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Dylan raked the straw around the stall, but stopped when she heard a vehicle pull up outside of the barn. She leaned the rake against the wall, removed her gloves, then entered the aisle and headed for the doors. She stopped when she saw Alex enter the barn and saunter toward her with that cowboy swagger, making her sigh.
“Agent Reeves,” she said and noticed the hesitation in his step. She knew he wasn’t happy about their last conversation, but she was so afraid to get involved with him.
He touched the brim of his hat and nodded.
“Ms. Walters. Do you have a few minutes? I’d like to speak with you.”
“Sure. Come into my office.” She turned, walked to the office door, opened it, and entered. She didn’t look to see if he was following her.Ms. Walters?Yeah, he was still pissed.You called him Agent Reeves…
Dylan walked around the desk, pulled the chair out, and sat. Alex entered the office, removed his hat, and took a seat in one of the chairs opposite the desk. She watched him glance around the room and bite his lip when he saw the sign she had hanging above the door. It was a silhouette of a woman on a horse, and under it were the words,‘Ride with the hands of a lady, the posture of a queen, and the hips of a whore.’
“What’s going on?”
Alex cleared his throat. “I’m going to be taking a few days off—”
“What about my bull?”
“I’m going to be working from home. My boss seems to think if we let the rustlers think I’ve given up waiting them out, they’ll show up again. I’m pretty sure they’re watching the ranch and seeing me is just going to discourage them. I’ll never catch them if they move on.”
“And they could steal another of my bulls. I don’t like this.”
“I knew you wouldn’t, but we’ve caught them like this before. I’m hoping by going through files and old cases, something will pop out at me, and I’ll get them.”
“But they’ll take my bulls,” she said.
“I don’t think so. By the time they realize I’m not around, hopefully, I’ll have news on them.”
“And if you don’t?”
“I’ll be back here before they are, I promise you that. Even if they’re keeping an eye on the ranch, they’re not going to do something right away. They don’t know when I’d be back.”
“That makes sense, really. I understand what you’re saying.” Dylan nodded. “All right.”
“Good. Just keep running the ranch the same way as you are.”
“Should we move the bulls?”
“No, ma’am. If you do anything different than how you’re doing it now, they’ll be suspicious. They’re not stupid. Whoever is doing this to you, is not new at it.”
Dylan stood and Alex did too. She moved around the desk and stood before him.
“All right.”
Their eyes met, but he glanced away. She must have gotten her point across about not seeing him after the case.You’re so stupid, Dylan Marie Walters!
“I’ll be in touch if I find anything.”
“I’d appreciate that, Agent Reeves.” She folded her arms and stared at him.
“You’re welcome, Ms. Walters.” He copied her pose.
They stared at each other, and she saw his lips twitch as he tried not to grin. She bit her lip to keep from smiling. She sighed as she dropped her hands.
“Alex, I’m sorry.”
“About what?” His eyebrows shot up and he shrugged. “If you’re not interested, you’re not interested.”
“But I am. I’m very attracted to you, but…”
