“You said she’d be here.”
“I saw her an hour ago. She said she would be.”
“Well, as you can see, she’s not.”
Jaz gave him a quizzical look. “Have you had a beer yet?”
“No.”
“Go get one. Or three.”
“Fuck you,” Mac snapped.
“Not my type, but seriously, man. What the hell is up with you?”
“I … I don’t know. She’s got me all turned upside down. I laid it out last night. What if she calls my bluff? What if she says no?”
“I don’t think she will, but if so you keep tryin’. Don’t give up on her.”
Mac wouldn’t. But he would need to get a grip before he lost his shit all over everyone. His friends gave him a wide berth as it was. Jaz, so far, was the only one left speaking to him.
“You and Mandi should both have a few drinks to calm your nerves. She’s pacing and nervous, which I don’t get. I’m the one who should be nervous. I’m the one meeting her brothers. I’m the one who has everything to lose if they put up a fuss.”
“Really?”
“Who wants an ex-con dating their sister?”
“Get over it. She’s an adult and can make her own choices.”
“I know. Believe me. I’ve had this argument with myself for weeks. Doesn’t change anything. I’m still nervous as fuck.”
“When are they supposed to be here?”
“Now.”
“I’m sure they’ll show—”
“No. Now.” Jaz pointed to a spot beyond Mac’s shoulder. Mac turned. Two men, twins walked around the side of Vinter’s small house. Mandi squealed and hopped up from where she sat beside Carrie and Elise. She was quickly enveloped in a hug with the two men.
Tattoos covered their arms. They were big and broad and from first glance, appeared that they’d fit right in.
Then, they fixed their gazes on the spot where he and Jaz stood. His friend tensed.
“I think you need a beer,” Mac muttered.
“I think I need something stronger.”
“I’ll go grab a couple bottles.”
“Don’t you move.”
Mac chuckled and shook his head. “Chicken shit.” Though, he understood to a point. He knew Jackie, but was nervous and scared, too. He’d been full of confidence and defiance last night when he confronted her in the club. Now though? He was as chicken shit as he’d accused Jaz of being.
He didn’t want to experience the rejection Jackie could deliver when she arrived. He didn’t want to feel that heartache. But they’d been dancing around each other for far too long.
The walls around her heart were high, but she the type of man he was. She knew his character.
A grinning Mandi fairly bounced toward he and Jaz, sandwiched between her brothers. Neither of them grinned or even so much as cracked a smile.
Intimidation.
Mac knew that tactic well. He used it against those he arrested or brought in for questioning.
‘Fuck,” Jaz said under his breath.
Jaz knew the tactic well, too. He’d been on the other side of the table. He’d had it used on him years ago. Mac could imagine Jaz having a few flashbacks in the face of unsmiling perceived unfriendlies.
Mandi stopped in front of them, hands clasped tight with the men on either side of her. “Jaz, these are my brothers. Trae and Trevor. Guys, this is my boyfriend, Jaz.”
Trae on the right, nodded at Jaz. His face wasn’t the iron mask his brother wore.
Trevor’s gaze shifted toward Mac who gave a stony look in return.
Mandi looked between all four of them. “Oh, come on. Stop this.”
“He your boyfriend, too?” Trevor asked.
“Oh please. No. This is Mac. He’s the sheriff.”
“Look what the damn cat finally dragged in.”
Trae’s face softened completely before he spun around. Jackie stood behind the small family. “You should know,” Trae said, wrapping Jackie in a hug. He lifted her off her feet and spun her in a circle which had her giggling like a young girl.
And had Mac seeing red. She was his and someone else was touching her, making her smile and laugh. She was happy to see them when she was never happy to see him.
Trevor hadn’t turned to look at Jackie. No, his gaze shifted between Mac and Jaz.
“You in love with our sister?” Trevor asked Jaz. “Or are you just using her?”
Mandi shoved her brother. “Trev …”
“What? I’ve got a right to know what his intentions are.”
