We settled around the table. “This way, all the food and booze are handy,” Nina declared and dropped into one of the jewel-toned chairs I’d chosen to give the kitchen some color. The rest of us followed suit. As the first shot of tequila turned into the second, I found myself starting to relax.
“I approve of this taco bar,” Penny said around a mouthful. “But don’t expect this when it’s my turn to host.”
Bo made a pitcher of margaritas. “These are to help slow down how fast we all get plastered. I’d like to finish at least four tacos before that happens, as well as a boatload of the queso dip.”
We ate and talked, laughed and drank, and then we repeated it again and again. For a couple hours.
“Now that we’re all a little bit tipsy, let’s talk about the fact that Antonio kissed Elka today.”
As expected, they all gasped and every pair of eyes in the kitchen turned to me.
“Yes, he did. No, it didn’t mean anything.” Realizing how pathetic that sounded, I rushed to correct myself. “What I mean is, he probably did it to shut me up because we were arguing. Besides, I’m not interested.”
Max nodded and flashed a sincere smile. “Of course. I mean, who would be interested in a gorgeous but gruff man with a mile-wide protective streak?” She shrugged and pushed thick red locks off her shoulders. “Then again, he never dates anyone in town, so this is an interesting development.”
I shook my head, not wanting it to be any kind of development. “I’ve had a lifetime of feeling like I’m not good enough and I don’t intend to start my new life by falling for a guy who thinks I’m garbage.” That was more than I meant to say, and instantly I felt my cheeks flame. I knew my face was a bright shade of humiliation, with a hint of overshare-pink. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be,” Nina said with a smile that felt sincere and a little mischievous. “Now is the time to share. To unburden yourself in the presence of friends and booze.”
That sounded nice. Except we weren’t friends. “You don’t even know me.”
“We know enough to know you’re a good person. But we could be true friends if you wanted to share.”
“Only if you want to,” Bo added firmly, a determined look aimed right at Nina.
“Duh,” Nina replied with a roll of her eyes, which then slid to me. “Whatever you’re comfortable sharing.”
“But talking helps,” Penny added with a kind smile that helped me relax a little bit more.
If TV and movies were anything to go by, there was a certain level of catharsis in talking about your problems. It had helped with Austin, at least much as I let myself confide in him. Or anyone. So I grabbed the bottle of tequila and poured myself a shot before sliding the bottle to Max. I knocked it back, took a big sip of margarita, and then I spilled my guts. “I grew up sheltered—very sheltered—because my parents wanted me to be healthy.”
Max and Penny, both mothers, shared a sympathetic look I understood all too well. Parents would do anything, no matter who else got hurt, to save a dying child.
“Understandable,” Penny whispered and knocked back her own shot.
“Not just healthy though. Pristine. I couldn’t go outside or have any friends. The few I managed to make while I was in school, I couldn’t hang out with them. Kids are filthy and full of germs.” Just hearing my mother’s voice say those words drove me to another gulp of margarita.
Nina frowned and leaned in. “Were you sick as a baby?”
Here it was—the moment of truth. I could just say yes and let my parents seem like heroes doing the right thing for their child and never make any real connections with people. Or I could be honest and deal with the pity. New life, new me. “No. My older brother Austin was. There was so much wrong with him and the only way to keep him alive was to ensure he had healthy parts that were as close to a genetic match as possible.”
“No,” Bo whispered and covered her mouth, eyes wide with shock and dismay.
“Yep. They had me to be all the spare parts he could ever need.” Tears began to well in my eyes but I had to push through. “I don’t hate Austin though. Not at all. He made life as fun as it could be for me, but my parents didn’t care if I was happy, just that I was healthy. When he died and I no longer held a purpose in their lives, I left.” I closed my eyes to ward off all the pity I knew I would see in theirs. I couldn’t handle it.
Nina spoke first. “Those assholes!”
“How could they?” Max said, echoing Nina’s sentiments.
First one eye opened and then the other, surprised to see not one ounce of pity. Only sympathy, kindness, and outrage.
