Page 4 of Love for a Lifetime

“It’s Officer Keller,” he reminded her.

“No, it’s not,” she said with a laugh. “It’s Dawson Theodore Keller.”

“Just once,” he begged, throwing his head back in an exaggerated plea.

“I’m not playing your fantasy game.”

Dawson didn’t need the uniform to turn every woman’s head. He had personality in spades, making everyone laugh and feel special with one phrase or joke. The uniform only made him lethal. Only when hearts were on the line.

And as far as hearts went–Dawson’s was pure gold. He might joke about wanting to be called officer, but he was the epitome of the good cop stereotype. He wanted justice, but he wanted things to be set right. He wanted harmony and fun.

It was too bad his job was a double-edged sword. To right the wrongs, he had to see the darkness in all its many forms.

“Will you call me sir?” he asked in a last-ditch effort to get a rise out of her.

Olivia looked up, ready to keep the sparring match going, until she saw the look on his face. His brows were pulled slightly together, frowning in concern.

Or was it pain?

He already knew something was wrong. She hadn’t fooled him for one minute.

“What’s wrong, my queen?” he asked softly.

And that stupid nickname he’d given her back when she used to boss him and her brother around when they were kids shattered every gate holding back the tears.

The pressure in her chest expanded until a sob burst out of her, hard and loud, as she covered her face with her hands. He couldn’t see her like this. She was known for keeping it together. It’s what she was good at!

She hadn’t cried like this since her mom died, and the disappointment crushed her already sagging shoulders.

Her car door opened, and Dawson pulled her to her feet, holding her tight to his chest. His strong arms created a barricade around her as she pressed her face into the hard material of his uniform.

“Who did this to you?” His warm breath brushed against her ear–stern and foreboding. “Who upset you? I’ll find them.”

Another sob was her only answer. Dawson didn’t have a cruel bone in his body, but she had no doubt he’d exact justice on anyone who hurt her.

But this wasn’t someone’s fault. It was hers. Her own body was attacking her, stealing any hope for the future she wanted.

She should be used to it by now, but she’d keep praying. If it was the Lord’s will for her, she’d have to find a way to accept her fate.

That didn’t stop the anger from penetrating her every thought. She’d done a good job protecting her heart from Dawson’s flirting all these years, because that’s all it was–flirting. He flirted with everyone.

She would be thoroughly and completely crushed if she gave in and opened her heart to Dawson only to have him leave when he found out she had a medical condition that was severe enough to most likely render her unable to have kids.

He wasn’t going to find out today, and she was glad she hadn’t let Dawson charm his way into her heart. He wanted kids, and he wasn’t quiet about it.

She had a reason for keeping everyone at arm’s length. Every boyfriend she’d ever had eventually got tired of trying to break through her walls and said a quick goodbye.

No one in town knew about her condition, except her dad and her brother, Beau. She’d been careful not to let the word get out. She couldn’t stand it if people started looking at her like she was defective. Lots of people wanted to have kids. It just so happened she was one of them, but that dream would most likely never belong to her.

“Olivia. Tell me what’s wrong. I’ll fix it.”

She sniffed and wiped her tears on the back of her hand. “It’s nothing. Just a bad day. Or I guess a lot of bad days hitting me all at once.”

“It’s not Toby, is it? If he bothers you again–”

“His name was Trey, and I haven’t heard from him since he broke up with me. It is not Trey.”

Trey could go for a dip in the Amazon River for all she cared. She hadn’t lost a single night’s sleep over that loser.

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