way. It had only been three months since somebody had tried to kidnap the youngest Colton heir, Cheyenne, the first time. A second attempt had been made less than a month before, thankfully both unsuccessful, but the first attempt had left his best friend’s mother dead.

At the moment, Catherine and the baby she carried lived in a crazy world, in the house that suddenly felt mad with a simmering sick energy.

“I’m serious, Catherine. You need to be careful and you should keep your pregnancy a secret.”

She pulled her arm from his grasp, as if unable to abide his touch. “I’ve been taking care of myself for years. I’m sure I can take care of myself now.” She didn’t wait for a response, but turned on her heels and went inside the door, leaving him only the whisper of her perfume lingering in the air.

He muttered a curse and headed for the employee door. He’d have just enough time to head up to his Spartan room in the male staff housing area, take a quick shower and then get down to the employee dining room for dinner.

Minutes later, he stood beneath a spray of hot water and tried to keep his thoughts away from Catherine, but it was next to impossible.

Holding her in his arms for those brief moments had picked the scabs off scars he’d thought long healed. In the five years that he had been away from Dead River Ranch and working on a ranch in Montana, he’d occasionally dated other women. But none of them had managed to evoke in him the depth of tenderness, the wealth of desire, the overwhelming rush of love that Cath had so many years ago.

Cath. She’d always been his Cath but since his return to the ranch she was Catherine in his heart and mind, the distinction necessary for him to forget what had been, what he knew would never be.

In the four years since he’d been back at the ranch, as if by mutual agreement she and he had steered clear of each other, rarely speaking to one another unless it was absolutely necessary.

She’d stopped being his problem almost nine years ago and there was no reason for anything to change now. Still, he couldn’t help the simmering anxiety that tightened in his chest as he thought of what a perfect target she would make for a kidnapping and ransom scheme.

The crime had been attempted before with the result being the wrong child kidnapped and a beloved governess dead and the second attempt had only intensified the feeling in the house that both crimes were probably inside jobs.

The family was a convoluted mess, with an ex-wife, illegitimate children and sundry other relatives living in the mansion while the patriarch, Jethro, battled leukemia and drifted in and out of consciousness depending on the day. His illegitimate son, Dr. Levi Colton, had come to do what he could for the man who was his father.

He’d not only brought a bag of medical tricks with him, but also the baggage of a child who had never been acknowledged. At least in the past month Levi had found some peace and had fallen in love with pastry chef Katie McCord.

Gray had no idea how well the staff had been vetted. Mathilda Perkins, the head housekeeper, was in charge of the hiring and firing of employees. He’d never had any reason to doubt that Mathilda did adequate background checks on the people she hired and that she had the best interests of the family at heart at all times. She’d been a devoted employee for many years.

As he pulled on a pair of clean jeans and a denim shirt, he reminded himself that Catherine and her situation weren’t his problem. All he had to worry about was ordering supplies, overseeing the other ranch hands and keeping the horses and cattle healthy and happy.

Catherine Colton wasn’t part of his job, nor was she a part of his life, and he definitely intended to keep it that way.

Chapter 2

Dinner in the Colton family dining room was always a study of pretend civility, underlying tension and slight unpleasant innuendoes. The dining table stretched from nearly one side of the plush, elegant dining room to the other and as Catherine took her seat her gaze automatically went to the empty chair at the head of the table.

Her father had been a stern man with little time for his daughters, but Catherine loved him in spite of all his flaws and she always missed his presence at the evening meal.

When she’d been little he’d command the conversation, talking about how he’d built Dead River Ranch to be the most prosperous ranch in the entire state of Wyoming. He loved his ranch, his money and women and he occasionally remembered that he had three little daughters who were totally dependent on him since their mother had run out on them.

Now his chair was empty because of his illness. At the opposite end of the table was another empty chair, one that stood ready for Cole Colton, Jethro’s son who had been kidnapped as a baby thirty years ago.

When their father had first become ill, Catherine, Gabriella and Amanda had hired a private investigator in an attempt to find their missing half brother, hoping that a reunion would buoy Jethro’s spirits and give him a reason to fight his illness. There was also a possibility that Cole could be a bone marrow donor and save Jethro’s life.

But, while some clues had come to light, there had been nothing so far that pointed them to Jethro’s missing son. It was a thirty-year-old cold case that wasn’t going to be suddenly solved.

Next to Catherine at the table were Gabby and her fiancé, Trevor Garth, who also served as head of security for the ranch. Amanda sat at the end of the table with six-month-old Cheyenne in a bouncy seat on the floor next to her.

On the opposite side of the table were Levi and Katie, Jethro’s third ex-wife, Darla Colton, and her two grown children, Tawny and Trip.

Without Jethro at the table, meals had become noisy, chaotic affairs where people talked over one another while the air shimmered with distrust. Darla, the Botox bottled-blond bitch, as the sisters referred to her, loved the sound of her own voice and if it wasn’t her doing the talking, then it was her son, Trip, who often smelled of booze or pot, depending on the day and the time.

A headache began at Catherine’s left temple as she declined the traditional glass of wine that was always served with the evening meal.

The conversation that swirled around the table throughout the meal was much like it had been for the past couple of weeks. It revolved around the latest attempted kidnapping of Cheyenne, the intervention by Jagger McKnight, an investigative reporter who had been attacked and left for dead on the ranch property. For a while everyone had believed that Jagger was the long-lost Cole, especially when it was discovered he had a piece of an old blue blanket with distinctive embroidery on it in his pocket, a piece of blanket that had once belonged to the missing Cole.

The truth had come out, that Jagger was a reporter, that the blanket bit had been planted on him while he’d been unconscious and everyone had been left with more questions than answers.

