Page 14 of No Man Left Behind

“Phail is a great town. Maybe you’ll like it enough to stay. It sounds like you can work from anywhere. We might be small, but we have WiFi.”

She laughed again. He was getting addicted to the sound. “Good to know.”

They turned the final corner leading to the B&B. “Can I see you again tomorrow? Maybe give you a proper tour of the town?”

She nodded immediately. “I’d enjoy that. Unless you have work to do?”

He shrugged. “Small-town policing means I’m on duty all the time. I can do my paperwork whenever I need to. I’m hoping for a funding announcement in the next couple of days, but I’m in waiting mode, and I don’t do well with waiting.”

She smiled. “I seem to recall you being very patient.”

“When the situation calls for it. But I want to hire more officers, and I want to buy a building to create a real police station. The town is growing, and we need to ensure it stays a good place to be.”

“Do you have a place in mind?”

“I do. Just down the street from the Saloon. If you’re interested, we can check it out tomorrow.”

“It’s a date.”

He grinned at her words even as she flushed and shook her head. “I didn’t mean it like it sounded. It’s just a phrase.”

“Actually, I like the sound of that. Let’s make it a date, Elina.”

She bit on her lower lip, but her eyes sparkled. “I like the sound of that, too.”

Perfect. He guided her up the steps to the B&B and leaned down to kiss her cheek. Then he bent to put his lips next to her ear. “I look forward to seeing you soon. Good night, Elina.”

Her voice was breathy when she answered. “Good night.”

He lifted her hand and kissed it, then stepped back so she could use her key for the B&B. Her smile was brilliant when she turned back to him before closing the door.

Feeling like a teenager with his first crush, Marcus couldn’t contain his own grin as he headed home.

When Elina opened the door to the B&B, she heard Carl call out. “Close the door. Quick.”

Reacting to the panic she heard in his tone, she slammed the door shut and threw the deadbolt. “What is it? What’s wrong? Should I call Marcus back? Are you hurt?”

She moved to the living area, following the sound of his voice. Carl knelt by the couch, peering under it, and she moved to his side. “Are you okay? Did you fall?”

He laughed and moved to stand easily on his own. “No. Sorry for scaring you. Everyone is fine. I just didn’t want to lose one of the kittens.”

Kittens? She hadn’t seen any earlier in the day.

Jim walked into the living space with a triumphant grin. He held three kittens while a long-legged grey dog with a huge head followed him into the room. “Found them.”

Carl sighed dramatically. “Good job. I can’t imagine how bad it would look if we lost one of them so soon.”

Jim stopped halfway across the room. “Hi, Elina. Do you have any allergies to animals? We should have checked, but Kimi Twinishe, our local vet, was desperate this afternoon, so we said yes to fostering these four for a while.”

Elina smiled at them. “No allergies. I met Kimi tonight at the Saloon, and she didn’t say anything about them.” Although the conversation had bounced around and she might have missed it.

Jim and Carl exchanged a look. “Wait. You offered to call Marcus back. And Kimi said Marcus had sent out a text requiring their whole gang at the Saloon. These four had been dropped off this morning, and she didn’t want to leave them unattended on their first day. That text wouldn’t have had anything to do with you, would it?”

Elina felt her cheeks flame again. At least her olive skin tone would cover most of the blushing she’d done today. “It did, actually.”

Jim closed the distance and passed one of the kittens to Carl, then motioned Elina over to the sofa. “This sounds like a story we need to hear. Can I get you something to drink before you fill us in?”

Elina shook her head but took a seat, realizing these two charming men probably found out all the news simply by being themselves. It was hard to resist kindness and honest interest.

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