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“Yeah, pretty much.” He chuckled. “At least you know what I’m talking about.”
Tuck had a wife and four kids of his own.
“It’s not so bad,” Tuck replied. “You’ll never sleep in again, or stay up late, for that matter, but it has its payoffs, too.”
“This isn’t long-term,” Mike said. “I’ll sleep in again. Don’t worry about that. Anyway, Malory seems to have everything under control.”
“Yeah?” Tuck didn’t look convinced. “You still think you can say goodbye to that little sweetheart?”
“I’m just helping out until we can find a permanent solution,” Mike replied. “I told you that before. She’s better off away from the Cruise clan completely. This isn’t about how cute she is. This is about what’s best for her. You know what my family is like.”
Tuck shrugged. “Your call, buddy.”
The best decisions weren’t always the easiest. Mike came from a long line of career criminals—Crystal was falling pretty close to the tree with her jail time. For as long as Mike could remember, he’d been hearing about drug busts, arrests and attempts to escape the law—none of it from the side of the “good guys.” The best thing for little Katy was to have a fresh start with a new family, far from the Cruises—as he had. He’d walked away and started a new life for himself, fighting the crime that had left indelible marks upon his childhood.
Mike pulled up his email and scanned the latest police notices. At work he felt as though he had some control—maybe not as much as he’d like, but at least he had procedures to follow. There would always be crime, and there would always be paperwork, but at least there were laws to protect the innocent.
“Speaking of your family,” Tuck said. “Your dad is in town.”
“What?” Mike’s attention snapped back to his friend. “How do you know?”
“He started a scuffle of some sort in the Honky Tonk.”
Mike sighed. That sounded about right. “Where is he now?”
Tuck shook his head. “I don’t know. But I thought you might want a heads-up. He looks just the same—a bit older, maybe.”
Tuck would know. He and Mike had gone to high school together and joined the sheriff’s department in the same year. He was well aware of Mike’s family, especially his father.
Mike didn’t answer, forcing the anger back down. His father had been a real piece of work when Mike was growing up. He was a mean drunk and he was drunk a lot of the time. Mike didn’t have many happy family memories after his mother died. The day his father skipped the county was a good day in his books.
“He told me to give you a message.”
Mike raised his eyebrows inquiringly. “Oh?”
“He said to tell you that he’s home. That’s all.”
“For good?” Mike frowned.
“He didn’t say. I couldn’t hold him. He hadn’t done anything. In fact, he pulled an underage kid out of the bar when a fight broke out.”
Mike sighed. He hated it when his father did something honorable. It made it harder to mentally file him away.
“He hasn’t contacted you?” Tuck pressed.
“Nope. This is the first I’ve heard of it.”
“Do you think he heard about your cousin’s daughter?”
Mike shrugged. “I have no idea, but my dad hasn’t had any use for me in ten years, so I highly doubt he’s back for a heartwarming reunion.”
Tuck shrugged. “Just passing along the message.”
“Yeah. Thanks.”
He pushed his rising discomfort down and focused on the paperwork in front of him. This was precisely why he was at the station—to bury himself in work. He had a feeling that whether he wanted it to or not, his life was about to tip upside down.
* * *
MALORY PUT THE LAST of the dishes into the dishwasher and closed it. Upstairs, Katy was already in bed for the night, her hair damp from her bath and her bear clutched in her arms. She’d refused to have her hair combed, and Malory hadn’t pressed the point. She’d fallen asleep almost immediately after Malory kissed her good-night, the exhaustion of the past few days catching up with her.
Outside the kitchen window, the evening sunlight slanted low and golden across the backyard. The oak tree cast a long shadow, leaves rustling in the warm summer wind. This was the kind of backyard that begged for a tire swing or sandbox.
The front door opened, then banged shut again, and Malory turned to see Mike ambling into the kitchen. He held a pizza box in one hand, balanced easily on his fingertips. His broad chest tapered down to a tight waist, circled by the heavy belt of his uniform. The badge glinted against his neatly ironed shirt in the soft light of the kitchen, and Malory had to glance away, afraid to seem unprofessional admiring her boss’s physique.
“I thought you might be hungry,” he said, sliding the pizza onto the counter.
“Katy’s already in bed,” she replied. “We had some grilled cheese for supper.”
“So not hungry?” He flipped open the lid to reveal a piping-hot pepperoni pie, crispy, greasy pepperoni slices buried in oozing mozzarella. She was always hungry these days, and she shot him a grin.
“Well, if you put it that way,” she said. “I wouldn’t turn it down.”
Mike went to the cupboard and returned with two plates. “I hope you didn’t mind me going to the station today.”
“That’s all right.”
“I thought it would be easier to have me out of the way.” He smiled uncertainly and pulled a piece of pizza from the rest of the pie, strings of cheese stretching to his plate. “Dig in.”
Malory followed suit, and after a big bite, she said, “I don’t need you out of the way, you know.”
“No? She seems happy with you.”
“My job is to help with child care. I do all the things you can’t do while you’re working, but I shouldn’t be taking over your role as her parent.”
“I’m not her father. I’m her second cousin,” he replied.
“And I’m not her mother. I’m paid to be here,” she countered. “You’re the closest thing she has to a dad right now.”
His dark eyes met hers for the first time. Then his gaze flickered toward the window. “I’m afraid to let her get attached to me.”
“Children need to bond to someone,” she replied quietly.
“She’s bonding to you.”
“Yes.” Malory sighed. She knew what he wanted—for her to take care of the emotional needs of the child so that when he had to let go of her, it would hurt less. She understood, even if she completely disagreed. “Kids need to know that they’re loved in the world, even if they have to say goodbye. Sometimes it’s good for them to see that they leave an empty space behind them and that it’s hard to let go of them.”
