“I see that your ex has settled down a bit,” he commented.
“Thankfully. I think it might have something to do with your…um…welcome surprise for him a few weeks ago.”
“We’re keeping an eye on him. Don’t worry about him harassing you again.”
“Thanks, Chad. I…” She was about to say something else then stopped.
“What is it?”
“I thought I heard a sound.”
Chad listened carefully. “I hear it too. It sounds like whimpering, or something in distress.”
His faced turned serious as he cautioned her to stay while he walked up closer to the forest. He stopped by a tree and glanced up. Chad leaped up on a stump and climbed up a bit, almost effortlessly, his strong body pushing upward.
When he got closer to the sound, a grin curled his lips. “Aww, come here, little guy,” he cooed in a gentle voice.
“Is he all right?” Abbi called out from below when she’d moved closer to the oak tree.
“Looks like this little fella got his tail caught on one of the branches.”
“Oh, no.”
Carefully, Chad reached over and pulled the branch aside then scooped the cute little Border Collie into his arms. What surprised her next was what Chad did to the little pup. He hugged the pup close to his chest and gave a little kiss on the puppy’s head. “It’s okay, little guy. I’ve gotcha now.”
Watching Chad with the puppy melted Abbi inside, a warm feeling slid inside her. How sweet.
Most guys she’d met, no matter how macho or gentlemanly they were, never babied an animal like that. That spoke volumes about the class of man he was. A class she’d like to get to know much better.
“That’s sweet of you, Chad,” she said, after he’d climbed back down off the tree. “I wonder where his parents are.”
She reached over and hugged the black and white Border Collie in Chad’s arms. “Oh, Chad, he’s so beautiful.”
“I know. We’ll find his owners. Must be one of the guest’s pooch.”
“I didn’t even realize dogs could climb trees. Isn’t it unusual?”
“You’re right. It is. Cats have curved claws so it’s easier for them to grip—at least on the way up. On the way down, that’s another matter,” he said, stroking the puppy. “That’s why you always see firemen trying to get kitties out of the trees. But once in a while a little dog can make its way up there, too. Especially Borders, they’re super intelligent.”
Chad looked up at the oak tree again, admittedly bewildered how this dog got up there in the first place. “Must have been chasing a squirrel or something,” he commented.
“Probably,” she said, continuing to stroke the little dog. She stopped when she noticed Chad’s body language stiffen. His jaw became set.
“What is it?” she asked, curious, trying to follow his gaze.
“Hold him for a minute,” he said, handing the puppy to Abbi.
Chad then went back up on the tree and pulled something from it. His gorgeous blue eyes turned dangerously dark. He took out a blade knife from his pocket and picked something off from the tree.
“What is it?”
“Someone’s gonna have some serious explaining to do.”
“Why? What’s that in your hands, Chad?”
“A hidden video camera.” His tone was chilled.
Abbi’s blood ran cold.
Chapter 9
“I’m just a little worried about my brother,” Brandon confided to his wife, Faith. He rolled to her side of the bed and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to him as they snuggled in bed together. They’d slept in late that morning in their guest cabin. What else would newlyweds do?
Brandon was there to assist in finding out who the heck was trying to mess with reputation of the Belmont’s newly acquired facility but he was also not going to leave his new wife behind. They decided to take advantage of some R&R time together.
“Who? Chase? Why are you worried about him, sweetie?” she said, her soothing velvet voice warming him inside.
He couldn’t believe he’d almost let Faith go when she went to work for his family in Belmont as a professional organizer, helping his old man sort out the massive clutter he’d collected over the years while he got ready to move on.
“You know he can be a bit stubborn at times. It runs in the family,” he said, sighing.
“Hmm-hmm.” She grinned. “Don’t I know it,” she playfully teased him.
“Very funny, Faith. No, seriously. You know that temp housekeeper, Abbi?”
“Oh, she’s a real sweetheart. I like her. My spirit really takes to her.”