“They wanted to save Austin and I didn’t mind helping him. I loved him. It just would have been nice if they loved me just a little too.”
Penny and Max both reached for me as I reached for the bottle of tequila, finally understanding the anesthetic effect of alcohol on emotions.
“They shouldn’t have done that.” Penny’s words were firm and filled with emotion.
“No, they shouldn’t have. But they did and that’s my story. Now, though, I think I need more tacos and less talking.”
“I never say no to more tacos,” Max said, taking two from the platter and moving them in front of me. “Let’s eat while Penny and Nina make us jealous by talking about all the hot sex they’re getting.”
My face flamed again and this time I didn’t hide it. I just laughed along with my new friends and listened as they shared the highs and lows of their lives without holding back.
It was nice, and for the first time since I got here, Tulip felt like home.
Antonio
A full day had passed and I couldn’t stop thinking about that kiss. That. Kiss. It was a momentary lapse in sanity. That was the only explanation. But there was no damn explanation for the way Elka responded to it. The way she pressed those sweet little curves up against me and clung to me, like she couldn’t get enough of my touch or taste, burned me until it felt like my whole body was on fire.
And to top it all off, it wasn’t just your average kiss—not in any fucking way. She wasn’t the seductress she seemed, or that I had pegged her to be based on the fight in the Black Thumb. Her kiss was unskilled, unsophisticated, almost clumsy. It had to be an act. There was no way I would let myself be fooled by a pretty face and a hot body. Not again. I’d been down that road once before and had no interest in going back.
Not again. No way. No fucking thanks.
There was no way a woman as vibrant and passionate as Elka could truly be that unskilled. It was a damn kiss. Every girl in Tulip had known exactly how to kiss from the age of fifteen, younger for a few of the faster girls. “Doesn’t matter,” I told myself and shook all thoughts of the tiny blond from my mind.
“What doesn’t matter?” Tyson stood in the door to my office wearing a shit-eating grin.
“Nothing,” I growled in response, unwilling to talk about what, or rather who, was plaguing my mind. “You need something?”
He nodded, but his expression was unreadable. “Come with me.”
“Where are we going?”
Tyson cast me a look with laughter burning in his eyes. “Have I ever led you astray?”
“You mean other than the time you convinced me to go with you into the mountains and we were lost for two days? Or when we jumped off that cliff into ice-cold water only to find there was no safe way out? Other than that …” I stroked my chin thoughtfully. “Nope.”
His outburst of laughter surprised me as it echoed around the room. “Exactly. So follow me.”
What the hell else was I gonna do when the guy was my best friend and my boss? I followed him out of the station and into his SUV cruiser that sat in the spot closest to the door. “Now that we’re going, care to tell me where?”
“Nope. I’d rather it be a surprise.” He flashed the smile that had won him the job of sheriff just eighteen months ago.
“Sometimes I wonder why I keep you around.”
“Because
I’m the only one who’ll put up with your grumpy ass.” He laughed but we both knew it was true. Tulip was a small town and I didn’t have enemies, but people didn’t knock down my door to hang out anymore. They also didn’t ignore me when I managed to show up, which I considered a win. Mostly. “We’re answering a call.”
Those words allowed my shoulders to relax a little, for about a minute, and then we turned onto a very familiar block. My block. “What in the hell, Tyson?”
He grinned again. “That’s sheriff to you, deputy.”
I rolled my eyes at his joking words but I couldn’t ignore the way my heart raced so hard it was difficult to breathe, wondering which of my neighbors was hurt or injured. Maybe worse. “Okay, sheriff, what’s going on?”
Because friends were put on this earth to test your patience, Tyson took a long breath as he maneuvered the car to the curb and pushed the gear shift into park. “Paul Brinkley called and said he was worried the new hippie chick on the block might hurt herself trying to move a piece of furniture on her own.”
It was Elka. Of course it was Elka. Who else would be conspiring with the universe to screw up my day? “You needed my big strong muscles to fill in where yours fail, old man?”
