Naughty by Nature

by J. M. Madden

  Olivia liked Cheyenne. She’d tried not to, but the woman was really nice, thoughtful without making a big deal about things. She’d made lasagna and winked at her as she set the plate in front of Olivia. It had almost been as good as her mother’s, she had to admit. Then, earlier today she’d found a stack of clean laundry on her bed, as well as a book. It was by an author Olivia loved, and she’d just finished the previous book. Olivia had let out a not-so-mature squeal and dove right into it.

  Mom would tell her to thank Cheyenne for the lovely gift. She still needed to do that.

  And the girls weren’t so bad, really. She’d thought it would be annoying to have them all around but it was so much better than being in this big house all alone so much. They were fun and it was nice being looked up to like she was the big sister or something. They would play in the pool tomorrow and veg.

  And she would remember to thank Cheyenne for the book.

  Chapter 13

  Cheyenne called her mother the next morning and explained what was going on.

  “I don’t understand why you didn’t tell us this sooner. You know you always have a place here.”

  Cheyenne hated to hear the hurt in her mother’s voice.

  “Mama, I didn’t want Daddy, or you, to be stressed out. I know you would have welcomed us, but Daddy needs time to recover. The wedding date is coming up soon and I know he’s been focusing on that. Sheridan has a lot of security around his house, and he has a guard dog.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes. And his house is huge. He moved into Loveland, remember?”

  Her mother laughed. “Ridiculous name. I remember when that old man moved out there and plastered that name on the fence. We laughed about that for weeks.”

  Cheyenne snorted. “I remember.”

  “Does Brock know that Wade is out of prison?”

  “Yes. Sheridan called him.”

  There was silence on the line. “Okay. I’m not going to say I’m not hurt that you didn’t call us sooner, but I understand you were worried about your father.”

  “I was,” Cheyenne confirmed. “And you, Mama. I know you’ve been working hard taking care of Daddy and getting the house ready.”

  “What about the wedding shower? Chad and Lora are coming down at the end of the month.”

  “We’ll be ready for them, don’t worry. Payton is handling some of the details for me, like the walk-through. Everything will work out.”

  “Okay, Cheyenne. I love you, baby. Keep me posted on Wade.”

  “I will, Mama. And you let us know if you see him around too. He’s driving a white truck with blacked out windows.”

  “Will do. Give my babies a kiss for me. And if you still want me to take Grace while the other girls are away, you let me know.”

  “Okay, Mama. Bye.”

  Cheyenne decided a few minutes later that her mother was an angel sent from heaven since she’d offered to take her youngest hellion for a while, and she would be getting a call taking her up on that offer directly. Cheyenne breathed deeply, trying not to lose her patience. “Grace Elaina, what have you done?”

  Grace looked shame-faced, but Cheyenne could also see humor dancing in her bright blue eyes. Carolyn stood beside her, arms crossed over her chest. Carolyn’s beautiful strawberry blond hair was wet and lank, and her t-shirt and jeans were soaked, her expression furious.

  On the floor of the kitchen was a huge pool of black soda. The counters dripped. Everything within a ten-foot radius was wet.

  “She pranked me, Mama,” Carolyn cried.

  Grace snickered, and Carolyn shoved her in the shoulder.

  “Grace,” Cheyenne said as sternly as she could. “What did you do? I’m not going to ask you again. This is not our house, and you’ve made an incredible mess.”

  Finally, some of the amusement left her face. “I’m sorry, Mama. I thought it would be funny to prank someone, so I put Mentos on a string and put them inside the Coke bottle, in the lid, and cut off the string. My friend Abby told me how to do it. Then when Carolyn took the lid off the Mentos fell in the pop and fizz exploded all over her. It was awesome!”

  Cheyenne took another breath and fought to keep her face stern. It was kind of an awesome prank, but blazes, what a mess. “I give you points for doing a science experiment, but you need to apologize to your sister and start cleaning this up. Then you’re going to apologize to the sheriff because this is his house.”

