Since those were the actions of the man he wanted to be, Caleb wasn’t going to be frustrated. Except that she was in danger in the first place.
She seemed to be conflicted about what other people thought of her life. He hadn’t seen much of it but could appreciate the peace and quiet of low-key existence.
That was the kind of life he would have chosen outside of being a federal agent. And maybe he wanted to choose it for this next chapter. Helping Pops out at the ranch. Maybe even dating the girl next door. Still, he also liked doing his job—when things went right and innocent people weren’t caught in the crossfire.
He couldn’t help but wonder if Tessa was part of the change he’d been looking for. Not being dead on paper and at home recovering, but something more for his future that would put him on a different path. Caleb had to finish out this case and expose the corruption in the agency first, because right now he needed to protect his future and finish up the past.
He had to balance both. Finish this. End it, taking Kessler down. Walk away clear from the Drug Enforcement Agency so that he could have… Tessa?
Can’t go wrong with a woman like Tess.
That was what Pops had said. Caleb couldn’t even believe he was thinking about it right now. He didn’t even know if she was?—
He spotted her, clinging to branch. Looking shaken.
Caleb rushed to her as quick as he could, losing his footing in a couple of spots but not sliding downhill. She had her arms wrapped around a tree, her hair mussed with dirt and pine needles that had pulled the strands from her ponytail. Eyes closed.
Did she even know he was here?
He eased up to her slowly, not wanting to startle her. “Hey,” he crooned. “You took quite a tumble, didn’t you?” He crossed the last of the distance between them and crouched, touching her shoulder. “Did you get shot?”
She opened her eyes, gasped and shook her head.
“That’s good, Tess. That’s really good.”
“It startled me.”
“Me too.” He rubbed his hand across the back of her shoulders. “What do you say we figure out how to get out of here?”
She nodded, easing back on her grip on the tree. She started to slide where she sat, and he put his arm around her.
“I’ve got you.”
“I’m going to walk out of here.” She looked at him, defiance in her eyes. Because she thought he was treating her like she couldn’t?
“Okay, whatever you say.” He purposely made sure that didn’t sound patronizing. She’d been startled and fallen down the hill but still needed to feel like she was capable. Him wanting to protect her didn’t make her any less strong.
She just wasn’t used to the life he lived.
Caleb said, “I shot him, so I don’t think he’s going to be coming after us. But I also don’t think we should go back up that way.”
She looked around. “If we stick to a horizontal path, we should reach a wider trail over there.” She pointed to the east. “But it’s probably three miles away.”
“I can make it if you can.”
She nodded, lifting her chin. “I’m good.” She probably said it as much to try and reassure herself as to do the same for him.
He smiled at her. “I do that as well. Talk myself into things or tell myself it’s going to be okay. I did that a lot when I was laying in that hospital bed with bandages all down my arm wondering if it was ever going to stop hurting.”
He knew he’d said the right thing when she turned those big blue eyes to him, warmth in her expression.
“Are you hurt at all?” He had to know if she was injured, even if the wound wasn’t visible.
“More than my ego?”
“The same thing could have happened to anyone. But I’m just glad I was the one still on the ridge after he fired the first time. If it had been you, he might have had the chance to fire again and kill you.”
She shifted, wincing a little as she got her feet under her. “Are you trying to say that falling might have saved my life?”
