by Jody Holford
She really should have just knocked.
Alex fought a smile as she tried to work out his identity. She wouldn’t. He would have recognized her voice if fear hadn’t raised her pitch to ear-piercing levels. The moonlight slanting across the yard let him see those crystal blue eyes he’d know anywhere. Her pouty lips frowned while she studied him.
Disappointment tugged at his chest as she continued to stare.
“Alex. Alex Whitman,” he finally supplied, letting her go and holstering his gun. It still took her a few seconds; he saw the moment it clicked and her lips turned upward into a kick-you-in-the-gut smile. She threw her arms around him with so much zest it knocked him back a step. Without hesitating, he wrapped his arms around her waist, immediately noticing the softness of her curves as she pressed against him. Bending his knees a little as she hung on, he breathed in the sweet combination of fruity shampoo and cold air.
“Wow. Alex. You’re a cop!” she said with a laugh, her voice now closer to what he remembered from high school. She released him and stepped back, the smile brightening her face. His hands hung at his sides as he took her in. Her delicate cheekbones sat high, and though she’d filled out some, it was nothing more than how a woman should. She still looked like the girl he’d loved since sixth grade.
“Sheriff, actually. What are you doing here, Luce?”
“Sheriff? Seriously? Did you fire your dad?” Her eyes flashed with amusement even as she shivered. “No. He retired. I took over. It’s been a long time.”
“Yup. Seemed like a good time to visit,” she remarked, her eyes looking away as she rubbed her hands up and down her arms briskly. He’d interrogated enough suspects to recognize avoidance. He shrugged out of his department jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders, which drew her eyes back to his. The hint of sadness in them made him want to pull her closer. That and the fact that it was Lucy.
“How long are you home for?” he asked, continuing to hold the lapels of the jacket while she shoved her arms in with a smile.
“I don’t know. We’ll see what happens. I can’t believe you’re sheriff, that you still live here … that you live next door to my parents.”
“It’s all true,” he nodded as he chuckled. He wasn’t surprised by her noncommittal timeframe. The only plans Lucy Aarons had ever made and kept were to get out of the small town that he’d grown to love.
The porch light came on, making them both squint in response.
“Evening, Mark,” Alex called as Lucy’s dad stepped out onto the wide porch. The sound of her dad’s voice made Lucy’s heart tumble in her chest. From the corner of her eye, she saw Alex watching her, but she couldn’t stop looking at her dad. It wasn’t like she hadn’t seen him for four years, thanks to Facebook and Skype, but nothing beat seeing him face to face.
“Who do you have there, Sheriff?” Mark Aarons asked as he squinted into the darkness, his mellow voice causing the goose bumps to reappear on her arms.
Until she’d been standing in front of him, it hadn’t occurred to her that she had missed him. She pulled away from Alex’s gentle grip to move toward her dad’s tall, lanky figure.
“It’s me, dad,” she muttered, shuffling into the light. He looked down from the top step, and she could see the gray peeking through his messy black hair. “Lucy!”
He stepped off the porch in a few long strides and then clamped his arms around her, squeezing her so tight she couldn’t say a word. As she rested her head on his wide shoulder, she didn’t know what she would have said, even if there weren’t a golf ball-sized lump lodged in her throat.
“You’re home,” he whispered, as if he’d been waiting for her this whole time. His warmth seeped through her, settling her hammering heart. “For now,” she replied more out of habit than belief.
“We’ll take what we can get.” He laughed and kissed the top of her head.
“Do I want to know why the sheriff brought you home, honey?” her dad asked, loosening his grip and pulling her into his side. Alex moved closer and she saw the yawn he tried to cover. He was not the meek shadow she’d met in sixth grade when he’d come to Angel’s Lake to live with his dad. And he definitely wasn’t the gangly teen she’d graduated with.
“Caught her lurking around the yard,” Alex joked, smiling warmly at her father. They were clearly comfortable with each other, and she found herself wondering how long Alex had lived next door and why neither of her sisters had mentioned it. A hot next-door neighbor seemed like a sisterly thing to mention. She narrowed her eyes at him, but he just winked at her, making her stomach dip.