“His intentions? Since when do you talk like that?”
“Since you call all the damn time gushing about him for an hour.”
Mandi blushed and smiled up at Jaz. “I’m sorry about his caveman behavior. I know I told you they wouldn’t do this kind of thing.”
Jaz nodded, his posture beginning to ease. “They can ask whatever they want.”
“Y’all take it easy, hear me? No fighting,” Mac ordered. He stalked his way across the yard to the chest of beer. Dallon had brought domestics and a few craft beers, but at the moment, Mac didn’t care what he had. He just needed something to hold in his hand or he was going to end up punching someone.
“You don’t look so good.”
“Not a lot of sleep.”
“Women will definitely do that.”
“Your woman keeping you up all night is not the same as what I’m going through.”
“True. Carrie keeps me up in different ways and for different reasons.”
“Shit … Can’t you stop thinking with your dick for two seconds?”
“Nope.”
“Stop torturing Mac,” Vinter said, clapping Mac on the shoulder as he joined them. “Not his fault he’s so damn scary.”
“Fuck you. And you. And anyone else who wants to chime in.”
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so messed up over a woman, but the answer was probably never. Love wasn’t something he’d ever indulged in. Sex and lust and good times in bed, yes. Since he was sixteen. But love? Nope. Not until Jackie.
His hand had become his best friend since it his feelings for her hit him. He’d wanted her long before and had still been able to take up with other women, but when his heart got involved, he couldn’t touch anyone else. The thought turned his stomach.
He tried. Many times. And left frustrated. His body, his heart, his dick wanted Jackie.
She wanted him, too. At least, he’d convinced himself she did. Could be he was wrong.
He looked up from where he’d been peeling the label off his beer bottle. Dallon and Vinter had drifted away at some point and he was alone in the middle of the yard. His friends were gathered in small groups, talking, munching on food. Jackie was still with Mandi, her brothers, and Jaz.
He wasn’t very good company.
Elise caught his eye as he glanced around. Mac gave her a small smile which she returned. Dallon tended the grill and Mac considered going to relieve him. He also considered leaving.
He felt like the proverbial third wheel and that never turned out well for anyone.
“Hey Mac,” Dallon called, motioning him over. Mac guessed the decision had been made for him. Carrie had joined Dallon and barely contained herself. Dallon had one arm wrapped around her and she practically humped his leg.
“Y’all need a room,” Mac groused.
“We do. Watch the food, will ya? I’ll be back as soon as I take care of this minx.” Dallon lifted Carrie over his shoulder and double timed it toward the back door of Vinter’s house.
Carrie had been a late bloomer so Mac guessed she was making up for lost time. Whatever it was, she and Dallon were always having sex, not that Dallon complained. The man had always been the horn dog between the four friends. It was a wonder his dick hadn’t fallen off yet.
Then again, the saying went use it or lose it. And Dallon definitely used it.
Mac adjusted the heat on the grill and rearranged the chicken pieces before basting them with additional barbeque sauce.
Jackie’s laughter filtered across the yard and Mac resisted the urge to turn around and see who or what made her laugh. He was proud of himself for the self control until it happened again.
Trae had her hand in his and they stood so close they could’ve kissed without moving.
This was fucked. Mac knew he was acting like a teenage kid with his irrational need to punch Trae and accuse Jackie of trying to make him jealous. He couldn’t seem to help it, though.
He felt like he could blow up at any moment.
“You want to leave, man?” Vinter asked, coming to stand beside him.
“That obvious?”
“Yeah.”
“Then I’m outta here. I don’t want to make more of a fool of myself than I already have. Have Dallon or Jaz bring some food by the station for me, will ya?”
“You got it.”
Mac finished off his beer and crossed the yard to the side gate. He slipped through without looking at Jackie again. That was something to be proud of. “Damn woman,” he muttered.
He straddled his bike, cranked it, and peeled out of Vinter’s drive. He should have his helmet on, even though he was only going a short distance, but he wanted the wind in his face. He wanted to feel something beyond the lust coursing through his veins.
