The first meeting between Dillon and Tessa in Turquoise
Mountain
(Tessa has traveled all the way from New York to Colorado
to find her mine, which happens to be on Dillon’s property)
“I’m
Tessa Grove, and when my grandfather passed away, he left his mining claim to
me. It doesn’t expire for another six months, which means I have legal title to
that mine.”
“You only
have mineral rights to a hole in the ground.” Dillon Iron Feather nodded in the
direction of the mine. “Which means you can’t set foot on my property.”
“What?”
Tessa crossed her arms.
“You
heard me. This piece of paper entitles you to dig behind that old wooden door.
That’s all. And my land surrounds every inch of it. Which means you’re breaking
the law by getting anywhere near that mine. So get lost.”
“Wait,
you can’t deny access to what’s legally mine!”
“Can’t
I?” Dillon’s face broke into a wry smile. For a moment, his eyes sparkled at
the prospect of challenge, lighting them up to a warm, charming brown.
Damn!
Tessa cursed to herself. That’s all I need right now is a guy who gets more
good looking when he taunts me—
Fuming,
she boldly yanked the mining claim and map from his hand to scrutinize them.
According to her documents, it looked like her ancestor was the one who
originally built Grove
Road that led to
this mining parcel, which sat right smack dab on the stranger’s property. Okay,
so he was right—her quarter acre didn’t include any of his buildings, but it
connected to the road. And nowhere did it specify that she was required to get
permission from any stranger to use that dirt lane. But how could she convince
him of that?
“Listen,”
Tessa sighed, “I know it might seem out of the blue that I’m here. But my
grandfather meant a lot to me. And this place—this gold mine—it’s…it’s kind of
sacred. What I mean is, my great-great-grandfather found it only because a
Native American outlaw gave him some powerful medicine. That might sound crazy
to you, but it’s true. His name was Iron Feather—”
“Your
great-great grandfather knew Iron Feather?”
Tessa
nodded. “He was Benjamin Grove the First, and he helped Iron Feather and the
Bandits Hollow Gang hide from a posse.” She dug into her purse and held up the
sacred owl feather. “All Iron Feather had to give him in return was this, but
it was rumored to have, you know—”
“Special
powers.”
To
Tessa’s amazement, Dillon’s face darkened in thought. He studied the feather
for a long time as though it were a precious artifact. Then he looked out over
the mountain tops at the threads of garnet in the sky that had begun to spread
from the dipping sun. His eyes seemed very far away.
It’s the
feather, Tessa realized. He knows something about that feather…
Dillon
returned his gaze to Tessa. Yet when he reached for the feather, she seized her
moment and surprised him by lunging for his shotgun. She managed to grab it and
run several strides, when she whipped around.
“Back
off!” She aimed the shotgun straight at him and pumped it awkwardly, barely
remembering how from when her grandfather taught her fifteen years ago. “I want
to see that mine,” she demanded, her body visibly trembling. “And I’m not
leaving till I do.”
Dillon
smirked, his gaze tracing her wild blonde hair that had fallen across her face,
her blue-green eyes spitting fury. What Tessa hadn’t noticed in her panic, of
course, was that her purse had fallen from her shoulder and spilled onto the
ground. He crouched carefully to the grass, keeping his eye firmly on the gun
barrel, and picked up some of the contents before standing to his feet.
“Where do
you expect to go after this if I’ve got your ID and credit cards, city girl?”
Dillon smiled, noticing the blush that suffused her cheeks. Her eyes darted to
the drivers license and MasterCard he held in his hand, and that was all the
opening he needed. With an expertly aimed kick, he knocked the shotgun from her
grip and sent it twirling in air, then caught it. He set the butt down on the
ground.
“You
should know your opponent a whole lot better before you start a fight,” he
scolded. “Now you don’t have your purse or a weapon. Fortunately, you’re far
too pretty for shooting practice today. But don’t press your luck.”
Another
blush warmed Tessa’s cheeks, and she cradled her arms tight to try and
stop the tremors. To her astonishment, Dillon threw down his gun and caught up
to her within a couple of strides. Before she knew it, she was born aloft by
his strong arms, her body next to his warm, hard chest. Despite her kicks and
screams, he set her gently on the grass and pulled a long piece of baling twine
from his pocket, then proceeded to tie up her hands and feet.
“What the
hell are you doing!” Tessa screamed, wriggling on the grass like an angry
caterpillar. “First you threatened me with a gun, and now kidnapping? You’re
going to face the law for this!”
“For your
information, lady, I deliberately shot out the truck mirror and fired the
second shot in the air to scare you off. I have no intention of killing anybody
today. But I will make sure you have a soft bed and a good meal in your belly,
since you appear to be stranded, no matter how hot headed you are.”
With
that, he pulled a bandana from his pocket and stuffed it in Tessa’s mouth. She
kept thrashing violently while he picked up the scattered items on the meadow
and returned them along with her ID and credit card to her purse.
But he
slipped the owl feather into his pocket.
Just
then, Tessa saw vivid red and blue lights trace over the cabin and barn as the
shrill sound of a siren echoed off the hillsides. A police cruiser appeared at
the front gate, and an officer stepped out.
“Dammit,
Dillon!” The officer called out. “What have you done to this poor woman? For
crying out loud, are you that desperate for female company?” He walked boldly
toward them. “Good thing Dusty went to town and called 911 after you shot out
the mirror on his truck.”
Dillon
laughed. “As a matter of fact, Barrett,” he replied, picking up Tessa’s
squirming body and heading toward the cruiser, “I was about to bring her to you
anyway. She’s lost, and if she hadn’t been so pig-headed about refusing to
leave, I would have driven her to town and put her up in a hotel myself without
hog-tying her. Watch out—she’s a feisty one.”
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TODAY bestselling author Diane J. Reed writes happily ever afters with a
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