“Rhys Archer. Are you doubting that lady? Cause it sure sounds like you are.” Suzy’s hands went to her hips and she glared at me.
I hoped it was at least half in jest.
“Not at all.” I choked and took a too-big swallow of beer to wash the steak down, resembling a seagull with too much food in its beak. Suzy helpfully thumped my back. “It’s me I’m doubting. Not her. I wish I had been back a lot earlier.”
Suzy watched me finish my food for a long moment. Finally, she sighed. “She told you everything was fine, didn’t she.” Her flat tone made her words a statement, not a question. “Did that man leave his whiskey? That’s my finest Yellowstone.” She sniffed it experimentally.
“He didn’t seem to like it,” I said softly, watching her, though my mind went back to the man who had introduced himself and disappeared.
“Well, that’s just peachy.” Suzy huffed. “And sounds like Miss Eve needs a talking to.” The thought of Suzy, who must have been in her sixties, dressing down a woman less than half her age who was one hell of a firecracker lifted my mood. Suzy rolled her eyes.
“Until last night, I thought she was doing okay. As usual, she hides it all well.” I finished my steak and started on the onion rings.
“Always has done. I’ll get your packages and you can take them up to the ranch. And tell her to come down and see me once in a while.” Suzy dove into the throng that filled her coffee shop and disappeared before my thoughts straightened themselves out.
“How long has it been since she left Red Hart?” I called out to her back, but Suzy was long gone, disappearing between her rabid customers vying for her Christmas flavored lattes.
I ignored the feeling of being watched in the overcrowded space, and managed to finish my steak in peace.
Half an hour later, my truck was laden with boxes and food for the ranch. Eve’s mail sat on the passenger seat. Suzy had waved me away when I tried to thank her, and she was too busy to answer any more of my questions, though I was also reasonably certain she engineered it that way.
“Merry Christmas, Ranger,” the young man who had helped pack my truck nodded to me with a smile. He retreated back into Suzy’s shop while I stared after him.
Apparently my name was all over the place. Small town talk had never been something that interested me, but it followed me all the same.
My phone buzzed against my thigh. Fishing it out, I watched Ethan’s name flash up. I wanted to ignore my deputy, but if he was calling already, then either the boys were out drunk already or they had a problem. Either way, I couldn't not pick up. I connected the call in my truck, hoisting myself into the cab and pulled away from the curb, heading out of White Cap and up the range to Red Hart.
“Are you surviving up there? Lost any fingers or toes yet?” Ethan’s familiar voice filled my truck as I left the small town behind.
“Not yet. Mountains only just really started. The drive is taking longer than I expected.”
“Is that you telling me to leave you alone?” Ethan asked with a laugh.
There was still over two hours between Eve and I, and I hadn’t planned on entertaining my staff.
“Probably.” The single word broke off in my mouth, brittle and sharp. I sighed. “Sorry, man. It’s been a long few days,” I said carefully.
“Montana already getting to you? You can come back to Texas, you know. We’ll take you in.”
“You said something about leaving me alone.” I grinned despite myself. Ethan’s ability to keep a conversation light but get to the crux of a matter was one of the key reasons we worked so well together.
“We’re all good here. Andy’s tidying up Brodie’s last case nicely. There were a few loose ends, and he reorganized everything nice and easy.” Ethan repressed a snort on the other end of the line.
“It’s what I like to hear.” The thought of the office working smoothly in my absence gave me a pang. Christmas was a busy time for any law enforcement agency. Either there were too many small crimes and not enough staff, or a tragedy hit that wiped the hope out of everything. Which meant it was the worst time for me to walk away, too.
“We’ll be fine. Nothing bad this year, boss.”
“I’m not?—”
“Yeah, yeah. Get to your girl. Have a great Christmas.”
“Thanks, Mom.” I rolled my eyes.
“Go get yourself get laid, Archer. You’re a total ass when you don’t have a girl.”
“I’ve been bad for that long?” I asked, trying not to let Ethan’s comment rile me.
He snorted down the line. “Fuck, Archer. You were born that way. Tell your girl to have a merry Christmas.”