  “Yes, Mama.” Grace looked down at her feet.

  “And you’re probably going to have to clean this a couple of times, because you know how sticky Coke gets. Now, apologize.”

  “Sorry, Carolyn,” Grace said reluctantly.

  Carolyn looked a little appeased, but still aggravated. “Why do you always do these things to me?”

  Grace shrugged, looking at her feet again.

  “Carolyn, go take a shower. Grace, while the sheriff and I are out, Carolyn is going to be the one to decide if the kitchen is clean enough. Do you understand?”

  Cheyenne tried not to be moved by the tears in her eyes.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “There are extra paper towels in the pantry, as well as rags you can wet down to clean the cupboards. And there’s a wet Swiffer for the floor when you’re done with the rest of the mess.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Carolyn left for the shower and Grace for the walk-in pantry and the cleaning supplies, giving Cheyenne just enough time to snap a picture of the mess with her phone. She left the kitchen laughing quietly to herself and sent the picture to Payton. She would get a kick out of the girl’s antics.

  She returned to her room to continue looking at the pile of clothes on her bed. She’d only packed enough for a few days, so he was going to have to see her in one of the shirts she wore for school. She had a casual white peasant skirt she could pair it with, though, and her brown sandals. Not especially dressed up, but better than school slacks.

  Breakfast this morning had been a rousing affair. All of the kids, including Olivia, tried to help with the pancakes, and they ended up making more of a mess than necessary. Sheridan’s poor, beautiful kitchen was never going to recover from them. But the food was good and the companionship even better. Cheyenne found herself watching Sheridan a lot. No, take that back. She found herself watching his talented mouth all morning. At one point Olivia shoved something in front of her gaze, deliberately it seemed, to get Cheyenne to look at her. Sheridan didn’t seem to notice the little interaction, though, which she was extremely thankful for.

  All she could think about was kissing him again.

  But what moved her besides the physical reaction he stoked in her, was her emotional response to him. Sheridan made her feel like what she did was valued. Wade had never given her that. He’d only belittled her, no matter what she’d done. Even after he’d been injured and she’d cared for him almost twenty-four/ seven, then continued to work to keep food on the table. Thinking back now, she could see how ego-deflating it would be for a man like Wade to have to rely upon a woman for everything, but he’d been such an asshole about it.

  Sheridan made her feel everything that she’d wanted to feel in a true-committed marriage, and all he’d done was kiss her. Those kisses though … damn. Did she dare believe he was as incredible as she thought? At one point she’d thought Wade was amazing too, but that hadn’t turned out the way she’d expected. Looking back, she knew she’d been blinded by Wade’s flashiness, his enthusiasm for life, his success in a glittery sport. After he’d been gored and all of that had gone away, she’d stayed in the marriage because that was what you did in a marriage, you stayed for your spouse in thick and thin, healthy or not. If Wade hadn’t eventually resorted to physical abuse and the pill addiction, there was a chance she’d still be stuck in the marriage.

  A chill shuddered through her. That would have killed her. And her daughters wouldn’t be the amazing, strong young women they were.

  Cheyenne looked down at the skirt
in her hand, realizing she’d been standing there forever thinking about the differences in the two men. There was no comparison, not at all.

  Cheyenne glanced at the time on her phone. She needed to get moving.

  For her date.

  Chapter 14

  Sheridan didn’t get nerves very often, but today was different. Today he was going out with the woman who made his heart beat again. It had gone still after Nora had died.

  As he watched Cheyenne walk out to the truck, his heart all but raced. She was a beautiful woman, her long auburn hair pulled back into clips on the sides. She didn’t wear a lot of make-up, but she didn’t need it. There was a natural, creamy-skinned beauty to her that didn’t need any enhancement.

  A white skirt swirled around her long legs, and she wore a button-front shirt in a pretty lilac color.

