Sunrise Crossing. Jodi Thomas

to the cramped space and the vibration of the chopper, but the view was beautiful, both the land outside and the woman so close she was almost touching him.

      They flew low across Kirkland land, following the canyon and riverbeds as if running with the wild horses. The landscape took his breath away, and when he glanced at her, Madison smiled as if she understood how he felt.

      Finally, he calmed enough to explain how a cowhand had reported seeing a car far down in a gully where not even a truck could go. The canyon was too steep for the cowhand to get his horse close to the car, so he’d called in to the sheriff’s office.

      “We might not have checked out an old car,” Fifth added, “but for the last week we’ve been getting info that a woman is missing. We don’t have details, but if she was passing through this area and was kidnapped, whoever took her might have wanted to make the vehicle disappear.”

      Madison looked down at the treeless, rolling land. “That wouldn’t be easy to do in this country. An abandoned car would be easy to spot.”

      “Right,” he said. “Short of digging a hole and burying it, the best way is to sink it in water. Only, if a flash rain comes, it’ll swell the gullies and drag the car along in a sudden flood. A few hours later, it could be miles from where it was dumped and above water or damming up a creek.”

      Much as he hated to brag, Fifth did feel like an expert on the subject. “The one animal, besides man, that does the most to change the lay of the land is a beaver. One den, built on a stream, can end up changing water flow for miles. So, even if it’s simply an abandoned old car, someone has to deal with it.”

      “So we’re looking for beavers?” She made a face.

      “No.” He laughed. “We’re looking for a car that might have done the beaver’s job. Someone reported seeing our missing person driving a red Chev. If we find it and there is a body in it, that’s where the law comes in. Of course, there have been other apparent sightings of this missing lady. One report said she might have taken a bus from Oklahoma City. Another claimed to have seen a hitchhiker near Dallas who fit her description. Right now we have no idea which ones are true. All I know is she’s missing and someone is in a real hurry to find her.”

      They flew for almost an hour, with Fifth marking off their route as they went. Now was a good time to note the flow of streams for future reference. The sheriff liked to walk the land, but Fifth preferred using a computer when he could. Madison was saving him several days of work. Some of the terrain could be reached only on horseback, and that would have taken a week.

      No old car appeared. Maybe it went back underwater. Maybe the guy who spotted it was wrong on his location. But, thanks to his mapping, the flight hadn’t been a waste of time.

      When they finally landed and she cut the engine, he leaned back and said, “Thanks. I can’t wait to get all this data into the computer. We might not have found the SUV, but I have a much better sense of the flow of the streams around these parts.”

      She grinned. “You are welcome, Deputy Weathers.”

      He collected his notes. She picked up her satchel. They walked back to the headquarters in matching strides.

      “I’d like to offer to buy you lunch, but I’m afraid you’d think I meant it as a date.” Fifth fought the urge to step out of range as he asked.

      “I’m starving. I might go if we both understand it’s only a thank-you lunch.” She pointed to where the sheriff’s cruiser had been parked. It was missing, along with Staten’s huge black Dodge. “Looks like everyone left us.”

      “There is a big meeting in town. Didn’t they tell you? We may have wind turbines coming in across this part of Texas. Some say it’ll double the size of the town. If I know the people of Crossroads, they’ll talk it to death before deciding.”

      She nodded. “Quinn mentioned it. I’m staying over for a few days, so she said we’ll have lots of time to catch up. I grew up around here, but my parents moved to Granbury when I started college.”

      Opening the car door, he added to the offer. “If you have lunch, I promise to bring you back to Kirkland’s place. I’m guessing you don’t have a car and you won’t want to wait in town for the meeting to end.”

      Madison hesitated. “You’re right, but I don’t know about a lunch date. Small town. Crowd in town, half of which will know me. All probably know you. They’ll have us engaged before we order dessert.”

      “Well, then, we might as well do it right here. How about in the back of my cruiser or on the grass? We could skip lunch or dating or marriage. Let’s just...”

      “Stop it. I get the point.”

      He laughed. “Don’t tell me you’re shy?”

      “No, I just don’t like crowds.”

      He understood. They would stick out by about a head. “I know just the place that will be perfect for lunch, or whatever you have in mind. Trust me.”

      She looked like she was about to say “not a chance,” but instead she folded into his cruiser without a word.

      He lifted a brow. That was easy.

      The conversation was stilted all the way back to town. When he pulled through the Dairy Queen and ordered, she relaxed a little. Five minutes later, when he parked in the empty museum parking lot, she smiled.

      “I remember this place. There’s a seating area overlooking the canyon.”

      “Our table is waiting. No crowds. Only the wind and ants.”

      She laughed as he handed her two root-beer floats while he got the burgers and they headed toward the picnic area.

      Within a few minutes, they were talking like old friends. She told him stories of being in the air force after college, and he told her about wild car chases and arrests that he’d only heard about.

      They figured out that they graduated from high school the same year, but she seemed to have had hundreds more adventures than he had. She’d traveled the world and been in combat once when she’d flown a rescue mission. He’d traveled Texas and had pulled his service weapon once in two years.

      Both shared stories of being the tallest in every class picture and the problems they both had dating.

      In the end, when he drove her back to the Kirkland Ranch, Fifth felt like he’d made a friend.

      Maybe they’d work together again sometime. Maybe she’d call him the next time she visited her relatives, but he saw no sparks between them when she said goodbye.

      As always, he was in the friend category.

      The only problem was, this time he wasn’t sure he wanted to be.

       CHAPTER NINE

      Crossroads

      RABBIT DIDN’T COME back for two nights, but Yancy went to his barn and worked late. He’d planned the stairs to be his next project, but found himself looking for excuses not to work on it. Finally, on the third night, as he cut the wood for the rails for the staircase, his mind drifted repeatedly to how she’d felt in his arms.

      She was small, but after holding her, he had no doubt that she was a woman fully developed. He liked the way she felt and the way she smelled, but most of all, he liked the way she wasn’t afraid of him. She trusted him. Maybe not totally, but enough to build hope on.

      He worked. He’d wait.

      When he heard the creak of the door, he dropped his tools and turned toward the sound. She blew in with the first raindrops from a midnight storm.

      She met his eyes briefly, and then she was running toward him as if she had missed him as dearly as he’d missed her.

      He opened his arms and caught her