I met Grayson in the parking lot behind the police station in time for his evening shift. I was a bundle of nerves, both longing to see him, and dreading it at the same time.

We exchanged an awkward greeting as I strapped on my bulletproof vest.

He came around and opened my car door for me. Always the gentleman. I climbed into the patrol car and was surprised when he reached across me to buckle me in. He hadn’t done that in a while.

Having Grayson’s hands move with the seatbelt across my body caused me to gasp aloud. Our eyes met, my sad blue eyes looking into his stormy gray eyes. Finally, I dropped my gaze, unable to withstand the intensity of his gaze.

Grayson closed my door and walked around the patrol car. I heard him call a greeting to a passerby, and then he climbed in the driver’s seat.

“So.” I cleared my throat, still not meeting his eyes. “What’s on the agenda for tonight?”

“You and I are going to talk. That’s my entire agenda tonight, aside from protecting the citizens of Peacock.” He cranked the engine and pulled out of the parking lot without looking my direction.

“Grayson.” I stopped, unsure of what I was going to say.

“Lucy.” He mocked my tone.

I rolled my eyes. We had been here before. “I meant is there any special agenda for you tonight as a police officer?” I fought to keep my tone even and calm, but I had a sudden urge to smack him.

“Nope.” He drove out on the highway, giving a cheery wave to motorists as we went.

This was going to be a long night.

And it was.

We drove around for hours with nothing happening. There was only one radio call the whole night. How was that even possible? I know Peacock was a peaceful, small town, but this was ridiculous.

Was it too much to ask that someone rob the liquor store? Go speeding down Highway 12 like a bat out of hell? Could I at least have somebody litter on Main Street?

Where were the hardened criminals when I needed them?

It didn’t help that Grayson’s overwhelmingly sexy alpha male presence filled the patrol car. I could smell his spicy scent. I could hear his grumbles deep in his chest when he talked to himself about where to drive next. I could see his muscles flexing as he turned the steering wheel.

I sighed deeply from the depths of my soul.

Grayson turned his head in my direction. “Does that sigh mean you are ready to talk to me?”

I sighed again. I couldn’t help it. “There’s nothing for us to talk about.”

He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. I could see his mind working, trying to come up with his next words.

I prayed the radio would fire up and save me from this conversation. Nothing but silence from that direction.

Then a distraught woman flagged us down from the side of the street. Grayson pulled over and rolled his window down to talk to her. ‘What’s wrong, ma’am?”

“My pig got out of the yard, and I can’t find her.” The woman was in tears.

“Your pig?” Grayson had his poker face in place.

“Yes. Her name is Tulip, and she’s pink with black markings. Weighs about three hundred pounds, give or take. I want to fill out a missing person’s report.”

I was so glad I was getting all of this exchange on camera. I zoomed in so I wouldn’t miss a thing.

“Ma’am, you can’t fill out a missing person’s report on a pig.” Grayson was as patient and gentle as ever.

“Why can’t I do that? Do we have to wait twenty-four hours for Tulip to be missing before I can fill out the missing person’s report?” The woman wiped at her tears. “But so much could happen in that time period. She could be hit by a car or attacked by a wild animal.”

What wild animal could take on a three hundred pound pig?

“You can’t fill out a missing person’s report on a pig because, well, Tulip isn’t a person. She’s a pig.” Grayson didn’t miss a beat. “But you’ve given me a good description of the pig, and I will certainly look for her while I am on patrol. Tomorrow morning you can call animal control, and fill out a missing pig’s report with them.”

I had to bite my lip hard at that statement.

“Oh, I’m so grateful for your help, Officer Jackson.” The woman’s eyes had dropped to his nameplate on his uniform. Then she did a double take at his handsome appearance.

I guess she had been too upset by the missing pig for Grayson’s sexiness to register before now. Never mind that she was at least sixty. She knew quality alpha male when she saw it.

“My, oh my. You are a handsome public servant. Almost as handsome as that firefighter, Liam something, that works in town.” She fanned herself a bit. “You don’t have a hot cop calendar, do you?”

I couldn’t help it that time. I laughed aloud before I could stop myself. Grayson shot me a wry look over his shoulder.

“No, ma’am, I don’t have a calendar. Let me get back on patrol, and maybe I’ll run across your pig.” He started to roll up the window.

“Tulip. Her name is Tulip. Maybe you should write that down.” She pointed at his notebook resting on the console.

Grayson grabbed his notebook and jotted down ‘Tulip the Pig’ in large letters and then showed it to her. “Got it. Tulip. I’ll be on the lookout for Tulip, ma’am.”

The lady beamed. “Let me run into the house and get you some bacon.”

“Sorry?” Grayson was alarmed, and frankly, so was I.

“Bacon is Tulip’s favorite treat. If you see her, she will come right to you for a strip of bacon.” She turned and hustled back up the driveway.

Grayson’s head swiveled my direction. “I thought this whole thing was kind of humorous until she mentioned bacon.”

I snorted. “No kidding. Tulip is a cannibal. There are probably laws against that.” I lifted the camera back up to film the distraught woman as she came back down the driveway with a brown paper bag.

