Hank waved as his friends left the diner. With Kane agreeing to look into things, Hank still felt the need to do a little investigation of his own. He stood and dropped a few bills on the table. The rest of his homemade mac-n-cheese lunch filled the small to-go container. It probably wouldn’t make it until lunch tomorrow. Already, he longed for another taste. Maybe he should have considered making Miz Debby an offer. Don’t they say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach? For food this good, I might not miss sex. Nah. He chuckled.
As he strolled to the register, he surveyed the patrons. While most of the people were friendly, a few failed to meet his gaze. The clientele was a little better dressed than in his hometown, but for the most part, the people were the same—mothers with their children enjoying lunch, old timers chatting about history, and business people grabbing a quick bite. Miz Debby flitted about the tables, visiting with everyone and topping off drinks. Her easygoing manner as well as the good cooking was highly valued if the line waiting for a table offered any indication.
“Was the food good?” The teenage boy who’d helped earlier held out his hand for the bill.
“Very good. Some of the best I’ve had in a long time.” He handed over the check and a twenty dollar bill.
As the young man gathered the change, he spoke with passion. “My dad got some of the recipes from Miss Lilibet. I saw you with Kane and his wife when I brought the food.”
“Her recipes? Neither Kane nor she let on. Tricky tricksters.” Hank handed over an extra five for the young man. “Can you point me in the direction of Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend? The sheriff highly recommended it.”
“Sure. Just up the street about six or seven stores.” He looked down at his hands before continuing, “And on your left. I always forget which way is left.” He laughed. “The nice lady who runs it sometimes comes in here for dinner. Usually she just does takeout. She donated a huge prize for the school fundraiser last year. Do you know her?”
“No.” Hank paused then let the next white lie slide from his lips. “I’m looking for a birthday gift for my mother, and the sheriff mentioned her store. He said she had good prices.”
“She’s real nice and pretty, too.” Miz Debby’s son seemed to have a big-time crush on Ms. Hall. The poor young man couldn’t meet his gaze now that he’d spilled the beans.
The kid had good taste. Hank hadn’t been able to sleep through a whole night without sexy dreams of slowly unhooking the line of buttons down the back of Jeannie’s wedding dress. Cool your jets, man. A hard-on in a diner’s in bad taste.
“Thank you again for your help.” He patted the boy on the shoulder. “You’d better get back to the register. Your mama looks like she could use the help. Take care.”
He pushed the door open and walked out into the sunshine.
***
Jeannie took a swig of her now-warm soda. She set the can on the counter and sighed. What a morning! What did Susan think she’d accomplish by showing off how she bagged Clinton? Violence was never the answer, but she’d been so tempted. She watched her hand as it shook. The bell on the door rang as a tall gentleman entered. Jeannie slid out from behind the counter, determined to make a sale.
“Welcome to Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend. Please tell me it’s as beautiful outside as it looks.” She threw the question out, rather than a sales pitch, to engage the customer in a discussion. The sun behind him cast the man’s features in shadows. His broad shoulders filled the doorway. Her stomach grumbled at the appetizing smell of mac and cheese floating toward her. Jeannie glanced at the clock on the wall. Nearly one. No wonder her stomach protested. When I get a moment, I’ll call down to the diner and order.
The man paused. “Ma’am, do you have a grizzly bear in here?”
Jeannie’s face flamed as she grabbed her stomach. “Sorry. I missed lunch and your to-go box set my stomach off.”
Walking toward her like an animal searching for prey, he turned his head as if scanning the store for threats. Jeannie shivered. This guy wouldn’t let anything stop him from getting what he wanted. She squinted, trying for a better look at his face. A man like him would set a girl on fire.
Finally, he arrived in front of her and her fantasy fizzled.
“You! Deputy Dan!”
“It’s Hank, actually.”
“Whatever. What are you doing here? Are you here to arrest me again? What did I supposedly do this time? Threaten the queen of England, or scare small schoolchildren?” she screeched, clenching her hands at her sides, nails biting into her palms.
