No Ordinary Sheriff

by Mary Sullivan

  “She’s really smart.”

  She’s brilliant. Intelligent. Clever.

  “She wants to put the bad guys away.”

  She wants to annihilate them.

  “She wants everyone to be good and be happy.”

  She wants to save the world.

  “So how come you don’t want to be with her?”

  I don’t know.

  On the drive home, just as they turned down the long driveway to his house, Austin said, “I think you’re scared, Cash.”

  “What?”

  “I think you’re scared to be with Shannon. Why?”

  He parked the car, the question speeding his pulse. “Scared? Forget it. Why would I be scared?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Well, I’m not,” he spat out on his way to the house. Austin followed him inside.

  He tossed his coat onto the back of the sofa.

  “You want me to hang that up for you?”

  “No,” Cash yelled. “I’m not scared, got it?”

  Austin spread his hands. “Okay.”

  “It’s not okay. Why would you even say that?”

  He stomped into the bathroom and slammed the door. When he finished, he washed and dried his hands and strode back to the living room, the question nagging at him.

  “Why did you say that?”

  Austin looked up from the comic he was reading. “Like I said, I’ve been watching you, Cash. You just seem scared and I wanted to know why.”

  The kid was right. Cash fell back into the armchair. What Austin said rang with the force of truth, flooring him. He really was afraid.

  He hunched forward and put his head into his hands. Why?

  His childhood ran through his mind, all of it, everything that he’d explained to Austin over pizza flashed through him and took shape.

  He sat up and stared at Austin, the answer almost blinding in its simplicity.

  Oh Lord, out of the mouths of babes. The simplicity of the truth stunned him.

  At the end of his life, Francis Kavenagh had come to a place of peace. In the middle of her life, Cash’s mother had done the same. But Cash hadn’t. Oh, maybe on the surface. Maybe in some superficial sense. But he had only come to a pseudo-peace because he had never challenged himself, had never challenged his life. He’d found himself a safe corner of the world to hide out in and had burrowed in, had stuck his head in the sand like an overgrown ostrich.

  All along he’d been afraid that if he started a true, deep relationship with a woman, not a facsimile of what he thought a good marriage looked like, he stood the chance of failing by repeating the mistakes his parents had made.

  He couldn’t have handled that. He couldn’t have stood to go through his childhood again.

  But he wouldn’t have.

  His dad had wanted to be the big man, the charming popular guy, the one at the top who everyone had to look up to.

  Shannon just wanted to catch the bad guys. Her ambitions hadn’t really been a problem for him, he’d used them as an excuse to hide behind.

  Cash just wanted her, but was afraid to take that one big step.

  Shannon wasn’t his dad. Cash wasn’t his dad. They were two strong, healthy people who could rise above their backgrounds to forge a healthy relationship.

  But they could only do that if they lived in the same place.

  He loved Ordinary, he loved his family here, but when all was said and done, he’d been hiding. He smiled at Austin, at this quietly caring boy. “When did you get so smart?”

  * * *

  CASH WAS NOT his father and never had been. He was highly moral, ethical, responsible. He was, and had been since Dad left when he was sixteen, his own man.

  “Come on,” he said, jumping back up from the sofa. “Let’s go to bed. First thing after breakfast, pack a bag. Okay?”

  “Why?”

  “You’re going to stay on a ranch for a few days.”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah. Let’s go see whether C.J. Wright will put you up on a horse.”

  Austin punched the air and ran to his bedroom.

  When Cash got up in the morning, Austin was already sitting in the living room waiting with his knapsack beside him.

  “What time did you get up?” Cash asked in a sleep-roughened voice. “The crack of dawn?”

  Austin smiled and nodded so hard a lock of hair fell onto his forehead.

  “Did you eat?”

  Austin nodded again.

  “Okay. Give me a couple of minutes to get ready and we’ll head over.”

  Half an hour later, Austin climbed into the front seat of the pickup and Paddy jumped onto his lap. Danny climbed into the backseat. Cash put a huge bag of dry dog food into the bed along with leashes and anything else C.J. might need.

  Cash drove to the Wright ranch, screeching into their front yard. Now that he’d made his decision to leave, he couldn’t seem to do anything slowly.

  Liam answered the door. “Hey, Cash. Hey, Austin. What’s up?”

  “Are your parents still in bed?”

  “Nope. Everyone’s in the kitchen having breakfast.”

  “Can you go get them?”

  Liam looked puzzled. “Why don’t you come in?”

  Cash didn’t have time. He wanted to go, but he also knew there were things he had to take care of first.

  He and Austin entered the kitchen behind Liam.

  “You okay, Cash?” C.J. asked when he saw Cash’s face.

  “Yeah. Great. Finally.”

  C.J. looked worried. “You want to tell me what’s going on?”

  “I need to ask you a big favor. Can you keep Austin with you for a few days?”

  “Sure. Of course. Where are you going?”

  Janey grinned at him and Cash grinned back. She knew. “I’m going to Billings to see Shannon.”

