The Klieg Security Group had offices in most states as well as an international arm, which meant there was plenty of scope for advancement and adventure for a guy who was looking for both. With his overseas security experience and police background, Reid was more than qualified to take on the role, and he was confident he had a good chance of landing it—if they ever got around to shortlisting candidates.
His thoughts shifted back to Tara. When he’d applied for the job, she’d been happily engaged, and the bright lights and challenges of a new role in a new city had held a lot of appeal. With his father coping well, there had been no reason for him to hang around in Marietta...
Don’t even think it.
He was only human, however. And he’d been attracted to Tara from the moment he’d walked into the patrol bay at Bozeman PD and been introduced to his new colleagues.
She’d been filling out paperwork at a desk, dressed in her navy blues, her blonde hair neatly braided and pinned at the back of her head. She’d glanced up as he’d walked in with Sergeant Crawford, and he’d looked straight into her clear green eyes and felt the hot pull of instant attraction.
She’d stared back at him, an arrested, uncertain look on her face. Then she’d returned to her paperwork, a small frown creasing her forehead, and he’d known she felt it too.
He was so stupid, he’d been pissed when the Sergeant had put them in the same car. Hadn’t wanted to be distracted by his own instincts. But working with Tara—getting to know her—had been the best thing about the past year, hands down.
She was a great cop, conscientious and fair-minded. She was an even better person. Funny and tough, sweet and smart-mouthed. He’d laughed more with her than with any other woman.
And then Simon had proposed, and Reid had realized that it would probably be a good idea to think about moving on. He was overdue anyway, and his dad was getting stronger every day. Hence the job application, and the fact that pretty soon he might be packing his bags and moving on again.
He yanked his T-shirt over his head and tossed it at the laundry hamper. Only an asshole would see any advantage for himself in Tara’s situation. She was heartbroken. The future she’d had planned for herself had just come crashing down around her. She wasn’t suddenly going to turn to Reid, even if there had been that moment on that first day, and even if there had been other moments over the past year when he’d caught her looking at him or their hands had brushed or one of them had said something and that feeling—that connection—had shimmered in the air between them.
Men and women were attracted to each other all the time and didn’t act on it. It didn’t mean anything. And even if it did mean something, there were lots of reasons why he and Tara Buck were never going to be an item, not the least of which was the fact that he hadn’t had a serious relationship with a woman since he’d broken up with Mary Kent before leaving Marietta six years ago. He moved around too much to do anything other than casual with women. And Tara was not casual. Not by a long shot.
The bottom line was that he was her friend, and that was all she needed him to be right now.
And so that was what he would be.
Chapter Three
Tara knew that Grant had spilled the beans the moment she entered the patrol bay the next morning. One second her fellow patrol officers were lounging around the open-plan workspace, leaning against desks, sucking in coffee and shooting the breeze before the morning briefing, the next they were stiff and self-conscious, their conversations stilted.
Half of them couldn’t look her in the eye. The other half watched her with what she could only describe as fascinated pity.
Freaking awesome.
Reid pushed himself to his feet when he saw her, a frown on his face.
“Morning,” she said tightly.
A few of the guys returned her greeting. Reid followed her into the briefing room as she made a beeline for the coffee machine.
“I didn’t think you’d be in today,” he said.
She could feel him watching her as she poured coffee into a mug. She was ridiculously proud of the fact that her hands remained steady.
“Life goes on, right?” she said, shrugging.
“Yeah, but it’s not going to grind to a halt if you take a couple of days to get on top of things.”
“What’s to get on top of? He’s gone, I had the locks changed. A few phone calls this afternoon and the wedding will be history.”
She shrugged again, even though her shoulders felt stiff and unnatural.
“Tara. Come on. This is me,” he said quietly.
She risked eye contact for the briefest of seconds. “Don’t be nice to me, today, okay? Don’t pussyfoot around or speak in hushed tones or worry I’m going to lose it. I’m fine. Today is just a day, like any other day.”
She almost believed her own words. Almost.
She’d had to put eyedrops in this morning to take the redness from her eyes, and her back was sore from sleeping on the couch because even after changing the sheets she hadn’t been able to lie down on the bed that had once been theirs.
But she was here, and she was going to do her job, and somehow she was going to get through this.
“Okay. If that’s what you want,” Reid said.
“It is.”
“All right, people, let’s get this show started.” Sergeant Crawford’s voice boomed around the room as he entered, the rest of the crew trailing in after him. The Sergeant’s pale blue eyes lingered on Tara for a few seconds longer than strictly necessary and he gave her the smallest of nods.
Great, he knew as well. Was there a single person in the whole of the Bozeman PD who didn’t know her private business?
Wrapping her hands around her coffee, she moved to the nearest chair and sat. Reid didn’t follow her, but she was aware of him in her peripheral vision anyway, a tall, dark shape that she took great pains not to look at directly. She wouldn’t be able to avoid him once they were on patrol, however. Hard to pretend someone wasn’t there when they were just a few feet away.