“Me, too. Trouble is, I think they like each other, but well, Chase has been through hell and back with women, especially his ex.”
“Oh, right. That model who used him.”
“Exactly. So he’s totally ignoring her. He told me he didn’t want to get involved with anyone again. But from what I see with Abbi, she seems legit.”
“What you’ve seen so far? You’re not seriously going to check into her background later, are you?”
“Well, if there’s a chance that they could be together…”
“Brandon Knight Belmont, are you thinking of setting up your brother on a date?”
Brandon shrugged. “You know I’m ever the skeptic, Faith. You’ve known me a while now.”
“I know,” she said, and pressed her lips to his. God, he was getting so turned on again. After a night of burning up the sheets in heavy passion, she still knew how to get him aroused.
“I just…” he moaned, between kisses. “…want him…to be …happy…like…us.”
“Hmm,” Faith groaned into his lips.
He pulled away from her for a moment. “No, seriously. He actually convinced me to give you a chance.”
“He did? You never told me that before!”
“Oh, it must have slipped my mind,” he offered, a wicked grin on his lips as he traced the outline of her jaw with his finger. “But I won’t let anything like that slip again.”
“You’d better not,” she replied playfully, flirtatiously batting her eyes.
He grinned. “Well, I saw the way they were together and she’s been gazing at him every chance she got when she was working around the ranch. You should see the way he looks at her, too.” Brandon sighed. “I’m a detective by trade; I’ve got a nose for sensing hidden feelings not just hidden secrets.”
“I hear you, sweetie.”
“Well, this isn’t going to be easy but after I’m done with my little investigation, I’m going to do the same thing he did for me.”
“Which is…?”
“Making him see how stupid he is for not realizing a great catch when it’s right in front of him.”
Faith smiled. “I’m so glad I was caught by you, Mr. Belmont.”
“Me, too.” Brandon moved over on top of Faith and caressed her body with his and showed her just how much he cherished her, every time.
Chapter 10
“Lucky!” a woman called out from behind the trees. “Lucky! Where are you? Oh, there you are, you naughty little thing,” she added when she spotted Chad and Abbi with the Border Collie. The woman, clad in a yellow sundress, looked middle aged with ginger hair under a floppy hat. She looked oddly out of place in the woods.
“Where did you find him?” she asked as she got closer to Chad and Abbi.
“He was up there in that oak tree,” Chad said, not sounding too impressed. “Shouldn’t let him out of your sight like that.”
The woman took the Border Collie into her arms and then placed him in her carrying bag. “Thank you so much!” she said, adjusting the sunglasses on her face. “Oh…my camera.”
“Your camera?” he said, in disbelief.
“Why yes. I’m filming a little video about our trip—it’s for our blog,” she explained.
“You are? Ma’am, this is private property, you shouldn’t be using hidden cameras out here like that.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry, I hadn’t realized,” the woman said.
“I’m Chad. I’m working in maintenance at the resort.”
“Right, I’ve seen you around. I’m Lizzy. I’m staying in the cottage over there.”
“Hi, Lizzy.”
Lizzy then looked at Abbi who’d been taking everything in, feeling rather surprised by the whole situation.
“Hi, I’m Abbi, nice to meet you. He’s so cute.”
“Oh, thank you. Nice to meet you, too, Abbi.” Liz glanced from Abbi to Chad then back to Abbi again, and a grin of approval touched her lips. “I see you two were having a lovely romantic walk. I see what you mean about the camera and privacy.” She grinned, looking sheepish. “Sorry.”
Before either of them could correct the woman, a younger girl approached them. “Mom, have you found him?”
Abbi took a good look at the young girl and her heart sank. The woman’s daughter had no eyebrows and she had on a hat but Abbi could tell she had no hair underneath. She was completely bald from what she could see.
“Oh, this is my daughter, Jessica. We…well, we used to come here every year as a family until Jessica got sick and well, we stopped coming for a while.”