Mike didn’t answer for a moment, and she wondered if she’d overstepped. Then he sighed and met her gaze.
“I’m not great with kids.” His voice rumbled low. “I wouldn’t even know where to start.”
“You’ve already started.” She gave him a smile. “And you’re doing just fine.”
He snorted and took a bite of pizza. For a few minutes they focused on eating. Malory polished off three pieces before she started to slow down. She remembered her pregnant friends saying that the baby was hungry, and it had seemed like a silly cover for eating like a teenager again. But now she understood. She was famished in a way she’d never experienced before, and it sure did feel as if the baby inside her was calling the shots.
“So, tell me about you,” he said, changing the subject. “Are you from Montana?”
“No, I’m from Baltimore.” She popped a stray piece of pepperoni into her mouth.
“This is a long way from home, then.”
“Home is relative.” She shrugged, and when he cast her a curious look, she conceded, “My mom and I moved around a lot.”
“Army?” he asked.
“No, just...moving.” They’d moved for so many reasons. Once to get away from a boyfriend who wouldn’t accept that her mother was done with him. Several times they’d moved for promising new relationships that hadn’t turned out to be as great as they’d seemed. Malory didn’t like to talk about the hard times she and her mother had had together, so she just offered a wan smile.
“That sounds kind of tough.”
“It was, so I’ve got a soft spot for kids who need stability.” She took another piece of pizza and piled the strings of cheese back on top of the slice.
“So live-in positions must be hard. Can’t settle too long anywhere,” he commented.
“Well, like I said, I needed the change of scenery.” She shrugged. “It’s not so bad. I’ve gotten used to it. Besides, as an adult, I have control over my life. It’s an entirely different situation when you can choose to move instead of being dragged somewhere.”
He didn’t answer at first. His face was ruggedly handsome, his chin bristled with stubble. The lines around his dark eyes betrayed a sense of humor—the man had smiled a lot in his lifetime, even if he seemed serious now. He swallowed.
“I’ve lived in Hope since I was about ten,” he said. “I know pretty much everyone in this town—and being a sheriff, I probably know them better than they’d like.” He laughed.
“You’d think a place this small would be pretty quiet for law enforcement,” she said past a bite of pizza.
He shook his head. “It’s the opposite. Domestic disturbances, drunk and disorderlies, teenage house parties. It probably looks pretty quiet from the outside, but I get a bird’s-eye view of pretty much everything.”
She nodded. “You hold secrets.”
“Enough of them. But they hold enough of mine, too. I think that’s part of what makes a place home—swapped secrets.”
Malory arched a brow. “You don’t seem like you’d have too many skeletons.”
“Not too many personal ones,” he agreed. “But my family was an out-of-control lot. When I was growing up, the cops came by my place on a weekly basis. My mom died when I was young, and my dad was all I had. He was an alcoholic, and being part of the Cruise clan wasn’t a good thing, I can assure you.”
“You seem to have turned out all right, though.”
“I figured there had to be something more to life.”
“I get that.” She nodded slowly. “It wouldn’t be easy, though.”
“Yeah, well.” He shrugged, seeming ready to drop the topic.
“So what did you do?”
“Hmm?” He wiped his lips with a napkin.
“How did you come out on top?”
“A cop took me under wing.”
“Oh?”
“As a kid, I started out as a troublemaker. I got into a lot of fights. Started most of them. But one day a cruiser dropped my dad off at home—I don’t remember what he’d done that time. The cop took one look at me, and he must have seen something worth saving, because he passed me his card and said I could call him if I wanted a job.”
“What kind of job?” she asked.
“Yard work. He was clearing out some trees on his property. So I called him, he put me to work and he paid me. That was the first time I worked for anything, and it felt good.”
She smiled. “And the rest is history?”
“Pretty much.” He chuckled. “Everyone in this town knows all about my humble beginnings, so it isn’t much of a secret. In fact, there are probably about six or seven old ladies quite willing to fill you in.”
“Well, you’re lucky,” she admitted. “But you don’t want to be that bighearted cop in Katy’s life and help turn things around for her?”
“I might be able to do that,” he agreed. “But you’re forgetting that her mother is in prison. What about when she wants to meet her mom? What about when her mother wants back into her life? What about cousins and uncles and aunts who are involved in crime? I’m not her only family member, and I wouldn’t be her only influence. If she stayed with me, how could I refuse to let her meet the rest of her relatives?”
Malory nodded. Much as she hated to admit it, Mike had a point. The situation was more complicated than it appeared at first glance. While Mike could easily draw some lines if he felt strongly enough, this wasn’t a cut-and-dried situation, and it wasn’t her decision to make.
“I think I understand,” she said with a nod.
A smile twitched at the corners of his lips. “Thanks.”
“But I stand by what I said—she needs to know that she matters and that when she does move on, she’ll be missed. That shows her that she has value. It might not be easy on you, but it’s better for her in the long run.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” His tone turned gruff, and he cleared his throat. His walls had just gone back up again.
She could see a flicker of the real man underneath the tough shell, and he had a softer heart than he liked to let on.
“Thanks for the pizza,” she said, licking her fingertips. “That hit the spot.”
He grabbed the plates and proceeded to clean up around her. “Look, I, uh—” He glanced toward her, then turned back to the counter. “I don’t normally chatter like that.”
“Like what?” she asked curiously.
“Oh, family history, that kind of thing.” He turned to face her, and for the first time she saw uncertainty swimming in those dark eyes. He obviously wasn’t comfortable with vulnerability.
“It helps to understand the situation,” she assured him. “And you can trust me to be discreet.”
“Thanks.”
Malory looked toward the window, where the sun was lowering temptingly in the sky. The breeze would be cool by now, and she longed for some time to herself.
