Cowboy Protector by Margaret Daley Read Free Book Online Page B

though it only weighed a few pounds. “After you, ma’am.”
    Near the entrance Hannah stopped. “Oh, I forgot the cat food. You go ahead. I can manage that bag.” She sidled away, backing up toward where she saw the cat food.
    The man grumbled something under his breath, but he left. Hannah rushed to where he had been standing and searched the floor. Nothing. He had to be smoking. Unless he came in right after someone had just finished. Doubt began to nibble at her when she zeroed in on the tip of the cigarette butt under the shelving where he’d shoved it with his booted foot.
    She pulled it out and murmured, “Gotcha.”
    Someone cleared his throat behind her.

FOUR
    T he sudden unexpected sound behind her caused Hannah to whirl, the cigarette butt clutched between her thumb and forefinger. The doorway framed Austin’s tall, muscular build. A frown carved his features in stone. His flintlike gaze locked on the cigarette and his eyes flared.
    “This isn’t mine,” she quickly said.
    “Where did you find that?” The frost in his look carried over into his voice.
    Hannah pointed to the floor by the shelving. “Under there.”
    “Why did you look under there?”
    “Because when I came in here, a cowhand was acting suspiciously and I could smell smoke.”
    Austin approached. “Who?”
    “I don’t know who. He was thin but strong-looking. Had brown hair, gray eyes. Short, maybe five-six. He took a bag of dog food so Misty and I could feed Barney.” She started forward. “I need to get back to Misty. She’s with Candy.”
    As she passed Austin, a hand on her arm stopped her. “I’d like the butt.” He laid his palm out flat for her. “And Misty is right outside the door.”
    “You didn’t see anyone with Barney’s food?”
    “No, but I imagine he hightailed it out of here.”
    “So, you know who it is?” She put the cigarette into his hand and watched as he curled his fingers around it, so tightly that the tips reddened.
    “One of the guys I took on in the fall. I’ll be tracking him down later.”
    Hannah didn’t doubt that. His anger vibrated the air between them. The hired hand had lied to Austin, and he didn’t take kindly to that fact. Thankfully she only had to be here seven or eight weeks because she never wanted him to know her whole life was a lie. She suppressed a shudder.
    He released his hold, and Hannah took a step toward the door, then came to a halt. “I almost forgot. I need the cat food, too.”
    “You go ahead. I’ll get it.”
    Quickly she left him. The storage room was way too small for the both of them. Although it was cold in the barn, sweat dampened her undershirt. She found Misty near the metal bowls for Barney and Snowball. The white cat rubbed himself against Misty’s uninjured leg while the little girl patted Barney, a mixture of probably four or five large breeds with long brown hair and a tail that wagged enthusiastically.
    “I see your pets are ready to eat.” Hannah spied the bag of dog food propped up against the wall by the dishes.
    “I’m a little early to feed them today. They sure miss me.” Snowball leaped into Misty’s lap, her giggles mingling with her pet’s loud purring.
    “Yes, I can see that. My cat would rub herself against my face and like to drape herself around my neck. Of course, it was hard to breathe sometimes so I had to put a stop to that.”
    Misty tilted her head to the side. “What happened to your cat?”
    “I left her with a friend.”
    “You shouldn’t be away from her. We have plenty of room for a cat, don’t we, Daddy?” The girl’s gaze fixed on her father behind Hannah.
    When she rotated toward Austin, she wished she hadn’t said anything about Callie. Misty had a way of making her forget she had to watch her every word and guard what she revealed.
    He dropped the bag of food next to the other one and straightened. “Sure, if you want.”
    “I won’t be here long. I hate to move Callie around too much, and she