“One damn year,” he muttered and jumped out of the driver’s seat. Tyson was already jogging up the stone pavers by the time I stepped from the car. As I caught up with him near the porch, he and Elka were deep in conversation. “Need some help?”
She eyed Tyson suspiciously and when her gaze landed on me, it was equal parts suspicion, heat, and fear. “Nope. I’m good,” she said breezily. “But thank you for the offer.”
The damn thing was a dresser or maybe an armoire—one of those big-ass wooden things that held a lot of crap. It was as wide as Elka was tall, with about a hundred different drawers in all sizes. “What in the hell is this thing?”
She whirled around and cocked a strawberry blond brow at me. All I could see was the swell of her creamy cleavage peeking above the top of her thin white shirt and damn near nonexistent cutoff shorts. “It’s none of your concern, deputy.” The glare she sent me would have made a lesser man wilt, but I stood taller and took a step closer.
“I’m making it my business.”
“Since moving furniture is not a law enforcement matter, you don’t have the power to make it your business.” She turned to Tyson and her expression softened. “Thanks for your concern, sheriff, but I’ve got it. Really.” Arms crossed, she leaned against the wooden monstrosity and stared at us. Waiting. Impatiently. When neither of us moved, Elka rolled her eyes with a growl. “Okay, now you’re just trespassing.”
Tyson knocked his head back and let out a long, loud laugh that would have drawn the neighbors if they weren’t already out sneaking a look. “Goodness, but you are a spitfire, little Elka.”
She was unamused and that only made it harder to suppress my own amusement. “See you around.” Elka turned back to the wooden monstrosity and began to push with all her might. It budged but only barely. Elka was, of course, undeterred. She grunted and groaned, moving one side and then the other, an inch at a time.
Tyson looked at me and his eyebrows rose in question as if to ask, “Are we really gonna watch her do this?” I just shrugged and nodded, willing to enjoy the view for a little while longer.
“You sure you don’t want our help?” Tyson asked after a long wait, his voice low and soothing just in case she decided to yell.
“Positive.” There was a hint of excitement that she’d gotten it up another step. “Almost there.”
“This is ridiculous. Where is this thing going?” As nice as the view was, I didn’t want to waste all damn day watching her struggle to get the oversized box inside her house.
Elka glared at me over her shoulder. “Inside my house, deputy.”
I looked to Tyson. “You get the left and I get the right?”
His gaze slid to Elka and the box and then back to me before he flashed a look that said, “it’s your funeral,” and stepped up to the left side of the box. “Excuse me, sweetheart.”
“Stop! I didn’t ask for your help and I don’t want it. Step back, please.” Her hands shook right along with her voice and we both stopped.
“We just want to help,” Tyson attempted to soothe.
“I know. I know but … I’ve gotten it this far on my own.” Her gaze slid to mine and then back to Tyson’s. “But thank you,” she added again, polite as ever.
Tyson looked at me with that decision-maker look on his face and my shoulders slumped forward. “Go give dispatch an update and get a status on the others, will ya?”
I knew exactly what he was doing. It churned my gut that Tyson had to get rid of me just to possibly talk some sense into Elka. Instead of giving him shit like I wanted to, I nodded and turned on my heel, walking slowly to the cruiser so I could hear the next part of the conversation. Tyson clocked my behavior right away and arched a brow to hurry me along. Damn him.
Waiting for the other cars to check in with dispatch took some time and I refused to turn back to Tyson and Elka, not even when her laugh floated on the breeze. I swear she was taunting me and I refused to let it happen, especially in front of Tyson who would never let me live it down. But I knew I couldn’t stay in the cruiser forever, so I took a deep breath and made my way up the familiar set of steps.
“Hey, where did you go?” I asked.
“Down here,” Tyson called out. “Make it fast.”
His voice was thick and strained and I was on the move. “Where?”
“Make a left inside the kitchen,” Elka called out, her voice filled with annoyance. “It’s the open door.”