The winding roads of north Georgia soothed him. He’d be able to ride them with his eyes closed. Not that he’d ever tried. But he could.
He’d lived in the area his whole life and couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. Being in law enforcement was all he’d ever wanted to do. His father had been the sheriff as had his grandfather. It was in his blood. Even in the Army, he’d been military police.
He kept his town safe and he took pride in it.
No one could remember the last violent crime that had occurred. For years, it had been nothing more than a few domestics, petty crimes, and speeding along roads that had strict speed limits for very good reasons.
With so little crime in their county, he and his deputies were able to help out neighboring counties when needed.
He rolled into his personal spot at the sheriff’s office and parked the bike. He was supposed to have the whole afternoon off, but seeing as he left the barbeque early, there was nothing else for him to do.
Okay, so he could go home, but he didn’t want to stare at those four walls. He’d happily stare at the four walls of his office instead. At least it made him feel as though he were doing something beside obsessing.
“Hey Boss. What are you doing here?”
“Hey Jimmie. I was bored. Everything good?”
“Quiet as a cemetery.”
“Then why don’t you go on home to Missy and the kids. I’ll take the rest of your shift.”
“You sure? I don’t mind staying.”
“I’m sure. If there isn’t anything going on, there’s no need for you to stay. I’ve got this. Go on home.”
“Thanks.”
Jimmie might’ve hesitated at first, but took Mac at his word the second time around and hightailed it out the doors.
Jimmie was his newest deputy. He’d come up from Hampton, on the other side of Atlanta, when his wife’s parents offered he and Missy the log cabin the family owned and used as a vacation rental.
They had three small kids with number four on the way.
Mac couldn’t imagine being in his late twenties with four kids. It was hard enough to imagine having one at that age, but four? He shook his head, baffled.
His office occupied one end of the single-story building, but he rarely sat in it. He used an unoccupied desk in the center of the squad room where he had a good view of the doors, the cells, and all his deputies.
Leaning back in the chair, he clasped his hands behind his head, and sighed. “Well, now what?”
* * * * *
Jackie sat outside the sheriff’s office. She’d been there for ten minutes and if she sat there any longer, she’d chicken out completely and go home.
She’d driven out to Mac’s place first, but when he hadn’t been there, she knew the only other place he’d be was at work.
She didn’t know for sure why he’d left the barbeque early, though she had a pretty good idea. Her. Trae. Their closeness.
What Mac didn’t know was Trae was like a brother to her, same as Mandi was like a sister. Trevor was the standoffish one who didn’t warm up to anyone, but Trae was the happy, easy going, let everyone in until they proved to him he shouldn’t have. Lucky for her, she’d never given Trae reason to stop being her friend.
The building in front of her appeared a deep red in the setting sun, but in full daylight, the bricks were faded and showed their age.
Was that her, too? Appearing one way, but it being nothing more than an illusion?
A sheriff was in love with her, a former prostitute.
Yes, she knew how he felt about her. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure it out. It was in his eyes, plain as day, when he looked at her. Vinter looked at Elise the same way. Dallon looked at Carrie the same way. And Jaz and Mandi were headed in that direction, too.
It seemed the only thing in question was how she felt about Mac.
But it wasn’t in question. Not really. Not if she were honest with herself which when it came to Mac, she didn’t want to be honest at all.
“Now or never, Jacks,” she whispered to her reflection in the rearview mirror.
Before she could change her mind, she stepped out of the car and made her way to the double glass doors that stood between her and Mac.
She took a deep breath, let it out, and pushed her way inside.
She had other reasons to avoid police stations. She’d been in enough of them in her past to last her three lifetimes.
“Jackie? What the hell are you doing here?” Mac asked, coming around the corner of the breakroom with a cup of coffee in his hand.
“You left before we had a chance to say hello.”
“Hello.”
She walked right into that one. “Hi.”
“We good now?”
