by Dylann Crush
“Lacey, I’d like you to meet my fiancé, Roman.” Adeline put her hand on Roman’s arm, obviously staking her claim. As if Lacey were going to try to hump the man right there at table twelve.
“Congratulations. Nice to meet you, Roman.” She managed to correct her awkward expression and forced a smile. “Are you ready to order?”
Adeline’s smirk faded. She ran a manicured nail down the side of the menu. “We’ll take two Burger Bonanza baskets with fries. Diet for me.”
“Do you have iced tea?” Roman asked.
Lacey nodded. She’d been afraid the man couldn’t speak. She wouldn’t have put it past Adeline to marry a man incapable of talking back to her. He probably didn’t get a word in edgewise most of the time. “I’ll be back in a minute with your drinks.”
She tucked her order pad into the front of her apron. First the news of the Phillips business closing, now an unexpected visit from Adeline. Bad news usually came in threes. What would happen next?
It took less than a minute to find out. As she approached the soda station to grab two cups, someone grabbed her arm.
Bodie.
“Mayor Cherish, you’ll need to come with me.” His voice was all business. The commanding tone sent a shiver straight through her. But his lips twitched. A hint of humor shone in those deep gray eyes. She’d spent way too much of her life thinking about what it would feel like to lose herself in those depths.
“What are you doing here? I’ve got a shift.”
“I’m aware of that.” His fingers closed around her elbow, eliminating any argument, propelling her toward the door. “But we’ve got a problem that needs your attention. Now.”
two
Bodie gripped Lacey’s elbow a little tighter as he led her outside. He wouldn’t admit it, but he kind of enjoyed spending time with Idont’s new mayor—much more than he expected, and a lot more than he should.
“Stop, Bodie. I’m not taking another step until you tell me what’s going on.” Lacey planted her feet as she wrapped her arms around her middle. It was chilly, even for Texas. He should have grabbed her coat, but now he didn’t want to take the time to go back inside.
“Here.” He slid his jacket off then draped it over her shoulders.
“I don’t want your jacket.” She shrugged it off and tossed it back at him. “I want to know why you dragged me out here during my shift. Helmut’s going to pop a blood vessel over this. What’s so important?”
“There’s a protest down at the warehouse. Seems Jonah Wylder has chained himself to the front doors. Says he’s not leaving until someone gives him his job back.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” She tilted her head back, giving him a full-on glimpse of the smooth ivory column of her neck.
When did the little girl who used to bug the hell out of him turn into such a beauty? Seemed like she’d always been underfoot as a kid. He and her big brother, Luke, couldn’t go anywhere without her tagging along. Since she’d been back he hadn’t paid much attention to her—he’d been too focused on trying to figure out a way to get out of Idont himself. But now with her taking on the doomed role of mayor, he started to wish he hadn’t ignored her for so long.
“So what do we do?” Her jaw set, she leveled her gaze on him. “I suppose I need to try to talk some sense into him.”
Bodie tried to suppress a smile. “Good luck with that. Jonah’s not exactly known for keeping a level head.”
“Let’s go. I’ll ride with you so we can talk on the way.” She didn’t give him much choice but to follow behind her as she crossed the parking lot to his truck.
Should he try to open the door for her or let her handle it on her own? He wavered as they got closer. He’d never treated Lacey as anything but a kid. But now, there was no trace of the freckle-faced teen. He increased his pace to make it to the passenger door before her.
“Thanks.” She barely glanced at him as he held the door while she climbed into the truck.
While he waited for her to get settled, he couldn’t help but notice the way her skirt rode up on her thighs. Rubbing a hand over the scruff on his chin, he chastised himself. This was Luke’s sister he was undressing in his mind. He needed to shut that shit down. Fast. He closed the door and stomped around the truck to get behind the wheel.
They rode in silence for the first few minutes, giving him a chance to sort out his thoughts.
“So how do you suggest I handle Jonah?” Lacey swiveled in her seat to face Bodie.
