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Her face turned to his, the soft smile on her lips intriguing. “Yes. Army. How do you detect military and Army?”
He grinned and shrugged his shoulders. “Perfect posture. Strong handshake. Associated with Casper. We share a boss you know. But, your hair is down and soft. Most of the women I knew in the Marines pulled their hair back tightly or cut it off. Basically, it was a guess.”
She chuckled and the sound was appealing.
“My parents are also career Army. It was inevitable for me I guess.”
Henry turned into the sheriff's department parking lot and found a spot near the front door. He hustled around the truck and opened the door for Everleigh. Always the gentleman, he even held his hand out to her, shocked when she gently placed her hand in his. As they strode toward the front door, he prepped her with a bit of information he wasn’t sure would have been relayed by her bosses. But it was definitely essential for her to understand, and he felt a deep need to make sure she was fully in the know.
"The sheriff is a tad lax on the law. His good-old-boy network is strong. He’s granted a lot of favors to people in town, and they use them freely. Word to the wise, don't say anything to anyone outside of my team. You simply don't know whose back pockets the sheriff is in."
She stopped in her tracks and turned her head up so her eyes stared directly into his. "Noted." It was clipped and short and his brows shot into his hairline. Then, she added, "I do know how to do my job and I am discreet. What makes you think I'd say anything to anyone?"
Well, shit. He hadn’t meant to infer she wasn’t discreet. He simply knew the dossier kept by the DoD didn’t include little nuances such as lax law enforcement.
“This is a small town that has been rattled to its core. People have a way of getting things out of others. I simply wanted to warn you."
Her tongue slid across her bottom lip, and his eyes tracked it the entire way. It was sexy. She was sexy.
"Thank you for the warning. But I'm a professional. I've done this for close to ten years with an exemplary track record. I didn't earn that by gossiping and sharing secrets."
His face flushed hot, he could feel his ears burning. Her eyes continued to bore into his for a few seconds. It felt like an eternity. His throat grew dry and he wanted to swallow to moisten it, but he didn’t want to look scared or weak. And she seemed to be waiting for him to acknowledge her words so he said the only thing he could think of without blistering her ears but good. "Noted."
4
She stretched her legs as far as she could in her heels, silently conveying her irritation that he didn't think she knew how to do her job while also projecting the confidence that had earned her the right to dress him down for doubting her. Her shoulders were tight and she kept her posture straight and tall as she marched to the front desk. The female officer manning the desk looked up at her and smiled before her eyes shot behind her to Henry, her cheeks growing pink.
"Everleigh Hayes here to see Sheriff Cranford."
"Yes, ma'am. You can follow me right into the conference room."
The officer stepped through the half-door at the end of the desk and ushered her toward a room at the end of the hall. She could hear Henry's footsteps behind her and the words to tell him to stay outside screamed through her mind. But he was doing his job, even if she didn't think she needed him hanging around. And he was easy on the eyes, so that was a boon.
The officer opened the door to the conference room and ushered her inside. Tablets, pens, and water glasses were set up at eight places around the table. All the chairs were pushed in and there was no clutter on the sideboards on the opposite wall. Everything in its place. It was a pleasant surprise.
Henry entered behind her, and she couldn't help but notice how he filled the space. He was a big man. Tall, broad-shouldered, and handsome. She guessed his height at six foot six or so. His t-shirt stretched across his biceps without him even trying to flex the muscle. She was grateful for the air conditioning, because he certainly did raise the temperature of the room.
She sucked in a breath and walked around to the opposite end of the table. Pulling out the chair in front of her, she opened her notebook and pulled her laptop from its case, setting it on the table before her. In her peripheral vision, she saw Henry walk to the end of the room and sit in a chair against the wall. He pulled his phone from his pocket and texted someone.
She turned to look at him, a pang of guilt slicing through her as she thought of how she’d treated him. "I'm sorry. I've had to work twice as hard as men in the same position as me, my entire career. I'm capable and I do a good job, but I usually have to fight everyone in the beginning to convince them I do know what I’m doing. I took it out on you. I know you're just doing your job. I'm sorry I came off so harsh."
His blue eyes locked on hers. The striking contrast between his dark hair and light blue eyes only added to his handsomeness. But beyond that pretty face, she saw understanding. Compassion. It wasn’t anger.
His lips curved up into a breath-taking smile. "I appreciate that you've had to fight for your place. My mother was in the same position in her career and my female coworkers have had that same fight in their lives."
She smiled, expecting that to be the end of the conversation.
"But not from me,” he continued, catching her off guard. “I work with some of the smartest, most capable, badass women you'll ever meet. And I would never disrespect them, or any woman, by assuming they couldn't do their job because of their gender."
Heat crawled up her body. Embarrassment settled under her arms, making her sweat uncomfortably, and the heat kept rising. Her ears and cheeks burned. She fought the urge to squirm in her seat at her discomfort.
Luckily, she was saved by the sheriff.
"Good morning, everyone." The sheriff nodded in her direction, but turned and walked to Henry and shook his hand first. Her heat turned to anger once again, and she felt a bit vindicated when Henry saw this firsthand.
"Henry, it's good to see you."
"Nice seeing you too, Sheriff."
