JENNA STRODE DOWN THE bustling halls of the Emergency Department, a bounce to her step she hadn’t felt in a while. Despite the agonizing half hour it had taken her to doze off, she’d slept without budging until her alarm went off. It was a blessing. For a few hours she hadn’t obsessed over what was going on at her house. Instead, she had a new thought on refrain.

Why had she kissed Alex? Why? Why? Why?

She could hardly focus on anything, which was why she was taking a break to go visit a particular patient. Her work needed her full attention and she couldn’t deliver that if her focus kept slipping to the memories of Alex’s hot, hard body and the way—for the briefest moment—he’d actually kissed her back like he wanted her.

She turned the corner and walking down the hall, wearing the blue uniform that looked as if it had been molded just for his body—was Alex Myers.

Oh, no...

Jenna glanced right, then left, but the only escape was back the way she’d come. Ransom was small enough they were going to see each other, eventually. Might as well get this over with.

She felt the weight of his gaze and her stomach knotted up with a whole new kind of dread. They hadn’t said much to each other this morning. After an op and a late night, it had been a pretty rough wake-up call.

She remained rooted to where she stood, watching Alex stride toward her. He passed the patient rooms and kept coming until he almost barreled over her. He stopped with less than a foot of space between them, his gaze boring into her skull.

This was torture. Maybe she’d had a previous life and done something awful to deserve this, or perhaps fate was simply a cruel bitch.

“I went over your notes,” he said, pitching his voice low.

Right. Her stalker. How could she forget?

“Yeah?”

“I want to photograph everything so we can prove your belongings are disappearing.”

“Oh. Right. You’d mentioned wanting to do that.  I’m not off until six though.”

“I can wait until then, or do it on my own.”

And miss getting to ogle Alex in his uniform? Probably better if she didn’t torment herself.

“About last night...” Alex opened and closed his mouth.

“Let’s not talk about it. Please.” She held up her hands and side-stepped Alex.

“I just think—” He kept his voice low, following close on her heels, but she wasn’t interested in what he thought.

“Stop thinking.” She knocked on the patient door and tilted her head.

“Come in,” a man called.

“Trevor, hey.” Jenna pasted a bright smile on her face as she stepped into the small room with the other police officer and fellow SWAT member.

Trevor stood next to the examination table, fiddling with his shirt collar. He grinned at them and the stitched up gash on his forehead wrinkled. He winced and brushed his fingers across his temple.

“Oh, don’t touch it,” Jenna scolded.

“I’m not. Damn things pull. Sergeant.” Trevor extended his hand to Alex and threw his left arm around Jenna’s shoulders, giving her a quick squeeze.

Though most of the guys did flirt with her, it was harmless. Trevor was the exception—things between them were downright ridiculous. If she’d ever had a brother—it would have been Trevor. There’d never been sparks for either of them, and he’d been a good friend to her when she didn’t have many left.

She did not miss the glare Alex speared Trevor with. What the hell?

“Dropping by to rub my nose in it?” Trevor asked, glancing from Jenna to Alex.

“I don’t even know what happened.” She pulled away and turned her back toward Alex. If he didn’t want to kiss her, that was fine, but having an opinion on who she was close with was none of his business.

“Oh man. You’re going to love his.” Trevor rolled his eyes. “I got called out for a drunk and disorderly in the park. Guy was wasted, half naked on the tire swing and all the summer soccer moms were calling on their way to some tournament they’re having at the bottom of the hill. So I get out there and have to haul this guy off the swing. I don’t know, but he sort of fell off. The tire came up and hit me right here.” He pointed to the bottom of the gash. “Must have hit one of the rings because it tore me pretty good. Guy started screaming and freaking out. Guess he has a thing about blood. Partner couldn’t get him into the car until I promised not to get in with them, so here I am.”

Jenna clapped her hand over her mouth. Trevor wasn’t going to live this one down.

“Kiss it and make it better?” Trevor bent at the waist and pointed to the gash.

“No way.” She laughed, but had no intention of kissing anything attached to Trevor. Ever.

“Come on, it’ll feel better.”

“Do you know how unsanitary that is?”

“My momma used to kiss all my booboos and make them better. Just a little kiss, Doc?”

“No.” She was laughing so hard her vision blurred.

“She said no, Trevor, cut it out,” Alex snapped.

Both Trevor and Jenna stopped laughing and stared at Alex. Had Mittens peed in his cereal that morning? What right did he have to be pissy with her?

“I think we should leave,” Jenna said slowly. She turned toward Trevor once more. “I bet they’ll be around to release you pretty soon. I’ll check on you later, okay?”

“Yeah, okay.”

Trevor’s gaze was still on Alex. He had on that puzzling it out expression complete with frown and brow wrinkle. With the stitches the look was particularly worrisome. Jenna needed out of there before Trevor started asking questions. She didn’t want to intermingle the professional and personal parts of her life, which meant she needed to lay some things straight for Alex. He thought he had some sort of right to be a possessive dick just because they’d kissed? Not going to fly.