Halfway through the meal Catherine wished she had decided to eat in her room. Gabby touched her arm lightly, her green eyes filled with concern. “Are you all right?” she whispered.

“I’m fine. I just have a touch of a headache,” Catherine replied.

“Gee, I wonder why?” Gabby inclined her head toward Trip, who was on his fourth glass of wine and getting louder and louder with each minute that passed. His favorite topic was his prowess with the staff and how every maid who worked in the house had the hots for him.

The sisters had speculated for a long time why Darla and her children were allowed residency in the house. Jethro and Darla had been divorced for years and he’d never shown any interest in her or her two children by a previous marriage, and yet they had their own suite in one of the wings of the house.

They had all decided that Darla knew something about her ex-husband, that she had some piece of information so damning that she’d managed to blackmail herself into a cushy place in the mansion for herself and her children.

Catherine wasn’t close to Darla or her two spoiled adult children and with everything that had happened recently, she couldn’t help but be suspicious of them.

Everyone was suspicious of everyone else, and the recent months of murder, deceit and chaos had taken a toll on each and every resident in the huge mansion. The only people Catherine truly trusted were her sisters.

When the meal was finished, head housekeeper Mathilda Perkins slid into the room and stood next to the wall as two young women carried silver trays of after-dinner coffee.

Mathilda looked like something from a gothic movie with her silver-blond hair pulled into a severe knot at the nape of her neck. Narrowed blue-gray eyes and a starched gray dress added to the aura of a gothic servant. The only difference was she watched the two new kitchen hires, Lucinda Garcia and Kyla Winters, with benevolent eyes, the same way she gazed at each and every person at the table with a hint of fondness.

Catherine’s headache had blossomed from her left temple to chase all the way across her forehead. Caffeine. There was nothing she loved more than her after-dinner shot of leaded coffee.

As Kyla was about to pour her a cup, Catherine suddenly thought about the new life inside her and quickly stopped her. “I’d rather have decaf,” she said.

From across the table Darla arched a blond perfectly tweezed brow. “Interesting. No wine before dinner, no caffeine in your coffee. Why one would think that you might have a little secret.”

“She’s pregnant,” Tawny exclaimed with excitement, as if she’d suddenly cured cancer.

It was obviously just a guess on her part, but the expression on Catherine’s face must have given her away. Suddenly the conversation ratcheted up in volume as everyone talked about the prospect of a new Colton heir.

Escape! With her head pounding, Catherine needed to escape the table, escape this room and these people. She excused herself and ran for the door, leaving the rest of them to speculate on who the father might be, when the due date would come and whether it would be a boy or a girl.

She’d scarcely found out about her condition herself and already it was gossip fodder around the dining room table. How had Tawny guessed so easily? Drat it all, Catherine should have taken the pregnancy test and buried it in the pasture instead of throwing it into her bathroom trash can. For all she knew Tawny went through everyone’s trash to learn whatever secrets somebody might have.

There were only three places where Catherine found peace, the first was her bedroom suite, the second was the petting barn and the third was in her father’s suite where she often sat next to his bed and talked to him.

She knew he was in a coma at the moment, but as terrible as it sounded, that was the time she found it easiest to sit with him, to talk to him, to simply love him.

It took her some time to walk the long corridors that led to his suite of rooms. She entered his sitting room, a pleasant area filled with a stone fireplace, bookshelves and decorated in rich greens and golds. The fireplace stood cold and empty, but it wouldn’t be long before it would be filled with burning wood to keep the winter chill from invading the area.

To her left was her father’s bedroom and as she entered, she nodded to the middle-aged woman in the white uniform. Nurse Linetta Wheeling had been hired several weeks ago to sit with Jethro during the evenings and overnight.

“Good evening, Miss Catherine,” she said as she rose from the straight-backed chair near Jethro’s bed.

Catherine nodded and then looked at her father, her heart squeezing tight as she took in the sight. Jethro had once been a robust, imposing figure, but now his face was gaunt and he looked tiny beneath the heavy green spread that covered him.

“Any changes?” Catherine asked.

“None.” Linetta offered a sympathetic smile. “I’ll just step outside and give you a little time alone with him.” As quiet as a mouse, Linetta slid out of the room and into the sitting room.

Catherine pulled a green-and-gold patterned chair closer to the side of the bed, ignoring the IV and medical equipment hooked up to the sick man in the bed.

“Hi, Daddy. It’s me, Cath.” For a moment she merely sat quietly. Jethro Colton was a complicated man and he’d been a difficult man to love, as a man and as a father. He’d always loved the women and women loved him back, a reality that usually placed his daughters on the back burner of his life.

Still, there had been moments in her childhood when she’d seen him be the kind of father she yearned for, the daddy she could love with all her heart, and it was the memory of those rare moments that kept her loving him now.

“I’ve gone and done something stupid, Daddy,” she finally said. “I was hoodwinked by a man I thought I could love but I discovered all he was after was my inheritance. When he found out I wouldn’t get it for another four years, he dropped me like a hot potato. Unfortunately, he left a little something of himself behind. I’m pregnant, Daddy. You’re going to be a grandfather again and you need to wake up and get well.”

Her eyes blurred with tears as she realized the futility of the conversation. The cancer was draining the very life from Jethro. He’d probably never live to see his new grandchild.

If only they could find Cole. Surely being reunited with his firstborn son who’d been kidnapped so many years ago would rally Jethro to aggressively fight the disease that was eating away at him.

Her mind drifted from her father and his missing son to Gray Stark and that moment in front of the petting barn fence when she’d opened her eyes and had been in his strong arms.

