The Deputy's Perfect Match (Love Inspired)

by Lisa Carter

  It wouldn’t do for the ladies—or the town—to get the wrong idea. This was getting out of hand.

  He slipped into a chair directly across the circle.

  “No worries.” Charlie leaned the chair on its back legs. “I like the view right fine from here.” He sent Evy a winsome smile.

  Evy peered down the length of her nose at him. “Suit yourself.” She fretted at the cameo pinned to her blouse. “Shall we begin?”

  Her lips might say one thing, but her heart? She didn’t like what Deputy Pruitt did to her equilibrium. Not one bit.

  Evy didn’t have time for this...this inconvenient attraction. It went against her plan. She schooled her features. The plan must come first.

  “Shall we, indeed.” Charlie grinned. As if somehow he knew the effect he had on her. Raising her chin, she decided to ignore him.

  He took a deep breath, which broadened his chest. As if daring her to try.

  * * *

  Those remarkable eyes of hers.

  Charlie decided he could munch petits fours and stare at Evy Shaw all day. This club thing was turning out to be a real pleasure.

  But across the circle, those eyes of hers were shooting daggers at him at this moment. Smirking, he took another bite and chewed. He loved pushing her buttons.

  She reminded him of a character in the musical the drama class performed his senior year at Nandua High. In her long-sleeved peach blouse and beige pencil skirt, she looked so Marian the Librarian. So uptight and upright.

  It was kind of fun to wind her up and set her off—like watching a jewelry box ballerina go all dashboard hula girl.

  His mind wandered as the women discussed various themes from the novel, such as class structure and reputation. His friend in California had verified what Evy Shaw had revealed of her past.

  Midtwenties. Her parents were tenured English professors from Stanford. Before she’d arrived in Kiptohanock, she’d held positions in libraries from Miami to San Diego.

  He stopped chewing. While still in the Coast Guard, hadn’t Sawyer Kole transferred to Kiptohanock from somewhere in California? Might prove interesting to find out where he’d been previously stationed and determine if Kole and Evy ever shared locales before Kiptohanock.

  Charlie set the plate on his knee. Losing his appetite at the thought of them sharing anything, he swallowed past the boulder lodged in his throat.

  Another fact he’d learned? Evy held advanced degrees in literature and library science from Stanford and the University of Oklahoma. Sawyer Kole grew up in Oklahoma.

  Charlie kept his gaze laser-focused on Evy’s animated features as she led the group discussion. What was her connection to Honey’s husband?

  Time to rattle Hula Girl again.

  He cleared his throat. “One thing I found most fascinating...” the women—as if one entity—angled toward him “...was how first impressions can be deceiving.”

  Perched in the armchair with her brown high heels planted on the floor, Evy laid the book across her lap. “You mean how Elizabeth Bennet’s first impression was that Darcy was a snob?”

  Charlie rolled his tongue over his teeth. “I think that cuts both ways. Darcy and Elizabeth were both guilty of pride and prejudice.”

  Ashley, the wife of a former football buddy of his, nodded. “Darcy was equally guilty of prejudging Elizabeth. Based on her lack of social standing.”

  Charlie cocked his head. “Question is, Miss Shaw—are first impressions to be trusted? Or should you wait for proof that a person is trustworthy?”

  She stiffened. “Sounds as if you advocate putting people on trial. Testing them before you deem them worthy of your friendship, Deputy Pruitt.”

  Their gazes locked. The librarian was hiding something. He knew it.

  Kelly Hughes, the Coastie wife, brushed a crumb off her jeans. “People are not always what they seem. Each of the characters hid their real feelings behind a mask of pride.”

  Evy narrowed her eyes. “As a police officer, do you rely on your intuition in shaping your immediate response to people, Deputy Pruitt?”

  “In cop speak, I rely on my gut. And yes, my instincts about a situation have kept me alive on more than one occasion.” Charlie curled his lip. “And on a personal level, I’ve learned the hard way it doesn’t pay to trust—or love—too blindly.”

  Evy’s eyes bored into him. “Sounds as if someone hurt you very badly, Deputy Pruitt.”

