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“That’s true,” Dylan agreed.
“To me, they are all the same. Put a man in tight jeans, cowboy boots, a hat, and that damn swagger, women fall at their feet, and the cowboys love it.”
“As any other man would, Peyton. A man in a suit can hurt you just as easily as a man in jeans.” Dylan folded her arms and glared at her friend.
“Then you go for it with your agent, Dylan. I’m staying away fromallcowboys.”
“Give up, Dylan. She is way too stubborn to convince otherwise. If you want to go after Agent Reeves, then, do it. You’ve been through enough with cowboys to know if he’s a good man or not.” Marlowe nodded.
Later, as they sipped their wine, they jumped when someone knocked on the back door. Dylan glanced over her shoulder toward the kitchen, then at Marlowe and Peyton.
“Who would that be? It’s almost ten o’clock.” She got up, and cautiously made her way to the kitchen.
“We’re here,” Marlowe whispered as she and Peyton followed Dylan to the kitchen.
When whoever it was knocked again, Dylan took a deep breath, turned the porch light on, opened the door, and saw Alex standing there.
“Hi, I saw the lights were on and wanted to let you know that I am heading to where the fence was cut. I’ll probably be there most of the night. If that’s all right.”
“Holy hell, what a sexy voice,” Peyton whispered, making Marlowe snort out a laugh.
They both acted innocent when Dylan threw them a look.
“Uh, yes, it’s fine. Come inside for a minute.” She opened the door to let him enter.
He removed his hat, stepped across the threshold, and entered the kitchen. He seemed surprised to see two other women.
“Agent Reeves, these are my best friends, Peyton Donahue, and Marlowe Barnett. Girls, this is Agent Alex Reeves with MDOL.”
Dylan almost burst out laughing at the looks on her friends’ faces. She knew how they felt. The man was downright sexy. She wanted to scrape her fingernails along the scruff on his lower face.
“Ladies,” he said.
“It’s nice to meet you, Agent,” Marlowe said, but Peyton only stared until Marlowe elbowed her.
“Oh, yes, it’s nice to meet you, Agent.”
“Alex, please.” He looked at Dylan. “I’d better get going.”
“It’s a little chilly, isn’t it?” Dylan asked.
“I’ll be fine. It’s nothing I haven’t done before. I just want to be prepared.”
“You’re not sleeping up there, are you?”
“No, ma’am.”
“How are you going to keep warm?” Marlowe asked him.
“My coat and gloves are fine.”
“But it’s nighttime,” Dylan said and tried not to roll her eyes at the comment.
“Most livestock are stolenat night, during the day on grazing land, or in the rain or winter season by individuals and syndicates, who operate across rural areas. The times they figure the cattle aren’t being watched closely. If someone has a large ranch,it can take several days for the loss of cattle to be noticed and reported.”
“Why do they come back, though?”
“As I said, it can take days to find out livestock are missing, so sometimes they’ll return for more before anyone notices the livestock is gone.”