  Circling the hood of the vehicle he opened her door. With a smile she slid inside, putting her little clutch wallet on the seat beside her.

  “You look beautiful, Cheyenne.”

  Her pale cheeks flushed with color. “I didn’t have a lot to choose from. We might have to go back to the house at some point and change out our clothes.”

  He nodded and shut her door.

  “We can go get some more things after lunch if you want,” he continued, settling into his seat and stretching the seat belt across his lap.

  “That would be fine.”

  The left the driveway and headed toward town. The sun shone brilliant in the sky, but the heat was getting pretty harsh. The AC was turned all the way up.

  Or maybe he was just feeling warm under the collar of his polo, Sheridan thought with an internal chuckle. It had been years, literally, since he’d been this nervous about a date. It wasn’t even technically a real date, but his body apparently couldn’t tell the difference.

  “Are you okay?” she asked.

  Sheridan gave her a sideways look, and grinned. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been on a date. No, let me correct that. It’s been a long time since I’ve gone on a date that made me feel this nervous.”

  Her mouth dropped open a little. “What? Why are you nervous? I mean, you’re,” she waved a hand, “you.”

  Chuckling, he shook his head, glancing at her for a moment before focusing back on the road. “Just because I’m sheriff it doesn’t mean it insulates me from emotion. And I know this date was supposed to be for a completely different reason, but sometimes it’s hard to separate the emotional from the professional. I really like you, Cheyenne. My hope today is that we don’t even see Wade or his family and we can just enjoy each other, though I have a feeling the people of Honeywell are going to have something to say about us being together.”

  Cheyenne looked a little shell-shocked, her eyes wide, and he was glad that he’d jolted her like that.

  Then her mouth closed and she sat straighter in the seat, as if she’d come to some decision. “I really like you too, Sheridan. And I hope we don’t see Wade for the same reason,” she laughed.

  He turned back to the road, grinning. “Good.”

  The lot at Sophia’s was full, but Sheridan found a space on the street. As he stepped out of the truck, he checked his sidearm before walking around the hood. He didn’t normally feel the need to carry off-duty, but he had been recently. Wade had put him on alert.

  Cheyenne slipped down to the street in front of him and grabbed her little purse. Sheridan shut the door behind her, then, without even thinking about it, held out a hand.

  When Cheyenne slipped her fingers into his own, a thrill went through him, and he was smiling as they walked to Sophia’s.

  The cafe had had many different names over the years, many different looks. It had been rebuilt after a fire in the seventies and expanded significantly. Sophia Arlotti had bought the place about fifteen years ago and brought her Italian heritage with her. She hadn’t been very old at the time, just out of college, but she’d told them many times that the location ‘spoke’ to her, and held more appeal than the business future she’d been planning.

  There were a lot of Italian recipes on the menu, but it had also become Americanized over the years with burgers and sandwiches. Then, a few years ago she had hired a baker, and there was now a full dessert case overflowing with goodness. Sophia’s was a true hotspot in Honeywell.

  Sophia herself greeted them, her lipsticked mouth spread in a broad smile and her dark brown eyes smiling. “Well, hello, Sheriff. And Cheyenne. It’s wonderful to see you both. Captain Patterson just came in. He’s sitting in the back. Were you meeting him?”

  Sheridan shook his head. “We’ll say hello but we’ll do a separate table, Sophia.”

  Her eyes flared with surprise and she looked between them with interest. “Right this way.”

  Gathering up two menus and wrapped silverware, she led them through the sunlit restaurant. It was packed, as he’d expected, and more than a few people waved and called hello. Cheyenne received as many acknowledgements as he did. But the two of them together got several double takes.

  Sophia seated them, then took their drink order, promising to return in a jiffy.

