Justice Inked (Cowboy Justice Association 7)

by Olivia Jaymes

  Draping her jacket on the back of the chair, Rayne gratefully lowered herself onto the seat with a sigh. The adjustor had her prowling around the attic with him – for what reason she had no idea – and she’d wrenched her back. Another reason not to like the little weasel. He’d given her a song and dance about processes and protocols that meant she wasn’t getting her check for a while, although now she could start on cleaning.

  “He was out searching around your shop this morning. I thought you’d be there.”

  “No, I had to meet with the insurance demon. Oops, I mean the adjustor. I cancelled my appointments today and tomorrow. I may close all week. The cleanup on the house will take forever. Plus I spent an hour on the phone canceling credit cards and making plans to get my driver’s license replaced. Thank goodness I had a spare car key at home.”

  Her cell phone vibrated in her pocket and she checked the caller, hoping it was Dare.

  Camy. Hell no.

  Grimacing, she declined the call and stuffed it back into her pocket. Her sister must have heard what happened and was probably frantic, something that Camy excelled at. But Rayne needed to have a talk with Dare about the drawing before facing her sister.

  “Do you still want to go shopping?” Sophie asked, draining her latte and reaching for Tim’s empty cup as well. “Let me find a trash can to toss these and if you still want to go we can make a plan of attack.”

  Sophie disappeared around the corner and Tim pushed up the brim of his cowboy hat and grinned. “You and the sheriff make a nice couple, Miss Dunn. How long have you two been dating?”

  “Not long,” she admitted but didn’t feel comfortable discussing her relationship with Dare. It still felt too personal. “How long have you and Sophie been going out?”

  “A few months. She’s a sweet girl.”

  He did seem to truly have feelings for Sophie, although whether they were as strong was a question. Only time would answer it.

  “She is. I’m glad you realize that.”

  Tim didn’t take offense. “I do. It’s nice that she has people that care about her. I only have my brother Duke.”

  “Are you close?”

  “Hell, yes. We fight like cats and dogs, but when the chips are down there isn’t anything we wouldn’t do for one another. There isn’t anything he wouldn’t do for me and vice versa. We’re all we’ve got and we don’t forget it.”

  Sophie rejoined them but Tim was already pulling on his jacket. “I’ve got to get back to work, babe. I’ll call you later. Have fun shopping.” Tim nodded to Rayne. “It was nice seeing you again.”

  “You too.”

  Tim dropped a kiss on Sophie’s lips and made a hasty exit, leaving the two women alone. Sophie checked her phone and then refreshed her kiss-smeared lipstick.

  “So are you up for some shopping? I could use a new pair of boots for this winter.”

  Rayne thought about the drawing in her front pocket and shook her head. “I need to talk to your brother first. It’s about the case.”

  Perching on top of Dare’s desk, Sophie crisscrossed her legs, elbows on her knees. “I don’t know how you can stand to talk to my brother about work. If you let him, he’ll go on and on about it until you want to stuff cotton in your ears.”

  “Actually, I think he’s a pretty interesting guy and I’m fascinated by how they’re working my case. On television they make it look so easy but clearly it’s anything but.”

  “Most of what he does is routine so when he gets a real case like this he gets excited about it. Not that anyone would know. He only has one expression and that’s pissed off.”

  Rayne knew that wasn’t true but she wasn’t about to tell Dare’s little sister what made him smile. But she couldn’t stop herself from asking the question that had been bugging her since the day she’d met him…

  “Has he always been like this? Grouchy and growly?”

  Her chin resting in her palm, Sophie rolled her eyes. “God, yes. For as long as I can remember anyway, but then he’s ancient compared to me. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen him smile. He’s just unhappy all the time.”

  Sophie didn’t see what Rayne did. Dare wasn’t an unhappy or depressed man. If anything he seemed…scared of being happy.

  “I know you both lost your father not long ago. It takes time to get over the death of a loved one.”

