Page 29 of Protect My Heart

“Well, if it’s not too much trouble.” His shy grin didn’t fool her. She would bet her favorite plum boots that the man planned this intrusion into her life with the same detail he interviewed witnesses.

She popped a Keurig cup into the machine and took his mug to place it on the coffee maker. “Nice mug, where’d you get it?”

“My sister, Michelle, she’s given me and my brother, Jordan, mugs for our birthdays for the last five years.”

“Are they all police themed?” She moved to the refrigerator to pull out eggs.

“Yeah, third generation cop, so it’s kind of a family joke.” At her confused look, he continued. “You know, coffee and donuts. The mug is usually accompanied by a dozen cream-filled pastries.”

Liz nodded. Jim slipped out of his coat and hung it on the back of the chair, while Tigger lay down on the rug by the sink. The man in front of her didn’t have a hint of a jelly donut belly. Heck, she bet he could bench press his body weight and run a marathon. Dangerous path her mind was winding down. Sexy lean cop sitting in her kitchen.

She cleared her throat and pulled the full cup of coffee from the machine. “Well, it’s great. I like it.”

His fingers brushed hers as the mug passed between them. She paused for the briefest of seconds as his thumb stroked her hand. “You should come over and see my full collection.”

A snort slipped out. “That was the cheesiest line I’ve ever heard. Has it ever worked?”

His lip tugged up at the corner. “You tell me––you’re the only woman I’ve tried it on.”

She highly doubted that, but the hint of sincerity in his eyes had her questioning herself. As they stood with a mug of coffee between them and the question hanging in the air, Liz wanted to say yes. The thought of having her morning coffee in a silly mug appealed to her. Who was she kidding? It was the thought of having Jim Swenson sitting next to her at the breakfast table that appealed. Screw the coffee.

That was never going to happen. He was a work associate and her cousin’s partner. And if nothing else, his being here has shown her he was as overbearing as her family. But damn if he wasn’t sexy.

Her phone rang. Saved by the bell. Liz stepped back and reached to grab her phone off the counter. Because no matter how hard she argued in her head that Jim was not for her, a ‘yes’ was forming on her lips as her mind spun excuses.

“Hello?” Doc answered the call and turned to face the counter.

Jim shouldn’t be flirting with her. Hell, she was so far out of his league that he could work his way up to Police Commissioner and still not afford a house like this monstrosity. The land this house sat on alone had to cost more than Jim made in ten years. Not to mention the chef’s kitchen and huge great room with the massive stone fireplace on the south wall.

Not smart, Jim. He needed to remember why he was here, but when she answered the door in that tiny sports bra...Damn, what’s a guy to do?

“Yes, I’ll come right over.” Doc’s brows were pulled in, and the frown marred her beautiful lips.

“What’s going on, Doc?” He asked when she ended the call.

“Someone broke into my storage unit last night. I need to see if anything’s missing.”

“I’m coming with you.” He could see the argument in her eyes, but she must have decided it wasn’t worth the fight. Smart girl. “Get dressed and I’ll put Tigger in the ice house.”

She nodded, gave Tig a quick rub on the head and went upstairs.

Jim would bet this break-in somehow tied in to the other incidents that happened to Doc. She needed him here more than she realized.

They took Jim’s truck and drove across town to the storage unit. They entered the office and introduced themselves to the manager.

“Dr. Garcia. I’m so sorry about this. We don’t usually have this kind of thing happen here.” Mr. Hauge rushed to greet them. He grabbed a key from under the counter and barely squeezed his belly through the opening to escort them to the storage unit.

Jim thought the guy could lay off the donuts and maybe if he actually walked the grounds once in a while instead of watching the security monitors, he might lose a few inches of girth. Not to mention prevent a crime.

“Did you have insurance in case anything is missing or damaged?”

“Yes.” She twisted a glove in her hands.

Mr. Hauge nodded as he climbed in a golf cart. Jim and Doc followed in his truck. The storage facility had five rows of units, each fifteen doors long. Doc’s was on the back row, four from the end. After the manager unlocked the new looking lock, he stepped back and let Doc enter the unit first. It was no bigger than a one car garage. Boxes he could tell had once been neatly stacked on the sides and back of the unit now lay in disarray, lids open and items tossed about. Her mattress lay in the middle, slashes ran the length of it and stuffing puffed out.

“How did you discover Doctor Garcia’s unit had been broken into?” Jim asked Mr. Hauge.

“When I came in this morning, I checked the monitors like I always do and noticed the unit door was open a foot. I drove out here. Sometimes customers don’t remember to lock the units and the wind will blow the doors open.”