“Funny, Sheriff. Don’t forget to mention the part where you manhandled me.” He frowned at her and looked appropriately sheepish. She turned back to her dad. “Dad, where’s the key? It’s always on the edge of the brick behind the flower bushes,” she complained. The wind was picking up, making the spicy scent of Alex’s cologne drift up from his jacket. She pulled the collar tight, inhaled deeply, and had to stop herself from sighing with pleasure.
“It’s not safe to leave a key out like that. Even in a small town,” Alex answered first. Her dad laughed and the sound brought a flash of childhood memories to her mind. Lucy grinned.
“Yes. Sheriff Whitman admonished us straight away when he moved in six months ago. He spotted the key and gave us a stern warning.”
Lucy caught a glimpse of Alex’s slight blush at her dad’s teasing. She watched him shuffle his feet and adjust his stance. Hmm, maybe a little of the boy from high school is still in there.
“You should get some motion sensor lights as well, sir.” He looked at Lucy, studying her a moment, then said, “Now that I know you’re not trying to break in, I should go.” Alex nodded toward his own house.
“Long shift?” her dad asked. Lucy heard the concern in his voice and looked back and forth between the men.
“Usual. But there was trouble out at Old Man Cantry’s farm,” Alex said. He sighed and ran his hands through his hair, tousling it. She wondered if that was how he looked when he woke up in the morning. His gaze caught hers, and he arched his brow then continued. “Nothing major—kids being kids. I’ll be glad when Kate gets the youth center up and running so they have something to keep them busy. Somewhere else to hang out at night.” He looked back at his house again and covered a yawn.
Lucy pulled away from her dad and shrugged out of his jacket. She wondered if Alex and her younger sister Kate were close. When she handed him the jacket, his fingers swept over hers to accept it. She felt a shiver of a different kind—the slow, teasing kind that started in her belly and traveled up her arms. Their eyes locked again.
“It won’t be much longer now. She’s been working day and night, pulling her plans together,” Mark replied. Lucy’s stomach dipped at Alex’s intense look, but she stepped away from him and his delicious-smelling jacket. Her dad pulled her tightly against his side like he wasn’t mad about how long she’d been gone.
“Yeah, I said I’d help with some painting tomorrow, which means I should get some sleep,” Alex said. He turned to Lucy again, swinging his jacket over his shoulder. “Nice to have you home, Lucy. Maybe we can grab something to eat and catch up?” He gave her dad a quick glance after he said it, and she almost laughed. It had been a long time since she’d needed her dad’s permission for anything.
“Sure. That’d be great.” Her lips quirked when she added, “Thanks for not arresting me.” He grinned widely, making her belly flip-flop. “My pleasure. Get a key.” He winked at her before turning away.
Her dad hugged her tight as they watched him stride across the lawn back to his own two-story house with the same wide wraparound porch. As he got closer, motion lights flooded the yard. She chuckled and looked up to find her dad beaming. She noticed more lines creasing his eyes and mouth than she remembered from five years ago, but aging seemed to agree with him.
“You’re home,” he repeated, wearing a sappy grin. She laughed.
“I’m home.” Lucy gave hi
m another hard, quick squeeze before they moved toward the house. She kept the “for now” to herself this time. “Your mom is going to be thrilled.” He opened the door and let her go through first.
“Well, let’s surprise her in the morning because I really need some sleep.”
He gave her a playful nudge on the shoulder, his eyes crinkling from his smile. “Just be grateful you’re not sleeping in a cell.”
When the porch light went out next door Alex let himself into his own home. Tossing his keys on the wide-planked entry table, he tossed his jacket on one of the hooks he had hung in the hall. He didn’t let himself take a whiff to see if it smelled like her. Instead, he toed off his shoes. He yanked the hem of his shirt out of his pants, unbuttoning it as he walked over the oak hardwood floors he’d installed himself.
In his bedroom, he unloaded his gun, locked it up, and thought of the way Lucy had shivered in the cool night air. The way she’d laughed and given him a full-body hug. She looked good. Better than good. Long, rich-brown hair that tumbled down her back. Her face had matured with grace and filled out some. Her body … well, it had matured just fine, too, from what he could see in the moonlight and feel in her embrace.
