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Chapter Five
Riley
The day that Joe Newman came to see me, we had ran into each other again as I left the building. We chatted about how his other conference went as we headed toward the parking lot, and then we had paused beside his car in the visitor spot.
“This might seem very forward of me, or inappropriate, so please tell me if it is, but I was wondering if maybe you’d be interested in going out sometime. I mean, if you’re allowed to date a student’s parent.”
“Well, we don’t have any specific restrictions against it, but I do have to remain unbiased to the student. I can’t give them special treatment if I am dating their father.”
“So, is that a yes?”
I nodded with a smile. “That’s a yes.”
“Are you busy Friday night?”
“I am busy Friday, but I have a birthday party to go to on Saturday. I’d love for you to come as my plus one or plus three. You could bring the kids if you’d like. There will be other children there.”
“Whose birthday?”
“Coral Winston. She owns the coffee café in town. Our family and hers are very close, and we always celebrate our birthdays together.”
He hesitated. “Let me think about that. I’m not sure if the kids are ready for me to date yet, but that might make for a nice outing.”
I opened my phone and brought up my contacts. “Here, put your number in here, and I’ll text you mine. You can let me know later in the week.”
He typed in his number and handed the phone back. I sent him a quick message,hello handsome, and he glanced at his phone and grinned. “Got it.”
“Okay, well, don’t be a stranger, and have a good evening,” I said as I sauntered backward.
My day might have started rough, but it sure was ending on a pleasant note.
* * *
Joe had decidedto leave the kids at home, as he wasn’t ready to introduce them to a relationship. I was glad that it was only the two of us, and I enjoyed our time together.
For the last few days, Joe and I had been texting on and off. It was fun, and he seemed like a great guy. Hadn’t I said that we needed new blood in this town? It looks like we had it, and I was lucky enough to get to check it out first. I knew that because he told me that I was the first one he had dated since his wife's death. With that knowledge, I knew we needed to take it slow and wait until he was ready for more—if that’s what I wanted.
I hadn’t heard from Ethan, and that was just as well because I was still pissed off at him for what he’d said. I was not an alcoholic, and he had no right to say that I was.
I knew the moment he arrived at the party and was irritated that I was so aware of him. I pretended that I didn’t realize he was there and focused on my date. He seemed to appreciate my flirting, and the two of us had decent chemistry.
When I saw Ethan and Joe talking, I approached them quickly, wondering if I’d come up in the conversation. Not that I cared if they spoke about me, but I wanted to make sure that Ethan didn’t go bad-mouthing me to my date.
Lucky for us both, he kept his mouth shut—mostly. It was as his father shared the news that I felt my reality shift slightly. Ethan was leaving our small police department. Ethan couldn’t leave—I mean, he could, but he couldn’t! Millerstown was his home. He had a good job here. He didn’t need another one across the county. Tears began to fill my eyes, and I turned abruptly to get control over myself again.
Shortly after I was back in control, I started to get angry. How could Ethan not have said anything to me? I had to speak with him, find out why he was doing this.
I finally saw my opportunity and slipped away from Joe as he spoke with Carmen about kids and treatment, and I approached Ethan from behind. “How long have you known?”
He didn’t even turn around. “I got the call on Thursday.”
I was shocked that he had only told a couple of people. A week ago, I would have been on that shortlist, but after our fight Thursday morning, I’d been struck from it.
Ethan got in my face, and my heart raced. My emotions were running on hyperspeed as I listened to him. We were friends—only friends. The things he knew were trivial—and sexy, and I hated that he did know all these things about me.
I pushed him away. “You don’t know anything, Ethan. Go play with your stupid detective friends and stay out of my life.”
“Gladly!” He shifted to walk around me, and my heart suddenly ached. We couldn’t end things this way, and I grabbed his arm to stop him. We had to talk about this. I needed Ethan!
