he’d desperately wanted to please Cass Holiday, who had given him real-life lessons and a sense of worth and had taught him how to be a good, self-respecting man.
He’d also wanted to earn the respect and friendship of all the men he worked with at the ranch. He’d managed to do that, and considered each and every cowboy on the Holiday Ranch as a brother.
What he didn’t understand was why it was so important that he somehow prove himself to a woman he barely knew, a woman with chameleon eyes and an unexpected smile that had lit up something inside him.
* * *
Adrienne followed behind Nick’s Jeep, her thoughts in turmoil. She’d come to town wanting to hate Nick Coleman and firm in her belief that he’d killed Wendy. She’d come to town expecting a monster.
What she’d found was a hot, sexy cowboy who seemed as determined as she was to find the real killer. Jenna, the woman who had waited on them the day before, had certainly shown no fear or trepidation around Nick, and Daisy had practically laughed at the very idea of Nick being involved in any way in Wendy’s murder.
So who exactly was Nick Coleman? Was he a cold-blooded killer or simply an innocent man who had struck up a friendship with a young, vibrant and lonely newcomer to town?
There was no question that something about him drew her despite her wish to the contrary. She’d never been a woman particularly attracted to eye candy, although there was no question that Nick was easy on the eyes.
There was definitely some emotion in the depths of his blue eyes that tugged at her, a haunting sadness that occasionally shone through otherwise fathomless waters.
At thirty years old, there had been few men in her life. In fact, there had been only one. At the time, when most young women had begun to date to find their lifelong mate, she’d been busy raising Wendy.
A little over two years ago when Wendy had taken off on her own, Adrienne had done little to improve her love life. Wendy had often told Adrienne she was too rigid, too uptight to ever find a man who’d want to spend his life with her.
Even though Wendy had usually said those words in the heat of an argument, Adrienne realized some of them had taken purchase in her heart, making her leery of even seeking any personal relationship with any man. The one time she’d made an attempt, Wendy’s prediction had proved true.
She followed Nick’s Jeep beneath the wrought iron entrance to the Holiday Ranch, her thoughts focused solely on meeting up with Chief Bowie and hopefully furthering the investigation into Wendy’s death.
Nick parked next to the house, and she pulled in just behind him. In the distance, she could see men on horseback and a huge herd of cattle. She could also see the bright blue tentlike canopy that covered the remains of an old shed where Wendy’s body had been discovered, along with the skeletons.
She swallowed against any emotion that might sneak up on her and fell into step next to a silent Nick. She had to take two steps to his one in order to keep up with his long-legged pace.
They walked about halfway between where they had parked and the blue canopy-topped tent when an officer appeared and approached them.
His name tag identified him as Officer Juan Ramirez. He nodded to Adrienne. “Ma’am,” he said and then turned his focus to Nick. “Nick, you know you shouldn’t be anywhere around the crime scene.”
“We have no intention of getting any closer,” Nick replied. “But we heard Chief Bowie is out here and we’d like to talk to him.”
“I’ll go see if he’s available.” Juan turned on his heels and walked back to the tent and disappeared inside.
A moment later, Dillon appeared and headed in their direction, his features appearing haggard and his uniform dusted with the rusty color of the Oklahoma dirt.
“I can’t do anything with the skeletal remains until our expert gets here,” he said as if somebody had asked him a question. “But we’ve been digging around the area where Wendy was found to make sure we haven’t missed anything related to her murder.”
“And have you found anything?” Adrienne asked, eager to hear something positive.
His tired eyes held frustration as he shook his head. “Not yet. So Juan said you two needed to speak to me.”
Adrienne remained silent as Nick told Dillon about the conversation they’d shared with Daisy over breakfast.
“Zeke Osmond, Greg Albertson and Perry Wright,” Dillon repeated. “I’ll add them to the list. Right now I’ve got a couple of my men interviewing all the men who work here at the ranch.”
Adrienne sensed the tension that filled Nick, making him stand a little taller. “None of those men are capable of murder, and nobody has questioned me yet,” he said.
“We’re taking this slow,” Dillon said. “Trust me, Nick, you will be thoroughly questioned, but we only figured out yesterday, thanks to Adrienne, that the crime probably began in the motel room.”
“I saw your men there this morning. Were they able to come up with anything?” Adrienne asked.
Dillon frowned. “No. In fact, they couldn’t pull a single fingerprint from any place in the room.”
“So whoever packed her things also took the time to completely wipe down the room,” Nick said.
“It would appear so,” Dillon replied.
Had Wendy been tied up on the bed while the killer had packed her things and cleaned the room? Or had she already been dead and buried and the killer had come back to her room alone in the dead of night to tie up loose ends?
Adrienne’s knees weakened, and she stumbled against Nick’s side as horrendous visions played and replayed in her mind. His arm immediately went around her shoulder, anchoring her to his strong body. She knew she should step away, but she lingered for just a moment, feeding off his strength, oddly comforted by his warmth.
She quickly locked her knees, banished the horrific visions from her brain and stepped away from Nick, appalled that she’d found any modicum of comfort in his nearness.
“If that’s all you want with me, then I need to get back to work,” Dillon said. “Nick, I’ll have that interview with you sometime later this afternoon. Adrienne, I’ll try to keep you up to date with anything we learn.”
Adrienne and Nick headed back toward their vehicles, but before they reached them, a pretty, petite blonde stepped out of the house and onto the back porch.
“Nick, why don’t you two come in for something cold to drink,” she said.
“Who is that?” Adrienne asked softly.
“Cassie Peterson, my boss,” he replied. He waved to her. “We might as well go inside. You can meet her and the others who live here.”
Nick introduced Adrienne to Cassie, who greeted her warmly, her blue eyes filled with the compassion Adrienne had come to expect from the people in Bitterroot who knew about her sister.
Cassie led them through a small formal parlor area and into a great room where a lovely dark-haired woman and a young boy sat on the sofa thumbing through a catalog. The woman stood and the boy ran to Nick.
“Hi, Cowboy Nick. Whatcha doing?” He looked at Adrienne. “Hi, I’m Sammy and that’s my mom, Nicolette, and we just bought a house with Cowboy Lucas, who is going to be my new dad as soon as they get married.”
“Sammy.” His mother smiled apologetically and moved closer to Nick and Adrienne. “I apologize for my little chatterbox.”
“No apology necessary,” Adrienne replied and then introduced herself.
Nicolette took her hand and squeezed it tightly. “I’m so sorry for your loss. Unfortunately, Cassie and I arrived in town after your sister had gone missing, so we never got an opportunity to meet her. I’ve