His sandy blond hair had gleamed in the dusk light of day creating a halo effect around his head. In the depths of his brown eyes she’d imagined the soft, sweet emotions she’d believed he’d once felt for her.

Reality had slapped her in the face as he’d quickly released her and she realized his eyes were dark, assessing. No illusion of evening sunshine could turn Gray Stark into a loving, caring angel of a man.

The few times they encountered each other all she got from him was dark eyes, fathomless stares and few words. The boy she’d loved was gone, replaced by a man she didn’t know, a man who made no pretense that he didn’t want to know anything about the woman she had become.

She wondered if he’d loved somebody in the five years he’d been gone from Dead River Ranch. She wondered even more why she cared. In the four years he’d been back she’d never heard any gossip about him and any woman.

What little gossip she had heard about him was that he was all work and little play, a tough but fair taskmaster who kept a keen eye on the wranglers who worked beneath him.

She returned her gaze to the man on the bed. “Daddy, you need to fight this.” She gently picked up one of his hands that lay on top of the bedspread. Calloused from hard work, yet thin and cold, it lay lifeless in hers. She rubbed his hand with both of hers, trying to warm his, but it didn’t work.

She returned his hand to the top of the spread and then stood, unsure what she was hoping to gain from being here, but knowing she’d gained nothing.

* * *

Dinner had just finished up in the employee dining room when kitchen helper Lucinda Garcia reentered the room, her brown eyes sparkling with excitement. “Looks like there is going to be another Colton heir,” she announced.

“Miss Gabby going to give the little princess a baby brother or sister?” George Jeffries, one of the ranch hands, asked.

“Nope, it’s Miss Catherine,” Lucinda replied.

Gray’s blood turned cold as he shoved back from the large, rough-hewn wooden table. What in the hell had she done? Made an official announcement over dinner?

Hadn’t he warned her to keep the information about her pregnancy to herself for her own safety? Now everyone in the entire house would know...all the family...all the staff and Gray was positive that the evil that had created such havoc in the past couple of months had come from within, not from some outside source.

It was with a head full of steam that he left the employee dining room and went in search of Catherine. He knew her habit was often to visit Jethro’s suite right after dinner and that was where he headed.

He stalked the long hallways toward the master suite, unsure what he intended to say to Catherine, even more uncertain why he felt the need to discuss the matter with her at all.

What he wanted to do was take her by her slender shoulders and shake her for telling everyone. What he wanted to do was forget that for just a moment at the petting barn as he’d held her in his arms and she’d smiled up at him he’d wanted to lower his lips to hers and plant a kiss that would possess her completely. He’d wanted to brand her as his own in a way he’d obviously been unable to do as a teenager.

He clenched his hands into fists at his side. The fact that he’d entertained any notion of kissing her ticked him off. He was now ranch foreman, but that didn’t mean he would ever be good enough for Catherine Colton.

This simmering old anger mixed with the aggravation he felt for her over spilling her secret. When he reached Jethro’s suite he stood just outside the door, able to hear Catherine’s soft voice murmuring from the bedroom.

He leaned against the wall, unwilling to interrupt her time with her dying father, but determined to have his say to her. In the distance he could hear others in the house moving around, going to their own suites or gathering in the great room for some conversation before heading their separate ways. He easily imagined he could hear the whispering of deadly secrets, the plotting of evil, the suppressed air of danger ready to spring at any moment.

The problem was he wasn’t sure where the danger might come from or who it might be directed at, he only knew that Catherine, with her surprising news, had just placed herself in a potential place of extreme vulnerability and she had absolutely nobody to watch her back.

It didn’t take long for Catherine to leave the suite and as she turned in the opposite direction of where he’d been waiting for her, he took two long steps forward and reached out to grab her by the arm.

She gasped in alarm and only relaxed a bit when she turned to see him. “Gray, what are you doing lurking around in the shadows of the hallway?” She pulled her arm from his grasp. “What do you want?”

He was momentarily speechless as he gazed at her in the semidarkness of the corridor. She’d changed for dinner from the sweatshirt and jeans into a blue dress cinched at her slender waist, fitted across the bodice and then flaring out in a short fall of silk to her knees, exposing her long, shapely legs.

She looked stunning and the fact that he noticed only raised the level of his anger. “I want to ask you if you have a death wish,” he replied, his words clipped, terse with his displeasure.

“What are you talking about?” She frowned.

“I thought we’d agreed that you would keep your pregnancy a secret for as long as possible.”

“I don’t recall agreeing to anything with you,” she replied. Her cheeks dusted with color. “Besides, I didn’t actually tell anyone. I just refused wine at dinner and asked for decaffeinated coffee afterward. Darla and Tawny noticed and made a big deal out of it and before I knew it everyone had guessed my secret.”

“I told you that this ‘secret’ puts you at a higher risk for something bad happening to you,” he replied.

Her frown deepened. “You’re making this into too big a deal.”

“Too big a deal?” he asked incredulously. “Have you forgotten that three months ago somebody tried to kidnap Cheyenne and in the process Faye Frick was killed? Have you forgotten that Jenny Burke was found dead in the kitchen pantry? Only a month ago another attempt was made to take Cheyenne?”

“Okay, stop!” Catherine placed her hands over her ears, not wanting to hear anything more. She knew awful things were happening all around her, but she didn’t want to hear them listed out loud. She didn’t even like to think about them. “I know what’s been going on,” she said as she lowered her hands to her sides.

“You don’t seem to be taking all of it seriously enough,” Gray retorted, some of his anger seeping out of him as concern took over. “You need to hire yourself a bodyguard or something.”

