Backlash Tender Trap Aftermath - Lisa Jackson Page 0,139

across the yard to his Jeep. He jammed his key into the ignition and growled an oath at himself. Tonight, come hell or high water, he was going to see Cassie again.

* * *

She saw him coming. Pale sunlight glinted against chrome and steel. Tearing down the narrow lane, the motorcyclist bore down on her. Yanking hard on the steering wheel, Cassie felt the old truck shimmy, its wheels bouncing on the uneven ground as she made room. The motorcycle sped past. The driver, dressed in black from helmet to boots and huddled over the handlebars, didn’t glance her way as he drove recklessly on the narrow lane leading from the Aldridge house.

“Damned fool!” Cassie muttered, her heart pounding as she stared into the rearview mirror and watched as the motorcycle disappeared around the bend.

She eased the truck back into the twin ruts of gravel that comprised the lane and drove the final quarter-mile to the house. Her heart was still thundering wildly when she parked her pickup near the garage. “Who was that?” she demanded, hopping out of the cab and spying her father in the door to the barn. Erasmus yelped at the sight of her and bounded over, whining and wiggling at her feet.

“Ferguson,” Ivan replied.

“Ryan Ferguson? What was he doing here?” Bending down, Cassie scratched the old dog behind his ears. “He drives like a maniac!”

“He was looking for work.” Her father wiped his forehead with a handkerchief and stuffed it back into the pocket of his overalls. “I hired him.”

“You did what?” she fumed, still shaking from the close call. “He nearly ran me off the road!”

Ivan’s eyes filled with concern. “Did he?”

“Didn’t you see it!”

“I was in the barn.” He placed a hand on her shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“No thanks to him!” she snapped angrily.

“I’ll have a talk with him,” Ivan said, frowning and staring at the lane. “He starts work tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” she repeated, stunned. “Why?”

“’Cause I need help, that’s why,” Ivan replied. “The mares will start foaling next week, and I’ll be planting grain soon, not to mention the regular chores.”

“But why Ryan Ferguson? Denver McLean fired him because—”

“I know why Denver claims he fired him, but Ryan swears he was innocent. No charges were ever filed, you know.”

“Then why did Ryan leave town?”

“He says he quit, that he just needed some time away. Can’t say as I blame him. Workin’ for the McLeans must be hell.”

“Oh, Dad, that’s crazy. John McLean stood by Curtis Kramer when everyone else in town blamed him for the fire on the McLean Ranch. And some of those hands at the McLean place have been there for years. They love it.”

Ivan clenched his teeth. “Don’t mention John McLean to me!” he ordered, starting for the back porch at a furious pace.

“But he did.”

“So now he’s a saint, right? And I give another wrongly accused man a job and I’m not right in the head,” he called over his shoulder.

“I didn’t say—”

Her father reached the porch and whirled, his eyes bright. “John McLean is the single reason Vanessa left me and you grew up without a mother!” he reminded her, his words slicing open an old, painful wound. The back of Ivan’s neck was flushed scarlet. “You know how I feel about the McLeans, so let’s drop it!”

Cassie heard the rumble of an engine and glanced toward the drive. “I, uh, don’t think that’s possible.”

“And just why the hell not?”

Cassie’s heart felt like it had dropped to the ground. “Because it looks like Colton is on his way.”

“What?” Ivan turned his gaze to the front drive. “Blast that man! What’s he doin’ here?”

“I guess we’ll just have to wait and find out,” she said, but she wished Colton’s timing were better. Right now her father would like to tear anyone with the name of McLean limb from limb.

“He’s not welcome here!” Ivan snapped.

“He knows that. So why don’t you listen to what he has to say? It must be important,” she said, trying to calm him down before another confrontation between her father and Colton exploded.

Ivan’s eyes narrowed. “I’ve heard enough McLean lies to last me a lifetime, and I would have thought the same goes for you!”

“Colton never lied to me,” she said, her back stiffening.

“No,” Ivan allowed, “but what he did was worse! He accused you of lying, using him, trying to trick him into a marriage he didn’t want.” The flush on his neck spread upward, and his eyes flared. “Don’t ever forget, Cassie, Colton