Her Christmas Guardian by Shirlee McCoy

Author:Shirlee McCoy
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2014-11-27T05:00:00+00:00

ELEVEN

Scout dropped to the ground, expecting the world to explode in a barrage of gunfire, expecting that everything she’d been hoping to avoid by running into the woods was about to happen.

“Hold your fire!” a man called, and she lifted her head, looked down into the creek bed.

“Are you nuts, Mitchell?” Boone growled. “You about near got your head blown off.”

“When have you ever fired a gun without knowing exactly what you were going to hit?” the man asked, stepping out from the shadow of the trees.

“Good to know you’ve got so much confidence in me, but I’d have rather you let me know you were out here.” Boone reholstered his gun.

“Kind of hard to do when you said you wanted radio silence.” Mitchell looked up, his dark eyes settling on Scout. “You must be Scout.”

“Yes.”

“Cyrus Mitchell. With HEART.”

“Nice to meet you,” she said, scrambling to her feet and wondering how she was going to get into the creek bed without tumbling onto her butt.

“Just shimmy over the edge,” Boone said as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. “It’s only ten feet. I’ll help you to the ground.”

“Okay. Sure.” Except that ten feet looked a whole lot more like twenty when you were standing on the top of it.

“Are you really going to start doubting me now?” Boone sighed. “I’ll come up and lower you down to Cyrus.”

“No!” No way ever was she going to let him lower her down anywhere. “I’m coming.”

She slid over the edge, pressed her feet to rocky soil, her fingers slipping in dry leaves.

“I’ve got you,” Boone said, grabbing her waist.

“Are you sure?”

“Scout, you weigh less than my grandmother’s prized turkey. Just let go!”

“Fine, but if you break your back, it’s on your head.” She let go, and he lowered her to the ground.

“See,” he whispered in her ear, his hands still on her waist. “Piece of cake. Which, by the way, I love. If you ever happen to have a need to bake one, and you’re looking for someone to eat it, I’m your man.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” She could have stepped away, but she liked the way it felt to be near him. Liked how secure and safe she felt when he was close. She liked the way his eyes softened when he looked at her, the way he smiled just a little, even though there really wasn’t anything to smile about.

“Hate to interrupt this cozy moment,” Cyrus said drily. “But I came in here to bring Scout back to the house. Jackson’s orders.”

If Boone was bothered by his comment, he didn’t show it. “Did he bring the box?”

“With the Christmas stuff? Said it wasn’t there.”

“It has to be there.” Scout had put the frame in it a few months after Christmas. She’d brought that and Lucy’s playpen. They didn’t use it anymore, but Scout hadn’t had the heart to sell it. Like the frame, it had been a gift from Amber. One she’d given to Scout before the move.

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