Benâs breath stirred the tendrils of hair hanging loose from her ponytail.
Kate leaned her back against the solid wall of muscles that was her bodyguard cowboy. The warmth of his arms around her reassured and scared her all at once.
Her hands shook so badly, she thought she might drop the gun.
âAre you afraid?â he whispered.
Yes, yes, she was afraid. Afraid of falling in love with a stranger. Afraid of investing her emotions in someone who would leave as soon as the threat was neutralized. Afraid she would be heartbroken when the dust settled on the Flying K Ranch.
Necessity, burning curiosity and a Hummer limo brought him here, but as Ben Harding sat in the leather armchair surrounded by three other men, he wondered what the heck heâd gotten himself into. He glanced around the room again. The only thing he had in common with the others was that they each wore a cowboy hat, jeans and boots.
Beyond that, he knew nothing about the men gathered in billionaire Hank Derringerâs home. The Raging Bull Ranch lay in the heart of the back of beyond, South Texas, where men were tough, the drug runners were tougher and a property owner stood a good chance of getting killed riding across his own spread.
Ben had done his homework. Hank Derringer had become a recluse since heâd lost his family over a year ago in a botched kidnapping attempt. The man had made billions and continued to make more in the oil and gas industry. All facts that were easy enough to find. But why bring these men here? Why now?
Ben would have blown off the invitation to come if heâd had any other choice. His career at the Austin Police Department at an end, heâd been pounding the pavement looking for work and finding that no one, until now, wanted to hire a man whoâd been kicked off the force for killing a man with his bare hands.
Did he regret what heâd done?
No.
And heâd do it again, given the same circumstances.
His gut clenched and he fought to push the rage and lingering images to the back of his mind as a tall, slightly older man joined them.
He wore a black Stetson and looked very much like the other men seated around the room. âGentlemen, Iâm Hank Derringer. Thank you all for coming to the Raging Bull Ranch.â He sat near the huge stone fireplace, facing them. âI brought you here because you are the best of the best.â
âBest of the best what, Hank?â The muscle-bound, blond-haired man across from Ben spoke first. He nodded toward Ben and the other two men. âAnd who are these guys?â
Hank tipped his head toward the man questioning him. âPatience, Thorn. Iâm getting to that. For the rest of you, meet Thorn Drennan, the best sheriff Wild Oak Canyon ever had. A man the people could count on to fight for truth and justice.â
Thornâs eyes narrowed. âYouâre forgettingâIâm no longer the sheriff.â
âPrecisely.â Hank turned to the man with brown hair, brown eyes and a wicked scar across his right cheek. âChuck Bolton. Your friends call you Big Tex, born and raised on a ranch near Amarillo. You know how to ride, rope and build fences like the best of them. Served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan where you wiped out an entire Taliban stronghold against your commanderâs orders.â
The man sat up straighter, his broad shoulders straining against the seams of his chambray shirt. âGot the boot and a bum leg for that.â
âA man with courage and determination to fight the good fight,â Hank said.
Big Tex shrugged. âI guess it depends on your definition of âthe good fight.ââ
Hank moved on to the next person, a man sitting back from the rest, dark circles beneath his eyes, an intense, haunted expression in his green eyes as he stared out the window. âSpecial Agent Zachary Adams, one of the FBIâs best undercover operatives working to stop the drug cartels along the border. Got caught in a bad situation on the wrong side of the border. Yet you survived.â
âFor what it was worth.â The manâs gaze shifted from the window to Hank. âAnd, just for the record, former FBI. I quit.â