Free The Colton Ransom by Marie Ferrarella Page B

the rodeo was under way again later that day.
    Trevor merely nodded as he strode away.
    “Thank you,” Gabby called after the clown before she hurried to follow Trevor to the trailer.
    Trevor turned to look at her, raising one quizzical eyebrow. Why had she thanked the clown? She hadn’t talked to the man—he had.
    Gabby could almost read the thoughts going through his head. “You should have thanked him,” she told Trevor simply.
    Now she was telling him what to do? “What are you, the etiquette police?”
    She bristled at the sarcasm she perceived in his voice. But she was also beginning to understand that it was his defense mechanism, his way of surviving the ugliness he saw around him. He had to be deeply upset over his daughter’s disappearance.
    “I just believe in treating people nicely,” she told him. “You know, follow the Golden Rule, that kind of thing.”
    He laughed again, shaking his head. “Yeah, how’s that working out for you?”
    “It’s working out,” she said automatically, then, because she was truthful, she added, “Sometimes.”
    He laughed shortly under his breath. Half of him, he had to admit, was amused and just a little impressed by her attitude. He couldn’t help wondering what it would take to actually completely daunt this woman.
    A part of him hoped that neither one of them would ever find out the answer to that unspoken question.
    Glancing toward her again, he saw that he actually had to look over his shoulder. She was struggling to keep up with him. He knew he should keep going. With luck, she’d finally give up and go back to the truck to wait for him.
    But even as he entertained the thought, he caught himself slowing down just enough for Gabby to catch up. She was abreast of him just as he reached the trailer door.
    He raised a hand to knock on the trailer door. His eyes stole a glance in her direction. “Last chance,” he told her.
    Gabby knew the security head was referring to her backing away from the scene that lay ahead.
    But this was going to be difficult for him, and she didn’t want to leave him in a lurch. She was beginning to realize that beneath all that bluster and those scowls, there was a decent man who was just as capable of being hurt as she was.
    And after all, the man was already dealing with having his daughter abducted. If she could help in any way, even minimally, she wasn’t about to back off just because this was going to make her uncomfortable.
    Despite her appearance, it wasn’t as if she were exactly fragile, about to break at the slightest bit of jostling. Dealing with her father as well as the troubled teens she was determined to save, she’d managed to develop if not a really thick skin, at least one that didn’t just dissolve at the first sign of adversity or a confrontation.
    “Just knock,” she instructed. “Don’t worry about me.”
    “Stubborn,” he muttered under his breath. Trevor told himself that he was glad she wasn’t his headache on a regular basis.
    She heard him mutter the word clearly meant for her and smiled to herself. “Yes, I am,” she answered cheerfully.
    “You’ve got big ears, too,” he told her as he knocked on the trailer door.
    Gabby was unfazed by the assessment. “I hear what I have to.”
    If he was about to comment on her reply, Trevor never got a chance to because, just then, the trailer door started to open.
    Before it had opened up fully, Dylan was already talking. It was obvious that he was expecting someone else to show up at his door.
    “I already told you, you’re going to have to rest that bronco for at least today, maybe tomorrow— Oh.” Dylan grinned at the two people he recognized in front of his door. He took his error in stride. “Sorry, I thought you were one of the cowboys I talked to earlier. Sometimes I think all that bronco busting rattles their brains. Even an eight-second ride is too much for them.
    “C’mon in,” Dylan invited, waving them in and stepping back so