Page 46 of Perfect Harmony

“Hey, Sheriff.” Georgia stopped in frontof them. “You want your usual booth?”

“If it’s available,” he said.

Georgia laughed. “You know it is. Nankeeps it empty every morning for you. Hey, Grace. You having breakfast withthe sheriff this morning?”

“She is.” Gideon put his hand on the smallof Gracie’s back.

Her entire body erupted in goosebumps. He’dspent the last three years doing everything he could not to touch her, and now Saturdaynight and his casual approach this morning to touching her, was throwing heroff her game.

And making her horny as hell.

She slid into the booth as Gideon sat downacross from her. Georgia placed laminated menus in front of them. “Coffee forboth of you?”

“Yes, for me,” Grace said.

Gideon nodded and Grace scanned the menu untilGeorgia returned a few minutes later with two cups of coffee and a plate ofcreamer and sugar.

“Sheriff, I know what you want. Grace?”

Grace gave Georgia her order. When the redheadwas gone, she said, “Do you come here every morning?”

“Just about.”

“Why?”

He grinned at her over his coffee cup, and itsent a pleasant little tingle straight to her pussy. “You’ll see.”

“What do you mean?”

“Sheriff!”

Grace glanced up as a short, skinny manapproached their booth. He poked Grace in the arm. “Move over, young lady.”

She blinked a few times before sliding over.The man slid into the seat beside her and thumped the table with his fist. “Sheriff,you’ve got to add an extra drive by at night.”

“Hello, Sean. How are you?” Gideon said.

The man flushed. “Good, good. How youdoin’?”

“Can’t complain. Grace, this is Sean Barr.He owns the Walgreens. Sean, this is Grace Larken.”

“Nice to meetcha’,” Sean said before thumpinghis fist on the table again. “There’s been a group of teens hanging around theback door of my store the last four nights in a row. Lord knows what they’vebeen up to, but I’ve been finding butts all over the pavement right next to thedoor. And they spray painted some kind of symbol on my door. Probably satanicfor all I know! I bet if you dusted the handle for prints, you’d find thosepunks’ fingerprints all over it. I know they’re casing the place.”

Gideon took a sip of coffee. “Most likelythey’re looking for a place to smoke weed or vape without being seen.”

“You don’t know that,” Sean said. His greyhair was thinning on top and he smoothed it down with quick agitatedmovements. “They’re hooligans and I’m not having my store robbed just because youthink they’re good boys. They ain’t. They come in the store all the time andgive Shelly nothing but trouble. You know she don’t got good nerves, Sheriff.She cries at the damn drop of a hat.”

“I’ll ask Darryl to drive by again before midnight,”Gideon said.

“Does it have to be him? Can’t we get thatother deputy, oh, what’s his name? He’s got those twin girls.”

“Ian,” Gideon said.

“Yeah, Ian. I’d prefer if it was him.Darryl’s about as useful as a fart in the wind.”

Grace covered her mouth to hide her grin. Theguy wasn’t wrong. She’d met Darryl once or twice and he didn’t exactly giveoff a competent vibe. Gideon’s predecessor was a big, barrel chested man namedWalter Sorren and Darryl was Walter’s nephew. Kira had told her that Gideon knewhow incompetent Darryl was, but the deputy hadn’t actually done anything that warrantedbeing fired.

“You know Ian doesn’t work the night shift,”Gideon said. “He can’t with his twins.”

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