  His breath hitched. An awkward silence fell. Flushing, he wasn’t sure how this had become about him. Or how she’d managed to turn the discussion onto him.

  Dixie patted his arm. “I think the real point of the story is how people can change.”

  “Given time, evaluations can alter.” Mrs. Davenport wiped the corners of her mouth with a napkin. “Darcy focused on the wrong things first. But over time he saw Elizabeth for who she was. Really saw her.”

  Evy’s brow puckered. “What do you mean?”

  Peggy—his former high school math teacher who once upon a time loved marking Charlie’s homework with red X’s—thumbed through the pages of the novel. “He saw the real Elizabeth. And their courtship not only proved to each other their true character but also became the proving ground of their true love.”

  Evy ran her hand over her beige skirt. “That’s very insightful.”

  “And—” Jolene, an ER nurse at Riverside Hospital, got up to refill her coffee cup “—it was in the crucible of crisis in their courtship that Darcy saw the error of his own ways and understood his own great love for Elizabeth.”

  Evy blew out a breath. “Wow. Great analysis by everyone. I’ve never seen the story that way before.”

  Mrs. Davenport tapped her finger to her chin. “It’s never wise to come to a conclusion about someone until you have all the facts.”

  Charlie couldn’t have agreed more. Which was why he’d decided to escalate his investigation. He’d never seen Evy and Kole together. Watching their interaction might provide further clues as to what was going on with a certain intriguing librarian.

  Evy rose in a graceful, fluid motion. “Facts or trust? An interesting dichotomy for relationships. Which do we rely upon most often?”

  Something tightened in Charlie’s stomach.

  Evy rubbed her finger across the rim of her glasses. “Important questions to ponder this week as we move on to next week’s selection.”

  Her beautiful eyes sparkled. “Sense and Sensibility.”

  The meeting ended as the women cleared the refreshment table and gathered their belongings. At the ladies’ teasing looks, Charlie realized he’d given the Kiptohanock matchmakers entirely the wrong impression.

  And what he was about to do next would only solidify that impression. The group followed Evy out to the foyer to collect the books for the following week’s discussion.

  He hung back in the kitchen, waiting for Evy. “You’re good with children, Evy.”

  She poured the remains of the coffeepot down the sink drain. “Thank you. I like children.”

  “That’s why I hoped maybe you could help me with a project.”

  She rinsed out the pot. “If I can. What project?”

  “It’s for the department, really.”

  “Sheriff’s business?”

  “Deputy sheriff business.”

  Her mouth quirked. “How in the world can a librarian like me be of assistance to SuperDeputy?”

  “Who?”

  She bit her lip and turned to wipe the counter.

  He hunched his shoulders. “The library is closed over Labor Day weekend, right?”

  She unplugged the coffeemaker from the wall socket. “Yes.”

  “If you’d care to join me, I need to make an appearance—in an unofficial capacity—to present a friendly
face behind the uniform to the kids.”

  Stretching on her tiptoes, she stashed the unused paper plates inside the cabinet. “What kids?”

  “The kids at Keller’s Kids Camp.”

  She froze. “Sawyer Kole’s foster kid camp.”

  Charlie didn’t like the sound of the ex-Coastie’s name on her lips. “Yeah. Him.”

  Evy drifted onto her heels. “Isn’t camp over until next summer?”

  “It’s a new two-month pilot program on autumn weekends. Follow-up with local foster kids. Friday night through Sunday afternoons.”

  She averted her gaze. “The Duers won’t want me.”

  “With the Labor Day harbor festival and folks on their last vacation before school starts Tuesday, I have it on good authority the volunteer pool is light this weekend. Too light for the number of children expected. You’ll be welcome.”

  She looked at him, then. As if she didn’t believe him.

  “We’ll be doing them a favor. You’d be doing me a favor.” He moistened his lips. “Would you come with me, Evy? Please?”

  She searched his face. Not quite buying his explanation.

  “I do love kids...” She gulped. “Sure. Why not? I’d love to go. Thanks for asking.”

