Home on the Ranch: Colorado: Big City Cowboy / Colorado Cowboy. Julie Benson
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buzz, not shutting it down.
“Running comes to mind.”
A whistle blew, immediately halting the chaos.
“Who started all this?” a policeman asked as he approached.
Every person except Rory pointed to Elizabeth.
“Officer, this is all a terrible misunderstanding,” she said, desperate to diffuse the situation and pacify the cop. “A crowd had gathered. People got a little close. Someone bumped into someone else, and then everything went crazy.”
“Everything was fine until she got here,” the woman in the rhinestone T-shirt yelled.
What was it with her? Did she wake up this morning intent on destroying someone’s life, and Elizabeth held the lucky ticket?
“Everyone seems pretty clear you’re the instigator. Start at the beginning with why a crowd had gathered,” the officer told Elizabeth.
She paused, not quite sure what to say. Police frowned on impromptu advertising events. They were sticklers for permits and advance notice. Both of which she’d forgotten in her excitement.
“Women started asking me for autographs when they recognized me from this,” Rory said, pointing upward.
The officer glanced at the billboard. “Nice photo.” He turned to Elizabeth. “Were you one of the autograph seekers?”
“I work with Rory.”
“In what capacity? Are you his agent?” The man glared at her disapprovingly.
What she wouldn’t give to be beamed out of this situation. Or to have the ability to erase everyone’s memory, starting with this cop and the question he’d just asked. Because unless she lied, her answer would not make him happy.
She swallowed hard and prayed she could talk her way out of this sticky situation. “I’m not his agent. I’m the executive in charge of the ad campaign.”
“You decided to stage an impromptu advertising event,” the officer accused. “You thought you could get some free publicity without the hassle of getting the proper permits. When are you ad people going to realize you can’t do that?”
“I absolutely did not stage this.”
“I was feeling a little cooped up this morning, so I took a walk,” Rory said. “When the crowd gathered I called Elizabeth to help me.”
“What happened when you arrived?”
“She passed out pictures for him to sign, and started bossing everyone around,” one woman, probably the diva, said.
“She bumped into me and spilled coffee all over me,” another added.
The officer raised his hands, silencing everyone. “I’ve heard enough. I’m giving you and cowboy guy tickets for disturbing the peace, unlawful assemblage, failure to obtain the proper permits, and anything else I can think of. This little stunt is going to cost your company a bundle, little lady.”
“That’s all you’re going to do?” someone called out.
“You should arrest her for assault,” another woman added.
“That might not be a bad idea.”
If this kept up these women would get her life in prison. Talk about a mob mentality.
Rory glanced at the officer. “Can I speak to you alone, man to man?”
The cop nodded and motioned to the crowd. “The rest of you, break it up. If your clothes were damaged, get a business card from her.”
When he pointed at Elizabeth, she said, “I’ll be happy to pay for dry cleaning or replace any garments that can’t be cleaned.”
As she handed out business cards and the crowd dispersed, Rory said, “This is my fault. I’m new to all this stuff. A few weeks ago I was in Colorado giving horseback riding tours. Now here, today, I was surrounded by a group of women wanting my autograph. It’s a little much for a simple cowboy to handle. They got very close, if you know what I mean.”
The officer laughed. “I can see that from your shirt.”
“That wasn’t the only place they got grabby.” Rory shuddered. “They damn near scared me to death. I tried to leave, but they circled around me. The only way I could’ve escaped was to run the ladies over, but I was raised to treat women right.”
Elizabeth watched in amazement as the officer’s posture relaxed the longer he spoke with Rory. Give them five more minutes and they’d probably be fast friends.
The cop tilted his head toward Elizabeth. “What about her?”
“I called her. The crowd kept asking me for pictures, and I figured that if she brought some, they’d take the photos and go.”
“You promise me nothing like this will ever happen again?”
“It won’t, because if it did, it’d probably kill me.”
The officer nodded and then turned to Elizabeth. “I want one of your business cards, because if I hear you’ve been involved in something like this again, I won’t just ticket you. I’ll haul you off to jail.”
* * *
AS LIZZIE AND RORY walked into her office, his anger threatened to boil over. If he was back home, he’d saddle Blaze and head for the mountains, hoping a long ride would clear his head and cool his temper. If that didn’t work, he’d muck out a few stalls to burn off steam. Unfortunately, none of those options were available.
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