Page 24 of Claimed by the Lawman

“Now, now, good man. Are you suggesting that Mansfield didn’t do his job?”

“Of course not. We both know he was detailed.” Kace didn’t bother hiding the sarcasm in his tone.

A sliver of agitation covered Wilkes’ expression and then he shifted from one shiny loafer to the other. “This isn’t a pissing contest, Cade. This is about the taxpayers’ money. Just keep that in mind. You know how bad this looks on the Sheriff’s office?”

“I most certainly will keep that in mind.” Kace tipped the brim of his hat and bid the man farewell, quickly making his way toward his truck. If he didn’t need a stress reliever before seeing the Mayor, he certainly did now.

As he climbed into his truck and pulled out onto the street, he worked his jaw, hoping to relieve some of the tension. He pasted a smile on his face as he drove past Wilkes who was watching from the sidewalk.

As far as jobs were concerned, Kace couldn’t complain. Most of the time he had the flexibility to investigate and do his own thing, but on occasion, the Mayor wanted to toss his authority around. But why on this case? No doubt Mansfield was the one who had informed Wilkes. The two were hunting buddies, but the truth was, whether Kace investigated the Posey case or not, it was no sweat off the Mayor’s brow. Unless he was worried that somehow this would ruin his chances for being re-elected.

Pushing those thoughts into the back of his mind, Kace steered the truck toward Sadie Mae’s. A few minutes later when he stood in front of her door and it came open, her frown and tilted hip told him she wasn’t happy. What was new as of lately?

“You’re late,” she mumbled.

“I didn’t know I had a set time.” He blinked.

“When you call and say you’re on your way, that means you’re on your way.” She looked at him through her mascaraed eyelashes.

He understood she was still fuming over the other day. He swiped off his hat and held it against his chest. “Come on. You can’t be mad forever.”

The corner of her lips played with a smile. “Well, I guess I can forgive you…that is if you work a little harder.” She pushed the door open wide and stepped back.

Once inside, he wasted no time. He pulled the luscious blonde into his arms and kissed her.

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