Shelter for Adeline (Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes Book 7)
Page 27
Chief knew he hadn’t hired anyone to cut the grass for him, even though it was about a week and a half longer than it should’ve been since it was last mowed. Once again, he thought about selling the house and buying a condo or townhouse…someplace that had monthly dues so he didn’t have to worry about maintaining the lawn. Crash had the right idea there for sure. He was crazy for thinking about buying a house. Maybe they should just switch residences.
He smiled at the thought, then noticed there was a beaten-up-looking mower sitting in the driveway of the house next to him. After parking, Chief headed that way. He’d been meaning to cut his grass, but between his long shifts, Adeline’s surgery, and just plain being exhausted, he’d let it go too long.
“Hello?” he called out.
A woman walked out of the open door of the garage at the sound of his voice. Chief had seen her in passing before. He hadn’t ever talked to her, and didn’t know her name or who else might be living with her. He didn’t have a lot of time to make nice with his neighbors, choosing instead to keep his distance.
Chief had learned his lesson when he was young and new to San Antonio. Using the casino proceeds he’d received from the council back home, he’d bought a small house in an upscale neighborhood. But instead of being welcomed with open arms, he’d been shunned and harassed until, disgusted, he’d sold the house and moved. It was hard to believe racism toward Native Americans still existed today, but he’d seen it up close and personal.
So instead of trying to get to know anyone, as he’d done before only to have it blow up in his face, Chief worked longer hours and didn’t bother making any attempts to be friendly. But now that someone had gone out of their way to mow his lawn, he felt as though he needed to at least say thank you.
He noted that his neighbor was pretty, even though she was blonde. Chief had never been attracted to women with blonde hair; they seemed too…Anglo for him. He’d always chosen to go out with women who had features similar to his own, to the people he’d grown up with, darker skin and brown or black hair. He’d learned early in his life that it was easier to blend in if he stuck to people who looked like him.
One glance at his neighbor and it was obvious she wouldn’t blend in no matter where she went. Her hair was so blonde, it was almost white. At the moment it was pulled back into a messy knot at the back of her head. Her eyes were a bright blue, almost as though she was wearing colored contacts. She was tall, nearly as tall as his six feet. She was wearing sneakers, which most likely put her around five eight or nine. And she was muscular. The yellow tank top and jean shorts she was wearing did nothing to hide the strength in her arms and legs. She looked to be in her mid to late twenties, maybe a bit older, it was hard to tell and he’d never been a good judge of age.
Recognizing the stirring of desire in his body, Chief bit out, probably harsher than he would’ve if she’d been shorter, darker, weaker, and less appealing, “Your man around?”
She didn’t say a word, but her lips parted twice as if she was trying to decide what she wanted to say.
“Your husband? Boyfriend?”
When she continued to stand there, mute, Chief muttered, “Fuck it,” and reached around to his back pocket for his wallet. He winced when the action pulled the already sore muscles of his shoulder. He pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and held it out to the silent woman. “Here.”
He could see the word “what” form on her lips, but she still stubbornly kept quiet.
“Give that to your boyfriend for mowing my lawn. I appreciate it. I’ve been busy. I’ll do my best to keep it cut from here on out, but if he wants to keep it up, I won’t complain. Twenty bucks for each time he cuts it. That work?”
This time she bit her lip, looked back into the garage, then faced him again and nodded slowly.
Done with the awkward conversation—if it could be called that; the woman talked less than he did, and that was saying something—Chief gave her a chin lift and headed back across her lawn, through his own freshly mowed grass to his garage.
Without giving his odd neighbor another thought, Chief lowered his garage door and headed inside. A long, hot shower, a big glass of iced tea, and his mattress were calling his name. Thank God he had the next two days off. He needed every minute to recover from the clusterfuck that had been the warehouse fire.
The bitch of it was, they’d learned this afternoon that it had been the work of an arsonist. Millions of dollars’ worth of merchandise had gone up in flames, not to mention the property damage of the nearby buildings and the safety of each and every firefighter who had spent hours trying to put out the fire.
He never heard the woman he’d left standing in the driveway next door whisper to his back as he stalked away, “My name is S-S-Sophie. It’s good to m-meet you. I’m not m-married and I was happy to cut your grass to thank you for your s-service to our city.”
He never saw her look down at the twenty dollar bill in her hand and say sadly, “I didn’t want your m-money. I just wanted to introduce m-myself.”
And he didn’t hear her mumble to herself as she pushed the mower back into her garage and shut the door behind her, “S-so much for m-making a good first impression.”
Shelter for Sophie, Chief and Sophie’s story, will be out later this year! In the meantime, check out Marrying Emily, which comes out in less than a month, book 4 (stand alone) in the Delta Force Series. You’ll see some familiar characters in that one, including some firefighters and cops you’ve come to know and love in the Badge of Honor series!
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Also by Susan Stoker
Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes Series
Justice for Mackenzie
Justice for Mickie
Justice for Corrie
Justice for Laine (novella)
Shelter for Elizabeth
Justice for Boone
Shelter for Adeline (Jan 2017)
Shelter for Sophie (Aug 2017)
Justice for Erin (Nov 2017)
Justice for Milena (TBA)
Shelter for Blythe (TBA)
Justice for Hope (TBA)
Shelter for Quinn (TBA)
Shelter for Koren (TBA)
Shelter for Penelope (TBA)
Delta Force Heroes Series
Rescuing Rayne
Assisting Aimee - Loosely related to DF
Rescuing Emily
Rescuing Harley
Marrying Emily (Feb 2017)
Rescuing Kassie (May 2017)
Rescuing Bryn (Oct 2017)
Rescuing Casey (TBA)
Rescuing Wendy (TBA)
Rescuing Mary (TBA)
Ace Security Series
Claiming Grace (Mar 2017)
Claiming Alexis (July 2017)
Claiming Bailey (TBA)
SEAL of Protection Series
Protecting Caroline
Protecting Alabama
Protecting Fiona
Marrying Caroline (novella)
Protecting Summer
Protecting Cheyenne
Protecting Jessyka
Protecting Julie (novella)
Protecting Melody
Protecting the Future
Protecting Alabama’s Kids (novella)
Protecting Kiera (novella) (June 2017)
Protecting Dakota (Sept 2017)
Stand Alone
The Guardian Mist
Special Operations Fan Fiction
http://www.stokeraces.com/kindle-worlds.html
Beyond Reality Series
Outback Hearts
Flaming Hearts
Frozen Hearts
Writing as Annie George:
Stepbrother Virgin (erotic novella)
About the Author
New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author Susan Stoker has a heart as big as the state of Texas where she lives, but this all American girl has also spent the last fourteen years livin
g in Missouri, California, Colorado, and Indiana. She’s married to a retired Army man who now gets to follow her around the country.
She debuted her first series in 2014 and quickly followed that up with the SEAL of Protection Series, which solidified her love of writing and creating stories readers can get lost in.
If you enjoyed this book, or any book, please consider leaving a review. It’s appreciated by authors more than you’ll know.
For more information:
@Susan_Stoker
authorsusanstoker
www.StokerAces.com
susan@stokeraces.com