by Palmer Jones
6
Cameron paused by the screen door, taking in the scene unfolding in his parents’ kitchen. His mom stood at the stove, stirring a pot of what he hoped were mashed potatoes to go with the meatloaf he smelled as soon as he stepped out of his truck. But Addie changed the familiar view entirely.
She wore her glasses again, hair in a sloppy ponytail, a little crooked like she’d thrown it up in a rush. Her head thrown back, laughing at something his mom said. So relaxed. Happy. He wanted to be the one to make her laugh.
“Are you going in?” Dewey rubbed his hands together. “I’m ready for some dinner.”
“Why aren’t you eating at your house?”
Dewey rolled his eyes and pushed past him. “We are here for the same reasons.”
Cameron reached out a hand, stopping Dewey from going into his house. “You can’t date her.”
“Date? I don’t plan on getting killed by the Sheriff by trying to make a move on your mom.” Dewey scratched his head. “I mean, she’s a nice-looking lady, but she practically raised me. I don’t—”
“Shut up.” Cameron pinched the bridge of his nose. “Nevermind. I thought you meant you were here to date Addie.”
“Ah. The houseguest. No. Can’t say I had any intentions that direction. Nash gave me the run down.” He grinned and nudged Cameron in the side. “Said you had a thing for her, so I better stay clear.”
“I don’t have a thing.”
“Boys?” His mom appeared in the door. “Are you going to come in and eat or not? The potatoes are done. Let me grab the peas, and everything will be on the table.”
Dewey opened the screen door. Addie looked up from where she set the butter dish on their worn, kitchen table. She snatched off her glasses and tugged down her hair. It fell around her shoulders like a curtain. “Hello,” she said, a pleasant, not fake smile in place. Great. His friend gets the sweet and honest Addie.
“Hey, I’m Dewey.” He held out his hand and shook hers. “Nice to meet you.”
Cameron stayed behind Dewey another moment. Until Addie tipped to the side to see around him. “Hi, Cameron.”
“Hi,” he mumbled, shoving his hands in his pockets.
Addie pulled out a chair and sat down. Dewey started to pull out the one beside her until he looked at Cameron.
No. He didn’t want Dewey sitting beside her because he wanted to sit there. Dewey gave him a quick smile and changed seats.
Dewey nudged Cameron, dropping his voice to barely a mumble. “Right. I can see you don’t have a thing.”
Mr. Stinson walked through the front door of the Sheriff’s office. Cameron exhaled and pulled out his pad of paper, tearing off the sheet that contained the notes from Aldo Fitzgerald’s visit less than an hour ago. Not that Cameron minded visitors. More visitors usually made the workday pass faster. Too bad it was because of the unusual rash of vehicle and house break-ins and not because the town realized how boring it usually got at the Sheriff’s office.
“Cameron.” Mr. Stinson sat down across from him in the old, metal chair. A light coat of red dust covered his gray flannel shirt. Hopefully, something other than a theft had brought the peanut farmer into the station.
“Afternoon, Mr. Stinson. What can I do for you?”
He shrugged. “I wish you didn’t have to do anything for me. We’ve all heard the news about someone goin’ round and stealing things from cars and such.” He scratched his cheek. “I’m ‘fraid it’s hit a little too close to home. Broke into my daughter’s Honda last night. Took Laura’s purse and laptop. I’ve warned her about keeping those things in her car, but she doesn’t listen. Can’t blame her too much, though. Statem used to be safe enough to leave your front door open.”
The town’s safety rested in his hands. He had to catch the person responsible for this. It’d not only prove to everyone in Statem that he could take over when his dad retired, but it might prove to himself he could do the job.
He rubbed his hands along his jeans. “I’m sorry to hear that. Where was her car parked?”
“You know that side yard on my property, headed toward the lumberyard?”
“Yeah.”
“I had to replace the sprinklers in the front, so I made her park back there. Just bad luck with her car so far hidden in the shadows.”
Cameron visualized the area. “Wait,” he said, holding his hand up. “If her car was parked on that side of the property, wouldn’t the lumberyard’s new cameras cover that area?”