Not for the first time she wished it had been someone else—anyone else, really—who had seen Simon and Paige leaving the motel yesterday. For some reason she couldn’t explain, the fact that it was Reid, that he was the one who’d had to break the news to her, added an extra layer of humiliation to the whole situation.
She didn’t want to appear pathetic in his eyes.
She forced herself to listen to the Sergeant’s rundown of overnight incidents, but there was nothing ongoing for them to worry about and it wasn’t long before the briefing was over.
Sergeant Crawford lingered, reading over some paperwork as everyone filed out. Reid waited for her near the door while she dumped her coffee down the sink. Her stomach wasn’t particularly food-friendly at the moment; she’d poured the coffee more to have something warm to hang onto than anything else.
“Officer Buck, can I have a word before you head out, please?” Sergeant Crawford said.
Tara’s gaze went to Reid, but he was already disappearing through the door with the last of the other guys, giving them privacy.
Bracing herself, she turned to her boss.
“Yes, sir?”
Sergeant Crawford hitched a thumb behind his belt buckle, a sure sign he was uncomfortable. In his late forties, he had thinning grey hair, narrow shoulders and a pronounced paunch.
“You know what this place is like—worse than a high school.” He sounded almost apologetic. “We all know too much about each other’s private lives.”
“Yes, sir.”
“If you need some space to sort yourself out, a week, two weeks, you’ve got time owing, and we can swing it for you. You only need to ask.”
Tara shook her head immediately. “I appreciate the offer, but I’m fine. I want to work.”
“It’s your call.”
She summoned up a tight smile. “Like I said, I appreciate the offer.”
Reid was waiting for her in the patrol bay when she
exited the briefing room, his gaze raking her face.
“All good?” he asked.
“Yep.”
They walked out to the yard in silence. It was Reid’s turn to drive, so she slid into the passenger seat. Reid started the engine before glancing at her.
“I know you don’t want to talk about it, but my dad wants you to know that any legal advice you need is on the house.”
She’d been sure she had no more tears left, but she felt the now-familiar hot sting at the back of her eyes at his words. She’d known the Daltons to nod at all her life, harvesting apples at the orchard every October being something of a tradition in her family, but since she’d been partnered with Reid she’d come to know them properly and she liked them a great deal. Every time she trekked out to the orchard to hook up with Reid for one of their cross-country runs, his mother insisted on stuffing her silly with home-baked muffins and breads, while his father was always ready to discuss current events or town politics.
“Thank him for me, but I don’t think there will be anything to worry about.”
She and Simon rented the townhouse, and while both their names were on the lease, she doubted Simon would be pushing to stay there. They hadn’t quite reached the joint back account stage, either, something Tara could only be profoundly grateful for.
Reid looked as though he wanted to say more, but he simply nodded before signaling and pulling out of the yard.
Her phone shrilled to life as he headed south. She pulled it from the slot on her utility belt and checked the screen. Her family and friends knew better than to call her when she was working and Tara’s heart gave a panicky squeeze when she saw her sister’s name on the screen. Ever since her mother’s diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease, unexpected phone calls freaked her out. She wasn’t sure what she was worried about—Parkinson’s was a slow-moving disease, after all—but it didn’t stop her heart from speeding up as she took the call.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. “Is Mom all right?”
“Mom is fine, mostly because you haven’t spoken to her yet, I gather.” Scarlett’s tone was bone dry.
“I figured there was no rush.” Also, Tara hadn’t been up to handling her mother’s histrionics last night.
And there would be histrionics when she told her mother her news. Tammy Buck did not do calm, never had.
“Why are you at work?” Scarlett asked.
“Because I’m on the duty roster.”
“Tara... for God’s sake. You’re allowed to have a few seconds of weakness, okay? The universe gives you permission to get a little sloppy when the man you were going to marry turns out to be a jerk.”
Her sister’s voice was loud enough that Reid must also be able to hear what she was saying.
“I’m not made of sugar. Why does everyone think I’m going to fall apart?”
First Reid, then the Sergeant, now her sister.
“Because your heart’s just been broken, you idiot.”
“We’re on patrol, I can’t talk now. I’ll call you later.”
She ended the call. Reid flicked a look at her. She waited for him to say something—anything—but the radio crackled to life, breaking the silence.
“118, 404... “
Tara grabbed her radio. Never had she been so happy to hear her badge number. “118, go ahead.”
“118, respond to corner Durston and 19th for a two vehicle non-injury MVA.”
“118 copy,” Tara said.
Reid was already stepping on the gas and weaving more aggressively through the traffic.
Two hours flew by as they controlled the scene, took witness statements and directed traffic around the cleanup operation. They had a shoplifter to deal with next, then a traffic stop for a car with broken rear tail lights.
Throughout, Tara was aware of Reid’s quiet concern. He didn’t say anything—he’d said he wouldn’t, after all, and Reid always kept his word—but she could feel how careful he was being around her. How sorry he felt for her.
Poor Tara, betrayed by her fiancé. Heartbroken and abandoned and humiliated.
The rational part of her brain reminded her that he was her partner and friend—of course he was concerned for her. He was a nice guy. He was simply looking out for her.
