Page 2 of A Deceitful Pact

I land my eyes back on Hale’s and notice that she’s still looking at me. She doesn’t seem shocked by my presence here, she looks as if she’s waiting for me to react.

“Here, let me introduce you to some folk.” Hayden drags her away, interrupting the stare-off we’re having, and I take a long, deep breath, feeling like I need to recover. The band starts to play, and everyone goes back to their business, while I storm across the room toward Jace.

“Sorry, darlin’, I need to steal your man.” I apologize to Maddison as I grab Jace’s arm and drag him outside.

I wait until we’re clear of the door before I speak up.

“Jace. We got a fuckin’ problem.” I blow out a breath and reach into my pocket for a smoke.

“What kinda problem?” He furrows his brow.

“You said your uncle knew nothing about this new sheriff’s background, right?” I question him. Nothing goes on in this town without Jamie Sullivan knowing about it, and I have to wonder why I wasn’t suspicious of this before.

“I told ya, he knows nothing. It’s been driving him crazy,” Jace assures me.

“Ican tell ya somethin’ ‘bout her,” I warn him, feeling my body heat up despite the chill in the air.

“Of course, ya can.” Jace rolls his eyes.

“Man, I’m being serious here.” I let him know with a look that this ain’t no fuckin’ joke.

“Sawyer, what are ya trying to tell me?” Jace shakes his head.

“I’m tellin’ ya that Miss Riley Hale ain’t no small-town sheriff. That bitch is FB-fuckin-I.”

“FB—you have to be fuckin’ kiddin’ me.” Jace takes the Stetson off his head and drags his hand through his hair.

“I wish I was.” I grip the top rail of the corral.

“And how do you know that?” I can see that Jace is real fuckin’ worried now. The last thing we want is the FBI snooping into the way things get handled out here.

“I know because I saw her badge, right after I…It doesn’t matter. She’s the real fuckin’ deal, Jace, and she’s in our town. Do you know what that means?”

Jace takes a deep breath and looks back through the double doors of the barn.

“No,” he admits, and that's what fuckin’ scares me.

RILEY

That was not how I planned to spend my first night in Clearwater Creek. I open the door to my brand-new home and toss my keys on the side table. I wanted to make myself known and test the waters a little. I did not expect to have to break up a fight. and certainly didn’t expect to feel the way I did when I sawhimagain.

I don’t know what I was thinking that night, or why I felt the need to test myself the way I did. I’ve felt nothing but guilt for it since, and having him here in this town is going to be a constant reminder of that.

I kick off my shoes and pour myself a glass of water. How can a few hours at a town dance be so exhausting?

Coming face to face with the Gendry brothers was another shock I wasn’t prepared for tonight. I should have let Jace Sullivan and his cowboys beat the shit out of them, but instead, I decided to use the opportunity to show my authority. Even if I did have to drag my own deputy out of the fight before I could get it under control.

I’ve never seen the Gendry men in the flesh before; seeing their eyes through pictures has always been bad enough. From the encounter I had with them tonight, I learned that they are every bit as rude, arrogant, and entitled as I expected them to be.

They won’t be easy to take down, but I’m not the only person who wants to destroy them, and once I’ve figured out who I can trust around here, I can start to make my plans. This pretty, quaint little town is riddled with secrets. I’ve been watching it from a distance, doing my research on its residents. I’ve watched these townspeople go about their business, and it didn’t take me long to figure out that the mayor has some kind of arrangement with the local lawyer, Jamie Sullivan. An arrangement that my young, enthusiastic deputy has got himself all caught up in. Jamie’s nephew, Jace, and... Sawyer, the name I can now put to the face of the man I slept with, are also deeply involved. Just thinking back to that night stirs a heat inside me, a heat that's laced with guilt but never regret.

THREE YEARS EARLIER

“Bad day?” The bartender places my neat whiskey in front of me and smiles.

“Something like that.” I take a sip and massage my temples. My mind is as drained as my body is from the case I just finished working on. I’m tired. I’m irritable, and the last thing I want to do tonight is celebrate my boyfriend’s promotion.

Especially when that promotion could have been mine.

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