“I’d wondered that myself, but I didn’t know if you had access to those.”
“No.” Cameron swallowed and set the pen down. And he thought the break-ins couldn’t get any worse.
Mr. Stinson shook his head. “I hate to say what we’re both thinking, but I’m guessing Kevin is the only one who has access to those.” He winced. “I don’t suspect that riff between your family and him has gotten any better over the years?”
Kevin Miller, the foreman at the lumberyard, would make things difficult for Cameron. His sole reason would be based upon some forty-year-old grudge he held against their family. Kevin would have to put those differences aside. If those security cameras picked up the theft, it might be the best shot they had at solving this thing before anyone else lost valuables. Or worse, someone was home when one of the break-ins occurred. Maybe Kevin would see reason.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll still need to talk to Kevin.”
Mr. Stinson pressed his lips together, the tanned wrinkles along the side of his face deepening. “You might ask your daddy about that.”
Until recently, the reminders that most of the town still saw him as someone right out of high school hadn’t bothered him. Hell, until he pulled over the Mayor one year after a Christmas party for a DUI, he’d thought of himself as a kid pretending to be an adult. Now, with his dad planning on retiring next year, he needed them to see him as something more. Older. Responsible. Capable of doing this job.
“This is my investigation, Mr. Stinson.” Cameron held the man’s gaze before easing back on his aggression. “But I’m sure I’ll end up talking to him over supper tonight. Hard not to with Kevin in the picture.”
Mr. Stinson gave him a sharp nod. “You’re doin’ a good job, son.” He settled his hat on his head. “We’re all really proud of you. Let me know if you need to come out and look around. I’m afraid there might not be any fingerprints left. Laura was so distraught, she opened and closed every door to her car trying to find her things. I’ll give my wife the heads up that you might be around.”
“I’ll be in touch.”
“Thanks.”
Cameron jotted down a few additional, unnecessary notes, keeping his hands busy. His temper simmered in a low boil under his skin. He didn’t have any hard feelings toward Mr. Stinson. He hadn’t said anything more than what the entire town thought. Cameron still had to get his daddy’s permission before making a move.
The front door clicked closed as Mr. Stinson left. A brief second, later, it reopened.
Cameron closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. How many thefts could actually occur in one night?
“I thought the title of Chief Deputy meant you didn’t get to sleep on the job.”
His eyes opened. Addie stood there, arms crossed as she peered down at him with her large, black sunglasses in place. Her pink lips twisted to the side. “Or is that one of the perks of your daddy being your boss?”
Cameron stood. His chair fell over with the quick motion. Even she thought he couldn’t do this job without his dad.
She didn’t flinch or back down, but her strawberry lips spread into a smile that diffused his anger. How did she do that?
“It was a joke, Cameron. Chill out.”
It hit a little too close to home to feel like a joke.
She took a seat in front of him, crossing her legs and sliding her glasses off. “Your mom asked me to come by and see if you were coming home for dinner tonight.”
Cameron set his cha
ir upright. As he sat down, his eyes locked on Addie as she took a sip from her to-go coffee cup from Crossroads Coffee Shop. He tore the sheet of paper from Mr. Stinson’s report and set it with the others, ready to be entered into the system.
“How did you get here? Your license is suspended.”
She shifted in the seat, her hand running down her thigh covered in tight gray pants. His eyes betrayed him and tracked the movement.
His hands itched to touch her the same way. Trevor would have his ass for that thought. Couldn’t be helped. Addie wasn’t anything like the little sister he’d planned on helping. Not to mention it’d been over a year since he’d touched a woman. He cleared his throat. “I won’t have a choice but to put you in jail if you were driving on a suspended license.”
“You’re wound up tight today.” She laughed, not seeming at all intimidated by his threat. “Your mom drove us. She ran into your dad when we were leaving the coffee shop a few minutes ago and sent me down here.”
