Page 5 of Mustang Summer

He stayed focused on the cornfields.

“It might be common sense to you, but I’m from the city.”These small-town guys bought the city girl line every time.At least she hoped they did.It was her first time using it.Minneapolis wasn’t far away from her hometown.St.Cloud a little closer.

Deputy Max raised his brown hat off his head and wiped sweat off his brow before resettling it.“Ma’am, I need to see some ID.”

“It’s in my car.”She knew better than to just walk off from the police.Too bad much of her family didn’t have the same common sense when it came to lawfulness.

“G’on.”He motioned for her to lead the way.“I’ll go with you.”

They stepped through the evergreens and it was much easier when not at a dead run.

She reached into her embarrassingly plain car for her wallet.She located her license and handed it to Max with complete confidence.She didn’t share her brother’s last name.

He inspected her.“Waite Park.That’s outside of St.Cloud, right?”

She nodded.“As far as worst places to live in Minnesota, it only ranks at number ten.”

Max chuckled.“You wait right here while I go run this.”

Her tension drained away.He wasn’t acting like she might be a hardcore criminal.Why was she the only one getting questioned?Brock was pinning her to the ground when he’d arrived.

“Aren’t you going to run his, too?”She kept her voice more innocent than obnoxious; she still had to walk out of here without them learning who she was.Besides, Max taking Brock’s word on what happened—even if it was factual—smacked too much like how her dad had hung on her ex’s every word.“He attacked me.”

“I’m sorry, Ms.…” he glanced back at her license, “Alvarez.You are on private property.It’s posted.”

She squinted to where he indicated a square, white sign.One she’d never stopped to read.

“She said she touched my cars all over.”

Josie rolled her eyes at Brock.“And I said I was joking.What’s your hang-up with the cars?”She wouldn’t think of hurting one of them.

Max shot a pitying look toward Brock.

She sighed.Brock Walker was off his rocker and the whole town knew it.

But he was hot.

And she was warming to the man of few words.He’d outright caught her trespassing, but he wasn’t in a rage, didn’t demand they tradefavors, and he wasn’t using every opportunity to feel her up.

Brock Walker was odd, but he was a gentleman.

As they waited for Max to pick his way back to his car and run her information, Brock shoved his hands in his jeans.She picked at debris stuck to her shirt and checked her reflection in the window.

Ack.Dust stuck to her cheeks and forehead.Her styled hair was now in a whirlwind around her face—what wasn’t plastered on her forehead.

She pushed her hair back, then changed her mind and used it shade her face, which wasn’t the best idea.Black hair acted like a solar panel soaking up all the sun’s heat and passing it on to her.

Time crawled by.Brock said nothing.Hardly moved.

She took the opportunity to study him.

Bad idea.

He was even more gorgeous than she’d thought.His eyes shimmered like the surface of a lake in high summer.She knew, the sort of city girl that she was, because she’d crept around the Walker Five property enough and felt not one moment of guilt.The times she came to visit her brother, there’d been nothing to do beyond their hour to visitation.The Walkers had the most breathtaking body of water she’d ever seen not even a mile from where she stood now.She might not be a rural girl, but Minnesota had a boatload of lakes.

She snorted at her bad pun.

Brock glanced toward her and she gazed back innocently.

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