Catherine looked at him in disbelief. “This is my home, my family. I shouldn’t need a bodyguard here. Besides, Gabby doesn’t have a bodyguard.”

“True, but she’s living and sleeping with Trevor, the head of security.”

“What about Amanda? She comes and goes as she pleases.”

“And also has an ex-marine tough guy playing bodyguard to Cheyenne.” He leaned against the wall. “In fact, you’ve probably done him a favor by taking the target off Cheyenne and putting it right on your back. Maybe he’ll be able to sleep a little better at night now knowing there’s a new target to take the heat off him.”

“You’re just being hateful,” Catherine replied, her tone of voice slightly higher than usual.

“I’m being realistic,” he countered and pushed himself off the wall as she continued down the hallway. “If you were smart you’d marry that kid’s father and move him in here where he could keep an eye on you.”

“That’s never, ever going to happen.” She stopped walking and turned to face him once again. “I wasn’t sure I was in love with Dirk before he broke up with me and since then I’m positive that marrying him would have been the absolute worst mistake of my life.”

Her eyes flashed with the certainty, with the fury of her emotions and words. She looked absolutely magnificent. Gray was oddly pleased by those words, although they certainly didn’t help her situation at all.

“I don’t need him and I don’t need your help, Gray. I’ve done just fine without your advice, without your presence in my life for the past nine years. Since you’ve been back at the ranch for the past four years we’ve scarcely exchanged ten words with each other, so don’t go pretending that you care about my well-being now.”

She raised her enchanting delicate pointed chin. “I don’t need Dirk. I don’t need a bodyguard and I certainly don’t need you.”

She whirled around and stalked down the hallway as Gray gazed after her, wondering why in the hell after all these years he felt that an obstinate part of his heart was still invested in her.

Chapter 3

Dreams of Gray haunted her sleep, erotic, hot dreams of the time when they were teenagers and meeting secretly in the stables after dark. She’d loved him since she was fifteen and he’d been sixteen, but he’d refused to make love to her for two years, although there had been plenty of snuggling and making out and almost lovemaking in those two years.

When they’d finally allowed themselves the pleasure of going all the way, Gray had been tender and so sweet and after that first time they had shared a passion for each other that had been explosive, magic and insatiable.

There had also been a lot of planning in those teenage years. They’d talked about owning a little ranch not far from here, having a couple of kids to raise and a lifetime of love and happiness together.

Catherine awakened and in that brief limbo between dreams and complete consciousness, her heart was filled with love for Gray. The scent of him lingered in her brain, reminding her of how it had felt to be held in his arms, how his lips had plied hers with such fire. In her vision his whiskey-brown eyes gazed at her with such want, such need, it burned deep inside her soul.

Then full awake slammed into her and the fantasy shattered into a million pieces, leaving her heart aching and empty. She clutched her pillow to her chest and lingered for a few minutes, the dream still far too fresh in her head.

Oh, what fantasies they had spun so many years ago and then one morning she’d gotten up and discovered he was gone. She now released her hold on the pillow and got out of bed. And he’d remain gone from her heart, she told herself as she headed into the adjoining bathroom for her morning shower.

He had some nerve, anyway, acting like he was concerned about her, acting like he cared about her safety. After four years of pretending she didn’t even exist, he had no right to be concerned about her now.

She shoved all thoughts of Gray Stark from her head as she stepped beneath the water in the large glass enclosure. She had other things to think about...like the pregnancy test she’d taken that had given her a positive result.

She needed to see a doctor and get confirmation of the test. There were prenatal vitamins to take, instructions to listen to and things to learn. She wanted to do everything she could to ensure that she carried a healthy baby and once she or he was born she’d make sure she was the best mother she could be.

There was really no role model for her to follow. Her own mother had left Jethro and the three girls when they were young and she hadn’t been much of a mother before she’d deserted them. Catherine had never seen her mother again and had little interest in ever reconnecting with her.

Catherine didn’t really know what it was like to have a mother, but she certainly knew what it was like not to have one.

All the things she had longed for as a little girl, as an insecure teenager would be gifted to her own child. Her child would never spend a second wondering if he or she was wanted and loved.

She’d spent far too much of her life wondering that very fact. Her mother had run out on her. Gray’s abandonment in her teens hadn’t helped her insecurities, and Dirk’s desire to marry her only for her inheritance had just been the icing on the cake.

Catherine had what she wanted, a baby growing inside her, and she didn’t need a man to complete her. She could do this all just fine by herself. As she toweled off she realized that the pregnancy had made her decide that she had no intention of ever bringing a man into her life again.

She’d never have to wonder if she was loved for herself or for her enormous inheritance that she’d receive in four years. She never had to go through the dating game again. Love just wasn’t in her cards, except the love of her child. And that was more than enough to make her happy for the rest of her life.

By the time she left the bathroom dressed for the day, the young maid Allison Murray was in her room, tidying up and making the bed. “Good morning, Miss Catherine,” she said with her usual bright, cheerful smile.

“Good morning, Allison. How are the weekend classes coming along?”

“Great,” Allison replied as she fluffed a pillow. “My economics teacher told me I have a natural knack for numbers.” She laughed, her green eyes sparkling. “Who would have thought?”

“I think it’s wonderful that you’re pursuing your education,” Catherine said to the pretty young woman.

Allison cast her a sly glance. “And I think it’s wonderful that you’re pregnant. Have you been to the doctor yet?”

“Not yet. I just found out by taking one of those home pregnancy tests.” Catherine sank down in her favorite chair while Allison finished plumping all the pillows on the bed.

“You should get yourself to a doctor. I’ve heard that sometimes those home pregnancy tests can give you a false positive,” she said.

