“Mom, will you please stop pacing?” I asked.
My mother stopped and turned to Tripp. “Where is she? She said she was almost home and what’s this big announcement?”
The doorbell rang, and my mother flew through the living room to the front hall.
“It’s not Amelia!” my mother shouted.
Laughing, Tripp made his way to the bar in the back corner of the family room and poured a drink. “Anyone else need one? I have a feeling Meli is about to drop a bomb on us all.”
With a long groan, my father dragged his hands down his face. “Please, Lord. Don’t be a baby.”
“Why not, Daddy? What’s wrong if Amelia is pregnant?” Waylynn asked as we all directed our gazes to my father.
Looking at each of us, he smiled. “Nothing would be wrong if she was pregnant, but I’d rather she and Wade get married first.”
“Look who’s here!” my mother said in an overly cheerful voice.
When I glanced at the entrance of the family room, my breath caught. Corina was so damn beautiful. Her smile made my chest constrict, and yet feel light at the same time. How the fuck could that happen?
“Hey!” Paxton said, walking over to her best friend. “She texted you, too?”
Corina nodded, trying with all her might to ignore me as she glanced around and said hello. When her eyes finally met mine, she held her smile in place, but it looked a little painful. “Hey, Mitch.”
With a quick nod, I said, “How’s it going, Corina?”
She shrugged. “It’s going.”
Chloe rushed over and dropped on the floor. “I can’t wait until you're my teacher!”
Corina’s smile faded. Big time. “Chloe, I was so looking forward to that, but I’ve got some bad news.”
My heart seized. My breathing was at a standstill. Was she moving back to Chicago?
“What’s the bad news?” Chloe asked while I leaned forward.
“They moved me down to kindergarten.”
“What?” Paxton and Chloe said at once.
“Why in the world did they do that?” Paxton asked.
“The new principal thinks I’m a good fit for the position. Well, definitely a better fit than the new teacher they hired for first grade.” Corina looked down at Chloe and smiled. “You’ll like him, Chloe.”
“He? My new teacher is a he?”
Corina nodded. “Yep. His name is Mr. Lewis.”
Paxton shook her head. “Where is he from?”
Chloe had her face buried in her hands bemoaning that a man teacher wouldn’t be able to draw.
“I’m sure he draw perfectly fine, Chloe. You’ll see.”
Chloe looked up and nodded, not really sure if what Corina had said was true.
“He’s from Oak Springs, but he’s been teaching in Austin for the last few years. He wanted to move back here, but he has to teach elementary until they open a position for a high school biology teacher.”
Waylynn jumped into the conversation. “Hold up. You said his last name was Lewis? Lane Lewis?”
Corina gave her a wide grin. “Yes! Do you know him?”
Paxton and Waylynn started laughing before Waylynn said, “Yes, Corina! I went to school with him. He was a year younger than me. Please, tell me he is just as gorgeous as he was in high school.”
“Oh, he is!” Corina added, peeking at me before turning back to Waylynn.
Waylyn shook her head. “Man, oh man. Lane Lewis is back in town. This ought to be interesting. Remember he had a thing for Harley, Tripp? He actually asked her to prom y’all’s junior year ’cause he thought you had broken up with her.”
Tripp huffed. “Yeah, that fu…ahh…jerk.”
“Good save,” Steed said with a chuckle.
Corina smiled at Chloe. “I think you’re going to like your new teacher. I’ll be right next door, so I’ll still get to see you.”
Chloe stood up. “Aunt Corina, I have something important to ask you!”
I pulled back, turning to Cord. “When did Chloe start calling Corina her aunt?”
He shrugged. “Beats me. It’s cute, though.”
“Ask away!” Corina said as she pulled Chloe onto her lap.
“This is important.”
Trying to hide her smile and look serious, Corina replied, “I’m ready.”
I couldn’t help but think what an amazing mother Corina would be.
Chloe used her hands to ask her important question. “Is my new teacher cute like Wade?”
“What?” Steed cried out as Paxton covered her mouth, trying to muffle her laughter as Gage slept in her arms.
“Chloe, that is not an important question!” Steed said. His face was as white as a damn ghost. It was near impossible for the rest of us not to start laughing.
