Page 19 of Locked Up by The Libra
Somehow I make it to town before I have to pull over. Where I pull over is the worst spot possible. It gives me a beautiful view of all of Driftwood. The Rusty Nail, Quinn’s coffee shop, the cute market, and the row of even cuter shops. It is the kind of place I never took the time to enjoy before. It would be a beautiful home.
“Am I making a mistake? Am I shutting down the same way he shut down on me?”
Unable to consider the answer, with no idea how to navigate these big, complex feelings, I press on. I drive slowly through town, wanting one last look at it. Spotting the Sherriff’s station, I stop once again. Staring at the small stone building, I am smiling.
“I bet he is one hell of a sheriff. He sure went under cover with me. If he had just told me who he was. If he had told me anything.”
Sighing, I pull away from the station and head for the highway. I am leaving here fuller than I was when I got here. Maybe that was all I needed from Watt. If all he can give me was the feeling that for a few days I mattered, I guess the tears and the heartache are worth it.
It starts raining as I hit the edge of town and I laugh. It fits the melancholy mood I suspect I will be in for some time. Perhaps I am the storm cloud, taking some of my sadness with me as I flee.
“Come on, Taylor,” I talk to the radio as I turn up my favorite sad playlist. “Get me through this one, Swift. If anyone can, it is you.”
I get past the “Now Leaving Driftwood” sign when red and blue lights glow behind me.
Might not be the first time I’ve been pulled over—though it is the first time I’ve been in love with the officer giving chase.
Chapter Ten
Watt
Before I open my eyes I am in police mode.
Willa is gone when I stir before dawn, just as I feared she would be. I never should have lied to her. No, I did not just lie. I gave her nothing. I shared nothing with her. How did I expect her to start a new life with a man who can tell her nothing about his own life?
“Fletch, watch the place. We will both be back, boy,” I tell him when he whines up at me. I am not the only fella here who has fallen for Willa.
It is still dark out when I climb into the truck and head away from the cabin. The two of us need to have a little chat about her running off on me. I made a huge mistake, I admit that. I should have come clean about who I am before I ever started things. I guess I thought she would shut it down before we could even get it started.
“Still should have told her, asshole,” I hiss at myself angrily.
No doubt this one is on me. I am still pinking her ass once I get her back to the cabin. And I am not stopping till I get her back home. Up here on this mountainside, in the small, cozy town of Driftwood, with me, is where Willa Duchane belongs. Until I make her Willa Baker, that is.
Grinning at the idea of sliding a little diamond on her finger, because despite the wealth she came from I think any diamond will do, I sigh. I am going to marry that woman and have at least four babies with her. I think I knew it that first night when she came to that hotel door, needy and alone.
Maybe I never told her about myself or what I do because when I am with her, none of it matters. I feel like the best version of myself when we’re together. I am not so alone, not so afraid of the world. Before she came into my life I was always afraid of people judging me, of people hating the man I used to be.
If she can love that man, nothing else really matters.
In the pouring rain I make it to town just as the sun starts to peek over the mountains. Most of the town is still blanketed in darkness but her silver Jag would still stand out. Knowing I will have to abuse some powers, I stop just long enough to pick up my cruiser.
I will use any power I have to keep her here in Driftwood.
“Daddy is not about to let his little girl get away.”
Speeding away from Driftwood, my heart is thundering in my chest. I just have to hope one of my deputies sees her if I don’t. Under the copper rays of sunrise, I scan the roads for signs of her. Panic starts to flood me until I see the silver car sailing down the highway.
Laughing, I shake my head. Bad little rich girl breaking the speed limit, all the reason I need to pull her over. I turn on my lights and sirens, punching the gas. For a moment I wonder if she is going to make me chase her. The Jag doesn’t slow down at first until after about half a mile, she pulls off just past Driftwood’s welcome sign.
Pulling my hat on, I take a deep breath and step out of the cruiser. It is still raining, as it has been since my little troublemaker came to town, but I don’t mind. It sets the perfect tone for what I am about to do. At her window, I rap on the glass, waiting for her to roll it down.
“Ma’am, I need you to step out of the car,” I tell her, a grin on my face.
Willa glares up at me, absolute disbelief lighting up her features. Still as beautiful as the first moment I set eyes on her. I step back, pulling at her door when she makes no move to do it herself. I laugh when she yanks it closed, crossing her arms as if she can ignore me.
“No. No fucking way.”
“Ma’am, you were going twenty miles over the limit. I am going to punish you for that, after I punish you for sneaking out of my bed.”
