“Those two? They’re just kids. Who cares what they do?”
Interesting.
“So who are you hanging with these days?”
“None of your business!”
“I could get you something—whatever you need. You and your new friends.”
She huffed out an annoyed breath. “Me and my new friend don’t need anything, thank you very much. We’ve got that covered, so get lost, or I’ll scream.”
Steel stopped and let Sue keep going.
Friend. She’d said “my new friend” rather than “my new friends.” He hurried to catch up again.
“So you threw Lily and Lara over for a man?” He wanted to say boy, but he figured that would rile her all over again. She seemed determined to be treated like an adult even if she was acting like a kid.
This time Sue stopped, turning a wide-eyed, desperate look on him that threw him off. “What do you know about it?”
“Nothing. Sounds like you don’t need them anymore now that you’ve got what you really want.”
Sue’s face crumpled. “I don’t have anyone,” she wailed. “Get away from me!” she added, her voice rising.
Hell. Steel turned sharply and ducked down the narrow alley between two shops, then emerged on the other side of the block and kept going. He’d make tracks now, but he’d be back to get more answers. Maybe Sue and her friends were in the middle of a teenage quarrel, and maybe it was something else entirely.
“Let me make it up to you,” the card read. “Tonight at the Dancing Boot. I’ll be a gentleman, I promise. And I’ll try to keep my foot out of my mouth.”
Stella stared at the huge bouquet that was making it difficult to see anyone coming into the Chance Creek sheriff’s department. It sat in a glass vase on the edge of her desk, blocking half her view. She’d been up late the last two nights coming up with a preliminary plan with Monica and woken early each morning to do her daily run. They’d looked at a calendar and realized they had to fast-track their plans. Summers cooled quickly into fall weather. If they wanted people to come to a water-based event, it had to be soon.
“Those are some flowers,” Angie commented on her way past. “Someone must have messed up pretty bad.”
Eric had messed up, she thought tiredly, but at least he’d realized it. She didn’t fancy another round of his boasting, but the truth was she’d been out of sorts all day, and she wouldn’t mind a night out. A drink or two. Some dancing. Maybe a game of pool. She’d see friends—everyone ended up at the Boot on a Friday night. She’d have plenty of time to go home after work, shower, change and head out again.
She pulled out her phone and accepted Eric’s invitation. No shop talk, she added.
Got it, he texted back immediately.
By the time she made it to the Boot that evening, her anger had mostly passed away. Now when she thought about his need to beat her in every race and his not-so-subtle attempts to dissuade her from becoming a deputy, it was kind of funny. Funny in a pathetic kind of way, but humorous nonetheless.
Eric was intimidated by her. There was no other explanation for his actions. He was afraid she might not only get into the deputy training program but also excel at the work. What if she did better than he did?
His fragile male ego couldn’t handle that.
Too bad. She wasn’t pulling any punches, and if Eric couldn’t deal with a woman with ambition, he could find someone else to be with. Tonight was just fun. Getting out there. Blowing off a little steam.
The evening started out just as she’d hoped. Eric bought her a beer, steered her to one of the tables at the side of the room where they could leave their things and soon joined her on the dance floor. The live band was rocking, the room was filled with dancers and Stella let all her cares wash away as she danced. She’d kept her outfit casual, but she’d taken enough time with her hair and makeup to feel like she was having a real night out. It had been too long since she’d cut loose a little.
When Eric excused himself to take a call, she kept dancing, joining a couple of friends from school who were out as a group. Eric came and went, dancing for a while, then fielding texts and calls, moving back and forth from the table to the floor where she stayed with the others. If it had been anyone else, she would have been angry, but she was having more fun than she’d expected with her friends and didn’t miss him.
“Everything all right?” she asked when he finished his latest call.
“Everything’s great. Just work.” He waggled his beer bottle at her. “A hero’s job is never done.”
Fifteen minutes later when Eric took another call, Stella headed for the ladies’ room, thinking maybe it was time to head home. She had chores in the morning even if she wasn’t working—plus her morning run…
“Hey, there,” someone said in her ear.
“Steel?” She sucked in a quick breath, all her senses tingling at his proximity. He’d been leaning against the bar, taking a pull from a beer. She hadn’t seen him come in—not that she’d been looking for him, she told herself.
“Off to the ladies’?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
“Grab me on your way back for a quick dance before he notices.” He jutted his chin at Eric huddled over his phone across the room.
“You got it.” Stella hurried on her way, telling herself that if Eric had ended his call by the time she got out, she’d head right back to him, but when she returned to the bar, he was still talking on