  Sheridan gave Paul Patterson a nod as he removed his hat, setting it on the bench seat beside him. When Sheridan wasn’t in the office, Patterson took over for the most part, unless something really big came up. He’d texted Paul this morning and asked him to hang out at Sophia’s for a while in a long lunch, aka as unofficial back-up.

  Cheyenne leaned forward, a little grin on her lips. “I think we shocked some people.”

  “Possibly. I think there were a few knowing looks too.”

  Sophia returned with their iced teas and waved the regular waitress away. “I’ll take this one, Shayna.”

  The younger woman headed back to her customers with a wave.

  “So, do you know what you’d like?” She paused to look between them. “Other than each other?”

  Sheridan laughed. “I’ll take the California burger with the works.”

  She swung to Cheyenne. “And you?”

  “I’ll take the buffalo chicken wrap with the sweet potato fries.”

  Nodding, Sophia turned for the kitchen.

  “I love Sophia,” Cheyenne leaned forward to whisper, “but she loves a good piece of gossip.”

  Sheridan leaned forward as well. “Yes, so do Anne and Coco, over against the wall. They’re in Marlene’s NBC. Wonder if we’re boring them? They’re used to racier stuff.”

  Cheyenne covered her mouth with her hand and giggled, her eyes dancing with sapphire light in the sunshine. For a moment, Sheridan completely lost track of where he was.

  They talked of inconsequential things over their food, and, as expected the line between emotional and professional blurred, weighing heavily to the emotional.

  “Can you tell me about your wife?” Cheyenne asked. “I didn’t know her well, only in passing.”

  Taking a big drink of his tea, Sheridan sat back against the cushion. A smile creased his lips as he thought about Eleanor. “She was my college sweetheart. Met during the first semester of school in Austin. Had a class together and I dropped my book on her foot. Wasn’t a great beginning but we fell in love. We were inseparable the rest of the time we were in school. Once we got out of school we got married. Nora got a paralegal job at a local attorney’s office, and I worked Austin PD for a while. After getting our careers in line, we decided to have a baby. Olivia was easy for a first. Prettier than the average baby, I thought, and happy. But when we tried for another a few years later we went through a series of miscarriages. Then a few rounds of IVF, but nothing worked.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Cheyenne gasped. She reached across to touch his hand. “You don’t have to tell me anymore.”

  Shrugging, he squeezed her fingers. “It’s not as hard to talk about as it used to be and looking back, it was kind of a good thing, in a jacked-up way. We found the signs of the cancer a few years later, and if she had been pregnant when she found it, I think we both
would have gone off the deep end.”

  Cheyenne nodded, still holding his hand, just being there.

  “She had Inflammatory Breast Cancer, which is extremely rare. It had already spread to her lymph nodes. We tried to treat it, but it just overwhelmed her. She was gone within six months.”

  Tears flooded her eyes and she used her napkin to blot them away. “I’m so sorry, Sheridan. That’s terrible.”

  “Yes,” he sighed. “Olivia was eight. She took it hard.”

  “That poor baby, of course she did. No child should lose a parent at that age.”

  “She had a lot of counseling, and I did too. I focused on the job. Olivia focused on volleyball and being difficult.”

  Cheyenne chewed her lip. “You were voted in the year before Wade attacked me.”

  “Yes.”

  She took a drink of her tea and he could tell he’d given her a lot to think about.

  Sheridan looked at his phone as it buzzed. Patterson had sent him a message.

  White Chevy, blacked out windows just pulled in.

  With a nod, Sheridan locked gazes with Cheyenne and reached out to grip both her hands. “I want you to look at me, honey.”

  She did, a smile flirting on her lips.

  “I think our ruse worked. Wade just pulled in.”

  Cheyenne paled and would have jerked her hands away if she could have, but he held her strong. “Look at me.”

  It took her a moment, but she did.

  “I want you to remember how strong you are. You are the one in the position of power. Not him. At any point, you can file a protection order, okay?”

  Blinking rapidly, she nodded. “Yes,” she whispered.