скачать книгу бесплатно
“Cute as all get-out!” Patting her swollen stomach, she said, “If we weren’t fixin’ to have our own bundle of joy, I swear I’d have been badgering Ace to let us keep one.”
Imagining a puppy of her own, something soft and sweet to cuddle, she asked, “Whose puppies were they?”
“The Morans. Do you know them?”
“I know of them, but we haven’t had much of an occasion to talk.”
“Are you thinking about getting a puppy? Because if you are, you should stop by Angie and Duke’s place, too. I hear someone left Angie a basket of mongrel pups that are adorable. The price is right, too. They’re free.”
Getting a puppy was a pretty bad idea. And if she got one, it should be something dignified and policeworthy, like a German shepherd or something. After all, Duke had Zorro, and he was a great dog. But beagles were sweethearts…and abandoned mixed-breeds? They needed someone to love them. She could do that. “Maybe.”
“I’ll text you Kim Moran’s phone number if you want. You could give her a call. Or get Duke to take you to his house and look at the free puppies. I’m sure Angie would love to visit with you a bit.”
Ouch. There was another not-too-subtle reminder that she wasn’t doing a very good job of keeping in touch with the family.
Smiling sweetly, Flynn said, “You know what, Dinah? I think a sweet little puppy might just be the thing for you.”
“Because?”
“Because everyone needs someone to love.” Looking like the loved woman she was, Flynn’s eyes sparkled. “Even you, Dinah. Even a tough-as-nails sheriff like you.”
Even her. Thinking about that, her heart sank. Somehow, along the way to being respectable and upstanding and respected…she’d lost a little bit of her softness.
Suddenly, she ached to get it back.
Chapter Four
“Hey, Duke?”
Her deputy spun toward her on the stool he’d just discovered in the back storage closet of their hole-in-the-wall office. “Yep?”
“Tell me the truth. Do you think Austin Wright is responsible for the string of burglaries?”
As was his nature, Duke pondered that one for a moment. “I don’t want him to be. But what we want and what actually is don’t do either of us a lot of good, does it?”
After crossing the room—which meant she took five steps to the left and scooted around a line of metal filing cabinets—she slumped down in her chair. “No, it doesn’t.” Drumming the tips of her fingers on her desk, she looked at him sideways. “How do you want to handle things?”
“I already took a picture of the saddle you saw at Wright’s and sent it to Kevin Johnson. It’s his wife’s. And it had been stolen.”
She was afraid of that. Before she thought the better of it, she blurted what was first and foremost on her mind. “For the life of me, I just can’t imagine Austin stealing that saddle and then sticking it in his store.”
Duke chuckled. “That does sound pretty gutsy, even for Austin.”
It sounded stupid, too. And though Austin might have a lot of problems, stupidity had never been one of them. But she felt honor bound to play devil’s advocate. “I guess there’s always a chance he could be working with the thieves…”
After giving Zorro a brief scratch behind his ears, Duke turned to Dinah. “Want to know what I think?”
“Of course.”
“I think Austin bought it off a guy like he said he did. The people selling the merchandise are smart, Dinah. They’re not stealing and selling it to the public directly.”
“I hear you.” But like a dog with a bone, she couldn’t seem to move from her train of thought. “However, Austin could be more involved than he’s letting on. It’s a possibility.”
“But doubtful.” He paused. “You don’t think he had anything to do with Midnight being stolen, do you?”
She shook her head in a kind of knee-jerk reaction of sorts. “Austin wouldn’t do that. He wouldn’t steal our family’s prize stallion.” Her brother Ace had bid on Midnight at a horse auction a few months back, and nothing around Thunder Ranch had been the same ever since. Midnight had proven to be ornery and proud and wonderful.
Her brother Colt had shown them all that Midnight had a lot more rodeos left in him, too. And then the thieves had struck their ranch, stolen her dad’s beautiful saddle, some of Colt’s bridles…and Midnight had gone missing.
Duke relaxed. “Boy, I’m glad to hear you say you don’t suspect Austin of horse thieving. I can’t see him doing it, either, but I wanted to hear the words from your lips.”
