Fighting For Carly

by Deanndra Hall

About that time, Tank stepped up to the ladder on the booth. “Ross, take a break. Go get something to eat. Carly,” he said as he looked at the woman, “I should wash your mouth out with soap.”

  “Like I’m gonna stand still for you to do that,” she fired back.

  “Hey, I’m still your big brother, deputy. You and Dub-step over there, go duke it out. But shake hands first.”

  Her name was Carly. And she was Tank’s sister. That was information Ross needed. Unless she was already spoken for, he had every intention of having that woman. Just one look from her did things to him that nobody had done in years, and he wanted to know more about her. Climbing out of the tank, he took the towel Short Shit offered him, slipped on his shower shoes, and headed toward the spot where he’d seen the brunette disappear.

  Glancing around, he didn’t see her anywhere, so he wandered up to a food truck sporting a big banner: Real Texas Barbecue!!! All proceeds go to the Tarpley Volunteer Fire Department. Even though it was smoked over hickory like Kentucky barbecue, Texans favored a tomato-based sweet sauce that Ross just couldn’t stomach. “Uh, yeah, I think I’ll have two of those Polish sausages aaaand … a lemonade.”

  “That’ll be five fifty-two, sir.”

  Ross reached around and slapped his back pocket only to realize he was in the wet swim trunks. “Shit. I totally forgot … My money’s in the truck with my clothes, but I’m good for it and I can go get it in a few minutes, if that would be―”

  “Hey, Jerry. I’ll take care of it.” Ross turned to find Carly standing there, a small, gentle smile pulling the corners of her lips upward.

  Ross shook his head. “That’s not necessary.”

  She handed the food vendor six dollars and when he handed her the change, she dropped it in the tip jar. “Yeah. It kinda is. I owe you. You took my goading pretty well, but that was kinda crass of me.”

  Ross let out a little chuckle. “You didn’t really believe I wouldn’t come back at you, did you?”

  She was still smiling and he loved the way her eyes squinted shut as the corners of her lips drifted higher upward. “I figured you would, but you were pretty damn quick about it.”

  “I try. But that comment about shrinkage was kinda rough around the edges.”

  That flash of defiance was back in her eyes, and he loved it. “Yeah? Well, you know, if I recall correctly, you called me sweetheart.”

  Oops! a voice in Ross’s head whispered. “Uh, yeah. I guess that was kind of―”

  “Disrespectful?” she offered.

  “Well, that wasn’t exactly the word I was going for, but yeah—it’ll definitely fit. So for that, I apologize.”

  “And I apologize for making that crack about your, um …” A delighted Ross watched as her face pinked up and she glanced away.

  “That’s okay. Don’t worry about it. It was all in good fun, and I think you probably helped us raise a lot of money with that booth. I’m sure people are lined up to try and dunk Tank. So he’s your brother?”

  Carly nodded. “Yeah. Older brother by three years. Got a sister too, Bree, seven years younger than me. He’s been our protector since we were old enough to breathe.”

  Ross shook his head. “I don’t see that you need protecting. You look like you’re plenty capable of protecting yourself.”

  Her eyes popped open wide again and her mouth formed a little O before she replied, “Thank you! That’s about the nicest thing anybody’s said to me in a long time!”

  That confused Ross. First off, she was drop-dead beautiful. Nobody told her that on a regular basis? If she had a husband, he needed his ass kicked for that one. And just from talking to her, she appeared to be a competent professional. Of course she could protect herself! He had no doubt she could protect plenty of other people too. “If that’s the nicest thing anybody’s said to you in a long time, you’re hanging out with the wrong people.”

  “Thanks. I appreciate that. I put on this uniform and people forget I’m a lady.”

  Now Ross was even more puzzled. “I thought that’s what you wanted when you put on a law enforcement uniform, for people to forget you’re a lady and treat you like any other cop.”

  She seemed to kind of deflate, her shoulders falling and eyes downcast. “Yeah, well, it’s a fine line we walk. I’d like to be treated like a lady, but I also don’t want to be treated like I’m an incompetent little bit of fluff. So yeah—it’s a difficult balance to try to keep.”