“Let him sit out there and freeze his ass off.” Bodie took a sip of water from his travel tumbler. “Jonah’s a hothead. He’ll make a scene but once everyone goes home and the excitement wears off he’ll slink back to the rock he lives under.”
“That’s one of my constituents you’re talking about.” Lacey adjusted the vent on the dash.
“Yeah, I feel sorry for you about that. He was an asshole when he was younger and he’s grown into an even bigger asshole now.”
“Great. How long is my term again?” She twisted a strand of hair around her finger as she gazed out the front window.
“Four years. But as long as you don’t get arrested, you’ll probably get reelected.” He meant that as a joke, a little bit of humor at her dad’s expense, but Lacey didn’t smile. Bodie glanced back and forth from the road in front of him to Lacey’s profile. Her pulse ticked along her jaw as she drummed her fingers on her knee. “You know I didn’t mean anything by that, right?”
Her breath came out on a long sigh. “I know. Wish I knew what Dad was thinking when he decided to go on a joyride.”
“If it’s any consolation”—Bodie gave her an apologetic grin—“I really didn’t enjoy arresting your dad that day.” Her dad had been more of a father figure to him growing up than his own flesh and blood.
“Nope.” Her mouth quirked into a half smile. “That doesn’t make me feel any better. I don’t know why I thought it would be a good idea to run for mayor. What was I thinking?”
“You want me to answer that?” He could tell her if she really wanted to know. Lacey was a fixer. Always had been and always would be.
“No.” She closed her eyes and let her head roll from side to side, like she was trying to ease some tension. “I just wish I’d thought it through. Seemed like the thing to do when Dad had to step down.”
“Idont is lucky you stepped up. If you hadn’t, can you imagine where we’d be right now without a mayor?” He slowed the truck to make a right.
“Probably annexed into Swynton by now. I’ve heard Mayor Little works fast.”
He’d heard that, too, and even experienced it firsthand. The mayor of Swynton had definite ideas about how things should be done. They’d had their fair share of run-ins during the few years he’d been working as deputy sheriff. Mayor Buck Little wasn’t someone to cross.
“Have you had time to think about what you’re going to do yet?” he asked.
“You mean in the fifteen minutes I had in between my dealings with you?” Lacey shook her head, sending her wavy, shoulder-length hair bouncing.
He caught a whiff of something flowery. Had to be her. Although he didn’t recall her ever smelling like anything but horses when they were younger. Horses and the butterscotch candy she always seemed to have in her mouth. That’s what earned her the nickname of Sweets in the first place. “You warm enough?”
“No.” She clamped her arms around her middle. “But I’ll be fine. What should we do with Jonah? A little ‘good cop, bad cop’ routine?”
“Sure, I’ll rough him up then you sweet-talk him into going home.” He slid his gaze her way to catch her reaction.
“Really? Does that kind of stuff work?”
“Only on TV.”
She let out a groan. “Maybe I should just let you handle it, then. I can wait in the truck while you take care of Mr. Wylder.”
“And miss out on the fun?” He’d known her all her life and had seen her in action time and again. She’d no more be able to step aside in a moment of crisis than he’d be able to ignore someone purposely breaking the law. The only difference was, he got paid to maintain law and order while she spent her life trying to fix things whether it fell under her job description or not.
“Yeah, I suppose I ought to at least try to talk to him.”
“That’s the spirit.” Bodie pulled the truck into the long, tree-covered drive leading to the warehouse. Once, the land had belonged to the founder of the town, his great-great-great-great-great-grandfather. He’d built the giant Victorian house first. When he decided to become a printer, he put up an outbuilding just down the drive. Over the years the Phillips family had expanded until the outbuilding became the warehouse it was today.
“You mean him and the mob he’s got with him?” Bodie asked.
“What?” Lacey turned toward him. “I can’t imagine Jonah inciting a mob.”