  “Dad was much older than my mom—it seems like he was sick for a long time so his death wasn’t a shock. He and Dare didn’t get along very well either. They argued a lot and Dare spent as much time away as he could, first in the military and then in another town as a deputy. He’d volunteer for every holiday shift so he didn’t have to spend them with us.”

  This wasn’t a surprising revelation but it made her sad to think that he avoided situations that might bring him joy or comfort.

  It was none of her damn business but she’d already asked personal questions and she really wanted to know what made Dare tick. She wasn’t ashamed to admit he fascinated her.

  “Why didn’t they get along?”

  Sophie stretched out her legs, wincing at her stiff muscles, and stared at her shoes for a moment before answering. “From what I could pick up from their arguments it had to do with Dare’s mother. I don’t think she was a very nice person. In fact, I think she was downright awful.”

  Rayne’s heart dropped to her knees. “Did she hurt Dare?”

  “I don’t know. From the way they talked, I don’t think she was a warm, loving mother but that doesn’t mean she hit him or anything. I do know that Dare was angry with Dad because he never intervened. It caused a great deal of strain in their relationship.”

  Having studied enough psychology in college, Rayne was aware that a disturbance in the parent-child bond could screw someone up good. Her mind was already racing, putting together possible scenarios of why he acted the way he did. They were all probably wrong, but she couldn’t help the wave of sympathy that came over her when she thought about him as a child with an unfeeling mother and indifferent father.

  “Thank you for telling me, Sophie. It helps to understand why he acts so gruff most of the time.”

  “Do not tell him I told you.” The young woman’s eyes were wide and she covered them as if in fear. “He would not appreciate me revealing anything about his personal life. He hates any appearance of weakness.”

  “I won’t say a word,” Rayne promised. “If he mentions it I’ll pretend I have no idea.”

  “He won’t mention it.” Sophie hopped down from the desk as the front doors of the station burst open and Dare strode in. “He acts like he never had a childhood. Hey, big brother.”

  Dare came to a stop next to Sophie with his usual grumpy demeanor. It didn’t mean anything, of course; he could have caught the murderer and found the money and he’d still look the same.

  His tense gaze flickered to Rayne before returning to Sophie, his expression immediately softening. “How was work today?”

  “I’m rolling in dough, Dare.” Sophie waited for her brother to laugh at the lame joke but he only sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. She shoved at his shoulders with a giggle and a toss of her hair. “Get it? I work in a bakery and I’m rolling in dough. Jeez, you need to lighten up. You’ll die early of a heart attack and pasty white is not your color.”

  “Hilarious,” Dare bit out. “I was trying to make small talk.”

  “Don’t hurt yourself.” Another giggle from Sophie as she swung the strap of her purse over her shoulder and turned to Rayne. “I’ll head down to the coffee shop and get another latte. Why don’t you meet me there after you talk to this sour puss?”

  Rayne agreed and Sophie bounced out of the sheriff’s station, a smile on her lips. Brother and sister couldn’t have been more different.

  Digging in her pocket for the drawing, Rayne turned to Dare. “You’ll never guess–”

  “We need to talk,” he said flatly, his eyes almost an icy gray. Rayne shoved
the design back into her jean pocket and settled into her chair, dread building in her gut. Something was off and not the usual gloom and doom. Dare was pacing back and forth, his gaze darting all around the room. Whatever they needed to talk about wasn’t a pleasant subject. Had something else happened? Was there another dead body?

  He marched over to his office doors and shut them with a click, closing them off from everyone. No, this wasn’t good at all. His hands were still on the doorknobs, his wide back to her.

  “What’s going on? Did you find something out? Because I have–”

  “I don’t think we should see each other anymore.”

  Rayne’s hands tightened into fists. “Could you repeat that?”

  He still didn’t turn around which pissed her off. If he was going to dump her ass, the least he could do was look her in the eye when he did it.

  “Listen, I don’t think things are working out. I think we should call it off while we’re still friends. Of course, you’ll still be protected until we catch these guys. That goes without saying.”