  “No, Cash,” Janey said, but he stopped her.

  “Yes. I have to see her.”

  “I know. Just don’t go to Billings. She got a promotion. She’s working out of the Denver office. She took an apartment there.”

  “A promotion?” Considering how much he used to hate ambition, he thought it would anger him, but no. It filled him with pride. Shannon was good at her job and she deserved it.

  Janey took out an address book and a sticky notepad from a kitchen drawer.

  She scribbled quickly, tore off one sheet and handed it to him.

  “Thanks.” Cash took the note. “Can I ask you another favor, C.J.?”

  “Sure.”

  “Can you teach Austin to ride while I’m gone?”

  “Be glad to.” He smiled at Austin. “I’ve got a great little lady in the stable who’d love to take you riding.”

  “I’m sorry to ask, but can you also take care of Paddy and Danny?”

  Sierra and the twins perked up.

  “Where are they?” Sierra asked.

  “Out in the truck. You want to let them out?”

  “Yeah.” The kids ran out front and a few seconds later the sound of joyous barking rang out.

  “I’m sorry to do this to you, C.J.”

  “Don’t worry about it, Cash.”

  “I’ll help take care of them,” Austin said, so damn eager to please anyone who gave him anything.

  “I’ll call and let you know how things go with Shannon.”

  “Good luck, Cash. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.”

  Liam said, “Come on, Austin. I’ll show you to my room. That’s where the spare bed is.”

  “Cool.”

  Cash snagged Austin before he followed Liam up the stairs and pulled him into a rough hug. “Thanks, kid,” he whispered agai
nst his hair. “I’ll never forget this.”

  “Say hi to Shannon for me.”

  “You bet.”

  Austin followed Liam upstairs.

  The children and the dogs ran into the house. The noise level escalated.

  “So, you’re finally going to take the plunge?” C.J. asked.

  Cash grinned. “Yup.”

  C.J. slapped him on the back.

  Janey hugged him.

  The children gathered round and hugged him.

  Little Ben squeezed in between two of his sisters and wrapped his arms around Cash’s knees. “Are you going swimming, Uncle Cash?”

  Cash reached down and touched Ben’s hair. “Swimming?”

  “Yeah, Dad said you’re going plunging.”

  Cash threw his head back and laughed. He was swimming all right, in great huge waves of love, in a flood of happiness that felt so right.

  * * *

  HE DROVE INTO Ordinary and parked in front of the Ordinary Citizen’s office.

  Timm stood up from the computer he’d been working at.

  “Hey, Cash? What can I do for you?”

  Cash was here to talk to Timm as a friend, but also as Mayor of Ordinary.

  “I’m leaving.”

  “Leaving? On vacation?”

  He shook his head. “For good. You need to hire a new sheriff.”

  “What? But why?”

  “I’m going to Denver to convince Shannon Wilson to marry me.”

  Timm slapped his hand on the counter. “It’s about time you found someone. So, you’ve fallen for her, have you?”

  “So damn hard it hurts.”

  Timm laughed. “I’m happy for you, Cash. Love looks good on you. I hope she says yes.”

  “Me, too.”

  “Think she will?”

  Cash rubbed his chest with one hand. “I hope so.” She’d said she loved him. That implied forever, right?

  “It will be hard to find a sheriff,” Timm said. “It’s been hard enough just getting another cop here to work as deputy.”

  “I know.” Getting, and keeping cops, in small-town Montana was a real problem.

  “We’ve got a deputy starting tomorrow.”

  “You finally found one?”

  “Yes. Can you stay until then?”

  No.

  “Sure.”

  “Good. In the meantime, bring Wade up to speed on your duties until the new guy arrives. Give him a quick rundown on the job and then you’ll be good to go.”

  Cash left Timm’s office to walk down to his own. He found Hanlon inside.

  “Wade, I’ve got good news and bad news. Which do you want first?”

  “Let’s get the bad news out of the way.”

  “I’m leaving. I’ve got two days max to fill you in on the Sheriff’s position.”

  “Sheriff’s position?”

  “That’s the good news. If you do a good job, you’ll likely be elected to that position. Mayor Franck just informed me that we have a new deputy starting tomorrow. He’s going to try to hire a sheriff from elsewhere, but I don’t think it’ll work. I think you’ll get another deputy instead, in which case, you can run for Sheriff.”

  Wade looked dazed, but sat down beside Cash at the computer.

  Cash spent the day filling him in, all while he just wanted to be gone.

  At six, Timm called and invited him to Chester’s for a beer. Why not? He sent Wade home to sleep.

  Cash decided to sleep in the office tonight. If there were any problems in town, he could take care of them.

  He sure as hell didn’t want to go home to his empty house. He’d dreamed of filling it with children. Now, someone else would have to. He hoped like crazy he’d be starting a family in Denver with Shannon. Funny how leaving that little house and piece of land didn’t hurt as much as he’d thought it would.

