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As the drive continued, she closed her eyes and prayed her feelings were right.
Miss Piggy was in the field and they’d finally be reunited.
* * *
The moment Rick pulled to a stop at the wall of trees Bailey started to climb out, but he reached across and grabbed her arm.
“Bailey! Wait! This is where Ben’s property ends. It’s the boundary line. The minute we step into that thicket we’re trespassin’. We’ve gotta be quiet and careful.”
“I will be.”
“Stay put for a second,” he ordered as he released her, then reached under his seat and pulled out a revolver. “Don’t worry, this is legal, and I’m only takin’ it in case we’re met by any unexpected critters.”
“Great, but shooting it off will announce our arrival.”
“I won’t use it unless I absolutely have to, but better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it. There will be wildlife in there. Hopefully they’ll be more scared of us than we are of them and steer clear.”
Climbing from the truck, they headed into the trees, and he could almost hear her pounding heart. She was wound up, and he was sure she was convinced she was about to find her mare. But as they entered the thicket he was distracted by its beauty.
Shards of light pierced the overhead branches, and it occurred to him the sunbeams were lamps shining over nature’s art. Subtle sounds suggested wildlife, but he felt no fear, only wonder. And though he’d told Bailey not to get her hopes up, he had an odd feeling the stolen horses would be waiting on the other side.
Finally approaching the edge of the thicket, the paddock came into view, and pausing her step, she lifted out her binoculars and raised them to her eyes. He instinctively knew she’d seen her long, lost mare. But her legs suddenly buckled and he darted forward to catch her.
“I found her, I finally found her,” she whimpered, sobbing with relief and joy as he held her. “I can’t believe it…”
A loud whinny suddenly pierced the air.
“She knows I’m here,” she exclaimed, jerking her head around.
“Bailey, listen to me. We have to go back. We need to call the sheriff and—”
“I’m not leaving her, not for a second, and Cocoa and Lizzy are there as well.”
“But—”
“There’s not a chance in hell I’m letting them out of my sight,” she said vehemently, stepping back and wiping her hand across her wet face.
“I understand how—”
“No, you can’t possibly know how I feel,” she shot back, cutting him off as they heard another whinny. “Fetch Ben, call the sheriff, do whatever you need to, but I’m staying.”
Though he didn’t want to leave her, he knew he wouldn’t be able to pry her away.
“Okay, Bailey, but you must stay outta sight in these trees. Can you do that?”
“Wait, let me try my phone,” she said urgently, reaching into her bag and pulling it out. “Crap, no signal, not even a bar.”
“You can move around and try to get one as long as you stay in the thicket.”
“But you can’t see that house from here, so if the evil, hateful bastard who took them is home he won’t be able to see me either.”
“You don’t know that, and you don’t know if he’s about to come out of the trees from the other side. I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he promised. “Just stay put.”
“Rick—before you go,” she murmured, circling her arms around his neck. “Thank you. Thank you for everything.”
Suddenly her lips were pressing against his, and though the kiss was fleeting, he’d felt a whole lot more from her than just gratitude.
CHAPTER TWELVE