Jenna turned and Alex had two choices: let her walk straight into him, or leave ahead of her. He saved her the awkwardness of face-planting against his chest and exited in front of her.

“Bye, Trevor.” She gave him a little wave before following close on Alex’s heels.

Alex continued to ignore her. He treated her like a responsibility. He rejected her. And now he wanted to censure her?

She couldn’t wait until there weren’t ears around to hear.

He walked with long, purposeful strides toward a side entrance. She had to walk in double time to keep up, all the while glaring daggers at his back. He held the door for her and didn’t seem surprised she was still on his tail. Neither spoke all the way to his cruiser.

By the time they reached the relative privacy of the small section of parking spots reserved for law enforcement, her anger was boiling over.

“What the hell was that about?” she demanded.

Alex wheeled, his expression equally as fierce.

“We need some damn professionalism. Guys like Trevor are eroding the integrity of our team. All the flirting and joking. They need to treat you with some respect.”

She stared at him.

Respect? Integrity? Professionalism?

Yeah. Fucking. Right.

He couldn’t throw around big business words when this was about them. What had happened last night.

“Since when did you become my fierce protector?” She crossed her arms over her chest. What the hell had gotten into Alex?

“I’m the SWAT Sergeant. It’s my responsibility to make sure everyone stays in line.”

“No one has gotten out of line, except you. There’s a huge difference between harmless fun and hostility. I know the difference, Alex. You do not.”

“Yeah, well, Trevor needs to clean up his act.”

“Trevor and I have been friends since I volunteered for SWAT.” In the beginning, Trevor had helped deflect the unwanted advances of the other guys simply by pretending he had a bigger claim. Eventually they’d all found their synergy, except Alex. She’d never had much of a rapport with him, which was probably her fault for having such a sad crush on him. Unrequited love was a bitch.

“It’s not professional.” Alex was practically growling at her.

“This has nothing to do with work. We’ve worked together for years and you’ve never had an issue until today. It’s about the kiss, isn’t it?”

“No.” His answer was too fast.

“Look, you pushed me away, you don’t get to be upset about what I do with who.” Her cheeks heated, but it was the truth. She’d kissed him, stupidly wanting the signs she’d read to point to a mutual attraction. And they hadn’t. Her mistake. But he didn’t get to go caveman on her.

“You were under a lot of stress. Of course I had to push you away.”

“Alex, seriously? We’re adults. You can tell me you didn’t want to kiss me and it's okay.” Oh, and I’ve had a huge, obsessive thing for you since the moment I laid eyes on you. I’m sure I’ll be fine.

“It wasn’t the right time.”

The right time?

What?

As in—there was a right time for making out, and last night wasn’t it? Had he wanted to kiss her? Was she reading him all wrong?

“Crying out loud. What is this?” Jenna threw up her hands. For once, she wanted a straight answer. “Are you jealous or trying to let me down easy? I can’t tell and you’re pissing me off.”

ALEX COULD CITE PAGE and paragraph where the handbook said officers and staff couldn’t date each other. At least not if they were both in the same department. Jenna might not be directly employed by the police department, but they worked together and that grayed all the lines. He was getting ahead of himself. Jenna was talking about a kiss. A wonderful kiss that maybe lasted all of five seconds, but which had kept him up most of the remaining night.

He’d felt like a stalker himself with how many times he’d been up and down, taking any excuse that came to mind to go to the kitchen for a drink, the bathroom, just in case she’d be awake. To his knowledge, she hadn’t moved all night, and that was good. Jenna needed rest, especially as long as the stalking had been going on.

“Ms. Martin?” An older man with white, thinning hair stood a few feet away, a cabbie’s hat clutched in his hands. He wore a plaid flannel shirt tucked into slacks and suspenders over his shoulders. He had a kind face, one with many laugh lines around his mouth, though he wasn’t smiling now.

Jenna turned, and her expression changed. The scowl faded and a grin slowly spread, lighting her eyes. She recognized him. And damn it if Alex didn’t wish she was looking at him like that.

Maybe they didn’t have a future. Maybe things between them wouldn’t work out. Who knew? Why shouldn’t he find out? If they did somehow make it, one of them would have to leave SWAT. The idea of giving up the unit made him pause. He’d been part of a SWAT team for over a decade. It was his favorite part of the job. But his team needed Jenna. No other medic had her experience or coolness under pressure. If it came down to it—he would have to give up SWAT. Could he?

“Mr. Franklin, how are you? How’s that leg?” She crossed to the older gentleman and shook his hand. If Alex had to guess, this wasn’t their second or even third meeting. He’d lay money on Jenna checking up on the man. That was the kind of person she was.

“Good, good. I’m walking again.” He gestured to his left leg and bent the knee a bit. That he was able to stand on his right leg and exhibit balance was a good indicator in Alex’s book. What was his story though?

“That’s amazing. I’m so happy to hear that.” Jenna grinned, her happiness palpable at her patient’s recovery.

“Yeah, it was scary there for a bit. They kept talking about taking it off but someone was watching out for me.”

“Someone really was.”