  But who was going to protect Dare from her?

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  “End it?” Rayne echoed as she sat down, crossing one leg over the other casually if she heard these words every day; meanwhile she could feel anger churning in her abdomen and trying to claw its way out. “Can you turn around, look me in the eye and say that or are you too chicken shit?”

  His shoulders stiffened and he slowly turned to look at her, his cheeks stained red with embarrassment and probably some anger too.

  Good. She wasn’t feeling all happy go lucky either.

  “I know you’re upset–”

  “Fuck you,” Rayne interrupted, barely able to keep her rising anger in check, and she jumped to her feet unable to keep still, despite the fact that she’d just sat down. Her neck had grown hot with fury and her palms were sweating with the heat, but no way was she going to be mollified like a hysterical woman at a crime scene. “Oh wait, I did that and look where it got me. Dumped like yesterday’s trash. Is this how you usually work, Sheriff? String them along until you get some pussy and then give them the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ speech? Well, fuck you.”

  She’d actually thought the bastard was a nice guy. She’d fallen for the grouchy, emotional cripple bullshit and now look where she was. Hurting because she’d actually allowed herself to start to care for the jerk. It wasn’t her usual modus operandi. Wise for her years, she rarely fell for a guy and ended up with a broken heart. Not since she turned thirty, anyway. But he’d been so sneaky and unassuming. Smug asshole probably planned this all along.

  But something funny happened when she cursed at him. His entire demeanor shifted into something she’d never seen on him before. His shoulders slumped, his lips turned down, and she could swear his hands shook when he shoved them in his pockets. For a guy who had hit and run, he didn’t look nearly as jubilant about it as he should. He looked incredibly miserable.

  More than usual.

  “I never meant to hurt you and please don’t consider this as me dumping you. You’re a wonderful woman and any man would be lucky to have you.”

  “Except you,” Rayne shot back, still hurting although much less. He wasn’t swaggering around like a conquering hero, which made the entire situation much more bearable. “And let me tell you it sure feels like I’m being dumped. What would you call it?”

  Looking down at his boots for the longest time, she heard him take a deep breath before answering. “I think we both know this wasn’t going to end with us pledging undying love to one another and then driving off into the sunset to live happily ever after. All I’m doing is moving the logical conclusion forward.”

  “The logical conclusion? Fucking and running was the logical conclusion? If it was so logical why am I questioning it?”

  They’d had this great night together and now he was bailing. It didn’t make any sense. Except…that perhaps the night hadn’t been that great for Dare. Had he been pretending to enjoy the sex?

  Hell, he was a guy so of course he enjoyed it, but maybe he was put off by her request for it rough and dirty. Maybe he thought she was slutty and unladylike.

  Dammit, this was why she didn’t date. Relationships sucked and love hurt.

  Love? No! It was lust. Plain old lust. Infatuation. Love this quickly was out of the question.

  “Rayne, I’m not exactly the kind of guy women fantasize about spending their lives with. Do you honestly think I could make you happy?”

  This might be his way of saying he didn’t want to fulfill her sexual proclivities. He must think she was a big ho-bag, and that pissed her off again. If a guy liked it rough everyone thought that was okay, but if a female did? There must be something wrong with her.

  Damned if she would beg any man. She had more than her share of pride and she would be fine with or without the sexy lawman. There would be a lot less orgasms but life wasn’t perfect.

  “I haven’t been unhappy, Dare, but I can see you’ve made up your mind. If you think this isn’t working then obviously it’s not. So let’s just wave a wand over whatever it was between us and call it quits. No hard feelings.”

  She’d try. Eventually she wouldn’t want to knee him in the balls, she was almost sure of it. But he should probably keep his distance for awhile. A week or two. She didn’t hold a grudge long.

  His brows pulled down and his lips twisted in something that resembled a grimace. “I still want to be your friend, Rayne.”

