for signs that anyone had been here recently. He found none.
He brought the horse to a stop in a protected area that he’d often used in the past.
“We can rest here for a few minutes if you like,” he told Laura, his voice thicker than he’d intended. “I need to make a few adjustments to the horse. The bushes over yonder are a good place for privacy.”
Owen indicated a place his sister often used when they came through.
“I thought we were in a hurry. Why are we stopping again?”
The woman was going to be the death of him. Hadn’t he just told her why they were stopping? It was going to feel like a very long time in hiding if Laura kept questioning everything he said and did. Hopefully, Will and his crew would apprehend James soon. Much more of this and Owen might find himself going crazy.
“I’ve got some things I need to do. Part of the plan to mislead the trackers.”
He dismounted, then helped Laura off the horse. Ignoring her still-questioning gaze, Owen began removing the cloth he’d placed around his horse’s hooves. While he was working on the front hooves, Owen used his knife to remove the excess metal around the sides of the horseshoes. If anyone picked up his tracks here, they would assume it was a different horse because the prints wouldn’t match.
Yes, this was costing them precious time, at least in the short run. But hopefully, it would send James and his men on a wild goose chase, searching for Laura in all the wrong places.
When Owen got to the back hooves, Laura knelt beside him. “Can I help?”
Some of the irritation he’d been feeling washed away. One of the things he’d liked about Laura was that she always wanted to help. There were some women he’d had to protect who expected him to wait on them hand and foot. Not Laura. She’d done what she could herself and asked him to teach her the things she couldn’t.
“Thanks, but I’m almost done. Go ahead and get yourself a drink or take care of your needs. The water here is clear and fresh.”
Owen moved to the last hoof and finished the job. He picked up the scrapings to leave no sign of his handiwork. As he stood, he stretched, allowing some of the stiffness to leave his bones. He’d been riding hard most of the day, and it would be another hour to his ranch. Usually, it wasn’t such a hard ride. But he’d like to get Laura there and settled before it grew dark.
He led Troy to the river, allowing his horse to drink. The water here branched off into a small pool where animals could drink, and children could play. Owen smiled as he realized that it would soon be warm enough for the girls to splash in the water. This high up, the water was always bitter cold. But it never seemed to stop the children from playing in it.
Laura came out from behind the brush, holding a ragdoll. “Look what I found,” she said, smiling. “This looks like the perfect place for a picnic. I can imagine some family stopping here. I wonder if there’s a way to find out who the doll belongs to.”
As she got closer, Owen recognized the doll.
“I believe that’s Beatrice. She belongs to my daughter Anna, who lost it some time ago. Anna will be grateful that you found it.”
Laura’s eyes widened. “I didn’t know you had a daughter.”
“There’s a lot you don’t know about me,” he said, taking the doll. “I have two daughters. Anna and Emma. They’re twins. You’ll meet them soon.”
“Am I going to your home then?”
Owen took a deep breath. He hadn’t yet told Laura where they were going. A fact he should have rectified long ago, but she’d been irritating him so much that he’d preferred to stay silent rather than snap at her as he’d been doing. It seemed like they’d been communicating poorly this whole time, and Owen had learned over the years that it was better to say nothing than to have to keep apologizing for saying the wrong thing.
“Yes. My ranch.”
“If it’s your ranch, won’t James figure out that I’m there?”
“Only my closest friends know it’s mine. Belonged to an uncle who recently passed away. People don’t know we were related. It’s the last place James will look for you.”
Laura hesitated, and for a moment she looked like she was going to argue with him again.
“He’s not going to find you there.”
She nodded slowly, like she didn’t quite believe him, but had finally figured out the futility of putting up a fuss.
“Why couldn’t you have just told me that?”
“I told you why I couldn’t. Besides, if anyone figures out where we’re going, it doesn’t just put you in danger, but my family, as well.”
Laura gave him a haughty look, reminding him of their very different backgrounds. “Then I’m surprised you are even bothering to take me there at all.”
“It’s the safest place for you right now. I just told you James won’t be able to figure out that you’re there. But for the sake of my family, I have to be extra careful.”
Laura gave a tiny nod, then asked in a quiet voice, “Why didn’t you ever tell me you had children?”
She was hurt, he could tell, and nothing he said would make it better. It shouldn’t matter to him that he’d hurt her feelings, but for some strange reason, it did.
“In my line of work, only my closest friends know about my family. They didn’t sign up for this business, and it’s not fair to put their lives in jeopardy.”
“Oh.” She looked wounded, like he’d hurt her more deeply than just bruised feelings. She’d been acting like that a lot—like their relationship had been something more, something deeper. That was the trouble with being in close quarters with a victim. They often read more into the situation than it was. Which was why getting too close to a victim was dangerous. People mistook the emotions of the circumstances for something lasting and real. But once the danger passed, so, too, did the feelings, and that’s when the real harm happened. Owen knew all about that firsthand.
Which was why he intentionally kept others at a distance. Especially someone attractive as Laura.
“It’s hard for me to trust,” Owen said, giving her a regretful look. “My family is everything to me, and I can’t put them at risk. You don’t know the kind of people who would hurt them if given a chance.”
Owen turned away and brought his attention back to his horse, making sure everything was properly tightened. Yes, bringing Laura to his home was a risk, but they didn’t have any other options. All of the men Will trusted had families in town. It’d be too easy to figure out that Laura was with them. With Owen out of the law business and out of sight, his ranch was the perfect place to hide Laura.
Will used to tell him that he was overprotective of his family. But after everything Owen had been through, he felt like he was entitled to be a little heavy-handed when it came to protecting them. Especially his girls.
“I don’t want to put anyone out,” Laura said, shifting awkwardly. “Your wife won’t mind?”
One of the reasons Owen didn’t like talking about his family. A brief explanation would only give him sympathy he didn’t want or need. But the longer explanation was even worse.
“My wife is dead. My sister, Lena, lives with us and helps me with the girls. Having you come here was partially her idea.”
Will had suggested it. In front of Lena. Who’d gotten extremely excited at the prospect of having another woman around for a while. With Lena on Will’s side, Owen couldn’t say no.
“I’ll try not to be a bother. Please tell Lena that I’m happy to help with any chores. I don’t want to inconvenience her.”
Owen grinned.