“Let’s get another thing straight,” she continued, “there are no misunderstandings between us. I never asked you to be my boyfriend. You’ve made it abundantly clear that you’re not interested in filling the position.” Her gaze dropped to the front of his pants, then reconnected with his. “So why don’t you do us both a favor and keep your nightstick to yourself from now on, huh?”
“With pleasure,” he growled, lying through his teeth. “And why don’t
“Fine,” she said, glaring at him.
“Fine,” he repeated, shrugging into the backpack. He should have been glad they’d come to an agreement.
Instead he felt like putting his fist through the cave wall.
13
Shay wanted to plant her fist in Luke’s face.
If he hadn’t acted like such a jerk after they slept together, she’d have apologized to him. She’d just had her period a few days ago, so they were probably safe, but she shouldn’t have told him to go ahead, knowing he didn’t have a condom. She also shouldn’t have panted and moaned and clawed his back like a low-class hooker.
The sex hadn’t been
What had he called it? Nice.
Bastard.
Gritting her teeth, she loped along, careful not to rest too much weight on her injured leg. Her knee was better, but a long hike was always tough on tender muscles. Her other leg began to ache from overcompensating.
Much of the area they covered was burned and black. The fire had raged hot and fast, burning out as quickly as it started. Charred tree trunks peppered the hillside and a fine, light ash clung to the ground, rising in smoky wisps from their footprints. The wind was low and the air was clear and crisp, several degrees cooler than the days before.
When they came to the trailhead where Luke’s truck was parked, the fire’s origin was immediately clear. The grass on the opposite side was swaying in the breeze, untouched. His truck was also intact, to Shay’s relief. She didn’t want to walk anymore.
Clay Trujillo was standing there waiting for them, studying the black ground at the side of the dirt road. His white Ford Ranger was parked behind Luke’s truck. “I was about to send a rescue team out to look for you guys,” he called out.
“We’re fine,” Shay said. “Cell phones got wet.”
Clay held out a bottle of fresh water for her, his blue eyes showing concern. “What happened?”
Shay accepted the water and took a long drink. “The fire came up near the summit,” she said, catching her breath. “We had to take shelter in the Devil’s Cup.”
He let out a low whistle, acknowledging the close call. “Are you hurt?”
“Nah. A bump on the knee is all.” She stared at the ground beneath her feet, toeing the charcoal-colored earth. “We stayed at the fertility cave.”
“The fertility cave?” Clay laughed, his teeth making a brilliant contrast to his dark skin. “Let me know how that works out for you.”
Shay felt her cheeks heat. Beside her, Luke was tense.
The smile slid off Clay’s handsome face. “Because of the legend, you know. Folks say the shrine brings babies.”
“We get it,” Luke said.
Clay looked back and forth between them. “Right,” he said, clearing his throat. “You two light up any cigarettes on your way out yesterday?”
“No,” Luke answered, as humorless as ever.
“What about you, Shay? Smoking the loco weed?” He held an invisible roach up to his lips, sucking in air.
Clay was only joking, but Luke narrowed his eyes at her. “No,” she said, giving him a dirty look. “Of course not.”
“Do you think that’s what started it?” Luke asked.
“Hard to say.” Clay waved his hand at the grass-covered hill on the other side of Luke’s truck. “A lit match would have done it.”
“It was arson?”
Clay shrugged. “No chemicals, no incendiary device. No proof.”
Shay glanced at Luke, feeling sick to her stomach. She wouldn’t have believed the fire had been deliberately set if the evidence wasn’t right there for the whole world to see, just a few hundred feet from Luke’s truck.
Someone had it in for him.
“You making a lot of friends in town, Sheriff?” Clay asked.
A muscle in Luke’s jaw ticked. “Tribal police are the only ones who knew where we were going.”
Clay blanched at the implication, and Shay saw a glimpse of her boy-next-door buddy she’d never seen before. A hint of violence lurked behind those pretty blue eyes.
“Garrett knew,” Shay said, jumping to Clay’s defense.
Luke shot her a dark glare. It probably wasn’t a sound investigating tactic to rule out one suspect in front of another, but she’d known Clay her whole life. She’d known Garrett that long, too, so she understood what each man was capable of.
Clay relaxed his stance. “Garrett Snell?” He made a tsking sound. “He’s some piece of work.”
“What makes you say that?”
“He gambles. More than he can afford to lose.”
When Luke glanced at her sideways, Shay gave a terse nod. She knew Garrett’s addiction was a disease, but it was no excuse for him to treat his wife like crap. Before Lori got married, she and Shay had been inseparable. Their friendship had suffered since, because Garrett was a constant sore spot between them.
Luke and Clay walked along the edge of the burned area, burying the hatchet long enough to confer about the origin of the fire and speculate on the lack of distinct tire marks. When they came back to where Shay was standing, Clay gave her a thorough once-over. She must have appeared a little worse for wear, because he frowned and said, “I’ll take you home. Or to the doctor, if you need it.”
Startled by the offer, Shay looked at Luke. He stared back at her, eyes flat, expression closed, waiting for her decision. The two men stood side by side, of a similar height, broad shoulders almost touching.
Shay sighed. She’d had enough male posturing for the day, and it was only 8:00 A.M. “Whatever,” she said, starting toward Clay’s truck.
“Hang on,” Luke said, reaching out to wrap his hand around her wrist.
Her heart, ever foolish, skipped a beat. She turned to face him.
“I need to stop by the Round-Up tonight. Talk to the regulars.”
She pulled her hand from his grasp. “So?”
“I’d like for you to come with me.”
Shay couldn’t believe he had the nerve to ask. If Clay hadn’t been there, she’d have told him to take a hike. Then again, no one at the Round-Up would talk to Luke if he went by himself, and she was obligated to help with his investigation.
That didn’t mean she had to let him walk all over her. “Why don’t you come, too, Clay?” she asked. “I’ll buy you a drink.”
“Sure thing, blondie,” he said with a smirk, opening the passenger door for her. “I can pick you up at eight.”
Luke’s mouth made a thin, hard line. “See you then.”
After he turned away from her, his spine ramrod straight, Shay climbed into Clay’s Ranger and sat in silence while he drove down the hill.
Of course, Clay wouldn’t let sleeping dogs lie. “What’s between you and Meza?”