She rolled her shoulders uncomfortably. Her feelings about Austin were knee-deep and confusing as all get-out. But there were some things she couldn’t bear to even imagine him doing.
Stealing Midnight was one of them.
“I’ll follow up on some of the leads we talked about before accusing Austin of anything.”
“That sounds like a good plan to me.”
Realizing that Duke didn’t sound all that interested in the conversation, she looked up from her notes. “Duke, you look pleased about something. I know it’s not saddles. What’s up?”
“Angie and me are going away this weekend.”
“What?”
To her amusement, her cousin’s cheeks flushed. “Remember, we discussed calendars a couple of weeks ago? Luke is going to stay the weekend with the family at the ranch. Beau wants to spend some time with him. While they’re bonding and such, I’m going to take Angie down to Casper, Wyoming.”
“What a great idea.” Both Duke’s trip with Angie and Beau spending time with Luke sounded nice. Since Beau and Duke were twins, Dinah was glad that the wilder of the two brothers was taking so much time to get to know his nephew.
“Oh, it’s not much, but it will be nice to get away. They’ve got a fall festival that’s real popular.”
“I’m sure anything you do will be fun.” Dinah knew Duke loved Angie’s little boy as completely as if he’d been his own son. But that didn’t mean he never craved a little alone time with his new wife. “Have a good time.”
“Oh, we will. And, Dinah?”
“Yeah?”
“I mean this in the best possible way… Don’t call me.”
She chuckled. “Don’t worry, Deputy. This sheriff should be able to handle things just fine for a few days on her own. Let’s just sit tight on this case for a couple of days.”
“Roger that. Besides, I don’t want you to deal with Austin on your own if we figure he is the man behind all our headaches.”
“That sounds good. There are plenty of other things going on.” Looking at the list of messages on her desk, Dinah knew that was practically an understatement.
There had been a rash of problems with some of the high school kids in the area. Nothing too serious—just some graffiti painted on the back of the bleachers of the football stadium, and a couple reports of underage parties in outlying areas.
Feeling vaguely like the pot calling the kettle black, she realized that the reports listed a lot of the same stuff she’d done during her junior year in high school. Only she might have been worse.
With a wince, she hoped Principal Marks didn’t bring it up during their scheduled meeting. Carol Marks had been a new teacher when Dinah graduated high school.
Dinah remembered her being slightly shocked at Dinah’s way of dressing and her behavior. Hopefully, though, Mrs. Marks would remember just how hard Dinah had worked her senior year to turn things around.
* * *
SHE WAS STUCK IN THE GROCERY store line behind a woman with way too many coupons when she spied Austin in the next checkout lane. As she was attempting to figure out how to say hi to him without making a big deal of it, he looked up and caught her eye.
While the lady’s grocery bill continued to slide, fifty cents at a time, she smiled his way.
He came over, a paper sack in his left arm. “Hey,” he said. “What’s shaking?”
She laughed that he’d used the same expression as Duke. “Just waiting my turn. What about you? This is the last place I’d expect to see you on a Saturday night.”
“I eat, too.” He tapped his bag. “I’ve got a chicken and some potatoes just calling my name.” Eyeing her groceries, displayed for all to see on the conveyor belt, he laughed. “If you eat any more of those diet dinners, you’re going to float away, Dinah.”
She felt her face heat. “Unlike you, I’m not much of a cook. And eating at the Number 1 all the time can get expensive.”
Finally the woman in front of her paid her bill and it was Dinah’s turn to check out. As the clerk started scanning and bagging, she turned to Austin again. “Hope you have a good evening.”
“You, too.” He turned, took two steps, then came back over to her side. “Want to come over?”
“For dinner?”
“Don’t act like I’m wining and dining you, D. It’s just chicken and potatoes.”
His idea sounded a whole lot better than a diet frozen dinner. And there was something brewing between them that was hard to deny. “I’ve got a salad in a bag. I could bring that.” Gosh, did she sound as lame as she felt?
“We’ll have three food groups covered right there. After you take your groceries home, come over.”
“All right. I will.”