  She had to blink back the tears that sprang to her eyes upon hearing those words. They were the kiss of death and her chest squeezed tightly as she pondered the implications, none of them happy.

  “We were never friends. Now we’re not friends again. It’s okay, though. I know that you’ll do your duty as a police officer, which is actually why I’m here today.” She dug the design out of her pocket and slapped it down on his desk, the sharp pain that ran up her arm easing the matching one in her heart. “This is a design Patrick Moulson brought into the shop. I found it in my gym bag so I assume he slipped it in there for whatever reason. This could be what they’re looking for.”

  * * * *

  Dare picked up the drawing, studying it although he wasn’t sure what he was looking for. It was hard to concentrate on the case when he couldn’t get the conversation with Rayne out of his head. He’d assumed she wouldn’t be all that upset.

  He sure as hell didn’t want her to think he’d simply been using her, as it was the furthest thing from the truth. He liked her. Too much, really. But they were heading for a crash if they stayed together. He didn’t know how to be in a relationship and make a woman happy other than between the sheets.

  He rounded the desk and sat down in his chair to give the design his full attention but one question in his head wouldn’t leave him alone.

  “How did you find this?”

  “It was stuffed in my gym bag which was stuffed in my trunk. I’ve been…bad about going to the gym lately. Sue me.”

  “And you don’t remember him putting this into your bag? That’s a big thing to forget. It’s been there this whole time while we’ve been wandering around in the dark.”

  “I did remember my dealings with him. I remembered he brought in the sketch. I remembered he was going to come back for a quote. I do not remember him stuffing the drawing into my gym bag when I wasn’t looking, so needless to say I didn’t know to look for it.”

  This case was going to be the death of him. He didn’t want to yell but it was difficult to control the frustration he felt. “So you left him alone long enough to hide it in your gym bag. This is news, Rayne. Where the hell was your gym bag? You said he never left the front of the shop.”

  Rayne leaned forward, her hands planted on the desk and her jaw tight. “He didn’t. I was getting ready for my next appointment and he came in. My gym bag was sitting on the counter. The only time I turned my back was for about thirty seconds when the phone rang and I needed th
e appointment book. It must have been then that he put it there. He never moved from where he was standing. Not once. Believe me, no one is more surprised than I am that he managed to do this.”

  Scraping his fingers through his hair, Dare sighed in resignation. “I’m sorry, I’m just frustrated. This whole case has been a clusterfuck from the beginning and I wish we would have had this a long time ago.”

  Turning on her heel, Rayne walked over to the window, her back to Dare. “And you think I don’t? If I’d known it was there my house might not have been trashed and I might not have been mugged. This hasn’t exactly been a picnic with rainbows and unicorns for me either, Sheriff, so fuck you and the horse you rode in on. I’ve about had it with you today and honestly, I think it would be best if I left. See you later.”

  Grabbing her jacket from the chair, Rayne marched toward his office door but he couldn’t let her leave like this. He’d been a jerk – more than once in the last fifteen minutes – and he needed to fix this fast. “Rayne, wait. Please. Stay.” She halted but didn’t turn around. “I understand you being mad at me but what do you have against my horse?”

  Reluctantly she looked up at him, a smile tugging at her lips. “You don’t have a horse.”

  “That didn’t stop you from telling him to go fuck himself. And I did have a horse when I was a kid. His name was Galahad and he was the best horse ever and not worthy of your anger.”

  She walked away from the doors and leaned against the edge of the desk, her posture still defensive. “You’re pissed at me and I didn’t do shit. I won’t be your punching bag.”

  “You’re right and I’m sorry. I jumped down your throat and made this about you when I should be thanking you for finding it at all. Most people never go to the gym.”

  It was his second lame attempt at a joke and she was slowly softening toward him.

  “God, you’re such an asshole.”

  “I am,” he quickly agreed, noting that she didn’t look all that upset with him anymore. “Have been all my life. No one could put up with me for long and this is proof.”