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He groaned aloud.
"Oh, Corrigan, I'm sorry," she said gently. "Simon always says you do everything the hard way. I
guess he knows you better than the others."
He glanced at her curiously. "When have you seen Simon?"
"At the cattle convention in San Antonio last week. I sold a lot of my Montana herd there."
"And he actually spoke to you?"
She smiled wistfully. "He always speaks to me," she said. "I don't treat him like an invalid. He feels
comfortable with me."
He gave her an intent look. "He wouldn't if he knew how you felt about him."
Her eyes narrowed angrily. "I'm not telling him. And neither are you! If he wants me to be just a
friend, I can settle for that. It isn't as if I'm shopping for a new husband. One was enough," she added
curtly.
"Simon was always protective about you," he recalled. "Even before you married."
"He pushed me at John," she reminded him.
"Simon was married when he met you."
Her expression closed. She didn't say a word, but it was there, in her face. She'd hated Simon's wife,
and the feeling had been mutual. Simon had hated her husband, too. But despite all the turbulence
between Tira and Simon, there had never been a hint of infidelity while they were both married. Now,
it was as if they couldn't get past their respective bad marriages to really look at each other
romantically. Tira loved Simon, although no one except Corrigan knew it. But Simon kept secrets. No
one was privy to them anymore, not even his own brothers. He kept to himself in San Antonio. Too
much, sometimes.
Tira was watching him brood. "Why don't you file a missing persons report?" she suggested
suddenly.
"I have to wait twenty-four hours. She could be in Alaska by then." He muttered under his breath. "I
guess 1 could hire a private detective to look for her."
She gave him a thoughtful look and her eyes twinkled. "I've got a better idea. Why not tell your
brothers she's gone missing?"
His eyebrows lifted, and hope returned. "Now that's a constructive suggestion," he agreed, nodding,
and he began to grin. "They were already looking forward to homemade biscuits every morning.
They'll be horrified!"
And they were. It was amazing, the looks that he got from his own kinfolk when he mentioned that
their prized biscuit maker had gone missing.
"It's your fault," Rey said angrily. "You should have proposed to her."
"I thought you guys had all that taken care of," Corrigan said reasonably. "The rings, the minister, the
gown, the invitations..."
"Everything except the most important part," Cag told him coldly.
"Oh, that. Did we forget to tell her that he loved her?" Leo asked sharply. "Good Lord, we did! No
wonder she left!" He glared at his brother. "You could have told her yourself if you hadn't been
chewing on your hurt pride. And speaking of pride, why didn't you tell Tira the truth instead of
hedging your bets with a bunch of lies?"
"Because Tira has a big mouth and I didn't want the whole town to know I was dying of unrequited
love for Dorie!" he raged. "She doesn't want to marry me. She said so! A man has to have a little pride
to cling to!"
"Pride and those sort of biscuits don't mix," Rey stressed. "We've got to get her back. Okay, boys, who
do we know in the highway patrol? Better yet, don't we know at least one Texas Ranger? Those boys
can track anybody! Let's pool resources here..."
Watching them work, Corrigan felt relieved for himself and just a little sorry for Dorie. She wouldn't
stand a chance.
She didn't, either. A tall, good-looking man with black hair wearing a white Stetson and a Texas
Ranger's star on his uniform knocked at the door of her motel room in Victoria. When she answered
it, he tipped his hat politely, smiled and put her in handcuffs.
They were halfway back to Jacobsville, her hastily packed suitcase and her purse beside her, before
she got enough breath back to protest.
"But why have you arrested me?" she demanded,
"Why?" He thought for a minute and she saw him scowl in the rearview mirror. "Oh, I remember.
Cattle rustling." He nodded. "Yep, that's it. Cattle rustling." He glanced at her in the rearview mirror.
"You see, rustling is a crime that cuts across county lines, which gave me the authority to arrest you."
"Whose cattle have I rustled?" she demanded impertinently.
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