As much as I wanted to, I didn’t take my time to scope out Elka’s place. There would be time for that later. For now, Tyson needed my help. “How did this happen?” The wooden monstrosity barely fit in the stairwell and Elka was having a hell of a time hanging on to it so it didn’t squash Tyson.
“Explanation later, deputy.” Her attitude was in tact and if not for the fear and strain swimming in her eyes, I would have given her hell. “Some help would be appreciated.”
“Would it?”
She arched a brow. “I imagine the sheriff would be grateful for it.”
“She’s right,” he bit out, voice full of strain.
Immediately, I was behind Elka and gripping the monstrosity. “On your word, Tyson. We’ve got you, don’t we, Elka?” I felt her body trembling beneath mine. I shoved the thought aside. For now.
Elka gave me a quick look over her shoulder before she turned to Tyson with a nod. “Yep. Totally got you, sheriff.”
“Thanks, Elka.” He gave her a wink and Elka sucked in a deep breath.
“Ready.” It took about a minute to get the monstrosity down the staircase and another two to get it into the small corner space in the back, but then it was done. “Thank you both for your help,” she said with her shoulders squared and her chin tilted up.
“Our pleasure,” Tyson told her with an exhausted smile.
“I have some fresh peach lemonade and chunky chili if you’d like to take a quick break?” Her gaze avoided me altogether so, of course, I had to screw with her.
“Sure, we’d love to. Thanks.”
Elka froze and finally, slowly, her gaze swung to mine. “No problem. I appreciate your help, sheriff.” Then she turned and jogged up the stairs, leaving me staring at her sweet round ass.
“You’ve got your work cut out for you, man.” Tyson slapped me on the back and laughed far too hard. Damn him.
I didn’t say anything because he was right. I didn’t know why I wanted to win Elka over, only that I did.
Very much.
Elka
Why did I invite them to stay for lunch when I hadn’t asked for help in the first place? Upbringing, plain and simple. In addition to making sure that I was the fittest little girl in all the world, my parents had drilled manners and etiquette into me until it was habit. Apparently, distance wasn�
��t a cure for that particular habit, so now I was having lunch with the sheriff who was nice enough—friendly as well as charming. And Deputy Vargas who yelled at me, pulled a gun on me, and then kissed me. Somehow my body couldn’t help but respond to him.
Especially when I thought about his body—so big and so, so hard against my back as we got my work table into the basement. Deputy Vargas was a delicious specimen of a man, well-muscled, sculpted even, if those big arms that had bracketed me were any indication. But they weren’t just big and strong, they were steady too, never trembling as we got the table to the bottom of the steps and into its final resting spot. Damn him.
“Do you need any help?” Sheriff Henderson was a nice guy and sharing a meal with him was no hardship. He was handsome as sin, with deep green eyes. Plus, the whole badge-and-uniform thing made him practically irresistible. To some women, but not me.
Definitely not me, because men weren’t on the agenda right now.
Not at all.
I scanned the kitchen and shook my head. “I’ve got it covered, thanks. Have a seat and take care of that thirst, sheriff.”
He winked. “Why thank you, Elka.” The man was incorrigible, and I rolled my eyes at him.
Rather than pay attention to Deputy Vargas as he entered the kitchen, I pulled the cooking pot from the heater and set it on the table so everyone could serve themselves. Next, I pulled out the grated sharp cheddar, scallions, and jalapeno peppers, and placed it all on the table with bowls and spoons. “Dig in, guys.”
The sheriff frowned. “You’re not eating with us?” His spoon fell back into the bowl and I waited for what he had to say next. “If you’re uncomfortable with us being here, Elka …”
“No, it’s not that, sheriff. I need to get things set up downstairs so the rest of my work day flows smoothly. Thanks to your help, I can. Seriously, enjoy it.” I hadn’t planned to eat until much later. Now that I could make my own choices, I ate when hunger struck and not a minute sooner, which meant I could get lost in my work until my stomach growled its displeasure.
Mr. Cop: An Enemies to Lovers Romance Page 6