Lips Of An Angel-Excerpt
Book 6: The Bridgestones Of Montana
Chapter one
The horse made Angel cry.
“Dammit,” she said under her breath, and moved closer, swiping at the tears on her cheek.
Snow heavy clouds threatened as she stood beside the red roan and tried to keep her composure. The filly was young, barely two years old, severely underweight with hip bones that slashed so sharp they looked like they didn’t belong on her. There were sores on her muzzle and the side of her head from an ill-fitting bit and halter, and her mane and tail were a tangled mess. She needed to see a farrier pronto and then Mike Paul, her buddy and the local vet, for an exam.
The horse was in bad shape, but still nudged at Angel, her touch gentle.
“Oh sweetness,” Angel whispered, running her hands along the horse’s head so she could give a good scratch, before gazing directly into her big, soft brown eyes. “I’m taking you home.”
She rested her forehead against the animal, then after she’d composed herself, walked over to the sheriff, who’d called her out to the dilapidated ranch a few hours ago.
She turned in a full circle, noting five outbuildings and a house that needed a new roof, new porch, and some new windows. “Does anyone even live here?”
Nate Grayson, the sheriff, nodded. “There’s a trailer out back.”
The barns were in rough shape—the same condition as the animals that lived here. Nate’s handsome face was pulled back in a grimace as his gaze moved over to the other paddock. The four horses that stood there, hunched against the cold, would have to be put down, and Mike Paul was on his way.
“I hope you’re arresting them.”
“Second offense. I’ve called it in and an arrest warrant will be issued. Their asses are headed to jail this time. Judge Oakley doesn’t stand for this kind of shit. If they were here I’d haul them in myself.”
“Who called it in?”
He shrugged. “Didn’t leave a name.”
“I’ll take the roan now and make arrangements for the goats.”
“There’s a pig too. She looks like she’s about ready to have a litter.” He doffed his hat and shook his head. “There’s a mini horse inside the barn that seems okay. It’s been fed regular or maybe just arrived.”
“Lucky horse,” she murmured.
“Thanks for coming out, Angel.”
“I’m glad I wasn’t on the road. I was supposed to be in Wyoming for a family thing but decided to stay put on account of the coming storm.” She pulled up the collar of her coat as a crisp wind blew down from the mountains. With those nasty clouds overhead, she would be lucky to make it home before the snow began to fall. November in Montana was generally cold, and though it was early for the kind of snowfall that was reportedly on its way, it wasn’t out of the norm either. You had to be prepared, was all.
“You gonna be at the chili cookoff this weekend?”
She paused, then shrugged. “Haven’t really thought about it. I guess it depends on whether I’m hungry or not.”
Nate held her gaze a moment longer than he needed to. “Hopefully you have an appetite. It would be nice to see you again.”
Angel was used to male attention—she’d had it her entire life—and she saw his interest. If this were a different world she’d smile and tell him she’d see him there. Maybe flirt a little. Maybe do more. The man was handsome, tall with dark good looks. Had a job. He was single and had real nice eyes. He ticked a lot of boxes. Hell, he ticked all of them is she were being honest. But this wasn’t a different world and she was no longer a young woman with a big heart to give away. She would rather spend her time with bruised and battered animals.
For a lot of reasons.
She headed back to the filly. “I left a message with Taz before I came out. He’ll get the others rounded up.”
“I don’t know if the sow will last until he gets here. The piglets won’t survive if they come early.”
Angel didn’t hesitate. “I’ll take her too.”
With Nate’s help she got the large pregnant sow up the ramp and secured on the right side of her trailer, a padded division between the animals. Next, she led the young horse over and had no issues getting her loaded.
“Thanks again, Angel.” Nate flashed a smile and stood.
“Make sure you find them,” she said.
“I will.” Nate smiled, then winked. “Sure hope I see you Sunday.”
Once the filly was secure Angel hopped into the truck, gave the Sheriff a wave, and a few moments later drove down a laneway that had seen better days. There were more potholes than laneway and it took a lot longer than she’d like to navigate her way back to the top road.
Once there she headed for Big Bend. The roads were quiet and the drive would take about ninety minutes. She touched base with Taz and filled him in on the situation. He told her that Dirk, a new hire, was already on his way to grab the goats, and the mini horse.
“It’s already snowing here,” he said. “Coming down good. You nearly home?”
Angel looked out the window. The band of dark clouds headed her way looked ominous. “I’ll be fine.” She heard some chatter and smiled. “How’s Hank and the twins?”
“Well, we’re putting up the Christmas tree and it’s taking us three hours and only half of it is decorated if that tells you anything. I’d like to get the damn thing up already.”
She smiled at that. “You’re making memories my friend.”
“That’s what Scarlett says.” He chuckled. “Drive safe and shoot me a text when you’re home.”
Her vehicle wasn’t pushing out much heat and she shivered a bit as she continued down the road. The truck was old. Belonged to her Granddaddy. Which meant she’d drive it until it died. With the music on low, she hummed along to the latest country songs, and smiled when Cal Bridgestone and Millie Sue’s latest duet, Timeless, played. It was a beautiful ballad, full of longing, regret, and ultimately joy.