“I’ll check in with a doctor as soon as possible,” Catherine replied, although she knew the test was right. Even though it was far too early for her to feel anything or for her belly to show any signs of the life inside, Catherine knew with certainty it was there. She felt it in her heart, in her very soul.

She visited with the woman for a few more minutes and then when Allison went into the bathroom to clean up, Catherine headed for the dining room. She was later than usual and was grateful to find herself alone except for Amanda, who was at the table lingering over a cup of coffee.

“Hey, Cath.” She greeted Catherine with a smile and gestured to the chair next to her. “You missed the usual breakfast fracas. Darla spent most of the conversation whining that she wanted their suite redecorated and I swear Trip had already been drinking.”

“Gee, sorry I missed the fun,” Catherine replied dryly. “I was wondering if you could get me in to see your OB/GYN doctor in Laramie.”

“Dr. Kendall? You’ll love her, and if I give her a call right now I’ll bet she could work you in before the end of the day.”

Catherine laughed. “I don’t think it’s necessary to move that fast.”

“That baby of yours is going to be Cheyenne’s first cousin, her first real playmate. There’s no time like the present to get you in to the doctor and on a regimen of healthy eating and vitamins.”

At that moment head cook Agnes Barlow stepped into the room, her short red hair an indication of her fiery disposition with the kitchen staff. “Miss Catherine, would you like something for breakfast?” she asked. There was no hint of warmth or welcome in her voice. She was all work and no-nonsense.

“Thank you, Agnes, maybe just a glass of orange juice and a piece of toast,” Catherine said.

“Are you having morning sickness?” Amanda asked.

“No, nothing like that. I’m just not that hungry this morning.”

By the time Catherine had finished her glass of juice and toast, Amanda had set her up with a four-thirty appointment with Dr. Victoria Kendall.

The sisters parted then, Amanda heading toward the nursery to check in on Cheyenne and Catherine leaving the house for the petting barn to take care of the morning chores.

She could have hired somebody to do the caretaking of the animals for her, but Catherine didn’t mind getting her hands dirty and the work out there gave her a sense of purpose that she needed in her life.

She left the house for the walk to the barn and although she saw several ranch hands out in the pastures, thankfully she didn’t see Gray.

With her dreams of him still so fresh in her mind, she wasn’t ready to see him anytime soon. It was bad enough that she couldn’t get the scent of him out of her head and that he’d invaded her sleep all night long.

He’d stood so close to her when he’d encountered her outside of her father’s suite that she’d been able to feel his body heat radiating toward her, smelled the scent of fresh minty soap and shaving cream and a hint of woodsy cologne that was so familiar.

She’d read somewhere that scents easily pulled up specific people and places from memory, and she knew it was true. Gray’s scent had brought up times in the past that she’d prefer she never remember.

She was grateful when she reached the little barn with its smells of hay and grain and animal. As she worked to clean the area and replace foul hay with fresh, she thought about all the things that had happened in the past couple of months.

Yes, there had been terrible things going on. It seemed that when the three sisters had put into motion a plan to find their missing brother, Cole, the entire world had gone crazy.

However, good things had happened, too. Mia Sanders, who had worked as a nurse at the ranch infirmary, had left with Jagger McKnight, the investigative reporter who many had initially believed was the missing Cole. They moved away to begin a life of love and happiness together.

Levi, Jethro’s illegitimate son, had come home to help doctor the man he’d cut ties with years before and in the process had found love with pastry cook Katie McCord. Even Gabby had found true love with Trevor despite the drama of everything surrounding them.

Catherine preferred to focus on the positive than dwell on all the negative things that had taken place in recent months. Her sisters both accused her of being a Pollyanna, but Catherine didn’t care. She couldn’t control the bad things happening on and around the ranch, had no idea who was behind them and so chose to try to keep her head buried in the sand as much as possible.

After she’d finished at the barn, she went back to her suite to shower again and get dressed for the thirty-minute drive into Laramie to see the doctor.

She skipped the family lunch, deciding she’d make the drive leisurely and stop at a café for a quiet lunch alone and maybe even do a little shopping before her doctor’s appointment.

It was just after noon when she got into her red Jeep and headed toward Laramie. She had gone to Laramie and to the bigger city of Cheyenne often when she’d been dating Dirk and to attend a variety of charity events.

The town of Dead, Wyoming, was located only fifteen miles from the ranch, but offered little other than the basics of a small town.

For any real shopping or dining experience most people drove into Laramie or Cheyenne and it was well worth the drive to Laramie for Catherine to become a patient of the doctor who had seen Amanda through her pregnancy with Cheyenne.

Being away from the ranch eased some of the tension she’d carried with her for the past couple of months, tension she hadn’t realized she possessed. At least for the day she didn’t intend to think about the things happening at the ranch or her father’s health. Today she just intended to relax.

She ate a late lunch at a fashionable bistro and then browsed in a nice boutique that had not only clothing but also shoes and a jewelry counter.

It was at the jewelry counter that she saw it...a necklace that the clerk hooked at the nape of her neck. The aquamarine stone in the center was surrounded by sparkling diamonds and nestled as if it belonged on her between her collarbones. She loved it, bought it and wore it out of the store.

As she left to head to her doctor’s appointment, the necklace felt warm against her skin. She could tell her son or daughter that she’d bought it on the very day she’d officially confirmed her pregnancy.

If she had a little girl then the necklace would be a gift for her when she turned sixteen and if she had a boy, then it would be a gift to his bride on the day of his wedding.

