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He stormed toward her. Oh, he was definitely angry. “Don’t you hi there, Reid me. What the fuck, Allison?”
She looked at her nails and tried to act cool despite the six-foot-plus man coming to an abrupt stop only inches from her. “It’s good to see you, too.”
“No, it’s not,” he snapped. The words filled with daggers, but words just like in that letter, couldn’t hurt her. She stood her ground. “What the hell is wrong with you?” His voice rose, echoing across the empty parking lot.
“Depends who you ask,” she answered, knowing damn well it would only add fuel to his already burning fire. She loved to stoke his flames. She could even go as far as calling it a personal hobby of hers. There was just something about watching Mr. Authority lose his cool.
He pointed his finger. Most people would cower, but not her. Reid was prickly, but he was also harmless. He leaned toward her before angrily dropping his arm to his side and turning away. Just as she expected.
“Damn it. Why must you—?” He cut his own words off. “Did you do it because I didn’t grant you a damn interview?”
“Do what?” She honestly didn’t know what he was so furious about. With Reid, it could be a million things.
He ran a hand through his very short, dark blond hair. It complimented his blue eyes and was in strong contrast to the dark stubble that sometimes peppered his face. Some men looked unkempt with a five o’clock shadow, while it only added to Reid’s mysterious sex appeal.
“I have a meeting with the mayor in two hours. What am I supposed to say to her after you completely threw me and my department under a bus on bullshit claims?”
Oh. Her segment about the bars and the boardwalk. “The claims technically aren’t bullshit. If you had patrols on the boardwalk, that altercation could have been avoided.”
His large chest heaved with an inhale, an obvious sign he was trying to keep his cool, but Allison knew it was only a Band-Aid to his frustration, and she found pleasure in ripping that bandage off.
“Do you have the money to give me to make that happen? My budget is already spread thin, and I was trying to figure out a way to do just that when your damn segment came on the TV.”
Her head snapped up, and she met his stormy gaze. “You were watching my segment?”
“Don’t change the subject.”
“I’m just surprised, is all. You do everything in your power to make it impossible for me to put you on the news, yet you watch it.” There weren’t many things that surprised her, but Reid tuning in to watch her definitely did.
“I was curious to see how you were going to spin the damn story, and good thing I watched, or I’d be broadsided when I walk into the mayor’s office.”
She shrugged. “I was just asking a question.”
“You’re so full of shit and you know it.” And the Band-Aid was off. She could meet him toe to toe, but it pissed him off more when she acted impassive.
She rolled her eyes as if he was being overdramatic, which he was. It was simple, really. “Use it to your advantage, then. Tell the mayor in order to increase patrol you need a budget increase. You’re welcome.”
He stepped toward her, his chest rising and falling with his ragged breaths. His blue eyes narrowed, locking on hers. She swallowed at the intensity and tried to ignore the heat that flooded her core.
“Don’t act like you did me a favor. What about the people?”
Her eyebrow arched as she met his glare head on, refusing to back down. “What people?”
His arms lifted like he wanted to choke her. His bicep pressed against his sleeve, stretching the material of his uniform. She bit her lip, wondering what those arms would feel like wrapped around her.
Shaking the thought from her head, she focused on the irritated pull of his brow. She stifled a laugh, and his arms fell to his sides. “The town. You made me seem like I’m incompetent in my role as sheriff.”
Of course. Typical male. Worried about his competency and nothing else. She loved battling with him, but this was ridiculous. “It was one little news story, for crying out loud. You are looking way too far into this.”
“I don’t think I am. How can people trust me to protect them and their town with you putting doubt in their minds?”
It all made sense now. Reid drove a hard bargain most of the time, but he also took pride in the respect he garnered from the town. People looked up to him, trusted him, relied on him, and he was afraid she of all people would tarnish that. Did he not realize how nearly impossible that was? As far as the people were concerned, Reid was the perfect sheriff.
“Look, Reid, while I would love nothing more than to stand here and argue with you all day, I have things to do, and you have a meeting with the mayor to get to.”
“You’re infuriating!”
“You’ve mentioned that before.” Only every time they were within a five-foot radius of each other.
