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Nine
Three days. That’s how long it took before someone noticed she wasn’t supposed to be there.
It also took that long for Alex to accept the fact that Owen had designated her as his new best friend. Truth be told, she’d grown used to his constant chatter. It was the other cowboys she had become weary of. More than once she caught a few of them watching her.
Since Owen told her Lewis hadn’t taken the news that Jesse was the new trail boss well, she’d seen first-hand the tension between the two. There was a silent battle taking place and she knew things would get worse between them sooner or later.
She sat down on her bedroll, her fingers easing up under her hat to scratch her head. The tight braid in her hair was beginning to pull and make her scalp itch. She wanted nothing more than to take off her hat, unbraid her hair and dig her nails into her scalp and scratch every inch of it but with this many cowboys around, she didn’t dare, not even if the moon was behind the clouds and the night was black as pitch.
A low murmur of voices drew her attention. It was coming from behind her and grew steadily until she glanced over her shoulder. Three men leaned against a tree watching her. One of them smiled when they saw her looking their way and her heart skipped a beat, then started pounding while a knot formed in the pit of her stomach.
She turned back around, easing her foot out from under her so she could reach the derringer she kept tucked into her boot. It wasn’t much of a weapon but hopefully, it was enough to ward off anybody who tried to mess with her. She’d never shot a man and hoped today wasn’t the day she had to.
The voices grew as she heard the rustling of grass as someone walked up behind her and poked her in the back.
“I don’t remember you from the ranch,” someone said. “What’s your name?”
She hesitated. She’d finally told Owen her name was Alex and saw no reason to make up something different now. Lowering her hand to the top of her boot she looked back over her shoulder at the man standing there. “Alex. Yours?”
“Lewis.” He spat a stream of tobacco juice to the grass near her leg. “And I still don’t remember you.”
She shrugged and turned away from him. “Got hired on the night before we headed out,” she lied. “I joined the crew when we left Willow Creek.”
“Hmm.” He shifted, his feet stirring up dirt. “I ain’t seen you around the campfire. You too good to socialize with the rest of us?”
“He talks to Owen,” someone said. “Gets real cozy with him.”
“I’ve noticed.” He poked her in the back again. “You sweet on that boy?” Lewis asked before laughing. “No business of mine. It does get a bit lonely out here with no sweet little thing to cuddle up with at night.” He took a step closer and leaned down and looked her in the eye and grinned. “Although I got to admit, you and Owen are the prettiest boys I’ve ever seen.”
The others by the tree laughed along with Lewis. He poked at her again and said, “You and Owen get tired of each other, you come find me. I’ll be more than happy to be your bunk-buddy.”
“It ain’t like that,” Alex said. “Owen just likes to talk.”
“And sleep next to you?”
Alex sighed. Owen’s bedroll was situated near hers. It had been every night.
She’d spent enough time talking to him to learn more than she’d ever wanted to know. He was barely seventeen—if even that—and even though he hadn’t said so, she knew he was scared of his own shadow. He’d been alone for a while and didn’t like to talk about his life before his family died. There was a story there but he refused to tell it.
But, making excuses for him wasn’t her job. She wasn’t his mother so she shrugged her shoulders again and didn’t say anything.
Lewis and his friends lingered, no one saying a word, and the hair on the back of her neck started to stand on end. She wanted to look to see what they were doing but refused to act as if she were worried.
She should have looked. Someone yanked her hat off, the braid falling from the top of her head to dangle down her back.
“I told you that wasn’t no boy!”
Alex reached for the gun in her boot, her fingers sliding over the warm metal as someone grabbed her by the arms and jerked her to her feet.
The hard grip on her arms was bruising as she was spun around. Lewis held her so close she could smell the tobacco on his breath. She clenched her hands into fists, her gun still tucked into her boot.
“Well, well, well,” he said. “I didn’t believe it when Jeb told me there was a girl hiding out amongst us but right here you are.” He grinned, his stained teeth enough to make Alex lean back away from him. “No wonder Owen has been dogging your step for the last three days.”
They all laughed. Alex looked at the others. Two men stood behind Lewis, another making his way to where they stood.
Lewis tightened his grip on her arms and pulled her so close their chests touched. “You sure are a purdy little thing,”
Alex twisted to get away, grimacing when Lewis’ grip tightened. “And you’re not. Now let go of me.”