“No.”
“Do you need me to say good-bye too?”
“No.”
“Then what? I’m working here.”
“On what? There’s no one else in here.”
“Paperwork.”
“It can’t wait?”
“What do you want?”
“Why did you leave?”
“I didn’t want to stay.”
“Why not?”
He sighed and set his cup down, then braced his hands on the edge of the desk. Her gaze was drawn to the corded muscles in his arms. His beard shifted as he clenched his jaw while staring down at the metal surface below.
She was the cause of his mood, his surliness. She was the reason he left Vinter’s, but she needed him to say it. She didn’t know why. She just did.
When he lifted his head and looked at her, fire blazed in the dark depths. “You. I didn’t want to stay and look at you anymore. I didn’t want to stay and pretend that I’m all right when I’m not. I didn’t want to stay and watch you hugging and holding hands with another man. Happy now?”
“Not exactly.” But she’d take it. “You said I could take all the time I needed.”
“I did. And you can. I didn’t say I had to like it.”
“Are you mad?”
He smiled then. Not a joyful smile, but a smile nonetheless. “Nah, Princess. I’m not mad. I’m frustrated.”
“He’s like a brother to me. Trae.”
“Yeah, y’all looked a little cozier than that. He didn’t even cozy up to Mandi like that.”
“Trae’s a good guy. There’s nothing between us.”
“Doesn’t matter. The fact is I didn’t like seeing you with him. I didn’t like being jealous.”
“Given the nature of my business, being jealous is something that would never work.”
“Don’t you think I know that? Your business doesn’t bother me or make me jealous. Since last night in the club, I’ve been operating on a hair trigger. The slightest thing sets me off. I was going to deck the guy if I didn’t leave. Now, what are you doing here?”
Instead of answering right away, Jackie walked through large empty room, divided up only by desks, a half wall, a glass front office, and a breakroom of sorts.
Jail cells stood directly in front of her on the other side of the half wall. She’d seen similar set-ups in movies and old television shows.
She hated jail cells. She hated being in them. Alone or with a crowd of other prostitutes, drunks, and disorderlies, she hated cells.
“Have you ever had sex in one of these?” she asked, running her fingers along the iron bars.
“What?”
“Sex. Have you ever had sex in one of the cells?”
“No. It wouldn’t be the right thing to do. Besides, I can’t lock the front door so anyone could walk in at any moment.”
“That’s true. Have you ever been tempted?”
“No.”
“Never?”
“Jackie …”
There was a warning in his tone, but she chose to ignore it. “Do you know how many times I’ve been arrested?”
“Yes.”
“Do you know how many officers offered to let me out or not even take me in if I sucked them off in their patrol cars?”
“I don’t.”
His voice, clipped and menacingly low, cause heat to pool in her belly. He didn’t like anyone touching her. And he didn’t like anyone trying to use her. Or maybe it was because they were attempting to use her to break the law.
“More than I can count. It didn’t matter what city or state I was in, everywhere there was a cop or cops looking to get their rocks off. I never said yes. I never gave in. I let them take me to jail and slam the door behind me. I hate jail cells.”
“I imagine so. I’m sorry that happened to you.”
“Thank you.” She took a slow step inside one of the cells, pausing in case it freaked her out, but when it didn’t, when she could still breathe normally, she took another step and another, until she was standing on the other side of the bars from Mac.
She turned to face him.
“I want to have sex with you. Here. In this cell.” It was the boldest thing she’d ever said to him.
She saw the banked heat flare in his eyes again. She watched as his hands gripped the edge of the desk so tight that his tanned knuckles turned white.
“Jackie,” he said through clenched teeth.
“I want you, Mac. Here. Now. In this cell.”
“I told you that it’s not right, and anyone could walk in. That wouldn’t be a good image for me or you.”
“I know what you said. I know what the risks are. I don’t care.” She inched her shirt up over her belly. She was trembling inside, but she held his gaze. “I want you. Here. Now.”