  He smiled. “I’ll pick you up Saturday morning. Bright and early. It’s a date.”

  “Okay.” She tucked a loosened strand of blond hair behind her ear.

  Following the motion of her hand, his heart beat rapidly. Should he trust his first impressions of Evy Shaw? Sweet, smart, very pretty. Was his initial instinct about her correct?

  “You don’t have to wait for me, Charlie.”

  “Of course I do. I’ll walk you to your car.”

  She slung the purse strap over her shoulder. “Another Southern gentleman thing?”

  He followed Evy to the front door. “Let me be one, okay? And for the record, I want to walk you to your car.”

  Evy worried her bottom lip between her teeth as she set the alarm on the library. He stuffed his hands in his pockets. Before he did something stupid like touch her. Or kiss her.

  Suppose he was wrong about Evy? Could she be hiding behind a mask, the image she wanted him to see? And if so, why?

  Who was the real Evy Shaw? Was seeing believing in her case?

  Maybe...maybe not. Only time would tell.

  Chapter Four

  On Saturday morning, Charlie leaned across the truck cab and threw open the passenger door. “Hop in.”

  The open door dinged. Evy hesitated. “Come on, Shorty.”

  She sniffed and placed her shoe on the running board. Putting one hand on the seat and the other on the handle, she hauled herself onto the seat. “I prefer to think of myself as vertically challenged.”

  He laughed and jumped out of the truck to come around and close the door for her.

  “You didn’t have to do that, Charlie.”

  He smiled. “It’s going to be a great day. Buckle up. Safety first.”

  She smiled. “Will do, Officer.” She clicked her seat belt in place.

  Charlie palmed the wheel as he maneuvered the rural road. “Glad to see you dressed appropriately.”

  Evy extended her feet, toes pointed. “You don’t like the way I dress?”

  He loved the way she dressed. The pencil skirts, high heels and silky blouses. But his favorite was the baby-blue cardigan she’d worn to the Chinese restaurant, which brought out the blue in her eyes. Charlie scrubbed a hand over his face. Since when did he have favorites where Evy Shaw was concerned?

  Charlie stole a quick look at her. He liked her version of casual, too. The pink polka-dot Keds. The lime-green boatneck T-shirt. The cuffed jeans.

  Only her ponytail retained her usual weekday appearance. And idly he wondered what her hair would look like spilling over her shoulders...gleaming in the sunshine...

  His heartbeat staccato-stepped. “I like the way you dress just fine.”

  Evy’s eyebrows rose as his voice went gravelly. He’d surprised her. Surprised him, too. Who would have guessed, in casual Kiptohanock, he’d take a shine to someone like Evy Shaw?

  A shine... He lifted his ball cap off his head and resettled it. Where did that come from?

  Sounded like something Charlie’s grandfather would’ve said fifty years ago. Evy had a way of bringing out the old-fashioned in him. She smiled at Charlie. And his heart flip-flopped inside his chest.

  With effort, he refocused on the road. Was she happy to be riding in a truck with him? Or happy at the prospect of spending the day with the Duers? And if so, why?

  Doubt ate at his stomach. He hadn’t always been so unsure of himself. But his confidence where women were concerned had taken a nosedive since his days with Honey.

  He pulled into the long gravel driveway of the Keller farmhouse. Passing under the crossbars framing the entrance to the farm, the truck rattled over a cattle guard. Cedars and fencing lined the drive. Horses grazed in the pasture.

  She sat forward on the seat. Her gaze flitted from side to side. Taking everything in. “I’ve never been here before.”

  “Me neither.”

  Her eyes darted to him. “You didn’t volunteer over the summer?”

  “Nope. My first time to help out, too.”

  “Oh.”

  He’d have given a week’s salary to know what was going through that brilliant mind of hers. He didn’t have to wait long.

  “Why not?”

  He rapped his thumb against the steering wheel. “Too busy.”

  “Too busy doing deputy stuff?”

  “Something like that.”