It didn’t stop her from grinding her teeth in frustration, and it didn’t relieve the burning self-consciousness she felt every time she turned her head and caught him watching her.
She didn’t want his sympathy, and she definitely didn’t want his pity. What she wanted was to forget. She wanted to give herself over to the job and to simply push all the ugliness that had been bouncing around inside her for the past twenty-four hours into a dark corner and work.
Standing in the open patrol car door, she eyed her partner darkly, watching as he talked to the car owner about the damage to his tail lights. Some of the guys looked goofy in their navy blues, especially the ones who had let themselves get thick around the middle with age, but Reid wasn’t carrying an ounce of extra fat anywhere on his tall, broad-shouldered body. He made the uniform look good, and more than one woman gave him a lingering glance as they passed by.
The driver said something, and Reid smiled, his eyes lighting up, making his handsome face even more attractive. Tara looked away, aware of a sudden, terrible urge to march up to him and shove him hard in the chest like a child in the school ground.
No point being angry with Reid. You picked Simon. You agreed to marry the guy.
She did, and she had. Focusing her anger on Reid, resenting his concern for her, was immature and a little crazy. She needed to get a grip.
She turned away so she didn’t have to look at him, but the lump of hot anger sitting in her belly didn’t go anywhere. Suddenly the need to cry was on her again. Her life was a mess—and the worst thing was, she’d played a part in making it that way.
The radio crackled, saving her from herself, and she leaned in to the car so she could hear it more clearly.
“404 to all units, we have a report of a theft of a motor vehicle in progress with a baby inside near the Post Office on Main.”
Tara ducked her head out of the car. “Reid, we’re up.”
He glanced her way, giving her a sharp nod, and she slid into the passenger seat and reached for her radio.
“404, 118. We are in the area and we are responding.”
Dispatch acknowledged her call, relaying the license plate details of a blue Ford sedan and letting her know that the car was last seen traveling west on Main. Reid slid into the driver’s seat, slamming the door shut and starting the engine in one smooth move.
“What have we got?”
“Head west on Main. We’re looking for a stolen Ford with a baby inside.”
Reid swore quietly. All cops hated incidents like this, especially in summer. No thief set out to steal a car with a baby on board. Most of the time, they realized their mistake almost immediately, leading them to dump the car as quickly as possible. If they dumped it somewhere out of the way, however, the baby could potentially be left in the car for hours before it was found. On a hot June day like today, it didn’t take long for a child to become dangerously dehydrated and overheated.
They cruised the area, both her and Reid scanning the passing traffic and side streets, looking for the blue Ford. She checked in with dispatch regularly, and they broadened their search area as other cars reported in.
She was about to report a clean sweep of the area near the Northgate Shopping Center when she spotted a flash of blue out of the corner of her eye. Sure enough, a bright blue Ford was traveling east along a side street. She craned her neck in order to see the license plate.
“Got him,” she said, relief flooding her.
Reid’s head snapped around, his gaze zeroing in on the car. Tara was already on the radio, calling it in and requesting emergency traffic only over the radio until they could pull off a high risk traffic stop. Dispatch confirmed, informing them that another car was on its way, then the rad
io began to emit the regular beeps designed to remind officers to use the radio only if absolutely necessary.
They trailed the car as discreetly as possible, not wanting to panic the driver. Once Wadley and Hayes had radioed to let them know they were in position, Reid flicked both lights and siren on.
Tara flashed a glance at him, taking in his intent expression and steady hands on the wheel. Reid was renowned for keeping a cool head in a crisis, one of the many reasons the other officers often deferred to him around the station. That and the fact that he was a natural leader. If he hadn’t left the force six years ago and taken off overseas to do private security work, the odds were good he’d be well up the food chain by now.
The Ford sped up, swerving through an intersection and almost taking out an SUV. Reid followed with a smooth surge of power. Up ahead, blue lights flashed as Wadley and Hayes blocked the road with their car. It only took the thief a moment to understand he was trapped. The Ford swerved off the road, tires screeching before the car bottomed out on the curb with a resounding metallic crash. The car plowed into the side of the store on the corner and smashed to a halt. The door popped open almost instantly and a slim, dark-clothed figure slipped out of the car and bolted up the adjacent alleyway. A kid or a woman, Tara guessed, judging by the build and stature.
“404, 118. Car has stopped, suspect has abandoned the car,” Tara reported as Reid hit the brakes hard.
She braced one hand on the dash, the other already on the door handle. The moment the car ceased moving, she was out and racing for the Ford. One glance in the side window was enough to assure her that the baby was alive and well, his face red with exertion as he exercised his lungs.
“404, 118. Baby is alive and well. I repeat, the baby is alive and well. 118 in foot pursuit.”
She spun away from the Ford, taking off up the alley after the suspect. Reid or the other officers would take care of the baby.
The thief was at the far end of the alley, running like hell. Tara put her head down and gave it her all. Her feet slapped the pavement, her lungs and legs burned, and for the first time all day she felt almost good as she channeled all her hurt, humiliation, and anger into the chase.
Almost A Bride (Montana Born Brides) Page 3