As he eased the truck to a stop, Bodie pointed through the windshield. “Okay, maybe not a mob, but he did bring some friends.”
“Oh, come on. When am I going to catch a break?” She opened the door and climbed down, looking out of place in her slim skirt and blouse among the flannel-and-denim-clad crowd.
Bodie grabbed his hat, prepared to provide backup.
“Well, if it ain’t our new mayor.” Jonah sized her up as she approached. He stood at the front door of the building, layers of metal chains wrapped around his torso.
“What can I do for you, Mr. Wylder?” Lacey offered her hand but must have thought better of it when Jonah struggled to work his arm free to take it.
“For starters you can reopen the warehouse.” His eyes narrowed. A chorus of encouraging “yeahs” and “that’s rights” floated up from the small crowd. “And then you can give us all a nice, fat raise.”
Lacey crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m afraid I can’t make that happen.”
“Then figure out a way.” Jonah nodded, his head being the only part of his body that he seemed to be able to move.
“Look, Mr. Wylder—”
“Jonah,” he insisted.
“Okay, Jonah. I’d love nothing more than to open up the warehouse, give all of you your jobs back, and double your pay. But we both know that’s not going to happen.”
“Then I’ll just stay here until you find a way.” Jonah shrugged, making the chains clink together.
Bodie shifted his weight from one foot to the other, waiting to see how the situation would play out. Lacey looked like she was about to cry. Her bottom lip trembled and she tightened her grip around her middle. He couldn’t let them get the best of her, not on her second day on the job.
“You’re just going to stay out here all night, then?” Bodie asked.
Jonah nodded. “If that’s what it takes.”
“And I suppose you’ve got a permit for that?” He took a step toward Lacey, sensing her focus shift from Jonah to him.
Jonah glanced to one of his buddies. “I don’t need a permit to stay out here.”
“This land is private property. If you want to hold a demonstration or a public gathering, based on city code, you need to ask for permission from the owners first.” Bodie shrugged his shoulders “Unless you’d rather I arrest you and take you in.”
“What are you doing?” Lacey whispered. “I’m handling this.”
Bodie put a hand out, gesturing for her to be quiet. “Your call, Jonah, but I bet your wife will be real pissed if you end up with another offense.”
Jonah gritted his teeth, then muttered something under his breath.
Lacey glared at Bodie. “I said I’ve got this.”
“Fine.” Jonah shook his head, the fight draining from him. “Boys, get me out of here. We’ll have to find another way to settle our differences.”
One of Jonah’s friends fumbled with a set of keys. While he waited for the men to disperse, Bodie turned to Lacey, pretty damn pleased at the way he’d managed to break things up. No one got hurt, Lacey saved face, and it was a win-win all around.
But the look she gave him wasn’t full of the thanks he expected—the thanks he deserved.
“What?” He held his hands out, wondering what he’d done to incite such an angry response. “You’re welcome. Aren’t you going to say something?”
Fire blazed in those bright baby blues, burning hot and icy cold at the same time. “Oh, I’m going to say something, all right.”
three
“You’re welcome? You expect me to thank you for that stunt?” Lacey bit her tongue to keep from yelling a string of obscenities at the dense deputy. How could he possibly think he’d been helping?
“I got Jonah to leave, didn’t I?” Bodie gave her one of his most patronizing looks, the one that drove her absolutely bonkers, like she was too stupid to even realize what a savior move he’d pulled.
“We resolved nothing. I had a chance to make some headway with those men and you blew it for me.” She glanced skyward, trying to shake off the urge to throttle the man. As she looked up, the damn eyelash fluttered into her eye. “Oh hell.”
“What’s wrong?” Bodie put his hand on her back as she doubled over, trying to get her fingers on the fuzzy black strip.
“These stupid eyelashes. I don’t know why I let Chelsea talk me into them. She said I needed to glam it up for my first time on camera.” Lacey rubbed at her eyelid, not caring anymore if she ended up with mascara and eyeliner all over her cheek. She needed to get the damn fuzzy caterpillars off her face.