She supposed there was still some feeling in her, because she was a little choked up when the song ended. As it was, she cleared her throat and sat up straighter. She needed to concentrate and not be so damn sappy, because black ice could be a real problem.
Twenty minutes later the snow started and by the time she passed Bozeman it was coming down good. Her hands were tight on the steering wheel, her fingers cramped, and she was hunched over peering out the window, trying to see the road properly. With hardly any heat coming out the vents, her windshield was fogging up.
“Shit,” she muttered, slowing the truck to barely ten miles an hour. Ice was beginning to form on the inside of the glass. She knew that she was on the main road and probably ten minutes from Big Bend, which in turn meant twenty minutes from her place. But shit, if she wasn’t careful she could end up in the ditch and that wouldn’t be good for the filly or the pig.
Or for me, she thought.
Barely creeping along the road, she kept on driving and didn’t notice headlights in her rearview mirror until a large SUV was nearly on her tail. The truck came up fast and hung behind her for a couple of minutes, before it pulled out and roared by.
“Idiot,” she muttered, frowning darkly. No way was the driver a local. Not in that thing. “Your city ass is going to be toast if you don’t adjust your driving.”
She’d barely muttered the words when she spied red taillights swerve and bounce, before disappearing in the wind and snow. As Angel came up the small hill, she spied the SUV in the ditch.
For exactly two seconds she considering moving on and leaving whatever idiot was behind the wheel to their own devices, but then with a curse, she threw on her hazards and pulled up.
A man stood outside the SUV. No jacket. No hat. Like he was running hot and didn’t need the stuff mere mortals did. He was tall, his hair on the long side, dirty blonde waves that touched the tops of impressive shoulders. He wore a plain black T-shirt and faded blue jeans. On his feet a pair of Doc Martens.
Definitely a city boy.
He was busy on his phone, cursing because there was no service, so he didn’t hear her at first.
With a scowl, Angel yelled at him again. “Mister, you’ll never get a signal out here. Hard on a good day but in this storm, impossible.”
The stranger paused, and then glanced over his shoulder, movements slow and calculated, like a predator. She thought he looked familiar but couldn’t quite place him.
“I yanked the wheel to avoid hitting a deer or something.”
“Huh,” she said, shivering as she took a step closer. The front wheel was bent at a weird angle. No way was his vehicle moving. “You best hop in with me.”
“Fuck,” he muttered.
“Unless you want to freeze your ass off out here. The choice is yours.” Angel didn’t know who he was, but she didn’t like him on sight. He was too big and too male and arrogant and ungrateful and probably a bunch of other stuff she didn’t have time to consider.
She turned and headed back for her truck, not really caring if he followed her or not. She’d barely got her seat buckle in place, when he climbed inside and slammed his door shut. The vehicle rocked a bit. God, he was bigger than she thought. Strong too. She spied his large hands out of the corners of her eyes.
“You can barely see out of this thing.”
“I’m aware.” Angel leaned forward and scraped as much frost off the windshield as she could. Then with a big sigh, pressed forward. By now her neck was tight. Shoulders too.
“Thanks for stopping.” His voice was warm, low and husky, like golden whiskey over ice.
She nodded but kept her eyes on the road.
“You got anything in your trailer?”
She nodded.
He fiddled with the heat.
“It’s on full blast,” she said, glancing his way. His face was nearly perfect. Strong chin. Angular jaw with just the right amount of facial hair. Eyes the color of topaz, framed by thick dark lashes. His nose had been broken at least once. Maybe twice. His mouth, well, it was so damn nice it belonged on a woman.
He was too handsome for his own good. Another reason to dislike him. Childish, maybe, but Angel had learned the hard way to trust her gut and right now her gut was telling her she should have kept on driving.
“Have we met before?” he asked.
“I doubt it.”
“You look familiar.”
He didn’t look like the kind of man who spent hours scrolling through TikTok or Instagram. Two places she had large followings.
“Can you take me to the Bridgestone place?”
“That’s a bit of a hike from here.”
“That’s where I was headed. I’ll pay you if that’s what it takes.”
“I don’t need your money.” God, these city boys. They thought the world revolved around the number of Ben Franklins they carried. “Have you seen the roads?”
“You’re out here,” he shot back, a growl rolling beneath his words.
“If it weren’t for the animal back in that trailer I’d be home in front of the fire, watching this storm from the safety of my living room.”
“You have a horse back there?”
She didn’t bother to answer.
“So where are we going then?” Something in his tone changed, and she didn’t have to look his way to know he was smiling at her.
Shit. Fuck.
Angel was ten minutes from her place. The roads were nearly impassable, she couldn’t see shit, and she had a horse that needed attention and a pig that was about have a bunch of piglets. In an hour there’d be no navigating these roads which meant there was no way she could drop this man off at the Bridgestone place. Either she wouldn’t make it, or she’d be stuck there.
“I guess you’re coming to my place,” she replied.
He seemed to be considering her words. Grabbed up his phone again, but there was still no signal.
“How long is this storm going to last?”
Too long, she thought with a scowl.
Angel didn’t answer. She cranked the radio and kept her eyes on the road. She was a loner. Liked her space. And if she was reading the signs right, she’d be having company for a few days. At the least.
“That bad, huh?” Now he sounded sarcastic.
That bad, she thought.
