AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I guess so.”
“We have security on the grounds. If you can tell me his name and what he looks like, I can have the guards looking out for him. You don’t have to, of course, it’s just an offer. Either way, you’re safe here. He won’t be able to get to you.”
“He’ll find a way. Maybe not here, but eventually.”
The words spilled from her lips before she could stop them.
“He won’t,” the sheriff said, his tone firm. “I don’t tolerate any bullshit in my town. While I can’t push him out the door in a hurricane, I sure as hell can keep him away from you. That’s a non-negotiable.”
“Are you so sure about everything in life?”
“No, but I’m sure about this.”
He believed what he was saying. He was convinced that he could, and she wanted him to be right more than anything.
She closely studied this man that had probably saved her life tonight. She hadn’t really looked at him until now when she might be able to breathe a little easier. Maybe not look over her shoulder every single second. For some stupid reason, she believed him when he said that she’d be safe with him.
Crazy, huh?
She’d thought she’d left her optimism somewhere long ago.
He was tall, with dark hair that curled a little at the nape of his neck, and a strong jaw that gave him a rugged look to go along with his slightly crooked nose. How had he broken it? In his job or maybe playing sports? She also cataloged a small scar near his right eyebrow, and another on his left arm above the elbow.
She had a strange and sudden urge to run her finger along it, which was insanity. She barely knew this guy, and she was admiring his looks. And he wasn’t hard to look at.
His shoulders were wide, and his t-shirt bunched when he moved, showing off the play of muscles underneath the fabric. At some point when he’d been downstairs, he must have changed out of his wet clothes.
He was in top physical condition, and that did assuage some of her fears. If Kevin did show up, this man was in far better shape and could protect her if she needed it. But she hoped that was a situation that wouldn’t come up.
“I think you’ve probably been through a lot.”
“You have no idea.”
She didn’t elaborate. The man was nice, but he’d be a memory when she left in the morning. A pleasant memory, of course, but this wasn’t some place she was going to stay. She’d be gone, and she had a future to think about. This was part of the past that she was running from.
“Sometimes it helps to talk to someone that isn’t involved. I don’t have a dog in this fight other than keeping you safe.”
“Spill my troubles to a stranger?” she laughed awkwardly, sitting on the couch and leaning back into the cushions. She’d been driving for hours in lousy weather, tense and scared. Every bone and muscle in her body ached, and she just wanted to live someone else’s life instead of her own. “Do you think that would help?”
“I don’t know,” he said, sitting on the other end of the sofa. “I’m just trying to help here.”
“Sheriff—”
“Grant,” he said. “My name is Grant.”
“Grant,” she repeated. “That’s a good name. You said you have brothers?”
“I do. Ace, Justin, and Trey.”
“No sisters?”
“Nope. Just brothers. What about you?”
She knew what he was doing. He was trying to make small talk, drawing her out slowly.
“A brother and a sister. I haven’t talked to them in a long time.”
She missed them. At one point, her sister had been her best friend.
