Page 13 of Thirst in the Mountains

He straightens up as he stares me down. “I don’t know what things were like where you’re from, Lucy. But you’re in my town now. No one is going to hurt you.”

I want to believe him. It’s just… Angelo seems pretty determined to make me pay for what I took from him.

Emmanuel must sense my hesitation because he doubles down, staring at me with a fierce protectiveness that seizes my soul.

“You working tonight?” he asks.

“Yeah. I tried to take it off in case Angelo came back, but my manager wouldn’t let me switch my shift.”

“It’s okay. I’m working tonight too. I’ll watch after you.”

Relief washes through me, but it doesn’t last long. Angelo is a killer. I don’t want this man getting hurt over me.

“But, what if they come?” I whisper.

His entire expression changes. The warmth vanishes, replaced by something darker. Something meaner. The air around him seems to shift, suddenly charged with something dangerous. His eyes narrow just slightly, and then he growls,actually growls?—

“I’m hoping they do.”

“Oh,” I whisper as I watch his jaw clenching.

A shiver runs down my spine. My mouth goes dry. Every part of me is suddenly hyper-aware—of the weight of his gaze, the warmth between us, and the way the room feels smaller with him in it.

This is what I needed.

A fierce protector like him.

I’m just not sure if I can handle someone this… manly.

Oh boy.

I’m in trouble.

Big, muscle-bound, hot cop trouble.

CHAPTERFIVE

Lucy

“Why do you keep looking out the window?” Jenny asks, scaring me half to death as she comes out of nowhere and pops her head on my shoulder.

I gasp and slink away, holding my pounding heart.

It’s a Monday night and the restaurant is pretty dead. I only have two tables, but I don’t mind because it allows me to stare all I want at the hot protective cop parked across the street.

“Are you looking for those guys who were asking about you?” she says, following me into the back. “Who were they?”

I love Jenny, but she’s the town gossip. If I tell her about Angelo, she’s going to let the whole town know about it. There’s no way a gossip of her caliber would ever keep a juicy story like that a secret. She’d never be able to resist letting everyone know that the new girl in town is being chased by hardened criminals for stealing their dog.

“I was just looking at that cop,” I say as I grab a rack of clean coffee mugs to put away. “He’s cute.”

I might as well use her talents to my benefit. She probably knows everything about Emmanuel and I havea lotof questions for her. I want to know everything about him.

“That’s Emmanuel,” she says, fanning herself. “He’ssohot.”

I get a little jealous at her reaction. I don’t want anyone putting their eyes on my crush but me.

“Is he single?”

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