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He waited.
Nothing.
Huh.
He knocked again, this time with more insistence, but he wasn’t surprised when no one opened the door. With a sigh, he opened the screen door and tried the main door’s handle. It was locked. Obviously.
This time, when he knocked, he used his deepest and most authoritative voice. “Ma’am, this is the sheriff. Open the door.”
The sound of soft footsteps caught his shifter ears, but a lesser … human … man would’ve missed the hushed tones. He smiled. At least he had her attention now.
“I’ve been asked to do a wellness check. There are some people who are really concerned about you, ma’am. All you need to do is open the door. Give me a sign of life.” He waited.
In the silence, he could almost imagine Valentine standing on the other side, her head pressed against the door, wishing him to go away.
Of course, Nero had no clue what Valentine looked like. He wondered if she looked anything like Celestine, but he decided that Valentine wouldn’t be blonde.
Any woman who was this stubborn was probably a redhead with a fiery temper. Just his type.
Nero leaned against the door frame and took off his hat. “Ma’am, I do have all day.”
“Call me ma’am one more time!” a clear and musical voice called out.
Nero chuckled. “All right,miss. If you don’t open up, I’ll have to huff and puff and blow the door down.”
“A sheriff shouldn’t be threatening his wolf powers on a member of the public.”
This time, his laughter was a full-belly one. “Funny,” he said through the door. “You’re funny. No one mentioned you’d be funny.”
“Oh, yeah. I’m a ball of kittens. I’m all kinds of fun. I am not opening the door, so you might as well just take this inane exchange as a sign of life. And tell my sister she can’t make this better by sending the law to my door.”
“Celestine didn’t send me. Reece did. Your sister is worried, and that makes him worry. And that means he comes by my house at dawn when I’m trying to enjoy a peaceful cup of coffee to complain that his mate is worried.”
“Ha. So you’re not here for a wellness check at all. You’re here because you are being personally impacted by my personal tragedy. How nice for me that the only reason why anyone cares is because it cuts intotheirquiet time.”
He shrugged. The gesture caught him by surprise. Why in the hell was he shrugging as if she could see him? And why did talking to this woman through a door feel more exciting than any other exchange with a member of the opposite sex?
“Open the door, Valentine.”
“No. The wellness check is incomplete because I am not well. Tellthatto Reece.”
“You leave me no choice but to come back again tomorrow.”
“Whatever. I still won’t answer.”
Nero nodded and skipped down the steps. “We’ll talk soon, Valentine.”
He only walked to his truck when he heard her stomp away, grumbling to herself. He smiled at the closed door.
He loved a challenge, and this was shaping up to be the good kind.
THREE
VALENTINE
What was a girl supposed to do to get a little peace in this town? It was maddening. Her sister came by every morning to knock on the door, hoping to see her. Valentine wasn’t ready to talk to her.
But that was the least of her problems.