  He steered the truck beside a bevy of other vehicles outside the hip-roofed barn. “We’re here.” Parking, he allowed the swirl of dust heralding their arrival to settle.

  Charlie spotted Sawyer Kole in the corral with a handful of children and a horse. The very pregnant Honey rested against the fence railing. Charlie was nervous. Nervous about what would happen next.

  About how Honey would react to Evy being here. About how Sawyer would respond to him being here. Sure enough, when Charlie unfolded himself out of the truck, Sawyer’s arctic-blue eyes narrowed. Evy opened her door and got out.

  Following her husband’s belligerent stare, Honey turned. “Charlie? What are—?”

  Charlie knew the moment Evy stepped around the truck.

  Because Honey went ramrod stiff. “What’s she doing here?”

  Her husband refastened his gaze onto Evy. Sawyer took a step forward. Frowned. Halted in his tracks. The lead on the horse hung limply in his hand.

  Charlie’s heart pounded. He didn’t like the intense look Sawyer gave Evy. Did they know each other?

  Evy inched closer to Charlie. At his elbow, she shrunk into his side. Doing that melding thing she did. For protection? For invisibility?

  Broadening his shoulders, Charlie creased the brim of his cap with his hand. “We came to volunteer. Heard you might need a few more hands with so many folks away for Labor Day weekend.”

  Sawyer seemed to come to himself. “Don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure of meeting your friend.” He looped the lead around a fence post and came out of the corral. Wiping his palm on the side of his Wrangler jeans, Sawyer headed their way, hand extended to Evy. “I’m Sawyer.”

  Charlie’s gaze bounced between Evy and Kole.

  Behind the glasses, those enormous eyes of hers had fixed onto the cowboy. And she moved away from Charlie to grasp hold of Sawyer’s hand.

  Charlie’s stomach cramped. Something curled in his chest. Suddenly he wanted nothing more than to pick Evy up in his arms, plop her inside his truck and speed away.

  Toward hot cups of tea, Chinese food and library books. He shouldn’t have brought her here
. She—he—they didn’t belong here.

  She’s mine, he wanted to shout. Not yours.

  But he did none of that. Like an idiot, Charlie just stood there. Hands stuffed into his jeans pockets. Watching. While Sawyer Kole inexplicably took someone else from him.

  “My name is Evy.” A shy smile, which twisted Charlie’s gut. “Evy Shaw.”

  Sawyer’s brow knotted. “How is it, in a town the size of Kiptohanock, we haven’t met before, Miss Shaw?”

  Charlie’s heart thumped in his chest. Honey followed on her husband’s boot heels. With one look at her face, Charlie could tell Honey was furious. At him.

  “She’s the librarian.” Honey glowered. “No reason for you to have met.”

  Charlie had wanted Sawyer and Evy to meet officially. He ought to have been more careful what he wished for. Sucker-punched by the unexpected sense of proprietorship toward Evy, he ground his heel into the dirt. She didn’t belong to him. He didn’t know why seeing her and Sawyer together disturbed him so much. Honey was right about it not being a romantic kind of connection. But there was a connection, something Charlie didn’t understand.

  So he drew on his fallback emotion when it came to feeling out of control. Anger.

  He inserted himself between the cowboy and Evy. “I guess not everyone is a reader like me.”

  Evy’s gaze flicked to Charlie. “No.” A sweet smile for him. “That’s true.”

  “I feel somehow, though, we’ve met before.” Sawyer tilted his head. “Do we know each other, Miss Shaw? From somewhere besides Kiptohanock?”

  Charlie held his breath. Evy—with reluctance, he thought—shook her head. Disappointment spiraled. He let the breath trickle slowly between his clenched lips.

  So this was about Evy. All about her. Not Kole. Which only made Charlie feel worse, not better. Honey had been right about Evy’s fixation on the Duer clan. Did Evy have a sinister motivation in coming to the Shore?

  “Put us to work, Kole. That’s what we’re here for.” His mouth tightened. “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

  The look Sawyer sent his way could have scorched the earth. “That your way of talking so somebody like me can understand?” There’d never been any love lost between him and Charlie.