“Let me see.” Bodie batted her hands away. “Close your eyes and hold still.”
She did. His fingers gently fluttered across her cheek. “Be careful.”
He stepped close, close enough that an intoxicating scent of woodsy, earthy male washed over her. She breathed him in, hyperaware of his proximity. He had to be close, almost touching. The thought almost sent her into a full-blown panic attack. But then his fingers brushed back her hair.
“Got it.” His words came out on a breath, warming her cheek.
She opened her eyes and stared directly into his. A crackle of awareness zipped through her. Unable to move, she waited, all sense of time and space suspended. Bodie’s mouth couldn’t have been more than a few inches from hers. Did he feel something, too?
Click. Click. The unmistakable sound of a camera shutter snapped her out of her trance.
Bodie startled, stepping back, taking his warmth with him. Lacey ran a hand over her face to make sure her extended lashes weren’t stuck to her forehead, then took in her surroundings. Jonah and his band of misfits had loaded up and were leaving. But Cyrus Beasely, the photographer from the local paper, stood about fifty yards away, snapping pictures of the warehouse, the hand-printed CLOSED sign stuck to the front door, and them.
“What do you think you’re doing?” She sprang into offense mode.
Cyrus kept snapping pictures as she approached. “Mayor Cherish, care to comment on the protest here today?”
“What protest?” She swiveled her head from side to side. “You need to leave. The warehouse and the grounds are closed to the public.”
“Care to comment on your association with Deputy Sheriff Phillips, then?” Cyrus let the camera settle against his chest while he pulled a notebook out of his bag.
“Excuse me? My what?” Lacey stalked toward him, ready to rip the camera off his neck and smash it to smithereens against the pavement.
Bodie stepped into her path, wrapped an arm around her, and prevented her from taking another step. “Hey, settle down, Lacey.”
“You.” She whirled out of his grasp, landing a pointer finger on his chest. Ouch. When would she learn that Bodie’s pecs were just a slab of granite in disguise? “You stay out of this.”
“That’s okay, I’ve got all I need.” Cyrus lifted his camera, zoomed in on her, and snapped one more shot before racing back to his car.
Lacey stopped, took in a deep breath, and tried to center herself. She focused on her breathing—in and out—trying to prevent herself from slumping into a heap at Bodie’s feet.
“What the hell was that?” Bodie’s voice popped the imaginary bubble she’d created to protect herself.
“I don’t know. He must have caught wind something was going down out here.” She shook her head.
Bodie stopped right in front of her, obscuring her view of the parking lot. “Not him. You. What the hell are you doing, Sweets?”
Forehead scrunched, she gazed up at him. Past the scruff on his chin, over the disappointed scowl on his lips, settling on the hard glint in his eyes. “What do you mean? Cyrus had no right to take photos of me. Of us.”
“You’re living in the public eye now. Cyrus is just doing his job.”
Her stomach knotted into a giant mess, bigger and tighter than the tangle of yarn she’d created when she tried to learn how to crochet. “Oh no, do you think he thinks . . .” The idea was too horrifying to even say out loud.
“Thinks what?” Bodie glared down at her.
Lacey covered her mouth with her hand. “The eyelashes. And you were close, so close. What if he thinks there’s something going on between us?”
“Between you and me?” Bodie’s eyebrows lifted, almost disappearing under the brim of his hat. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Never mind.” Was the idea so out of line he couldn’t even consider it?
Lips quirked up in a smirk, Bodie clasped a hand to her shoulder. “You’re an elected official now. Get used to it. People are going to be following you around, waiting for you to mess up. Don’t you remember what it was like when your dad was mayor?”
“I wasn’t here much.” Lacey shrugged, warmth radiating down from her shoulder where Bodie’s hand still rested. “He didn’t take office until I was off at college, and then I only came home on holidays. It didn’t really affect me.”