He tossed his shirt into the laundry basket at the end of his king-size bed, and ran his hand over Furball, who purred in response. As he headed for the shower, he couldn’t get Lucy out of his head. He shrugged to himself as he blasted the water on hot and stepped under the spray. “Not the first time she’s consumed your thoughts,” he admitted. Tucking his chin, he let the water beat on his back and felt his muscles loosen.
The day had started out shitty. For the last month or so, the town’s population of teens had banded together to cause as much grief as they could. Alex wasn’t sure what had brought on the upsweep of petty vandalism, but the episodes were escalating. Today, he’d been called out to Mr. Cantry’s farm because of a fire. Cantry was as old as the town itself and was probably its longest living resident. His ramshackle chicken coop had been burned to the ground. If the fire department hadn’t responded so quickly, the damage could have spread beyond the small structure. There had been no good leads, which meant more paperwork for Alex. When he’d finally dragged his ass home, Lucy Aarons was the last person he’d expected to find. Now, rinsing away the worst of his day, the memory of Lucy’s arms wrapped around him and the feel of her hair grazing his cheek came back. Her subtle, alluring scent had stayed on his jacket just as she’d always stayed in a tiny corner of his brain and maybe even his heart.
“Don’t go there,” he warned as he rinsed his hair. He’d had a soft spot for her since grade school. Realistically, Alex knew better than most that some women weren’t the type to stick around. He was happy in Angel’s Lake. It was more than a town; it was his home, and the people in it were his family. He needed stability the way an addict craved his next fix and had since his mom had ditched him fifteen years ago. He’d never lose that desire to settle and stay settled. Lucy didn’t stay and she never settled. Still, when he crawled between his cool, navy sheets after pushing his disgruntled cat out of the middle of the bed, he fell asleep dreaming about her.
Chapter Two
Lucy gasped and tried to sit up, but the hand on her face held her down. Eyes wide open, she saw Kate. Her younger sister’s vibrant green eyes sparkled with mischief and absolute glee. Her fingers pinched Lucy’s nostrils together.
“‘Eriously?” Lucy gurgled. Kate nodded and removed her fingers.
“Fastest way to wake you up. You’re home!” she squealed, sounding closer to ten than twenty-one.
“I’m home but I’m not awake. Get off my bed.” Lucy pushed at her sister with her feet while trying to hide her head under the pillow, but she immediately regretted her actions when Kate applied pressure to the top of the pillow. She flailed her arms and Kate laughed and scooted off the bed before Lucy could smack her.
“You are such a brat.”
“Get up!” Kate bounced from one foot to the other.
“I’m up.” Lucy threw the pillow at her, but Kate tossed it back.
“Like out-of-the-bed up,” Kate added, unzipping Lucy’s suitcase and pawing through it. She tossed a bra at Lucy, followed by a pair of cotton underwear, a T-shirt, and black yoga pants.
“Hey!” Lucy protested when most of the clothing landed on her face. She threw the mountain of warm covers off her cozy body and sat up. Kate came back to her side and threw her arms around Lucy’s neck.
“You’re home,” she repeated.
“Yes, I’m home,” Lucy sighed. She gave Kate a tight squeeze.
“For now,” they said in unison. Lucy tried to glare at her sister but couldn’t pull it off. When had she gotten so beautiful? They shared the same cheekbones and hair, but Lucy could see features in Kate that she didn’t have. Her father’s elegant jaw and his long, straight nose instead of their mother’s button one. When had she transitioned from teen to woman? While you were wandering.
“I missed you. Or I did, until you woke me up.” She pushed at her sister’s shoulders, but Kate bounced back, undeterred.
“Missed you, too. Come on. Get up!” She stood and yanked Lucy’s arm while Lucy grabbed the pillow with her free hand and smacked her with it. Kate tried to keep a straight face as she told Lucy, “Mom’s making whole wheat, honey, and oat pancakes. Apparently, they help with stomach problems.”