  “I can see where it could be.” The longer she talked, the more Ross respected her. What he’d seen of Tank had impressed him, and his younger sister was doing the exact same thing. “So you live here in Bandera County?”

  She nodded as they walked. “Yeah. Been here all my life. Guess I’ll never leave. You’re not from around here.”

  “Nope. My parents are both from here, but they moved to Kentucky before I was born. I’ve never lived here, just there.”

  “Ah, the bluegrass state! Never been there. Is the grass really blue?” she asked and laughed.

  “Nah. It’s this bluish-green, and that’s how it got its name. And that’s only in horse country. I’m from the far eastern end of the state. Foothills of the Appalachians.”

  “Close to the Smokies?”

  “Yep. Our station went to help with the Gatlinburg fire.”

  “Yeah, I remember that. It was horrible. People died, right?”

  He nodded. “Fourteen of them. It was something I’ll never forget. I give talks about it when I’m asked to. You know, a ‘lessons learned’ kind of thing. There’s plenty to be learned from it.”

  “You should do that for the station here.”

  He chuckled. “Already have!”

  “Nothing slow about you!” she said, laughing back. God, he could listen to that laugh all day and night.

  Especially all night. Stop it, McEvers! She’s bound to have a husband! “So how old are your kids? And what does your husband do?”

  She stopped dead in the middle of the path through the food vendors and stared at him. “I don’t have kids. I’m not married.”

  That was hard to believe. “You’re not married? I just assumed a woman as beau … I mean, somebody who looks … Oh, boy. I’m not doing very well, am I?” he mumbled aloud.

  Her smile was soft again. “I’m divorced. And he’s the county attorney.”

  “Can’t be good, living in the county where your ex is the county attorney.”

  She shook her head. “Nope. It’s not. Especially when he and your boss are good friends.”

  “The sheriff?” Carly nodded. “No. That would be very, very bad.”

  “Yeah. It is if you want a promotion.” They reached the picnic area of the park and she pointed toward the tables. “I’ll let you eat in peace. Enjoy your sausages and lemonade.”

  No—that was not how he wanted things to go. He couldn’t let her get away. “Uh, can’t you come over and sit with me while I eat?”

  “Nah.” She shook her head and turned to face him, walking backward slowly. “I’m technically on patrol. If the sheriff finds out I was hanging around here, he’ll be pissed and I’ll be sorry, so I should get back in my car and get moving. But hey, it was great to meet you. See you around?”

  “Oh, yeah. I’m here for a few more weeks, so look me up if you want to.” Oh, please want to, Ross’s brain whispered.

  Instead of responding, she just said, “Later.” With a tiny little wave, she was gone.

  Ross finished his sausages and lemonade and wandered back to the dunking booth. Tank was sitting there bone dry, and Ross smiled and waved. “’Bout ready to climb back in?” Tank yelled to him.

  “Nope. I think you’ve got it under control.” He stepped up closer to the booth and stood right beside the platform before he said, “Hey, Tank?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Your sister? Carly? You and I need to talk.”

  Tank rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right. Sure.” About that time, a couple of kids wandered up to buy ba
lls and Ross headed off in his original direction to disappear into the crowd.

  As he walked along through the carnival rides and the gaming tents, he scanned the crowd. The only women he saw who looked like they might be single were probably less than twenty-five years old, and that wasn’t at all what he was interested in. After he’d danced with a few of them and realized quickly they weren’t his type, he finally gave up and made his way back to the truck to grab his clothes and change back into them.

  The guys took turns sitting there on the platform for the rest of the afternoon, with the exception of a lucky throw by a ten-year-old boy and one skillful pitch from a high school baseball player. To Ross’s delight, Pop got wrangled into sitting on the tank’s platform after the awards program, and they all laughed as he took a mighty dunking by the whole volunteer fire department crew.