After presenting her with a pleased-looking smile, he turned and walked away. Dinah’s eyes followed him, noticing that his jeans today were still awfully snug…and were faded and worn in all the right places.
“Thirty-eight twenty-five,” the cashier said.
As Dinah handed her two twenties, the cashier winked. “I thought I was going to have to bop you on the head, Sheriff.”
“And why’s that?”
“Austin Wright is just about the finest-looking man in these parts. Only a fool would turn down the chance for him to make her dinner.”
There was a flurry of replies on the tip of her tongue. But only one right answer. “I was kind of thinking the same thing,” she admitted.
And with that, she grabbed her bags and hurried out to her car, anxious to spend some time with Austin, just to see if her instincts had been right.
Chapter Five
Sitting across from her, Austin had to admit that spending the evening with Dinah Hart had been one of the most pleasant experiences he’d had in months. He’d asked her over partly to get a rise out of her—sure she’d come to his store for more reasons than to ask him about saddles.
Her saying yes had been a nice surprise, their camaraderie even more so. Dinah had set the table while he’d grilled the chicken. Then she’d opened her bag of lettuce while he microwaved potatoes.
And though she looked at him curiously when he pulled out a pitcher of iced tea, she poured them two glasses. She’d even looked relieved, saying she couldn’t drink anyway since Duke was away for the weekend and she was essentially running a one-woman show in the sheriff’s office.
They’d talked about Leah and Colt, and Flynn and Ace. He’d told her about Cheyenne, and how she was living with their dad and slowly pulling out of her grief from losing her husband way too young. She grinned with him when he spoke about her twin girls, Sadie and Sammie.
Next they talked about Duke and Beau, and Beau’s chances in the latest bull-riding competitions.
From there, it was only natural to talk about Tuf Hart, Dinah’s younger brother. Austin’s heart had gone out to her when she’d talked about how Tuf still hadn’t shown up after getting out of the marines.
Family talk had eased into work, and she’d seemed genuinely interested in his shop. That worked out real nice, because he was genuinely interested in pretty much everything about her.
All too soon, it was almost midnight and she was getting to her feet. “Thanks, Austin. I…I really enjoyed myself.”
“You’re welcome. I liked having you here.” For a moment, he let himself stare at her lips, remembering with sudden clarity what kissing her had been like.
Those lips parted, just as if she had read his mind.
Right there and then, he knew if he leaned forward she wouldn’t be offended if he kissed her.
And he wanted to.
But it wasn’t the right time. He was an emotionally toxic mess. Especially since he hadn’t had the nerve to go to an AA meeting yet. Lord, he was needier than a newborn foal.
“So…good night, Dinah.”
She blinked. “Oh. Sure. Good night.” She looked a little hurt, as though he’d rejected her. Obviously she’d thought he was going to shorten that space between them and finally renew what had been floating between them for months.
He was still reluctant to see her go. “Any chance you going to church tomorrow?”
“I don’t know. I don’t go all that often. Why?”
“I’ll be there. Thought if you were going to be there, too, maybe we could have lunch together after.”
“You want to share another meal?”
She’d spouted the question as if he’d just asked to get in her pants. He bit the inside of his lip so he wouldn’t smile. “Don’t worry, I’m not trying to ruin your stash of Lean Cuisine dinners. I was thinking maybe we could get lunch at the Number 1 after. My treat.”
After a fresh burst of interest, she looked more than a little hesitant. One of her hands flew to her hair, curling one of the wayward locks around her ear. “Maybe. I’ll see what’s going on in the office tomorrow.”
“Fair enough. If I see you in church, I’ll see you. Night, Dinah.”
He stood at the door and watched her walk to her car, unlock it and finally drive away. He told himself he was just being a gentleman. After all, the sheriff probably didn’t need a man looking after her.
He couldn’t help but think maybe Dinah needed a man looking out for her. It was a real shame he wasn’t the best candidate for the job.
* * *
DINAH HADN’T INTENDED to go to church. But when she called her mom, she sounded beyond pleased at the thought of Dinah sitting in the pew beside her. “We’ve had so many changes going on with the family lately, Dinah. It’s good to take some time to give thanks, don’t you think?”