“Actually, Steed, this might help with the present situation you’re fixin’ to face, if you get my drift,” Waylynn said.
Steed sat back and raked his hand down his face. “Christ Almighty, I need strength.”
Corina cleared her throat and looked at Chloe. “Well, I’d have to say yes! He is very much as cute as Wade. Maybe even more handsome.”
Corina and Paxton looked at each other. When Corina wiggled her eyebrows, I rolled my eyes and took a drink of my iced tea. Lane Lewis was a dick, and I couldn’t stand the motherfucker. Now he was going to be teaching my niece and playing teacher with Corina.
This fucking sucks.
“Yay! I can’t wait to meet him!” Chloe clapped her hands. How Gage slept through Chloe’s outburst was beyond me.
Cord bumped my arm. “You remember Lane. Don’t you, Mitchell?”
Glancing over, I shot him a dirty look. “Yes, I remember him. Why?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Just wondering how you feel about the woman you secretly pine over getting cozy with a guy who, back in high school, stole your clothes when you were in the shower and ran them up the flagpole.”
Keeping my voice low, I replied in a hushed voice, “She isn’t getting cozy with him. They work together.”
“I give him less than a week before he asks her out.”
Looking at the rest of them, I realized we’d missed some of the conversation.
“We actually had a couple of drinks before I headed over here,” Corina said. “Tried to nail our game plan for the school year.”
They’d had drinks already?
“I’d started my lesson plans, so I told him I would let him look over them. You don’t happen to have a copy of your lesson plans from last year, do you?” Corina asked Paxton.
“Yep, I sure do. They’re in the file cabinet. I left it all there for the next teacher.”
Corina and Paxton got lost in shop talk, lesson plans and where the crayons were stored.
With a chuckle, Cord shook his head. “Well, hell. The bastard moves fast. I’ll give him that much.”
I tried to tune in to what Corina and Paxton were talking about. Not two seconds later, my mother yelled as Amelia and Wade walked in.
“We’re home!” Amelia said with a huge smile.
“Oh, hell yeah. She’s married,” Cord whispered as we all stood. “Look at the blush on her cheeks. It’s killing her not to shoot it out.”
I let out a chuckle and nodded.
Pulling Amelia in for a hug, my mother said, “Welcome home! How was the trip?”
Amelia drew back. “It was amazing. Beyond amazing. I love that town and now I have a reason to love it even more!”
Wade slipped his arm around Amelia’s waist.
Waylynn slid next to Amelia. “Tell us already, Meli! We’re all going to crazy trying to guess what it is!”
Lifting her hand, Amelia let out a scream. “We got married!”
Cheers erupted, and I couldn’t help but notice my father mumbling a silent thank you prayer to the good Lord above.
Laughing, I walked over and hit him on the back. “Well, you know what they say.”
He looked confused.
With my best smirk, I said, “First comes marriage, then comes a baby carriage.”
His confused look turned to one of horror.
“Bite your tongue, Mitchell Roy Miller. It’s hard enough knowing my baby is married. Let me get used to that.”
Amelia was the apple of my father’s eye. It was going to be hard for him to let her go. I’m sure that was one of the reasons my parents had never complained about Amelia still living at home.
“Well, at least she’s sort of still here. She’ll be living on the ranch.”
He nodded and took a drink of rum and Coke.
“When’s the baby coming?” Chloe shouted and everyone laughed.
My father groaned. “Oh, Christ Almighty.”
When the call came over my radio I let out a frustrated sigh. “Jesus Christ. I’m trained in Special Weapons and Tactics. I handle murder investigations! Not missing pies from Mrs. Johnson’s window!”
Marilyn’s voice responded over the radio. “Sheriff Miller can’t get to it, Mitchell. He asked if you could go on over and talk to her. She likes you and all.”
I closed my eyes and shook my head. “She wants me to date her granddaughter, Marilyn! That’s why Miller wants me over there. He thinks it’s funny.”
“Well, things are quiet on the front. Sure you can’t handle it for the sheriff? He’s dealing with loose cattle over on Ranch Road 37.