Hank set his take-out container on the counter and held his arms up. “Easy. I’m stopping in to check on you. I’m not here to arrest you.”
Jeannie narrowed her eyes and stared at the deputy, her jaw tense. Should she believe him? “Fine. Say your piece and leave. Obviously, you aren’t a client, so I don’t have to be nice to you.” She settled her arms across her chest.
He leaned back against the nearest display case and placed his hands on the glass top, appearing relaxed and nonthreatening, but she trusted him as far as she could throw him. Not wearing his uniform, but a plaid cotton shirt and jeans, his casual look had her heart beating harder and her stomach quivered. Not from lack of food. The tight dark-blue jeans showed off his strong legs. She almost wished he’d turn around so she could get a glimpse of his ass. He certainly was more attractive than she remembered. Catching a smile forming on her face, she pursed her lips. “I’m fine, as you can see. I think you’d better go.”
“I think someone set you up.”
“Duh? I could have told you that. In fact, I did! But you didn’t believe me.” Jeannie threw her hands up and grabbed her soda. She took a swig and slammed her can down on the counter. “What is it about today? Did I harm someone in a past life? Bad karma? First, the woman who ended up married to my former fiancé came in to gloat. She said some pretty threatening things. And now you show up telling me you knew I wasn’t a terrorist…yet you threw me in jail.”
Turning back around, she bumped into Hank who’d come up quietly behind her. She grabbed his muscular, tree-trunk-like arms to steady herself. His uniform hadn’t hinted at the muscles hidden beneath. Her mouth dried at the thought of unbuttoning his shirt to reveal his rock-hard chest. “What are you doing sneaking up on me?” Always one to lash out when upset, embarrassed, or sexually frustrated, Jeannie’s sharp tone kept danger away from her heart.
“Whoa.” He slid his hands down her arms as she gripped his cotton shirt. This close, she inhaled his unique scent, musk and vanilla. “Are you okay?”
She forced her legs tight together, trying to stop the pulsing between them. Her gaze settled on his lips. How would they feel on hers? She pushed on his chest—ooh it was hard—and took a step back. “I’m fine. Let me go.” Her heart thumped wildly. Why does it have to be this man who makes my pulse jump? He ruined my life two months ago. “What are you doing here?”
“I think we’ve covered that. But if you mean why today in particular? I happened to be in town, having lunch with friends.” He cleared his throat then took a step back. “You said someone came in and threatened you? You should file a report. We take threats seriously.”
“I know how seriously you take threats, but you didn’t believe me when I said I hadn’t committed a crime. I wasn’t targeting anyone. What’s changed?” She raised her hand to her lips and blinked back tears. She’d pushed her “almost” wedding out of her mind, but having first Clinton’s wife and now the deputy in her store in the same day brought her pain surging to the forefront.
He met her gaze. “So who hates you that much?”
***
A deputy protects the county. Hank took his oath seriously, but something about Jeannie made him want to pull her into his arms and keep her safe. He’d seen her in a wedding dress. Now he longed to see her wrapped in his bedsheets. Her dark-blue skirt ended just above her knees and hugged her ass, while her high heels made her legs look even longer. The better to wrap around my waist while I ride her. The peach blouse brought out the freckles on her face and accentuated the blush of her skin. He studied her, burning each aspect of her into memory.
Her bottom lip trembled. Tears welled in her eyes. Her teeth gripped her lip. Rage filled him. He’d gladly kill whoever upset her so. “I’d have said no one until earlier today. Then Clinton’s wife came in, taunting me and laughing about my wedding mix-up. She thinks I’m behind some leaks to the paparazzi. She’s wrong. I turned my back on him and closed my heart long ago.”
Hank squeezed her hand then slid his hands around her waist. He lifted her to sit on the glass counter. “We’ll figure it out.” He brushed an errant curl off her face and tucked it behind her ear. “Are you sure she threatened you? It’s obvious she’s jealous of you. Have you heard from him? Your former fiancé’s acting stinks lately. I’ve secretly hoped the zombies would catch him,” he teased.