  Before long, the party was over, and as he made his way back to his truck, he looked around, but he didn’t see Tank anywhere. Didn’t matter. He’d catch up to the man sometime and they’d have a little chat about his younger sister. Ross had every intention of pursuing her, and Tank needed to know that. Tank also needed to know that if he wasn’t on board with it, it wouldn’t matter one shit to Ross. He’d made up his mind.

  Carly was going to be his. It was just a matter of when.

  Chapter 3

  Michael pulled his boots on as he sat in the kitchen chair. “Looked like you had a good time yesterday.”

  Ross shrugged as he sat down with his cup of coffee. “Eh. It was okay.”

  “There were women hanging all over you!”

  “Yeah, and not a one of them I really wanted.”

  “None of them?”

  Ross shook his head. “Nope.”

  There was silence for a few seconds before Michael said, “You know Tank was there the whole time and he saw you dancing with some of those girls.”

  The cup never made it to his mouth—Ross’s hand stopped halfway there. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  A low chuckle broke through Michael’s lips. “It means … I saw that whole thing at the dunking booth and then you and Carly talking. If Tank tells her he saw you dancing with half a dozen―”

  “Whoa! Stop!” Ross set his coffee cup on the table. “It’s not like I’ve even gone out with the woman, and there’s no guarantee she’d go out with me anyway. I know next to nothing about her except that she’s divorced, no kids, and she’s Tank’s sister. You’re acting like I’ve been unfaithful to her and I haven’t even―”

  “Ross.” Michael turned and rested his forearms on the table. “Just stop and let me finish. Carly’s had a really rough time. Eric is a first-class asshole, and the ending of that relationship has been very difficult for her, not to mention the relationship between him and the sheriff. Chuck’s made it almost impossible for her to stay in the department. He rides her ass, talks down to her, gives her shit assignments, and … Well, it’s become obvious to a lot of people that he’s trying to get her to quit. And she just won’t. He finds that even more infuriating. I don’t know how many times we’ve had to sit Tank down and tell him he absolutely cannot go over there and kick the sheriff’s ass, but he really wants to. He’s super protective of his sisters, and he’s royally pissed at Eric and Chuck both. And if he gets the idea that you’re a player and you’ll hurt her, he’ll make sure you don’t see her.”

  “It’s Carly’s decision.”

  “It may be Carly’s decision, but after what she’s been through, if her big brother tells her a guy is bad news, she’ll run the other direction. Keep that in mind.” He stood and stomped down the legs of his jeans over the tops of his boots. “I’ve got to get to work. Got plans for the day?”

  “I dunno.” He wasn’t sure what to do with himself. Michael worked at a stamping plant outside the city limits, and he’d be gone all day. They made parts for vehicles, and it was a good job, plus they allowed him time off to train with the department and to go anytime there was a fire. His house wasn’t fancy, but it was comfortable. Still, Ross didn’t want to sit there all day. “Thought I might go find something for lunch, maybe catch a movie or something.”

  “I should be headed home by four thirty. If you decide to do something that’s going to keep you out past that time, let me know so I won’t wait dinner for you.”

  “Will do, but I bet I’ll be here.”

  “Well, okay then. Have a good day.”

  “You too.” Ross watched as Michael closed the door behind him, then finished his coffee and headed to the bathroom for a shower.

  As the water ran over his body, he thought about the day before. God, that water had been cold! But he’d been warmed by the smile Carly had given him, even if it had been laced with mischief. Of course, he was a guy, and he wondered what she’d look like, naked and beneath him, those eyes gazing up at him and that smile on her lips. Before he realized it was happening, he was hard and aching, and his hand got busy to relieve the pain. When he finished off, he was surprised at how powerful his climax was. If just thinking about her did that to him, what would it be like if she were there with him?

  Jeans. Tee. Socks and athletic shoes. Belt. Watch. Ring. And he was finished. Where could he go? What could he do? Then he remembered the western wear store he’d seen on the other side of Tarpley, and he climbed into the rental truck and drove that direction.