Good. That saved him a headache from figuring out what to do with her if he did arrest her. He tossed the pen and pad of paper onto the desk and crossed his arms. What happened to those large eyeglasses from two days ago? It’d knocked him back a step seeing her looking so down to earth. Approachable. Touchable. Well, it was probably a good thing she didn’t keep them on now. He didn’t need her looking more appealing and being so friendly. What happened to the perpetual flirter? The vain, narcissistic woman that thrived with turning a man’s head? There was a chance they could be civil to each other after all.
He looked at the cup in her hand. “How does the Crossroads Coffee Shop measure up to your big city coffee shops?”
Addie’s cheeks turned pink. The woman who acted as though she knew every man she passed fell out behind her actually blushed. Dammit if it didn’t make her even cuter.
“When I placed my order, I think I embarrassed the lady behind the counter. I didn’t mean to make her feel bad. I was so distracted by all the Christmas decorations still up that I didn’t even read the menu. Just ordered.” Addie brushed a hand over her shoulder. “I think I was attacked by a rogue Santa Claus shedding glitter.”
“The one near the register?”
Addie grinned. “Yes! I don’t know how there’s not glitter in my coffee. I still feel bad for ordering it.”
“How difficult was your order?”
She held up the cup, partially blocking her lips. “Non-Fat Frap with extra whip, extra hot and chocolate sauce.”
“Are you sure she wasn’t confused?”
She passed him her cup. He accepted to keep it from dropping. “Try it.”
He examined the inside. “Did she actually make it?”
“Not at first. Once I realized my mistake, she pulled out her phone and looked up a recipe.” Addie pointed at the cup. “I gave her a few extra directions. It’s as good as anything I’ve gotten at any coffee shop in L.A. Try it.”
The cup’s lid had a faint trace of her lipstick. This shouldn’t be a big deal. Hell, she’d taken a sip out of his cup for no other reason than to get a rise out of him.
But, even though the woman had disrupted his life and annoyed him with her superficial coverings, his body didn’t seem to care. The threat of Trevor beating the crap out of him if he touched his sister didn’t put a dent in the moment. He’d take it. He needed the distraction.
Cameron took a sip.
She smiled again and nodded. “Good, huh?”
He grimaced, coughed, and struggled for a breath. “No. That was horrible.”
Addie’s eyes widened. “Seriously?”
He coughed again and croaked out, “Seriously.” That’s why he took his coffee dark, without anything else. People always screwed up a good thing.
“Your loss. I like coffee anyway it’s served. Hot or cold. Sweet or bitter. Ice cream. Lollipops. Hard candy. Whatever.”
“I’ll take the loss, and you can keep your coffee.”
The front door opened. Mrs. Latham came in, her typically happy expression now worried. “Cam, someone broke into my car behind the coffee shop.” She rushed forward, holding out a to-go cup similar to Addie’s. “I brought you a coffee.”
Cameron’s shoulders sagged. Another break-in. He couldn’t get ahead.
“I see you already have a coffee,” she said.
He started to hand it back to Addie. “No, this is hers.”
“You can keep it.” Addie smiled and almost looked innocent. Almost. “I know how much you enjoyed it.”
“Oh!” Mrs. Latham clasped her hands together. “I’m so glad you liked it, Cam.”
“Yes. It was great. Here,” Cameron said, handing Addie the cup as his face grew warm from the lie.
Addie raised her eyebrows, lips tilted in a mischievous grin. “You know, Cam,” she began as she stood, emphasizing his old nickname. “I’ll leave this coffee here with you, and I’ll take this one.” She took the one Mrs. Latham held out. “That one will give you extra energy. You know. All the sugar.”
Mrs. Latham wrung her hands together. “I’m afraid that one is plain black coffee. Nothing fancy, dear, the way you like.”
Addie took the top off, steam rising up from the black liquid. “I love black coffee, and I’m sure Cameron doesn’t mind.” She pursed her pink lips together and blew a moment, their eyes locked. “Do you?”
He did mind. But Addie chose that moment to wink at him, and his rational mind went blank. “Not at all,” he heard himself say. The payback for making him drink a chocolate cupcake on steroids would be tremendous.
