“What do you think happened?”
“No idea.”
“I’m glad none of the horses were hurt.”
He stopped pacing and turned to face her, clamped his hands on his hips. “What the hell were you thinking? I told you to get out of the barn. Dammit, you could have been killed!”
She shrugged. At the time she didn’t feel as if she had any choice. “Sunshine was in there. I couldn’t just leave her.”
“Sunshine is a horse! You’re the mother of a little girl!” He glanced around. “Where is she, anyway? Where’s Ivy?” A thread of worry colored his words.
“I just checked on her again. She was asleep when I spotted the fire. She still is. Once she crashes, she doesn’t wake up till morning.”
Josh ran a hand over his short brown hair. “Next time I tell you to do something, you do it. You understand?”
A memory of Damon slipped into her head and she drew back from him a little. “Or you’ll what?”
Josh gave her a long, assessing look. “Christ, I’d never hit you, if that’s what you’re thinking. I’ve never hit a woman in my life. I don’t plan to start with you.”
He sighed and crouched down next to her on the grass. “What you did in there. It was incredibly brave. You helped me save the horses. Saving Sunshine was stupid, but it was brave.”
Tory’s gaze swung to his. “I’m not stupid, Josh. Don’t ever underestimate me. I saw a chance to save the mare and I took it. You would have done the same thing.”
Some of the tension seeped out of his shoulders. He sighed as he sprawled on the grass beside her. “You’re right, I would have. I’m sorry.” He glanced off, staring at the fire for the longest time, as if watching the flames had sent him someplace into the past.
Those blue eyes finally returned to her, deep and intense. For a second it was hard to breathe.
“I know what it’s like to lose someone,” he said a little gruffly. “I’ve had friends die in battle, soldiers who had wives and kids. Death comes swift and hard, sometimes out of nowhere. You scared me. I’m sorry I yelled at you.”
She was surprised at his apology. Damon wouldn’t have done it. A hundred times, she wondered how she could have been duped so badly by a man like him.
Tory sighed. “I probably should have listened to you. I took a dangerous chance. It probablywasstupid.”
He stared at her as if he were trying to figure her out. “It was brave,” he said.
The fire chief walked toward them. She couldn’t see him clearly but beneath his helmet, he appeared to be a man in his fifties with a bushy salt-and-pepper mustache.
“Sorry, Josh,” he said. “Not much to save.”
“Barn went up like tinder. All that straw . . .” Josh shook his head. “It’s a miracle we were able to get the horses out.”
The chief’s gaze swung to Tory. “I’m Chief Leland.”
“Tory Ford.” In the cool night air, without a bra, her nipples were standing out against her T-shirt. She’d always had full breasts, which the chief didn’t miss. She crossed her arms over her chest.
“Why don’t you go on home?” Josh suggested softly. “Get a little sleep? Nothing more you can do here.”
“There’ll be an investigation,” the chief said. “As soon as the fire cools down enough, the arson boys will be out to take a look. Depending on what they find, they may need a statement.”
“She’ll be here tomorrow if they need to talk to her,” Josh said.
Tory’s gaze returned to the fire chief, who was clearly speculating on their relationship. Josh was giving her a chance to escape.
“I think I’ll go in.” She needed to keep an eye on her daughter, but she didn’t want to mention Ivy unless she had to. “I’ll see you in the morning.” She was a few feet away when she heard the fire chief’s voice.
“I don’t think I’ve seen her around,” he said to Josh as she continued toward the trailer.
“She’s my housekeeper,” she heard Josh say. She was fairly sure what the chief was thinking when Josh added, “Notthatkind of housekeeper.”