A smirk flitted across her face then she scowled at him. “I don’t know why you are here. I get you are trying to make yourself feel better for ruining my wedding, but now you know the truth. So you can leave. Go. Goodbye. Never come back.” Jeannie folded her arms across her chest, pushing her breasts upward and deepening her cleavage. A red-blooded guy, he couldn’t pull his gaze away until he felt the pain from his cock straining against his jeans.
He enjoyed her spunk. After the events of a couple of months ago, many people would have crawled into a hole to lick their wounds. Not her. She was ready to fight him—to call him out on his assumptions. Too bad. Whether she liked it or not, he’d watch over her. “Ma’am. I’m truly sorry about the mix-up with your wedding. Maybe you’re correct. I’m trying to fix things.” He shrugged. “Or maybe I hate seeing someone get set up. Either way, I’m keeping an eye on you.”
Jeannie’s stomach gurgled loudly. Her face pinked as she clutched her belly.
“Are you okay? Sounds like you swallowed a wolverine.” Hank placed his hand over hers, but she pulled it away as if his touch burned her.
“I skipped breakfast and lunch.” She stared a hole in the carpet.
Hank cupped her chin and raised it. She closed her eyes, and a sigh escaped her lips. “Let me show you I’m serious about helping out. I’ll run down to the diner and get you something to eat. What do you want? My treat.” Focused on her berry-red lips, he bent closer, close enough to kiss when a loud explosion from outside broke the moment.
Jeannie stared at him, eyes wide open now, and Hank peered out the door to see an ancient pickup rattling away down the road, smoke pouring from its tailpipe.
“Backfire,” he hurried to reassure her. The noise had sent her from soft in his arms to all business. He stared at her lips, watching her speak but not really processing what she said. Instead, he fanaticized about seeing her plump mouth wrapped around his member. Her beautiful green eyes gazing up at him. He ached to wrap her in his arms and kiss her senseless.
Jeannie pushed another stray curl off her face. “Fine. I do need to eat. But once you bring me food, we are square. We’re done, and you won’t bother me again.”
When he nodded, she continued. “I’ll have the egg salad pita with chips and another soda.” She leaned back and reached under the counter, coming up with her purse. “Let me give you some money.”
When he didn’t answer, Jeannie snapped her fingers in front of his face. “Are you even listening? I said I’d give you money. No sense wasting the offer, unless you’ve changed your mind?”
This wouldn’t be the end of things between them, no matter what she wanted. “Nonsense. It’s the least I can do. I’ll grab your lunch. What did you want again? The egg salad pita? Everyone’s ordered it today. It must be good.” Hank hooked his thumbs in his front jeans pocket, hoping to cover his bulge as he listened to her order once again. “I’ve got it. See you in a few.” Maybe the short trip to the diner would cool his raging hormones. He’d not been this bad since tenth grade and Missy Stevens.
Hank strode out the door, blinking in the bright sunlight. He tugged his sunglasses from his shirt pocket and slid them on. Adjusting to the change, he bumped into a woman passing on the sidewalk, knocking her purse from her hands. Makeup and credit cards littered the ground.
“I’m sorry, ma’am.” He chuckled at the nicely dressed brunette. “The sun was in my eyes.” He bent over to help with her purse. She stomped her foot, scowling as she gathered her things. “Get out of my way, you oaf. Can’t you watch where you’re going?”
Why was she so angry at a simple mistake? Using his most sincere voice, he continued. “Again, I’m sorry. Please accept my apology.” He held out two credit cards and her wallet.
Snatching them from his hands, she shoved them back into her bag. “Just leave me alone. You’re a menace. If you don’t go away, I’m going to file a report with the sheriff.”
Hank straightened, held his arms up, and slowly backed away. “I’ll leave. I’m sorry.” He refused to turn away from the upset woman. He’d learned long ago what an angry person could do. The scar between his shoulder blades on his back itched with the memory. When she’d finally finished picking up her things and stormed off, he resumed his walk to the diner. He was a man on a mission. A knight in blue jeans.