  On the way to Chester’s, he noticed a light still on in the real estate office and stopped in to put the house on the market.

  After that was done, he went to the restaurant. When he stepped inside, his jaw dropped. Most of the town was there.

  Timm approached.

  “What’s going on?” Cash asked. “Why is the place so busy tonight?”

  “For you, Cash. They’re all here to say goodbye. You didn’t give us much time to plan a party.”

  “My God, this is for me?”

  He walked through the crowd of smiling friends, shaking hands and accepting drinks and well-wishes. The generosity of these people overwhelmed him. How was he so deserving of this?

  Dad must have been right when he’d said he’d heard that Cash was well-respected as a lawman.

  I’m proud of you, Dad had said.

  Yeah, Cash believed that now. Frank had understood his own limitations and would have had no trouble admitting to himself that his son made a better cop than he had.

  Cash was respected here as more than just a cop, though, but also as a friend. He’d made friends with just about everyone here.

  How could he possibly say goodbye?

  Nothing like this had ever happened to him before. When he’d left San Francisco, he’d left a lot of bad memories behind.

  But here? In Ordinary? They were all good memories. And would be so hard to leave behind.

  He spent the evening among these friends, bathed in more bonhomie and affection than ever before in his life. If he didn’t have Shannon to go to, leaving would have been impossible.

  At ten, after most of the crowd had gone home, he thanked Timm then walked down Main Street alone to the Sheriff’s office.

  In the quiet hush of the town, he thought of everything he’d loved about it.

  At the office, he took off his jacket then lay down on the cot in the jail cell. He stayed awake for hours. His life was about to change.

  In the stillness of the room, he almost imagined he could feel a thread running between himself and Shannon. They were connected. If he had his way, they would be for the rest of their lives.

  No calls came in that night.

  The new deputy showed up the next day. Cash welcomed him and put him through his paces. He continued to bring Wade up to speed on the sheriff’s duties.

  He stayed in the office again that night.

  The following morning, he drove out to the house, showered, shaved and packed his bags. Taking one last bittersweet look around, he left the house for good.

  Cash drove down Main Street, memories of everything he’d said, touched and done here rambling through his mind.

  It had been a great place to live.

  Any regrets, buddy?

  Not a one.

  He drove out of Ordinary to Denver, through Wyoming, with a few stops in Yellowstone park on the way.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  SHANNON DROVE HOME to her small apartment, dirty, exhausted, discouraged.

  The drug dealer she’d been tailing the past couple of weeks had slipped out of her grasp.

  She banged the steering wheel.

  To add insult to injury, she had to park a couple of blocks away from her low-rise apartment building.

  What, was there a convention in town and everyone just had to park on her street tonight?

  She trudged to her place, feeling the cold. She wouldn’t call it home. It was a few empty rooms that she slept in then got out of as quickly as possible the next day.

  She no longer liked being alone.

  Halfway down her street, she spotted a figure sitting on the concrete stairs into her building. Her steps slowed.

  Was it? It couldn’t be.

  He stood and stepped out under the streetlamp.

  It was.

  Cash.


  She stopped.

  He walked toward her.

  Her eyes drank him in, absorbed every detail they could when he stepped into circles of light from the streetlamps.

  She couldn’t move, only stare.

  Finally, a foot away from her, then an inch, he stopped. He took her into his arms and kissed her with a heat and hunger she’d never experienced, but which matched her own.

  She tasted, and tasted, and tasted more.

  Then she pulled away. “No. You can’t just come to Denver and expect to kiss me as if you have the right to.”

  “I do.” He kissed her again, stealing her breath.

  She pulled away again, but more slowly this time.

  “What makes you think you have that right?” she asked, her voice trembling.

  “I love you.”

  “You told me that before, but where did it leave us? Living hundreds of miles apart.”

  “It’s different this time.”

  “How?”

  “I want to live with you.”

  Wary, unwilling to hope, she asked, “Where?”

  “Here. In Denver. Or wherever you plan to go next. Wherever you are is where I will be.”

  “How? What happened?”

  “Can we go inside and talk? I’m frozen. I’ve been sitting on your doorstep for hours.”

  “Okay.”

  He wouldn’t let her walk alone. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and squeezed her against his side.

  At the apartment building, he picked up several bags.

  “Are you expecting to spend the week?” She wasn’t counting on anything yet. He had a lot of explaining to do.

  “Not expecting to, no.” He opened the outer door and she stepped in ahead of him to unlock the inner door. “I’m planning on it.”

  She looked at him under the foyer light. His nose was bright red. The rest of him was the brawny, strong man she found too attractive in his cowboy hat and sheepskin coat.

  “We’ll see,” she said, with an attempt at coolness, and walked up the stairs to the second floor. The building was ancient. No elevator. She’d rented it for its charm, for its old-fashioned appointments.

  He followed her, smiling the whole while. The man had something up his sleeve, but unless he had the right answers to her questions, she was booting him to the curb.

  He stepped inside her apartment. She locked the door behind them and hooked the chain.