by Morgan James
I left Pine Ridge and headed up to Briarleigh to pick up Jules. She was waiting just inside the back door when I pulled up, and she was already halfway to the SUV before I put it in park. I picked up the bag of food on the passenger seat and held it while she buckled herself in, then passed it back to her.
“Hold this, would you?”
Silently, she accepted it and settled it on her lap. I found myself holding my breath, waiting to see if she would say anything. She didn’t. I headed back down the mountain to my place, silence hanging heavily in the air. I didn’t know any women who spoke as little as Jules. I hadn’t talked to Jack recently, not wanting to look too suspicious, but I wondered if Mia was making any headway with her.
“Hey, I’ve got a surprise for you.”
Her head swiveled toward me, a mixture of confusion and trepidation in her pretty green eyes. “You got me something?”
Shit. “Not exactly.” I fumbled with my response as I hit the button to lift the garage door. “I just figured you were tired of relying on me, so...”
She turned toward the garage, and her eyes widened as her car was revealed inch by inch. “You brought my car back!”
“Yep.” A tiny kernel of pride flared to life as a smile lifted her lips. The cop in me was loath to let her keep driving around without a valid license or registration, but if she came back to my place each night... well, I was willing to make that concession.
She gestured over her shoulder. “I saw your truck outside, but I didn’t think...” She paused. “You didn’t have to do that. I’m fine parking outside.”
“It’s no problem.” I put the car in park and cut the engine. “Besides, I’m in the cruiser 90 percent of the time anyway. Makes more sense for your car to be inside.”
She hesitated, her fingers on the door handle. “If you’re sure...”
“I am.”
Her teeth sank into her lower lip. “What do I owe you?”
I refused to take any more money from her. “All Charlie did was look it over. You don’t owe me anything.”
Her voice was quiet but full of gratitude. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” I climbed from the car, somehow resisting the urge to reach across the seat and draw her into my arms. “Now, come on. I’m starving.”
I held the door for Jules as we entered the house, and I set the bag of food on the scarred oak kitchen table. I gestured with my chin to the chair opposite me as I unpacked everything. “Sit with me?”
It was both a request and an order. I’d given her several days and plenty of time and space to herself, but I was itching for answers. Tentatively, she pulled out the chair and sat. It was the first time she had joined me at the table, and it sent a little curl of pleasure through me. I’d hardly seen her at all except each morning and afternoon when I took her to and picked her up from work. It was reassuring to know that if she didn’t completely trust me, she was at least becoming more comfortable with me.
I settled in the chair across from her and began to eat. I wasn’t quite sure how to begin, so I just jumped in. “How do you like Briarleigh?”
“It’s nice,” she said shyly. I waited for her to elaborate, but she remained silent.
“Are you settling in okay?” I prompted.
She nodded. “Everyone’s been really helpful.”
She was infuriatingly succinct, and it made me want to scream. Why did she feel like she had to keep everything all bottled up, even the mundane shit? It bothered me more than I wanted to admit. She’d been in my home for five days now, but I’d yet to learn anything about her. It was about fucking time that changed.
“They getting all ready for the grand opening?”
She swallowed her bite of food. “Yep. Everything’s coming together.”
“You getting the shop all organized?”
A nod.
“I heard you’re helping Mia with wedding stuff.”
Another nod. “I am.”
I ground my back teeth together and fought the urge to snap at her. Jesus Christ, getting her to talk was like pulling teeth. “Sounds fun.”
“It is.” She opened her mouth as if to say more, then snapped it closed again.
My brows lifted. I knew she’d been about to say something else, so why’d she stop? “You must enjoy it,” I offered, hoping she’d pick up the thread of conversation.
She used her fork to push her meatloaf around the Styrofoam carton before responding. Her voice was low and tentative. “I do. I miss it, actually.”
It was the first admission I’d gotten from her, and it felt like I’d won the fucking lottery. Finally, after damn near a week, it was something. She didn’t strike me as a party girl, though. I assumed she meant it more literally, but I didn’t think she was old enough to have been married. The thought alone sent a strange pang through my heart. But once the thought took hold, I couldn’t let it go. I found that I needed the answer, though I didn’t want to examine the reasoning behind it too closely. “Were you married?”
Her eyes widened and she shook her head. “No. I... no.”
She said it with such vehemence that it couldn’t be anything other than the truth. Yet there was a flicker of something in her eyes when I’d mentioned marriage. Fear, maybe? Thankfully, I didn’t have to pry, because she continued of her own will.
A tiny smile lifted the corners of her mouth. “My family celebrated everything. Weddings, birthdays, graduations, victories...” Here she trailed off for a moment, her gaze dropping guiltily to the table, the smile sliding off her face. “Anyway. Any excuse to have a good time, they did.”