She was pleased with her purchase and equally pleased with Dr. Victoria Kendall. The doctor was middle-aged, broad-faced with round glasses and brown eyes that appeared kind and calm enough to deal with any pregnancy jitters.

They began with a list of questions that Catherine answered, questions about her general health and the date of her last period. Blood was taken and then Catherine was set up for an ultrasound.

“I would guess that your due date is going to be around the first of April,” Dr. Kendall said as she squirted cold gel onto Catherine’s stomach. As she firmly moved the transducer around Catherine’s belly, Catherine watched the screen and gasped in surprise as she saw the little fetus inside her.

“Makes it real, doesn’t it?” Dr. Kendall said as she pointed out the head, the facial features that had begun to form and the heart beating strong and sure. “This sonogram confirms that you’re about nine weeks along and that would keep your due date correct.”

“April. It seems so far away,” Catherine said once she was redressed and Dr. Kendall was writing out a script for prenatal vitamins.

Dr. Kendall looked up and smiled. “About March you’ll be thinking April can’t get here fast enough for you. I’ll see you again in a month and in the meantime if you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to give me a call.”

It was just after five-thirty when Catherine got back in her Jeep to head home. She sat for a moment, her fingers gripping the necklace around her throat as the wonder of the new life inside warmed her.

This was real. She’d actually seen the baby growing inside her. She was pregnant and she felt as if she’d been given the best gift in the whole world.

By the time she was halfway home she had to turn on her headlights against the darkness usurping the twilight. At this time of year nighttime came early.

Her head was filled with thoughts of names for a little girl or a boy, of visions of what the baby might look like considering Dirk had dark brown hair and brown eyes. It didn’t matter; she knew with certainty that her baby would be beautiful.

She’d filled her prescription for the vitamins and had a handful of pamphlets about pregnancy and she carried with her a sense of rightness, that this was what she was born to be...a mother.

It was completely dark by the time she reached the ranch and drove through the huge ornate gold gates that led onto the Colton property.

She was passing the petting barn when she thought she saw a light shining from within the wooden structure. She slowed and then braked to a halt and cut the engine. Had she turned on a light that morning and forgotten to turn it off? Or was the flicker of illumination just a trick of the moonlight overhead reflecting on one of the little windows in the back of the barn?

Although she was eager to get to the house and into her suite, she decided to check out the barn and see if she’d accidently left on a light. She got out of the car and pulled her jacket closer around her, grateful that she’d worn one since the temperature after sunset dropped considerably.

Usually after dark the animals were already bedded down, but tonight they were restlessly wandering their pen. “Hey, guys, what’s going on with you?” She leaned over the fence and petted the donkeys and goats and noted that there was no light shining from the open door of the barn.

Apparently the light she’d seen had simply been the moon, for the overhead lamp in the barn was not on. As she left the gate one of the ranch dogs barked in the distance and an unexpected chill suddenly raced up her spine.

It was definitely time to head inside. She wanted to get to her suite, change into her pajamas, avoid any family drama and focus only on all things baby.

She was about to get back in her Jeep when the faint crunch of dried grass behind her shot a warning off in her head at the same time a hand clasped over her mouth and a strong arm wrapped tight around her waist.

Panic exploded inside her as the person began to drag her away from her vehicle. She didn’t have time to wonder who had hold of her or what he wanted. The only thing she knew for sure was that she was in terrible trouble.

The attacker continued to drag her farther and farther away from her car and she tried to dig in her heels to make it more difficult for him. When that didn’t work she kicked her feet and violently twisted her body in an attempt to break his grip, but he was strong and obviously determined to get her into the wooded area in the distance.

The person who held her so tight made no sound, except for a faint grunt as he continued to maneuver her across the expanse of land. She knew with a certainty that if he got her to the woods, then there would be no hope and whatever happened after that would be horrible.

With a renewed effort, she twisted and slung her body and managed to bite his hand through the thin gloves he wore. He hissed and for just a single second his hand slipped from her mouth. She managed one sharp, short scream before his hand slapped across her lips once again and he continued to drag her away.

Chapter 4

Gray sat in the small cold office in the stables, paperwork before him on the desk and his favorite ranch dog Blackie, a lab mix, on the floor at his feet. Blackie growled, low and threatening and the hackles on his back raised, but he remained lying down.

“What’s the matter, old boy?” Gray asked absently. He leaned over and scratched behind one of Blackie’s ears. “One of those old barn cats tormenting you?” There were dozens of cats on the property, mousers who kept the stable and outbuildings as free of rodents as possible.

Most of the time the ranch dogs and cats played nice together, but Blackie had become more than a bit cantankerous in his old age. Blackie growled again and got to his feet and at the same moment a scream split the night.

Shrill yet short, it shot a piercing edge of adrenaline through Gray as he jumped up from his desk and raced for the stable doors. He hit the night air and rounded the side of the stables and in the near-full moonlight casting down saw two things...Catherine’s Jeep parked in front of the petting barn and Catherine being dragged away from the vehicle by a man dressed all in black.

“Hey!” Gray shouted, his heart pounding as he took off at a dead run. His hand automatically went for his gun tucked in the holster he wore whenever he was out on the property. “Stop or I’ll shoot.” Despite the threat, he could do no such thing as he couldn’t take a chance at hitting Catherine, who was in front of the man like a shield.

The assailant froze and then dropped his hold on Catherine, who crumpled to the ground in a small heap as the man turned and ran. Gray raced forward and once he reached her, she motioned for him to go on and catch the man who had grabbed her.

“Get in the Jeep and lock the doors,” he commanded as he flew by her. She’d be safe there and if somehow the assailant doubled back to her, she could always raise hell with the horn and drive off.

