You're Not Safe (Texas Rangers) by Mary Burton Read Free Book Online Page A

dark and drink warm beer and eat shitty food, have at it. Makes no difference to me. I promised I’d offer you work, and I’ve kept my promise.” In truth, she hoped he’d refuse. She didn’t want the weight of his grief when she had enough of her own.
    “Who’d you promise?”
    “Dr. Stewart.”
    “The doc that runs the group?”
    “Yeah.”
    “How do you know him?”
    “We’re on the board of the Crisis Center together. He was a good friend after my aunt died.”
    He leaned back against the booth. “Why do you volunteer at the center?”
    “I thought you didn’t like to talk?”
    He shrugged.
    “My personal history is boring, and why I volunteer is even less interesting. You need a job, and I’m here. That’s all that matters.”
    Eyes narrowed as he studied her.
    “The job is yours if you want it. But you’ll have to be at my place tomorrow at nine sharp.”
    He flicked the edge of the card with his index finger. “I’m getting disability benefits. I don’t need money.”
    “I’ve had a lot of money, and I’ve had none. There is more to life.”
    He shook his head, his T-shirt shifted, and the top edge of a fresh tattoo peeked out from under his shirtsleeve. “Who are you?”
    “I told you, I’m Greer and I own a vineyard.”
    He shook his head. “No way. You can’t be more than thirty.”
    “Twenty-eight to be exact and I inherited it.” She rubbed her hand over the silver bracelets on her wrist. “You want the job or not?”
    “I don’t know you.”
    “I don’t know you, and I’m taking the bigger risk. But Dr. Stewart vouched for you. That’s enough.”
    “Why take a risk on me?”
    She tipped her head back, trying to quell her frustration. She wasn’t so annoyed with him as herself. She had a million chores to do other than coaxing a wounded bird to safety. “Like I said, I owe a favor.”
    “What kind of favor?”
    “None of your business.”
    “Do you always find strangers and offer them work?”
    That made her smile. “Do you always ask so many questions?”
    “Yeah.”
    The crowd in the bar grew louder and without turning she knew more people had come into the place. The more people came in here the greater the chance she’d be recognized. And she wasn’t ready to answer questions about the past. “As much as I’d love to chat, like I said I don’t care for crowds or places like this. If you want the job, be at the vineyard tomorrow by nine.”
    “This makes no sense.”
    She shook her head as she rose. “No, I guess not.”
    “Don’t hold your breath.”
    “I won’t. You’d be doing me a favor by not coming.” The uncensored honesty caught him off guard. “You always mean?”
    For a long tense moment she did not speak. Old feelings kicked and scratched her insides. “You remind me of myself.”
    He shook his head. “We are nothing alike, lady. You can’t pretend to know me.”
    “But I do,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. “I know what it’s like to see loved ones die. I know what it’s like to have others tell you the accident wasn’t your fault and to know deep in your heart it was. I know how to second-guess and to wonder. If I’d been faster. Quicker. Or sharper. If it hadn’t been dark or so late at night. I’ve lived with the ifs every day for the last twelve years.”
    He paled as if he’d been punched in the gut, but he remained silent.
    “I know what it feels like to carry pain so heavy my knees wanted to buckle.”
    Dropping his gaze, he cleared his throat before he met her steady stare. “You plan to fix me?”
    Greer shook her head. “I’m no savior. And I can’t say for sure if I’m fixed. But I can offer you a job that will work you so hard you’ll collapse into bed at night. The job isn’t glamorous, but it has purpose. A reason to get up in the morning and put one foot in front of the other.”
    He tapped his thumb against the table, studying her. He didn’t respond.
    Without asking she could read his