Past tense. She spoke of them with reverence, yet something had driven her away from them. If she wasn’t married, I could only jump to the next logical conclusion and my original guess—a boyfriend who’d treated her like shit. I surreptitiously studied the bruise on her forehead that had finally begun to fade. It was a sickly yellow color now and considerably less swollen than it’d been when she’d first arrived. I got angrier every time I saw it. I hadn’t brought it up, and she hadn’t either. Not that I expected her to. I had a feeling she’d be happy to bury the past wherever she’d come from and leave it at that. Didn’t stop me from wanting to find out. One of these days, I swore I was going to learn the truth if it fucking killed me.
We chatted amiably for the next few minutes as we picked at our food. The mundane questions helped her to slowly open up and gradually, the single-word answers grew more elaborate. Finally, I pushed away from the table and carried my takeout container to the trash. Jules watched me, her eyebrows drawing together as I slipped into my coat and boots.
“Are you leaving?”
Surprised, I jerked my head toward her. She’d never asked before what I was doing or where I was going. True, most of the time I didn’t leave the house much. This was a night for firsts, apparently.
I tipped my head toward the front porch. “We’re supposed to get some more snow overnight. I’m going to bring in some more kindling in case we lose power.”
“Okay.” She nodded slowly. “Do you want some help?”
I almost refused, but the expression on her face had me rethinking my decision. She looked almost hopeful, and I couldn’t bring myself to deny her. The task was an easy one, but if she wanted to help, then I wasn’t going to stop her. “Sure.”
She popped up from her chair and quickly grabbed her coat and boots from the mud room. I eyed her as she slipped into them. The jacket was leather, the cut perfect for her figure and obviously expensive, but it was too thin to really be of much protection, especially up here in the mountains. Same for the shoes. Her black leather boots were of good quality, but she needed something a little more substantial if she intended to be traipsing around in the snow.
“You should talk to Mia about getting a heavier coat and some snow boots,” I observed.
She immediately shook her head as she zipped the coat up to her neck. “These suit me just fine. Besides, I don’t really have t
he money to waste on clothes.”
“Wouldn’t hurt to ask.”
“Maybe.” From the tone of her voice, she may as well have told me to take a long walk off a short pier.
“I’m sure they’d be pretty reasonable with your employee discount.” I didn’t know if the workers got any type of discount or not, but if she needed appropriate clothes, I was damn sure going to make it happen.
“Oh. I didn’t think of that.”
“We can ask tomorrow.” I pulled open the front door, and Jules sucked in a sharp breath at the bitter cold that rushed past our faces.
“It gets so cold up here.”
“It can,” I admitted. “I’d say it’s not so bad once you get used to it, but I’d probably be lying.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I swore I saw a flicker of a smile. “You’re probably right. I’m not sure I could ever get used to this.”
For some reason, I felt a little stab of disappointment at her statement. I’d known all along that she wouldn’t stay. I wasn’t even sure I wanted her to stay, and if I did, it was purely for her safety. At least, that’s what I told myself.
“Here.”
She held out her hands, and I placed several logs on top of her outstretched arms. I gathered an armload myself, and we carried them back into the house then stacked them by the fireplace. We made another trip outside, and I paused, staring up at the sky. Jules came to a stop next to me. For a moment, I almost expected her to speak, but she didn’t. I let out a soft chuckle. Of course she didn’t. Jules was an observer. I’d never met a more intriguing, infuriatingly frustrating woman in my life. Instead of turning me off, though, it made me want to know more about her. I was dying to know where she’d come from, what had happened to her. What she was going to do next, where she would go.
I had no business asking these things. There were a thousand reasons I should let her go on her way and go about my life, not the least of which was that she was sexy as fuck. It was becoming harder and harder not to touch her. She was technically an adult, but she was still a good ten years younger than me. I felt old as hell next to her, though she’d never given any indication that it bothered her. And why should it? She probably saw me as the sheriff, a figure of authority. Worse, she might even see me as a big brother or a father figure. Meanwhile I was panting away after her, jerking off to her image in the shower, imagining what she’d look like naked—or in those fucking pink panties. I should encourage her to move on—I needed to, for both our sakes. But the fact of the matter was, I liked having her around.
I wasn’t stupid, though. Neither of us could afford anything more than the platonic relationship between us. I wasn’t going to pine after a woman who wouldn’t even tell me her real name. I could feel her eyes on me, so I cleared my throat and pushed away my wayward thoughts.
“It never ceases to amaze me how bright the stars are out here.”
As if just now noticing, Jules let out a little gasp and leaned further over the railing, like she could reach out to touch them if she got a little closer. “It’s beautiful. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“I knew they were there, of course, but I grew up in the city where the lights drowned them out.”
She nodded in agreement, but didn’t say anything, still transfixed by the vista in front of her. I took that to mean she was from a city—a city large enough that she’d never really been out of it to see the stars at night. There was really only one city like that near where the car had been registered.
“The closest thing I ever came to seeing stars before I moved out here was the courtyard at the Tavern.”
Jules cracked a tiny smile as she stared upward, her gaze sliding over the thousand little diamonds twinkling in the sky. “I know, right?”
As if suddenly realizing what she’d said, Jules went completely rigid next to me. That one little slip had told me so much. It’d been a gamble, but it’d paid off, and I barely managed to hold back a victorious grin. The Tavern was a high-end restaurant in Chicago—one she was apparently well acquainted with.