“I just wanted to say hi and thank you, again.”

“Come find me anytime. Here, give me a hug.” Jenna gave the old man a quick squeeze before stepping back. Alex tamped down on the jealousy bubbling up in his chest. Trevor and an old patient were two entirely separate issues. Alex had no beef with her friendly bedside manner.

The old man bid them goodbye and strode, albeit a little on the slow side, out to the parking lot. He paused at an older model Buick that had seen better days. Jenna watched him for several moments, her brows drawing down and her mouth screwed up slightly. Mr. Franklin eased out of his parking spot, slow and steady.

“What’s his story?” Alex couldn’t keep his curiosity bottled up. What tragedy had brought the old man into her life?

“Kid blew through a stop sign, T-boned his car. He was trapped in there for hours while we had to cut him out. The leg was really mangled. Alex, I’ve seen guys come through IEDs with less damage. It was awful, and there was hardly anything I could do for him until we got him out.” Though the accident must have been some time ago, she still spoke as if the trauma were recent. The anguish in her voice made him want to wrap his arms around her and offer comfort. One of the downsides of jobs like theirs was the helplessness that came with tragedy.

As a cop, he was supposed to make the world a safer, better place for people. And yet, horrible things happened all around him. There were times when it felt as though the job was useless and everything he worked for a silly pipe dream. And then there was the truth. There wasn’t an arm’s dealer in Ransom. Kids could play outside without fear of violence. People were safe and happy.

“He’s okay though.” Alex placed his hand on the small of her back, unable to keep from touching her, offering one small comfort.

“He is, but I worry about his mobility and getting around on his own. His wife passed away and all he has is a son who moved to Nevada, so he’s really alone.” She sighed.

It wasn’t the first time Alex had witnessed someone Jenna had picked up in response to an emergency call approach her and thank her. Jenna was special. Patients remembered the way she treated them, and somehow she seemed to recall each and every one of them. She was one of those people who left her mark on every person she met, and people were better for it.

Alex was. Or at least he liked to think her brightness chased the shadows away. He didn’t know what Mr. Franklin’s fate would be, but he had a guardian angel in flesh and blood looking after him. If Jenna could find a way to help, she would. Maybe Alex needed to pull the case files, see if there was something he could do.

He’d loved and hated the small town mindset when he moved to Ransom. When everyone had already known his story he’d been taken aback and nearly left. His choices for where to go had been slim, so he’d stuck it out. Eventually people forgave him though no one ever forgot. He’d catch a whisper now and then. But what kept him here was the way people showed they cared.

Like Delores. She’d worked at the station for decades. Maybe as long as Alex had been alive—though he’d never ask her. One day she’d come up to him, told him she didn’t care what everyone else said and given him a little tin of fudge. It’d been around Christmas and he hadn’t quite known what to make of the gesture, so he’d gotten her something. A snow globe if he remembered correctly. Instead of spending Christmas by himself, he’d become part of Delores’s family. She’d practically adopted him from that point on and through her, he saw another side of small town life. The part that took care of the residents because they were Ransom, not the buildings and the streets.

He needed to drop by Delores’s after work. Check on her again. Maybe she had some advice for him where Jenna was concerned.

Sure, people talked and if he did wrong they’d hold it against him for a long time. But when he needed people, they were there for him. Even complete strangers could offer a helping hand.

Alex’s radio beeped breaking into his thoughts. He tilted his head as dispatch radioed in a request for back-up.

Jenna watched him, but there was a wall between them now that hadn’t been there before. He didn’t like it. He might never have fostered the close relationship she had with other officers, but they’d at least spoken.

“Got to go?” she asked.

“Yeah, but we aren’t done with this conversation.” To hell with rules.

“Dinner?”

“Fine.” It wasn’t a date, but it was something. “I still want to go by your place and document things.”

Without a word, she dug her keys out of her pocket and pulled a single purple polka dot key off the ring.

“You should think about staying somewhere besides home for a day or two. If we can establish proof someone was there, it’ll be a lot easier to get eyes on the case.”

“I’ll work on it.” Her tone gave him goose bumps.

“Do you know anyone you could stay with?”

She shrugged. “Maybe.”

Jenna had been back in the states over two years. She no doubt had plenty of people in her life she’d call for help before him, but she needed to know he was there for her, too.

“My guest room is there if you need it.” An arm’s length away. Temptation of the worst kind.

“Thanks, Alex.” The way she said his name, he didn’t know what it meant.

Jenna walked past him and into the hospital. Duty pushed him to his cruiser while all he wanted to do was figure out the mystery of what was going on in Jenna’s head.

THE CANDY BAR FELL from his hands and hit the pavement. He’d meant to give it to her. Just a casual crossing of paths, nothing too demanding. He’d done it before. His Jenna had an important job to do, and he didn’t want to distract her, but he liked doing little things to show he cared. Except she was with that cop. Again.

They had no reason to be speaking today. Last night was a fluke, something he could forgive Jenna for. After all, he understood her. They were soul mates. And she was spending more time than was necessary with that cop. It was unacceptable.