With her eyes laughing at his discomfort, she said, “bye,” managing to make that single word sexier than it should have been.
Cameron set the cup down and smiled broadly at Mrs. Latham to deflect the attention. “I think you should add this to your menu.” He held out Addie’s vacated chair for Mrs. Latham to sit down. “Tell me about the break-in. We’re working hard to catch whoever is doing this to our small town.”
7
She didn’t trust him. That blasted man had rattled her when she’d been trying to shake him. Cameron hadn’t budged. He’d remained friendly and polite to Mrs. Latham while drinking the sweet coffee she knew he hated. Apparently, he only liked to show that exceptionally jerky side to her and not to the rest of the town.
Mrs. Latham even called him Cam, and he didn’t correct her. Just smiled, sipped the coffee, and continued on with life, completely unaware of his effect on her insides.
Cameron had yet to realize the deadly combination of the brooding male mixed with his emerald eyes and a body that she suspected could make even Mrs. Latham speechless. That slow smile that ignited a fire at the pit of her stomach. He saw her as a ditz whose only concerns in life included her nails and shoe collection. She stomped up the sidewalk.
Breathe. She wouldn’t let Cameron get to her. Her priorities focused on her job and figuring out how to gain access to a computer and infiltrate Sunflower, not on the sexy, small-town cop that made her want to risk everything for one night with him.
God, one night with him would be amazing though. If they could call a truce long enough for a roll in the hay, or whatever they called it out here in the sticks. Rolling around in the pine straw didn’t sound sexy or comfortable.
“Stop it,” she muttered. Seriously. Brian was still her boyfriend, technically, whether she liked it or not. She wasn’t a cheater and wouldn’t start now. Not until she’d given Brian the formal boot.
Besides, her job demanded secrecy that someone like Cameron probably wouldn’t appreciate. Nothing good would come of even fantasizing about the man. She might as well continue to focus on all his negative characteristics like his grumpy attitude and that ugly uniform.
But the way he’d been so pleasant to Mrs. Latham drastically reduced her aversion to his attitude problem. The town loved him and seemed to dismiss the permanent frown. How long would it take for her to turn that frown into a smile? She’d like to try.
“A
ddie!” Mrs. Dempsey waved her hand at the corner of the street. She stood with an older woman, close to eighty if the lines and leathered skin were any indications and a younger man in his late thirties. “This is Ruth O’Brady. Ruth, this is Addison Johnson. She’s staying with us for a couple weeks.”
“Oh. Are you seeing Cameron?” Ruth adjusted the gingham smock she wore over a light blue dress. It reminded her of what someone might have worn on Little House on the Prairie.
“No, I’m not.” Addie looked to Mrs. Dempsey for help. She shrugged in response. Why didn’t the assumption bother Mrs. Dempsey? She had charges pending for grand theft auto, and now the town linked her to Cameron. Most people didn’t want that type of association with their family. “Just a friend of the family.”
“That’s too bad.” Ruth sighed and patted her gray hair. “I’d hoped he’d moved on after Jennifer. The whole town feels sorry for him.”
He’d hate that. “Oh, he has, but not with me.”
Mrs. Dempsey’s head snapped around. “Really? Who?”
Ruth didn’t seem as interested in Cameron’s love life. “Since you’re not seeing Cameron, let me introduce you to my step-grandson, Dexter.” Ruth motioned to Dexter. Great. A matchmaker.
Dexter’s gaze made her want to take a step back. He held his head slightly downward, his dark eyes cut up, focused solely on her. A little bit like a zombie.
He held out his hand.
With a neutral smile plastered in place, she shook his clammy hand. “Nice to meet you.”
“You youngsters should go out sometime. I know Dexter might like to do something other than hanging out with his old grandmother.” She laughed, and it turned into a wheezing sound.
Thankfully, Dexter didn’t press the point, but an odd smile appeared. It might have gotten a little brighter as he held onto her hand longer than socially acceptable.
Goosebumps ran over her skin. She pulled her hand away as quickly as possible without being rude and managed not to wipe it on her pants.