“Fine, I’ll take care of it.”
I did a U-turn and headed back to town. By the time I pulled up to Mrs. Johnson’s house, I’d gotten six text messages from Robert. It didn’t help that our dispatcher was his sister, and I was positive Marilyn told Robert about the pies. When I stopped my car, I noticed I had a message from him.
Robert: Hey, while you’re there, get me an apple pie.
Me: Fuck you, asshole.
Robert: Make it a cherry. Mary is craving it.
I rolled my eyes and got out of my squad car. Don and Nancy Gates’s teenage boys watched me. They looked scared as hell, and I knew they must have expected the sheriff to show up and not me. I decided to have some fun with the little troublemakers.
Turning on my heel, I headed their way. Even though I was dressed in my normal uniform of dress pants, a white dress shirt, and cowboy hat, you could see my gun belt as clear as day. I didn’t need to be dressed like the sheriff for these boys to know they were in a shitload of trouble.
With a tip of my hat, I nodded. “You boys know what happened to Mrs. Johnson’s pies?”
The one with the bright red hair smirked. “What if we do?”
I slowly grinned. “Well, hell, if you do you just made my job easier. The faster I make an arrest the better.”
His smirk faded. “Arrest?”
“They stole property; that’s a crime. Mrs. Johnson said it’s happened before, so I’m guessing it’s the same thief. They’ve brought me in to handle it. Think it might be linked with some other robberies in town.”
Sheriff Miller handled most of the things that happened locally. My jurisdiction was a hell of lot bigger than Oak Springs. As a Texas Ranger, my job was special investigations, apprehending wanted felons, suppressing larger disturbances, and assisting local law enforcement with crime and violence. For a small, almost crime-free town like Oak Springs, stealing pies off a windowsill was almost a fucking felony.
“Th-thief?” the light brown-haired kid said.
Narrowing my eyes, I stared them down. “You steal something from someone, you’re a thief. There are two types of people I can’t stand. Thieves and liars. You boys aren’t either of those, are ya?”
They both took a step back. “N-no, sir. We ain’t either of those.”
With a slow nod, I looked them over. “Good. Glad to hear it. I’m going to go interview Mrs. Johnson. See if she turned on those security cameras Sheriff Miller told her to put in.”
“Cameras?” they said at once.
“What’s the matter, boys? You done look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“Um, we’ve got to go, officer,” the red-haired kid said.
“It’s Lieutenant Parker,” I said
They stumbled over each other and took off to their backyard. I was positive that if I followed them I’d find the damn pies.
Heading back toward Mrs. Johnson, I shook my head. “I don’t have time for this nonsense.”
As I crossed the street, I saw Corina. She was walking down Mrs. Johnson’s sidewalk, heading to her front door. I paused and waited until she was invited inside. Something was up, but I didn’t seem to mind. Smiling, I made my way to the house.
Mrs. Johnson answered the doorbell with a wide smile. “Mitchell Parker, what in the world are they doing sending you over here for some pies?”
I wanted to laugh. “Your pies are just as important as any other stolen items, Mrs. Johnson.”
She tossed her head back and laughed like I’d said the funniest damn thing. “Now, don’t be sweet-talking an old woman, Mitchell Parker. Come in and have some sweet tea. I have company, but I’m sure she’ll enjoy the view.”
My mouth nearly dropped open as Mrs. Johnson winked and headed toward her kitchen.
“Corina, darlin’, pour Ranger Parker a glass of iced tea, will you?”
Her blue eyes met mine.
“Hey, Corina. Long time no see.”
Forcing a smile, she replied, “Twice in one day. I’m a lucky girl.”
“Oh my!” Mrs. Johnson exclaimed. “You are indeed.”
Glancing at the older woman, Corina went about pouring another glass of tea.
“What brings you over to visit Mrs. Johnson?” I asked while setting my cowboy hat on the table.
Corina answered without looking at me. “We met a few months back at the butcher’s, and Mrs. Johnson has been kind enough to give me cooking lessons.”
My brows pinched. “You don’t know how to cook?”
I didn’t even see Mrs. Johnson’s hand lift up, but the back of my head sure felt it.