Playing it off, I kept my eyes focused on the sky. “They look beautiful, but it’s kind of a bad sign.”
“Why?”
I heard the hesitation in her voice, and I glanced at her across my shoulder. “Gonna be cold tonight.”
Her shoulders relaxed, and she tipped her head slightly to one side in question. “How can you tell?”
I gestured with my chin to the few wispy white clouds hovering in space. “Clouds help form a barrier to hold in the warm air. Otherwise, the Earth’s surface temperature radiates off more quickly.”
I felt more than saw her turn back to me. “Is that true?”
“I think I know what I’m talking about. I’ve been around a lot longer than you.” I tossed her a wink. I needed to keep reminding myself of that fact.
Jules scrunched up her nose. “Sounds... fake.”
“Fake?” I scoffed. “It’s science.”
“Hmm...” She hummed a little noise in the back of her throat. “I’m going to google it later.”
I lifted a brow in her direction, and she quickly turned away—but not before I caught the tiny teasing smirk on her pretty mouth.
Chapter 15
Giuliana
“You are coming to the wedding, aren’t you?” Mia asked.
I bit my lip, taking in the pleading look in her eyes. “Well, I um... I honestly wasn’t sure I was invited.”
“Of course you are!” she exclaimed. “Make sure Eric comes too. I’d like for him to be there.”
I gave a little nod, completely unsure of whether I could make her request happen or not. I wasn’t sure why she thought I held any sway over what he did. “I’ll see what I can do.”
She looked at me, then back at the room, half-full of merchandise. “Let’s leave this for later. I have a better idea.”
“Okay?” I drew out the word, my confusion evident in my tone, and Mia laughed.
“What we really need is a dress for you.” My cheeks flamed, knowing she was probably right. She’d only ever seen me in yoga pants or jeans, the full extent of the wardrobe I’d brought with me.
“Are you sure you want me there?” I hedged.
She rolled her head slightly to one side and gave me a disbelieving look. “You’re not getting out of it now.”
I flattened my lips to hide a smile. “You’re the best.”
Mia cracked a little grin. “Don’t let Jack hear that, but I’m glad someone understands.”
I laughed as we gathered up our purses, then headed out the employee entrance to her car. Instead of the little rental she had last week, a black Range Rover SUV now sat in its place.
“It’s beautiful,” I said as I slid inside.
Mia rolled her eyes and started the car. “It was Jack’s idea.”
“Smart man,” I quipped, and Mia grinned as she pulled out of the parking lot.
“He does have his moments.”
Every time she mentioned Jack’s name, she lit up with pure joy, and a tiny little spark of jealousy shot through me. Someday, I wanted that. I wanted a man who loved me and could put that kind of smile on my face every day. Though I didn’t know their story, I was happy that they had prevailed.
Jack’s intensity still made me a little uneasy, but it was hard not to love Mia. Part of me wanted to hold back, but the little girl who had grown up mostly in solitude wanted a friend, someone to confide in. I wasn’t ready to spill my secrets, but I longed for camaraderie and companionship.
When Mia and I had last been in town, we’d stopped only at the diner and the general store. But buildings lined both sides of the main street, and I had recognized at least a church and a convenience store type drive-through, so I knew the little town held more than met the eye. I settled back into my seat, content to chatter amiably as we made our way down the mountain into the tiny town.
We parked in front of Rosie’s Café, and I stepped out of the car, bracing my
self against the bitter cold. The icy wind assaulted my exposed face, but the rest of me was warm thanks to my new coat and boots. I had—as Eric suggested—bought them at a hefty discount from Briarleigh’s stock, and I was incredibly grateful for the thick material as I tucked my hands in the fleece-lined pockets. The sun was shining despite the few inches of snow that lingered on the sidewalks, and just the sight of it lifted my spirits.
Mia appeared next to me, and I turned my gaze on her. “So where are we headed?”
She smiled and shrugged. “Let’s just walk and see what we find.”
I wanted to laugh. “I can’t believe you’ve never been here either. I was under the impression you’d been here for a few weeks now.”
A funny expression crossed Mia’s face. “I mostly stayed inside,” she said haltingly.
Though I was curious, I decided not to pry. The cut on her forehead looked to be mostly healed, though she still sported evidence of some scrapes and bruises. I wondered once more if they were from Jack. She seemed crazy about him, though I’d learned that appearances could be deceiving. Was she staying with him out of some sort of obligation? I hoped not. It wasn’t my place to ask, but I was here to listen if she needed a friend.
My head swiveled left and right, taking in the little signs hanging in the windows or over the doorways.
“Oh! Over here.” Mia pointed across the street, and I allowed myself to be tugged along to the small boutique. We stepped inside, and I paused as my eyes scanned the small space. Both men’s and women’s clothing cluttered the overflowing shelves and racks placed around the room. Aside from men’s on one side and women’s on the other, there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the placement of the items. Dresses and shirts were mixed in with pants, shoes and bags topping the racks.