  When he got there they weren’t open yet, but there was a diner across the street that advertised a cheap breakfast, so he decided to cross the street and start the day off right. The last few days at Michael’s had been cereal and milk, and something hot and savory sounded perfect.

  A bell jingled as he opened the door, and he wondered if everybody would turn and look to see who was coming in, but they didn’t. The sign said to seat yourself, so he found a booth in one of the front windows and sat down. They had menus on the tables, and he picked one up and started to go over it. It was pretty standard breakfast fare, so when the server walked up to the table, he already knew what he wanted. Seconds later, he had a cup of coffee and she’d assured him his food would be right out.

  There wasn’t much going on at the other tables, just people who seemed to know each other very well talking and laughing. There was a huge table full of little old ladies, and right beside it was another huge table full of little old men. Well, not quite as full. There was at least a dozen of the women, but only about eight of the men, and then he remembered that women usually outlive their husbands. As they ate, they talked back and forth between the two tables. It was a sweet sight, seeing them all there, and Ross couldn’t help but smile. His grandparents had probably been part of something like that before they died.

  The server showed up with his plate and set it down, then refilled his coffee cup before she walked away. He was about to pick up his fork and dig in when he saw it.

  A sheriff’s department cruiser pulled up out front, a mid-sized SUV, and when the driver’s door opened, his heart skipped a beat. Carly. He was glad he hadn’t started eating, and he waited to see if she’d even notice him sitting there.

  As soon as she stepped inside, he saw her scan the diner’s interior in typical cop fashion. When her gaze landed on him, she smiled, and he gave her a little wave. Would she come over and sit with him? He didn’t dare hope.

  But she walked straight up to him. “Well, fancy seeing you here! You having a good breakfast?”

  “I dunno. It just came to the table. Want to sit down?”

  “Sure.” She slid into the other side of the booth and got comfortable. When the server wandered up, Carly looked up at her. “Coffee. Black. And as for food, exactly what he’s got there.”

  “My eggs are over easy. Sure that’s what you want?”

  “Been eating them like that since I was a kid.” She swept a strand of hair off her cheek and curled it behind her ear. “Have you eaten here before?”

  “No. I was going to the western store, but they’re closed, so I decided to come over her
e until they open.”

  “Good call. This is the best breakfast joint in the whole state, I do believe.” A cup of coffee appeared in front of her, and she reached for it and took three deep swigs. Ross almost laughed as he wondered what would happen when that caffeine hit her, and he didn’t have to wait long to find out. Her eyes popped open wide, the corners of her lips plummeted, and she shuddered like a horse. “Whoa! Holy shit, that’s strong!”

  He couldn’t help but laugh then. “Yeah, I was waiting for it to hit you!”

  “It just did. Like a freight train. Wow. So, um, you’re going to the western store?”

  “Yeah. Thought I’d look around. We don’t have any really good ones around home, and I heard that place has some nice stuff.”

  “They do. That’s where I buy my boots.” She slid toward the outside of the booth and stuck out a leg. “I love these. They’re super comfortable.”

  “Nice ropers.”

  “Thanks. You don’t strike me as a guy who’d know much about boots,” she said as she sipped from her cup again.

  “Actually, I was on the rodeo team in high school.”

  “Events?”

  “Tie-down roping and saddle broncs.”

  She snickered. “No bull riding?”

  “No. The school didn’t allow that event due to liability issues. It took a lot to talk them into bronc busting, but we argued that it was something someone on a farm might actually have to do. Fell under the ag department’s umbrella that way. They finally bowed to pressure, but it was a fight.”

  “Well, at least you had that. Why didn’t you go on with it?”

  Ross shrugged. “Thought about it, but then somebody mentioned that the fire department was hiring rookies, and I figured that was a good job in a depressed area of the country. There are always going to be fires, just like there’ll always be crime and sick people and death.”

  She gave him the side-eye. “Wow. Morbid much?”

  “It’s true. We’ll always have sick people. There will always be bodies that need to be buried. We’ll always have fires. And we’ll always have people breaking the law. You call it morbid; I call it job security.”