“Here’s the bacon. And I put my phone number in there in case you run across Tulip.” She waved a sad little wave, and my heart went out to her. She missed her pig.

I didn’t have a pig, of course, just a caveman and a dog named Pearl, but I knew how she felt.

We drove off, and now the cruiser was filling up with the smell of bacon. We drove around like usual, and the radio stayed quiet just like before. This time, at least, we had Tulip to watch for.

But the cannibalistic and elusive Tulip remained on the run.

Finally, I spoke up. “You told that lady to fill out a missing pig’s report with the animal shelter?”

He grunted. “My buddy Jake is in charge of the shelter. Just sending a little love his direction.” He grinned over at me.

Finally, Grayson’s shift ended. The sun had risen, and it was another beautiful summer morning in Mississippi. Instead of going back to the police station, however, Grayson went back to the small copse of trees where we had sex that first time.

Crap.

Grayson pulled over and backed into the trees until we were completely hidden from view. Irritated, I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at him.

“What are we doing here? It’s time for you to take me back to my truck.” I wasn’t giving an inch, no matter how miserable I was without him in my life.

“Lucy, we have to talk about this. I’m in love with you. You are in love with me.” He parked the car and turned the ignition off. “We belong together. It’s that simple.”

“It’s not that simple. I can’t help how I feel about your job. I tried to ignore my feelings about the whole situation, but I can’t.” I crossed my legs and looked out of the window.

I was so heartsick I wanted to throw up. No matter which path I took forward I was looking at heartache.

“So you can’t ignore what I do for a living, but you can ignore your feelings for me? Is that it?” Now Grayson sounded irritated.

He got out of the car. Alarmed, I watched him stalk around to my side, and he wrenched open my door. “Stand up.”

That dominant tone in his voice always got me wet, and I obeyed without questioning why.

Grayson closed my door and pulled me to him. I stepped back but ran right into the car, and he crowded against me.

“I’ll say it again. I love you. You love me. It’s that simple.” He leaned in closer with his eyes on my lips.

Mesmerized, I forgot my resolution to stay away from him. I leaned into him and felt his warm lips brush mine in the sweetest kiss.

A squeal sounded a few feet away, and I jumped, bumping my nose hard into Grayson’s face. It hurt.

We turned as one and saw a huge pig running through the trees towards us. It was pink with black markings, and if I had to guess, I’d say it was about three hundred pounds.

“You don’t suppose Tulip smells the bacon in the car, do you? I’ve heard pigs have a remarkable sense of smell.” Grayson spoke in a conversational tone, but I realized Tulip was making good time.

Was she friendly? Were pigs aggressive? My only experience with pigs was in the form of pork chops and bacon. That was about it.

I tried to open my car door but tripped over Grayson’s feet. Tangled up with him, I got really nervous. Tulip was almost on us.

“You don’t think she would try to eat us, do you?” I clutched at Grayson while I tried to get my footing back.

“Let’s don’t wait around to find out.” Grayson succeeded in getting the door open, and we dove into the car.

We huddled squashed together in the passenger seat. Grayson shifted around awkwardly and managed to pull me into his lap. Soon I could feel his growing erection beneath me. My heart rate sped up, and Grayson’s breathing deepened. His hand stroked down my back, and I heard him sniff my hair.

A minute passed. Tulip walked around the car several times. I rolled the window down a little and peered out at her. “She’s pretty cute, and her owner was very worried about her safety. Really seemed to miss her.”

Grayson sighed and took my not so subtle hint. “Damn it. I guess we are on pig rescue.”

He grabbed the bag of bacon and crawled over the seat to open his car door. “Tulip, come here, girl. Come get some, uh, bacon.” He waved a strip of bacon around, and Tulip trotted around the car.

Grayson got out, eying the pig with distrust, and opened the door to the backseat. He kept one hand on his Taser. He threw a strip of bacon into the back, and Tulip hopped right up into the car. Grayson closed the door and got back in.

“Thank goodness for the cage divider.” He looked at me, and I giggled, despite myself.

Although Grayson’s shift had ended some time ago, we had a pig to deliver. So that’s what we did. We took Tulip back to her grateful owner, who cried some more and then gave us cookies as a reward. Then we drove to the police station.

I had been afraid Grayson would try to take me to a secluded spot to talk again, so I was relieved when we went back to my truck. Relieved, and perversely disappointed at the same time.

Make up your mind, Lucy.

I hopped out of the patrol car before he had a chance to open my door for me. “Thanks, Grayson. I’ll text you when I’m ready for another ride along.”

As much as I needed footage of Grayson in action, I also needed a break, both physically and mentally.

“Lucy. We still need to talk.” Grayson helped me unstrap my bulletproof vest, and I shivered at the close contact.

Grayson’s beautiful gray eyes darkened at my shiver.

“Not now, okay?” I couldn’t look at him, and I heard the tears in my voice.

“Okay, baby. I’ll be patient.” Grayson spoke to me a low tone that seemed to reach out and stroke my pussy. I shivered again.

His words reminded me that Grayson was always gentle and patient, both in bed and out of it.

He stepped forward, and I moved away. “See you later.”

I hustled over to my truck and drove away, trying not to look like I was running away.

We both knew I was.