“Mitchell Parker, your momma didn’t raise you to be rude. You say you’re sorry to Corina this instant.”
Rubbing the back of my head, I turned to Corina. She was trying to hide her smile and doing a piss poor job of it.
“I’m sorry.”
She shrugged. “No worries. I would expect you of all people to think every woman should be born knowing how to wash clothes, keep a clean house, and cook for her man.”
My head jerked. “I don’t think that way. I was only surprised, that’s all. My sisters learned early on with my mom and grandmother.”
“God rest her soul,” Mrs. Johnson whispered.
“And granddaddy taught us boys to fish and hunt—”
“God rest his soul,” Mrs. Johnson added with more fire. Corina and I looked at her. “When you speak of the dead, it’s best to pay yer respect.”
“Yer?” Corina asked.
Laughing, Mrs. Johnson said, “Boy howdy, that’s the back woods country in me. Mr. Johnson, God rest his soul.” She looked at us expectantly.
“God rest his soul,” Corina and I said together.
“He rescued me from the swamps of Louisiana. I had no schoolin’, no knowledge of nothin’ but helping ma and pa around the farm.”
“I didn’t know you were from Louisiana, Mrs. Johnson,” I said.
She grinned. “Oh, yes. I met the mister in New Orleans. I went for a job cooking in a restaurant. That’s how I learned to cook so well, Corina.”
We grinned at each other and then turned back to Mrs. Johnson. “He promised me a life I could never have in New Orleans. He was studying to be a dentist. I thought that was kind of gross to be lookin’ in people’s mouths all day, but who was I to judge? I was making the food that went into them. Might as well marry the man cleaning ‘em!”
“Did you get married in New Orleans?” Corina asked. “Mitchell’s younger sister, Amelia, was just married there. She came back today.”
Mrs. Johnson’s eyes widened. “Amelia Parker is married? Heavens to Betsy, you don’t say. I thought that girl was still in high school.”
Laughing, I shook my head. “No, ma’am. She’s twenty-two years old. She writes books.”
“I love to read. Just ask that nasty old mean librarian we got at the public library. Ornery thing, that woman.”
Corina chuckled. “Now, now, Mrs. Johnson, that’s not nice. She’s just…old fashioned.”
With a huff, she looked at me. “She refuses to carry Fifty Shades of Grey!”
My cheeks heated. “You do know what type of book that is, don’t you?” I asked.
Flashing me a look that said I was insane, she brushed me off with her hand. “Just because I’m eighty-two years old doesn’t mean I don’t like a little naughty in my life, Mitchell Parker.”
Corina busted out laughing. “You’re making him blush, Mrs. Johnson.”
“Good, the boy needs to get some color on that face. You should read the book. Try some of the moves out on Corina here.”
And just like that, Corina stopped laughing. We tried not to look at each other and failed. Corina Miller was as innocent as they came. Her honesty with me about her sexual inexperience had actually turned me on. There were so many fucking things I wanted to teach her. Do to her.
My cock grew in my pants as we stared at each other. Corina was looking at me with a heated stare.
“Hell, maybe you have tried some of the moves on her, with the way you two stare. I feel like I’m watching a porn movie!”
Corina’s head snapped to the older woman. “What? No! No, I think we’re just both shocked, Mrs. Johnson, that you know what the book is about.”
The old woman shrugged. “We watched the movies at our monthly quilting meeting.”
Christ Almighty, as my father would say. I needed to change the subject fast.
“About those pies. When did you notice they went missing and where were they, Mrs. Johnson?”
She slowly stood. “If that wasn’t a change of subject, I don’t know what is.”
Corina pressed her lips together to keep from laughing as I followed Mrs. Johnson to the dining room window.
“Look here, one of the pies is back!” Mrs. Johnson exclaimed.
“I’ll be,” I said, shaking my head. With a glance out the window, I couldn’t help but notice one of the Gates boys leaning over to throw up. That’s what the little bastard got. “I have a feeling I know who took your pies.”
Mrs. Johnson glanced out the window and covered her mouth.
She placed her hands on her waist. “Well, if karma ain’t a bitch.”