Lucy scrunched her brows together. “I don’t have stomach problems.”
Kate nodded as she pulled Lucy’s clothes out of her suitcase and began loading them into the same dresser she’d used as a teen. Lucy stretched and, left with no other options, stood to get dressed.
“None of us do.” Kate laughed, tossing her long brown hair over her shoulder to look back at Lucy. Their mom was always on the lookout for the next non- existent problem to solve, often using her daughters as research for the self-help books she wrote.
Lucy pulled her top over her head and shook her hair out, figuring her slightly disheveled look was good enough for breakfast. She could use a shower, but that could wait.
“Are Charlotte and Luke coming over?”
Kate slipped two of her sister’s handmade paper-bead bracelets around her wrists and stretched her arm out to admire them. “They’ll be at the center later to help. I can’t believe you haven’t met baby Mia yet. These are gorgeous.”
“I can’t wait to meet her. Unlike you, I’ll just call her Mia. I think it’s fairly evident that she’s a baby.” Lucy tugged her covers up to the top of the bed and considered it made. She tried to ignore the pang of guilt that settled under her ribs when she thought of missing her niece’s birth. Looking back at Kate, she gestured toward the bracelets. “Those were made by the women of one of the tribes I photographed. It’s their primary source of income. Pretty amazing, actually.”
“They’re gorgeous. And look good on me,” she said. Lucy shook her head. The bracelets shifted on Kate’s wrist when she looped her arm through Lucy’s and pulled her down the stairs.
Her parents were chatting about motion lights as Lucy and Kate entered the kitchen. Lucy’s smile widened when her mom leaned in to kiss her dad on the cheek. Mark smiled up at his wife with the same fondness he always did, making Lucy grateful that some things really didn’t change.
“I’ll see how much—there she is!” Julie Aarons bubbled, catching sight of her middle daughter. She clapped her hands together and pressed them to her mouth. Her flowing mass of hair framed the soft angles of her ageless face. Lucy walked toward her, and Julie opened her arms, meeting her halfway. Her mom rocked side to side, holding tight as Lucy breathed in the fragrant combination of her mom’s favored Oil of Olay body wash and the still-percolating coffee. Nothing else made her feel more at home than those two smells. Tears pricked Lucy’s eyes as her mom continued the hug. She ran her hand up and down her mom’s back.
“Hi mom,” she croaked, surprised at how difficult it was to swallow the lump in her throat. Julie squeezed hard
er.
“About damn time you came home, missy,” her mom lectured without heat. She pulled back and looked Lucy up and down. “I missed you.” Lucy said. She hadn’t even realized how much.
“I thought of you once or twice, too,” Julie answered. When her eyes met Lucy’s, they were damp. Lucy bit her lip and looked over at her dad. “Hey dad.” Like her mom had, she gave him a kiss on the cheek. His hand came up to her hair and held her there for a moment.
“Hi, sweetheart. How’d you sleep?”
“Good. Really good.”
Kate brought her over a cup of black coffee, adding one more reason she adored her younger sister.
“Great. There goes all my attention now that the prodigal daughter is home,” Kate joked, stealing her dad’s last rectangle of toast before sitting on the opposite side of the table.
“I’m pretty sure you’re the reason I came home, brat,” Lucy reminded, sitting down beside her sister while their mom just beamed.
“Sit down, Julie. It’s not the first time we’ve all sat at the table. No reason to make a Hallmark moment of it,” Mark laughed at the way his wife stood, hands clasped, staring at her family.
“Oh, be quiet. It can’t be a Hallmark moment if Char isn’t here. I need all three of my girls for that. You look tired, Lucy,” she rambled, ignoring her daughter’s frown at the assessment. She ran her palm along Lucy’s cheek and added, “I can say that because I’m your mother. I have some tea that helps rebalance energies. I’ll make you some after you eat.”
Lucy shared a glance with her dad and Kate. Her mom had written several books on a multitude of topics that dealt with healing yourself, being yourself, and finding yourself. Lucy thought she needed to write one on how to lose yourself. She would make for great research for her mom—she’d spent several years trying to do just that.