The Sheriff (Historical Romance) by Nan Ryan

distinctive hiss. Kate lifted the lamp high and saw, crouched against a wall, its back arched, a big fat calico cat, its golden eyes gleaming in the darkness. Relief flooding through her, Kate sank to her knees.
    “Here kitty, kitty,” she called, not really expectingthe overweight feline to come to her. “So it was you,” she said in soft, low tones. “You’ve been making all the noise and I thought it was a bear. Come here, let’s be friends.”
    The cat made a low rattling sound in the back of its throat and stared at Kate with slitted golden eyes. It didn’t budge.
    She laughed softly. “You know, I wondered why there were no rats in this old house. From the looks of you, I’d say there’s not a rodent within a mile of the place. What do you say?”
    The rattling stopped. The calico finally meowed.
    “That’s better. Now come over here. Please. I’m all alone and I need a friend.”
    To Kate’s surprise, the cat padded slowly closer, stopping just beyond her reach. “I’m Kate, Cal. If this is your home, that’s fine with me. We can live here together. Okay?” Kate reached out and tried to touch the cat. It backed away.
    But when she’d sat there unmoving for a minute, the cat cautiously came closer. It reached her and, when she didn’t make a move to touch it, rubbed its furry side against her knees. Then it slowly walked around her, rubbing up against Kate as it went.
    When the cat was again facing her, Kate said, “I’m going back to bed now. You’re welcome to come sleep at the foot of my bed. It’s up to you.”
    She lifted the lamp and gun, rose to her feet,turned and walked away. She was disappointed to see that the cat hadn’t followed. Still, just knowing it was there made her feel less lonely and afraid.
    She lay back down, but sleep still would not come.
    Kate again got up.
    She left the lamp and gun where they were and went out onto the porch. She yanked up the tail of her long gown, sat down on the first step and tucked the fabric between her knees. She gazed up at the deep cobalt sky overhead. The heavens were brilliant with stars. They glittered like diamonds in the still, thin mountain air.
    She smiled when she felt something warm and furry press against her hip. She looked down at the big calico cat and knew she’d found a much needed companion. Very slowly, very carefully, she lifted a hand and laid two fingers lightly atop its head. When the cat looked up at her, she slipped her hand beneath its throat and began to gently stroke it. The cat purred contentedly and was soon catnapping.
    Neither the girl nor the cat were aware that someone was watching.
    When Travis had reached the clearing, he’d seen a lamp flickering inside the house. From afar, he’d watched as the light moved from the front room and down the hall to the back of the mansion. Minutes later it returned to the front and soon went out.
    The girl had, he supposed, gone to sleep.
    Travis had started to turn away. Then he hesitated, deciding to stay just a few more minutes.
    He’d moved closer to the mansion and took up a post beneath a towering pine at the edge of the yard, where he had an unobstructed view of the house and its surrounding grounds. He sat down and leaned back against the solid trunk.
    Less than ten minutes later the girl came out of the house dressed in her long nightgown. She stood on the porch for a couple of heartbeats while the night winds pressed the thin white garment against her tall, slender body, and her unbound hair whipped around her head.
    His eyes dry from not daring to blink, Travis stared at the vision in white and lost his breath entirely when she impetuously yanked the long skirt of her nightgown up around her thighs and sank down on the front step, shoving the fabric between her legs and pressing her knees together.
    Travis ground his teeth so hard his jaws ached.
    Damn her beautiful hide!
    All the warning in the world hadn’t made one bit of difference. He had a good mind to