Page 94 of Break My Fall

She took his question seriously. “I’m not sure yet. I mean, no. Not at the moment. Ten years from now, it might be getting old.”

He bit back a smile. “Ten years from now, huh?”

Her skin heated as the implications of her words sunk in, but she didn’t backtrack. “Full disclosure. I’m in it to win it. If you aren’t, you should run for the hills, or maybe the coast. The hills are sketchy.”

“Indeed, they are.”

TWENTY-FIVE

Gray stayed with Meredith until her first patient arrived. And when he walked into the police station, he was greeted by two of his officers, Donovan and Brick.

“Told ya,” Brick said to Donovan.

Donovan grinned. “Is it too soon to say welcome to the family, boss?”

“Your wedding is still a few months away,” Gray said. “Still plenty of time for Cassie to come to her senses.”

“Are you kidding? I’m in, man. Got the approval of Granny Quinn. There’s no stopping me.”

Brick gave Donovan a fist bump.

“Don’t you two have work to do?” Gray walked to his office. Donovan and Brick fell in behind him.

“Nope. We’ve scared all the criminals out of town.” Brick buffed his nails on his uniform.

“Yeah,” Donovan scoffed. “Sent ’em straight to Neeson.”

Brick groaned. “Sad but true.”

Gray turned to his men. “Do you really have a quiet morning?”

“We could set up a speed trap?” Brick rubbed the back of hisneck. “Or walk around town and be a comforting presence to our citizens?”

“Or”—Gray pointed to the whiteboard in his office—“you could help me brainstorm a few things.”

Both men nodded enthusiastically.

“Get some coffee and your laptops. Give me fifteen minutes to check my inbox.”

They left and Gray blew through his email in record time. Something had been niggling at the back of his brain for a few days now. Maybe if he talked it out, he could pull it to the surface.

Donovan was, like him, a transplant to Gossamer Falls. Brick Nolan was another animal altogether. He was a born-and-bred native, proud of his Appalachian heritage, proud of his state, and proud of the fact that he had no chill whatsoever when it came to March Madness.

Brick had proven to be an invaluable resource. He, much like Cal, knew everyone in town and in most of the towns around Gossamer Falls. He also had a mother who was known as the worst gossip in four counties.

Granny Quinn told Gray early on not to say anything to Brick’s mama that he didn’t want the whole town to know in less than forty-eight hours. Gray had been convinced it was an exaggeration, but Brick had confirmed it.

Donovan and Brick had completely different styles but had meshed well together. Gray hoped their unique perspectives would help him see what he was missing.

When they returned, he had the whiteboard pulled front and center. He’d writtenMeredithin the middle of the board.

“Um, boss, not trying to tell you how to do your job or anything, but if you have to write her name on a whiteboard, you might need to seek professional help.” Brick slid into the chair closest to the door.

“Nah, man, you got that all wrong,” Donovan added, “he was practicing his spelling.”

He ducked and the marker Gray had thrown at him went sailing past. It hit the wall and left a small green streak.

“You’d better not let Meredith see that you’ve defaced her pretty walls. She’ll be back in here with a paintbrush.” Donovan set his coffee down, retrieved the marker, and eyed the mark. “Yo, Glenda?”

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