The person had a good head start but Gray was in top physical shape and pumped his legs to achieve a speed he’d never reached before. His heart throbbed painfully in his chest. He had to catch him, he had to find out who had tried to grab Catherine. This man could be the answer to so many things that had happened.

Despite Gray’s desperate need and the bright moonlight spilling down, once the attacker hit the dense woods, Gray lost sight of him. He clutched his gun tightly, willing and ready to use it if necessary.

He stopped and listened and heard the crashing of brush and crackling of broken tree limbs someplace in the distance to his left. He took off in that direction, his mind completely focused on catching the man who’d attempted to harm Catherine.

Fury drove him forward, half tripping over unseen roots. Shadowy tree branches slapped him in the face and shoulders as he raced forward.

He ran for only a few minutes and then stopped once again to listen.

Nothing.

The only noise he heard was the faint whisper of the wind through the treetops and his own ragged breathing. He remained frozen for several long minutes, hoping to hear a sound, a breaking branch, a faint footfall, any kind of indication where the man had gone.

Realizing that the attacker had the advantage of dark clothing to meld into the night shadows and that Gray really had no idea in which direction to give chase, he reluctantly turned and headed back out of the woods.

As he emerged into the clearing he was stunned to see Catherine still on the ground, crawling on her hands and knees, the sounds of her quiet sobs filling him with a new terror.

Was she hurt? Had he mistaken her condition as he’d raced by her in an attempt to catch the perpetrator? “Catherine!” He reached her side and crouched down where she was on her hands and knees, tears streaming down her cheeks. “What are you doing? Why aren’t you in the Jeep? Are you hurt?”

She shook her head. “No...I’m fine, but it fell off...I have to find it.” She frantically raked her fingers back and forth through the grass as she slowly crawled forward.

“What fell off? What are you looking for?” he asked, watching her and then glancing all around to make sure there was no more approaching danger.

“My necklace...I just bought it today...for the baby...to celebrate. It fell off sometime when he had me. I need to find it.”

Despite her obvious reluctance, he pulled her up to her feet and grabbed her by her shoulders to keep her upright. Her deep blue eyes gazed at him beseechingly in the moonlight.

“What does the necklace look like?” he asked.

“Aquamarine stone on a gold chain.” She punctuated the sentence with a thick sob.

“Get in the car and lock the doors. If you see anyone, honk the horn. I’m going to get a flashlight and see if I can find your necklace.” He walked her to the car where he opened the passenger door and placed her inside. “Sit tight. I’ll be right back,” he said and then hit the button that would lock all of the doors.

He raced back into the stables where he grabbed a high-powered flashlight and quickly returned with Blackie at his heels.

He should have paid more attention the first time the dog had growled, that moment when his hackles had risen. Gray should have known something was amiss when the dog reacted to something he didn’t like. He’d obviously smelled the intruder nearby.

Dammit, if Gray had only checked outside seconds earlier he might have been able to catch the attacker. He might now have had some answers. At least he’d gotten outside in time to stop what might have happened to Catherine.

He shined the beam of the light inside the Jeep, assuring himself that she was safe and sound inside, although still crying and then he pointed the light to the ground and began to hunt for her missing necklace.

He knew her tears weren’t just for a necklace she’d bought that day, but probably a reaction to what had nearly happened to her. The thought of what might have happened if he hadn’t left his desk when he had crunched a tight knot in the pit of his stomach.

This was exactly what he’d been afraid of. It was the reason he’d wanted her to keep her pregnancy a secret for as long as possible.

The attacker hadn’t wanted to kill her. He could have done that with a single thrust of a knife into her back, with his hands tightened around her neck right by the side of the Jeep. No, whoever it was hadn’t wanted her dead at all. He’d wanted her very much alive and away from the ranch.

Gray’s anger grew as he continued to sweep the ground for the missing necklace. What had she been doing out here all alone at the petting barn after dark? Had she not taken his warnings seriously? Was she just that reckless to ignore the obvious dangers after everything that had already happened?

He muttered a sigh of relief when his flashlight beam caught the shimmering blue and gold of the missing necklace on the ground. He plucked it from the grass and headed for the car, ready to get what answers he could from Catherine.

She unlocked the car door and he slid behind the steering wheel and held out her necklace. She took it from him with a trembling sob and pressed it tight against her chest. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” he replied gruffly. “I’ve got some questions that you need to answer and the first one is what in the hell you thought you were doing out here all alone in the dark?” The adrenaline that had crashed through him lingered as he waited for her reply.

She dropped her hands with the necklace to her lap, her tears slowly halting while she looked at the petting barn. “I had been in Laramie all afternoon and when I finally got back here it was dark and I thought I saw a light in the barn.”

She frowned and raised a hand to twirl a strand of her hair. “It must have just been a strange beam of the moonlight against one of the windows because when I got out of the Jeep and went to the fence to check it out there were no lights on anywhere. So, I came back out to get into the Jeep and...” Her voice trailed off and she turned her head to look at him, her eyes huge and as dark blue as he’d ever seen them. “He came out of nowhere. I heard a faint footstep in the grass behind me and before I could react, he had me.”

“He was obviously waiting for you and he probably shined a flashlight in the barn in hopes that you’d stop and check it out.” A lump formed in the back of Gray’s throat, a lump of both fear and anger.

“Do you have any idea what would have happened if you hadn’t managed to scream? If I hadn’t been in the stables to hear you?” His voice betrayed the depth of his fear and he drew a deep breath to gain control.

“I’d be dead.” Her voice trembled as her hand released her strand of hair.

