He reached the booth and her eyes lifted to him as an easy smile spread over her face. “What’s on my girl’s mind?”
She didn’t answer right away, her eyes drifted down his body. It was a uniform, one that countless law enforcement officers wore, but the sight of Hank in that cotton went right to her clit. She pressed her thighs together to ease the ache. When her gaze returned to him, he knew exactly what she was thinking.
He leaned into her before sitting and said, “I expect to see that look on your face later.”
Lust made her lightheaded thinking about later but she pulled herself back to his original question, her voice a little hoarse when she said, “I like that you can read me so well.” She blew out a breath. “First, Elmer and Sal asked me to talk you into apple bobbing with miniskirts.”
Hank grabbed for the glass of water sitting in front of Arissa and told her. “Don’t worry I squashed that by leaving the image of Hya in a miniskirt in their heads.” He drained the last of it.
Her face twisted at the visual. “You can’t unsee that,” she muttered but teasing turned serious. “I’ve been meaning to ask you about the man that showed up that first night. I haven’t really let myself think about it because I’ve had something so much sweeter on my mind, but it’s kind of there in the back of my head.” The truth was she was happy, happier than she’d ever been but that man…something about him bothered her. And him asking Hank about Phoebe, coupled with her conversation with Catherine about Phoebe, she felt like the other shoe was going to drop. “Did you get that settled?”
Even though it was Marty’s section, Dehlia always came out from the back to wait on the sheriff. Before Hank had a chance to answer Arissa, Dehlia appeared. “What can I get my favorite couple today?” She smiled.
Arissa absently looked up at Dehlia, her thoughts hadn’t been on food. She fell back on her usual when she said, “The chicken salad sandwich and sweet tea.”
Hank studied Arissa as he spoke. “I’ll have the same.”
Dehlia was an old wise woman so when she felt something in the air between Hank and Arissa, she didn’t linger, leaving them to it.
Hank put his elbows on the table, folded his arms and leaned in. “Baby, if this was bothering you this much, you should have asked sooner.” He laid a hand on hers and didn’t let her talk as he went on. “I had Mike look into him. Seems there’s not much on him. Thinking she wanted to get shot of him and made shit up.” Hank didn’t hold back the information about Phoebe for any reason other than there was nothing to tell.
“She being Phoebe,” Arissa said.
Hank’s thumb caressed her fingers, trying to give her as much comfort as he could. “Yes, Sweetheart.”
“Do you mind if I ask you about her?”
“You can ask me anything,” he told her and stopped when Marty dropped off their sweet tea. “Hi, Sheriff,” she said before pulling her bottom lip between her teeth.
Hank nodded. “Marty.”
Then she was gone. Marty wasn’t a fan of Arissa and Hank together because she’d had a crush on him since high school.
Arissa watched Marty walk away before her focus turned back to Hank. “Asking anything, that goes both ways. You know that right?”
Hank reached for his tea. “I do.”
She glanced down at their hands before her gaze lifted and she asked, “How did you and Phoebe meet?”
He put pressure on her hand when he told her. “I met her at the South Carolina Policeman’s Ball.”
That surprised her because her image of Phoebe was more model and Hollywood. “Did she work in law enforcement too?”
“No,” he started softly. “Her friend was dating a detective and she tagged along. She was actually between jobs when I met her, which made her move to Summerville an easy one.”
“I imagine you became friends with the detective since you met Phoebe through him, so to speak, and you’re both officers of the law.”
Hank tilted his head and blinked his eyes. “Actually, I didn’t. If I recall correctly, Phoebe stopped talking to them shortly after she moved to Summerville. I asked why, but she always diverted the conversation.” Hank shrugged. “Guess, chick shit.”
Serious chick shit if she was close enough to the woman to be a third wheel. Arissa didn’t linger on that and instead asked what she really wanted to know. “So what happened between you two? Why isn’t she still here, in your house, in your bed?” She felt the heat creep up her neck to settle on her cheeks but she forged on. “I’m being blunt, but only a month with you and…I don’t understand how anyone could walk away from you.”
Hank gave her a small smile. “If we’re being blunt, I came home from work one day to an empty closet and a dear John letter. Said she missed the city, couldn’t handle the small town life or being on the arm of the man that ran said town. That it drew too much attention she didn’t want.” Hank watched Arissa’s expression change but he carried on. “You’re the only one that knows those details. Everyone thinks she just up and left for a life in the city. And I kept it that way.”
Arissa wasn’t sure what she thought had happened between them, but hearing she left him the way she had, the back of her eyes burned. “She did not,” she whispered but as she sat across from him, thinking about him coming home to that,
