“It could have been.” Cy was frowning and didn’t stop to say anything more as he made his way over to where the horses were clearly uneasy and unsettled from the loud noise.
The older man, the one called Grady, shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest as he gave Lane a hard look. “There was no maybe about it. That was gunfire. I served eight years overseas for this country and have been in the worst hell holes you can imagine. I know what gunfire sounds like and I know that shot was a lot closer than you probably want us to think it was. These mountains and this backcountry aren’t quite as isolated as you made it seem.”
Lane bristled, clearly not appreciating his brother’s integrity and veracity being called into question. It was the first time I saw a little bit of his older brother in him, as his spine snapped straight and his usually smiling mouth pulled tight. He didn’t do intimidating quite as well as Cy, but he was big enough and rough enough around the edges that the menace in both his face and body language was hard to miss.
“Isolated doesn’t mean the same thing as deserted. Like I mentioned, some of this area is a national forest, so we can’t control who uses it. That includes people who might be poaching game illegally off season, which they would be doing in the dark. It could also be vacationers camping close by who don’t know we run tours through here and are blowing off steam by firing into the sky. Guns are commonplace in Wyoming. Just because you heard a shot doesn’t necessarily mean there needs to be a cause for concern. There are a lot of possibilities, and whatever the situation may be, the safety of the guests in our care is always the number one priority.” Lane gave his little speech firmly and confidently. It made me believe he really would give up everything to keep all of us safe. Lane looked more cowboy than his brothers, but it was his dedication and his stalwartness that really pushed him over the edge into being everything I ever wanted a cowboy to be in real life. He was the kind of man woman wrote romance novels about and built fantasies around.
Cy made his way back to where we were all huddled, sparing a quick glance at my bare legs since I hadn’t bothered to pull my jeans on when I crawled out of the tent. He stopped by his brother’s side and let his gaze wander around the tense circle we had all gathered in. “Probably just kids screwing around. This is the first day on the trail and we’re still really close to the river. A lot of locals use it for weekend getaways in high season. Everyone, go back to bed and I’ll walk a mile down river and a mile up river and see what I can find.”
I let out a strangled little sound of alarm, and without thinking about what I was doing, reached out a hand and set it on his arm. The muscle felt like heated stone under my fingertips and I almost groaned when his skin shifted and flexed enticingly under the tips of my fingers. There was something about the sheer strength of him, the overwhelming command he exuded that was intoxicatingly attractive. Touching him wasn’t smart or good for my resolve. Unfortunately, I wanted to put my hands all over him and I wanted to do it when he was far more naked than he was right now. I wanted to learn his entire, massive body through every sense I had and imprint it on my memory, so that I could forever keep those riotous and rebellious sensations only he seemed able to spark.
“You can’t go traipsing through the woods and along the river in pitch-black darkness. What if a bear comes along, or what if you do stumble on some kids and spook them? If they are trigger happy, they might be twitchy enough to put one in you. And what if it is poachers? The last thing they’re going to want is some guy poking his nose into what they’re doing. It sounds dangerous. I’m not a fan of that plan at all.”
His eyes landed to where I was holding onto him, and instead of moving my fingers from where they rested, I curled them in tighter so I was clutching him like he was my tether to the very earth under my feet. As if without him to ground me, I would fly off into nothing.
“You smell to high hell, woman.” I balked at the rudeness and the blunt honesty in the face of my unwanted concern for his wellbeing. I also released my hold on him like the skin I was holding onto had suddenly grown thorns and barbs. I took a step back and crossed my arms over my chest.
“Fine. Go get eaten by a mountain lion or shot by some weekend warrior. See if I care. I’m going back to bed.” I wanted to huff and puff with a flounce so it was obvious I was irritated with him, but none of the men were even paying attention to me.
Grady, the newly revealed former military man, was trying to convince Cy to take him with him as he explored the area around the river. Cy didn’t seem overly enthused about the idea but he eventually acquiesced.
Lane was busy questioning Webb about why neither of them had been in their tents when the first shot fired off. He told him he watched them come down from the woods behind where we had set up camp.
I was figuring out the more that I watched the two silent, suspicious men that Webb was a better liar than Grady. Without pause or hint of embarrassment, he told Lane that he was looking for a spot to use the bathroom and he asked Grady to come with him as a lookout. Lane calmly explained that he and Cy had already gone over the safest and preferred places to take care of business while we were on the trail, and wandering into the woods wasn’t one of those options. Webb simply shrugged and said flatly, “We’re supposed to be working on our teamwork skills. Helping another man shit in the woods seems like a damn good team building exercise if you ask me.” He walked away without further explanation, leaving Lane to turn to me with a questioning look on his face.