With a tug of the reins, Emily urged Rebel in the opposite direction.

Eyes narrowed against the glare of the sun, she scanned the landscape. “Where is he, Rebel? Where’s Chase?”

More than once, she spotted what looked like a man, only to find it was a cactus or stunted tree. A buzzard circled overhead, and her heart practically stopped.

Please, no, God!

Several minutes passed, and still there was no sign of Chase. The buzzard had been joined by another, and they kept circling. Tears of frustration sprang to Emily’s eyes. She only hoped that Kansas Pete had more luck than she was having.

She was just about to turn in another direction when a movement in the distance caught her eye. Praying it wasn’t another false alarm, she reined her horse to a full stop and rose from the saddle for a better view. It sure did look like Chase on foot. Relief rushing through her, she spurred her mount into a full gallop.

Moments later, Chase greeted her with raised eyebrows. “You’re riding my horse?”

“All sixteen and a half hands,” she said, slipping out of the saddle. Overwhelmed with relief, she did something she’d never expected to do—she threw her arms around Chase’s neck.

She felt him stiffen in surprise and then relax. “Whoa!” he said, his hands tightening around her waist. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were glad to see me.”

She looked up at him, their faces, their lips mere inches apart. The smoldering flames in his eyes startled her, and she quickly pulled away. Mortified at her own flagrant conduct, she wiped her damp hands on the sides of the skirt and fought for control.

“What happened?” she managed at last, aware that he was staring at her with a strange look on his face.

“My horse got spooked and threw me.” He shrugged like it was no big deal. “It happens.”

After he’d scared her half out of her mind, his nonchalant attitude annoyed her. “Didn’t think things like that happened to you.”

“I reckon there’s not a horseman alive who didn’t have to chew gravel on occasion.”

From the distance came the crackle of rifle fire, the shots spaced at least twenty seconds apart.

“Sounds like they’re lookin’ for me,” Chase said. He turned to his horse and pulled his rifle out of the saddle scabbard.

“I bumped into Kansas Pete and told him you were missing,” Emily said.

“Cover your ears.” He waited for Emily to do what he said, then fired his weapon into the air, letting his men know he was okay.

After replacing the rifle, he reached in his saddle for his canteen and took a quick swig of water. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he tossed a nod at his horse. “Which of us gets to walk this time?”

Before she could reply, a shot rang out, this time from the nearby hills. The bullet bounced off the ground less than a foot from where Chase stood. Emily cried out, and Rebel whinnied and reared. Before Chase could grab hold of his horse’s reins, the startled animal frantically galloped away.