“No, I don’t think so, but you’d be gone and I imagine a pretty hefty ransom would have been asked for your safe return.” Gray grabbed the steering wheel and squeezed it so tight that his knuckles whitened. “This is exactly what I warned you about.”

“Who would have thought that a simple trip to a doctor’s office in Laramie would have resulted in this?” She worried the necklace in her hands as if it were a magical talisman.

“Who knew you were going to Laramie?” Gray fought his need to vent his anger, an anger that had nowhere to go except in her direction.

He was upset that she hadn’t taken his warning about her safety seriously, that the evocative scent of her filled the interior of the car and that he wanted to both yell at her and pull her into his arms at the same time.

“Amanda knew because she set up the doctor’s appointment for me. Agnes knew because I told her I wasn’t going to be here for lunch or dinner. I don’t know who else might have known, but surely you can’t think anyone from the house had anything to do with this,” she protested.

“I wouldn’t put this past Trip. I don’t trust him or Tawny or Darla. We’ve got ranch hands we know little about, new hires all over the house. Any one of them could see you as a ticket to a new life. Catherine, you need to wake up. Somebody in your house is up to no good. There have already been murders committed and no suspect has been identified in those deaths.”

Once again she twirled a strand of her hair. “Everything is happening so fast. I just learned I was pregnant yesterday and now suddenly I’m attacked.”

“And there’s no doubt in my mind that whoever tried to take you tonight knows that you’re pregnant, which makes your kidnapping twice as valuable as taking anyone else.”

She released a weary sigh. “Just take me back to the house. At least I know I should be safe in my own private suite.”

Gray started the Jeep engine, deciding now wasn’t the time to tell her that with her suite on the ground floor it wasn’t exactly a tall tower to be breached with great difficulty. There was really no place in the entire house that she was safe. After all, it had only been two months ago that kitchen help Jenny Burke had been found murdered in the pantry.

“Catherine, you’ve got to take this threat seriously. You can’t be out alone after dark. You need to keep yourself surrounded by people all the time and we should probably call the chief of police when we get back to the house.”

“Why call him and complicate everything?” she countered. “What’s the point? The only description I have of him is that his hands were huge and in thin black gloves. He felt strong as an ox as he pulled me away.” She shivered. “But, I have no idea what he looked like and I’m assuming you couldn’t tell anything about him, either.”

“Medium height. Medium build.” Gray sighed, knowing she was right. There was really no point in calling out the chief with nothing more to offer him. The man would be long gone from the woods by now.

He pulled into the garage in the lower portion of the mansion and parked her Jeep in its usual spot. He turned to look at her and noted that her lower lip trembled slightly and fear still darkened her eyes.

“You’re safe now, Catherine.” He couldn’t help but want to erase that fear.

She nodded. “Thanks to you.” She opened her door and got out and he did the same. As he rounded the car to where she stood, as if unsure where to go or what to do, he noted that she still grasped the necklace tightly in her fingers.

“Is it broken?” he asked.

She looked at the clasp and released an audible sigh of relief. “No, it must have just come unfastened.”

“Do you want me to put that back around your neck where it belongs?”

For the first time some of the fear left her eyes. “Do you mind? I bought it today to celebrate. Eventually it will go to my daughter or my son’s wife. I’m just so grateful that you found it. I thought it was lost for sure.”

She handed him the necklace and turned her back to him. As she swept her hair to one side, baring the back of her delicate neck, he fought the impulse to press his lips against her soft skin.

Damn her for scaring him. Damn her for reawakening his desire for her despite all the years that had passed, in spite of all the bitterness she evoked in him.

And damn her for his shaking fingers as he tried to clasp the delicate gold chain at the nape of her neck. “You need a husband, somebody who can watch over you through the day and be at your side at night.” He finally managed to get the necklace on.

She turned and looked at him. “Thanks for the advice,” she said dryly. “Unfortunately I don’t seem to have any volunteers for the job at the moment.”

“I’d volunteer.” The words left his mouth before any thought entered his brain. “You could marry me...of course it would just be a marriage in name only, but nobody else would have to know that. It would give me a reason to keep you close and safe.”

Catherine stared at him for a stunned moment and then laughed. “Sure, that makes sense. For the past four years you’ve made it obvious you don’t even like me. A marriage between us for any reason is an absolutely ridiculous idea.”

“You’re right, of course,” he said stiffly, wondering what on earth he’d been thinking when he’d even made the crazy offer. Obviously he hadn’t been thinking at all.

Catherine would be more apt to marry the society-page playboy, money-grubbing father of her baby than a lowly ranch foreman. He’d learned that lesson nine years ago and he should have remembered it now.

“Then I’ll just say good-night,” he said and turned to head toward the garage door.

“Gray?”

He turned back to face her.

“Thank you,” she said and for just a split second he thought he saw a yearning in her eyes.

Trick of the light, he told himself. “No problem,” he said curtly and then left the garage and went outside into the cool night air. He headed back to the stables, needing to process everything that had just happened, needing to lick the wounds of humiliation that stung like a swallowed wasp inside his chest.

As he walked, he kept his gaze moving, seeking anything or anyone who might be out of place, who might signify danger. Even before the events of tonight, all the ranch hands had suffered from the knowledge that nobody could be trusted.

Two kidnapping attempts of Cheyenne, two murders in the house and even the former chief of police in Dead, Hank Drucker, had not only been discovered to be a dirty cop who got arrested, and was now dead, his death was being investigated as either a suicide or a murder.

Gray had the feeling of danger permeating not only the Dead River Ranch, but also the nearby small town of Dead, as well. Worse, he felt the noose of danger tightening around them all and an imminent explosion of evil about to detonate and there wasn’t anything he could do but wait for it to happen.

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