try to put out the fire.”
He glanced around the clearing. “You see a hydrant? A pond? They only carry about two thousand gallons of water. Not enough to put out that blaze. All they can do is let it burn and use their water to make sure they keep the grass around it from going up. Sorry about your things.”
Tears began to fill her eyes.
He mentally cussed himself for upsetting her, but there wasn’t a thing he could do. He waved a hand toward his car.
She stiffened her back, shoved her hands deep into her pants pockets and swept past him, walking swiftly toward his vehicle despite the fact she was walking over small stones.
Another twinge tightened his chest this time. Maybe his guard was up for all the wrong reasons. She might just be down on her luck. And now, she didn’t even have a pair of shoes.
She walked to the back passenger door of his car.
“You can ride up front,” he said, before he could stop himself.
Her head swung his way, and her gaze narrowed. “You breaking protocol now?”
“Should I consider you a suspect?”
She swallowed and shook her head.
“Then get up front.”
Maybe he’d spoken a little too harshly, and maybe his expression was tightening into a grim mask, but inside a minute she’d managed to get under his skin. Already, he was making excuses, painting scenarios where she was an innocent and needed his help, rather than being like the angel-faced vixen his ex-wife had turned out to be.
As he opened his door, preparing to climb inside, he caught the sheriff’s stare. Humor crimped his lips into a tight smile. Josh knew damn well how the mystery woman affected him.
Time to end the mystery. Once he was seated, he gave her a pointed stare. “Seatbelt?”
“Yes, of course.” She fumbled with the seatbelt, but with her left hand, held the lap band above her lap as she secured it.
The yard surrounding the cabin was now a parking lot filled with vehicles. Once he’d found a path through, he turned onto the main road and pointed his vehicle toward town. “What’s your name?”
“Carina.”
“Just Carina?” he asked, working to keep his tone polite when what he wanted was to shoot his questions like bullets.
“Carina Black.”
She said it a little too quickly, but he let it slide. “So, you rented from Mutt Owens?”
“From Bryan Owens, yes.”
Mutt must have been taken with the girl to have given her his birth name. “For how long?”
The light from his dash was bright enough he saw her head jerk his way. “Does that matter?”
“Don’t know.” He flashed her a quick, too polite smile. “Should it?”
“O-of course not. A week.”
“I’m surprised he was willing to rent it for so short a time. He’s been looking for a tenant for a long time.”
“He seemed happy enough to rent for one week.”
Mutt happy? Which meant she must have paid him enough to make him happy. “Tell me about the fire.”
She rubbed her hands together, and then placed them between her thighs. “I can’t tell you much. I woke up with smoke filling the bedroom in the back. I crawled to the door, keeping under the smoke and closed it, and then looked for something I could use to wrap around my arm.” She gave a small nervous laugh. “I had to break the window to climb out. I found a towel to do it, then laid a pillow over the window frame before I crawled out.”
Smart. And level-headed. “No cuts? Or scratches?”
“None.”
“You didn’t hear anything before you smelled smoke?”
“No. Sorry. I’m not much help, am I?”
He shot her a glance, noted the mutinous thin line of her mouth, then returned his gaze to the road in front of them. “You were lucky. Looks like someone set that fire,” he said it slowly and watched her from the corner of his eye.
Her chest rose and fell more rapidly. “Lucky. That’s me,” she whispered.
“What are you doing in Caldera? You have family here?”
“No. Just passing through.”
People didn’t just pass through
He glanced around the clearing. “You see a hydrant? A pond? They only carry about two thousand gallons of water. Not enough to put out that blaze. All they can do is let it burn and use their water to make sure they keep the grass around it from going up. Sorry about your things.”
Tears began to fill her eyes.
He mentally cussed himself for upsetting her, but there wasn’t a thing he could do. He waved a hand toward his car.
She stiffened her back, shoved her hands deep into her pants pockets and swept past him, walking swiftly toward his vehicle despite the fact she was walking over small stones.
Another twinge tightened his chest this time. Maybe his guard was up for all the wrong reasons. She might just be down on her luck. And now, she didn’t even have a pair of shoes.
She walked to the back passenger door of his car.
“You can ride up front,” he said, before he could stop himself.
Her head swung his way, and her gaze narrowed. “You breaking protocol now?”
“Should I consider you a suspect?”
She swallowed and shook her head.
“Then get up front.”
Maybe he’d spoken a little too harshly, and maybe his expression was tightening into a grim mask, but inside a minute she’d managed to get under his skin. Already, he was making excuses, painting scenarios where she was an innocent and needed his help, rather than being like the angel-faced vixen his ex-wife had turned out to be.
As he opened his door, preparing to climb inside, he caught the sheriff’s stare. Humor crimped his lips into a tight smile. Josh knew damn well how the mystery woman affected him.
Time to end the mystery. Once he was seated, he gave her a pointed stare. “Seatbelt?”
“Yes, of course.” She fumbled with the seatbelt, but with her left hand, held the lap band above her lap as she secured it.
The yard surrounding the cabin was now a parking lot filled with vehicles. Once he’d found a path through, he turned onto the main road and pointed his vehicle toward town. “What’s your name?”
“Carina.”
“Just Carina?” he asked, working to keep his tone polite when what he wanted was to shoot his questions like bullets.
“Carina Black.”
She said it a little too quickly, but he let it slide. “So, you rented from Mutt Owens?”
“From Bryan Owens, yes.”
Mutt must have been taken with the girl to have given her his birth name. “For how long?”
The light from his dash was bright enough he saw her head jerk his way. “Does that matter?”
“Don’t know.” He flashed her a quick, too polite smile. “Should it?”
“O-of course not. A week.”
“I’m surprised he was willing to rent it for so short a time. He’s been looking for a tenant for a long time.”
“He seemed happy enough to rent for one week.”
Mutt happy? Which meant she must have paid him enough to make him happy. “Tell me about the fire.”
She rubbed her hands together, and then placed them between her thighs. “I can’t tell you much. I woke up with smoke filling the bedroom in the back. I crawled to the door, keeping under the smoke and closed it, and then looked for something I could use to wrap around my arm.” She gave a small nervous laugh. “I had to break the window to climb out. I found a towel to do it, then laid a pillow over the window frame before I crawled out.”
Smart. And level-headed. “No cuts? Or scratches?”
“None.”
“You didn’t hear anything before you smelled smoke?”
“No. Sorry. I’m not much help, am I?”
He shot her a glance, noted the mutinous thin line of her mouth, then returned his gaze to the road in front of them. “You were lucky. Looks like someone set that fire,” he said it slowly and watched her from the corner of his eye.
Her chest rose and fell more rapidly. “Lucky. That’s me,” she whispered.
“What are you doing in Caldera? You have family here?”
“No. Just passing through.”
People didn’t just pass through
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