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There was a rap at the door.
“Come on in, Richard,” her dad called out.
Once again, the door opened, and this time a man she guessed was in his early thirties strode in. He was fairly tall with light brown hair, styled so perfectly it looked like it’d stay in shape through a hurricane. His trim body was clothed in the tan sheriff’s deputy uniform issued by the town.
“Holly, this is Deputy Richard Schwartz. Deputy, this is who I was telling you about, my daughter, Holly.”
“Well, Doug, she certainly is as pretty as you described. Hello there.” He held out a hand for her.
Oh, Jesus. A set-up? Really? Holly cast a side-eyed glance at her father before holding her hand out. The sheriff was positively beaming which pretty much guaranteed Holly wanted nothing to do with this guy. Her idea of a suitable date and her father’s were worlds apart.
“It’s uh, nice to meet you.” She slipped her hand into Richard’s larger one. Immediately, he closed his palm and held her tight. For the first time since the deputy stepped in the room, she shifted her focus to his face. Deep blue eyes bore into hers and a grin that could only be described as smug tilted his lips.
“I’ve heard a lot about you. Been looking forward to this moment for the past few weeks.”
This moment? They were having a moment? And why had he heard of her but not the other way around?
“Guess what?” he said, still holding her hand as he slid into the seat Shell had vacated.
Holly cleared her throat. “What?”
“We are going out tomorrow night.”
She blinked? Did the man just order her on a date? Arrogant asshole. “I’m sorry?” she said.
“Yeah, honey, I told Richard you were new in town and didn’t have any plans tomorrow night. He jumped right in and offered to take you to dinner. Isn’t that great?”
Uh, no?
She actually did have plans tomorrow night. She planned to work on a few new recipes before her meeting with the owner of the diner LJ had recommended. Showing up to an interview of sorts with a box of deliciousness was never a bad idea. And she wanted some new and exciting creations to offer.
But one look at her father’s hopeful gaze and Holly fell into a pattern over a decade in the making. The one where she couldn’t say no to her parents because she couldn’t bear to bring them any further sadness or heartache than they’d already suffered.
“Sure is. What time were you thinking, Richard?”
He flashed her a conceited victory smile she wanted to smack off his face. But that meant she’d have to touch him and had no desire to do so. Though the ass still had a firm grip on her hand. In fact, he was now stroking a thumb over her wrist.
What was this guy’s deal?
“I’m working until seven-thirty. How about I pick you up at eight?”
No way, no how did she want to be stuck in a car with this guy at the end of the night, dependent on him to return her home without demanding a kiss or worse. Granted, she might be overreacting to the situation, but the whole thing felt like a slimy set-up she wanted no part of. Hell, the moment she walked out the door, her dad and Deputy Richard would probably high-five and share a glass of scotch to celebrate a plan well executed.
“How about you get my number from my dad and text me the address of where to meet you. That’ll save you some time.”
For the first time since he walked in the room, some of the wind seemed to leech out of Richard’s sails. “I don’t know…”
“Please?” She asked with a smile. “I’m trying to learn my way around town, and I find it helpful to drive everywhere.”
Lame.
“Well, I guess I can approve of that.”
Seriously?
God, now she was going to have to let down her father’s subordinate at the end of the night. Nothing awkward about that.
“Great.” Holly stood, tugging her hand out of Richard’s grasp. “Then I’m going to head out. Lots to do this afternoon. Nice to meet you, Richard.”
As he went to reach for her hand again, she stuck it in her pocket and backed toward the door. “Bye, Dad.”
“Bye, Holly.”
Before either man could comment further, Holly slipped out of the room.
Not for the first time in the few days since she’d moved to Townsend, she wondered if she’d made a mistake. The grip her parents had on her life was clearly unhealthy, and it was time to start setting some boundaries.
But how was she supposed to tell the two people who already lost one daughter that the remaining one didn’t need them nearly as much as they wished she did?
CHAPTER FIVE
LJ STEPPED OUT of his apartment into the cooling evening air at the same moment Holly emerged from her place. Also in that instant, his cock filled to rock hard because…holy hell, the woman was on a mission to make all men in a ten-mile radius hard as stone tonight.
