Tangled (Steele Ranch 3)

“What are you doing in my apartment?”

“Living here. Waiting for you.”

“I thought you were in jail.”

He came closer, let the newspaper drop to the floor. “Let’s have a chat, roomie.”

No fucking way. I remembered I had mace in my purse, the usual one I carried that was slung cross-shoulder. I’d had the mace for years and this was the first time I’d had need of it. I was a little surprised I was clearheaded enough to think of it. I wouldn’t grab it now. He wasn’t close enough to use it on him. But I wasn’t going in my apartment to get nearer. Going inside meant bad things would happen. I wasn’t that stupid.

“No way. You’re supposed to be in jail.”

He grinned, shook his head. “They arrested Schmidt and Ricky. Not me.”

Ricky. Rocky. Jesus, the police arrested the wrong guy? Probably not. I had no doubt if Ricky, whoever that was, had been hanging with Schmidt, he deserved to be in jail, too. I’d read the police paperwork when I’d gone in and given my statement. Archer had even told me the names of the men who’d been arrested. I’d just never imagined they’d made a mistake.

“I’d gone out of town for a couple days and came back to to find out my friends had been arrested. I figured Ricky wouldn’t stop whining till the cops discovered they’d got the wrong guy and come looking for me. Since then, I’ve been looking for you.” He grinned. “Thanks to you, I can’t go to my place, so I figured this was the easiest way to solve both problems. It worked since here you are, it just took your skinny ass long enough to show up. You’re running out of food in your fridge.”

“Here I am.”

“It’s time to have that party I talked about.” He grinned and his gaze raked over me, just like it had in that tiny closet in the back of the strip club. “No nurse’s uniform needed, sweet cheeks. You naked and on your knees is fine by me.”

Bile rose in my throat at the thought. I’d happily sucked my men’s dicks, but this was disgusting. Rocky was disgusting.

“No way.”

He was bigger than me. Meaner. Had zero conscience. Scary. Dangerous.

“Like you have any choice.” Since his belt buckle was still undone after being in the bathroom, he tugged on the buckle, and I heard the slide of the leather as it went through the loops as he pulled it out. “No getting out a window this time.”

The belt dangled down to the ground as he stepped toward me. He was right, I’d gotten away before. He wasn’t going to let that happen twice.

I fumbled reaching into my purse, but I gripped the mace, pulled it out and when he got c

lose enough, sprayed.

* * *

SUTTON

* * *

“Where the fuck are you?” Archer growled. His call came through my truck’s dash and his voice boomed in the cabin.

After I left the sheriff’s office, I stopped for coffee at the gas station, then kept right on going. With the highway fairly straight and wide open—with the clear weather I could see for twenty miles or more—I spent the drive thinking of how much of a dumbass I was. And I hoped Cricket liked dumbasses. No, I hoped she loved them. Not all dumbasses. Just one. Me. I’d fucked up. I would fuck up again. I just had to hope I was worth it.

“Ten minutes outside of Missoula. The GPS is telling me her place isn’t much farther. Why?”

“Because Penny called and there was a man in Cricket’s apartment. Living there, apparently. Waiting for Cricket.”

My foot pressed the accelerator down to the floor, the truck’s engine roaring as I pushed it past ninety. I gripped the steering wheel so hard there would be indentations.

“Living there? She didn’t say anything about a roommate. What the fuck?”

“Not a roommate.” Archer was unfazed by my outburst. “Apparently, we arrested the wrong guy. Penny said Cricket called him Rocky.”

We arrested the wrong guy.

“You arrested two men,” I confirmed.