Page 2

“Thanks for dinner, Mama. I’ve got to get some work done this afternoon before the storm comes in. I’ll see y’all later.”

“Peter, wait,” Mama called. “I’m just trying to help.”

I ignored her and headed outside, shivering as I realized that it had gotten cold while I was inside. I detoured to my house to pick up a jacket.

I spent the next two hours checking on the fences and making sure that the animals had sufficient food and shelter if a storm came in. They were predicting an inch or two of rain, but the temperatures had been dropping rapidly, making everyone wonder if this was going to be one of those rare occasions when we got some snow. Or worse yet, ice.

If there was one thing we couldn’t deal with here in Texas, it was winter weather. Snow and ice shut down the state every time.

I buttoned up my jacket as I walked the fence line, checking for issues. Our property abutted the county road here, with rows of oak trees offering privacy. As I studied a section of the fence that looked like someone had tampered with it, I heard a squeaking noise overhead.

I looked up, just in time to see something – someone – come crashing down from the tree. Out of instinct, I stretched my arms out in an effort to catch them. I heard another squeak and the next thing I knew, I was flat on my back, covered with a body.

Abby

Growing up, I’d had a reputation for being clumsy. There wasn’t a curb, stick, or shoelace that I couldn’t manage to trip over. At forty-five I would have thought I’d grown out of that clumsiness. I thought wrong.

Case in point: I’d just fallen out of a tree and landed on someone tall, dark, and handsome. And possibly an animal abuser.

As a veterinarian and the lead animal abuse investigator for the county’s Animal Services department, my job was to make sure our animal companions were being treated well. We’d received a complaint about the Double J Ranch. Word was that the Jeffers family, who’d owned the ranch for over a hundred years, were cutting corners and the animals were suffering.

With it being Sunday afternoon and a storm supposed to be coming in, I figured it was a good time to snoop around the ranch while everyone was indoors. I’d do a little recon and if I saw any indication that the abuse allegations were true, I’d come back with the sheriff – and a warrant.

I’d climbed up an oak tree right on the border of the Jeffers property a short walk from where I’d parked my car. I used to be a prolific tree climber in my youth but despite the fact that I made frequent use of the climbing wall in my gym, my tree climbing skills were obviously a little bit rusty.

Or maybe it was just because I was distracted. I’d been stretched out on a thick branch that hung over the ranch property, using my binoculars to get a better look at the conditions, when a hot guy walked by.

Normally I wasn’t one to go gaga over a good-looking guy, but there was something about this guy that immediately caught my interest. I felt inexplicably drawn to him.

The guy looked like a linebacker. A grumpy one though, judging by the pissed off expression he was sporting. His shoulders were broad, and even under his thick jacket it was obvious that he was super fit. He had dark hair that was a little bit too long, a dusting of scruff along his square jaw, and one of those ageless faces that could be anything from thirty to fifty.

Leaning farther out to try to get a better view of his eyes had been my fatal mistake. I lost my balance and flew through the air with a squeak of alarm. The next thing I knew, I was sprawled on top of a dazed looking man who, now that I could see his face up close, was definitely over forty.

“What. The fuck. Are you doing?” he grunted out.

He looked pissed. Then again, I’d just fallen on him, and I was not a lightweight.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry.”

I tried to scramble off him and must have kneed him in the junk because he cried out in pain. I rolled onto the cold ground and the man immediately curled to his side in the fetal position, eyes closed and breathing heavily while he covered his crotch protectively with his hands.

“Oh, um, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to knee you in the nuts.”

His eyes snapped open.

“Who are you? And why are you on my land?”

“I’m not on your land on purpose. I fell out of a tree and accidentally landed onto your property.”

“No, you fell out of a tree and landed on me,” he reminded me.

He pushed himself up to seating, took a deep breath, then rolled to his feet with the grace of a man who was totally in control of his body. He towered over me, so I got up as well. I was tall for a woman – almost five ten – but he was still a few inches taller than me. He made me feel almost delicate.

I mentally rolled my eyes at my own ridiculousness and stuck out my hand.

“My apologies again. I’m Doctor Abigail Southerland with County Animal Services. You are?”

He glared at me. “Not required to answer questions from strangers who trespass on my land.”