Page 6 of Falling for the Sheriff
“Nothing like that. Just needed to ask her a few questions, that’s all.” Trying to talk like I’m a person and not like I’m aboutto make an arrest, I curse at my failed attempt. “I just need to talk to her. Is she in?”
I hold my breath, waiting for her to tell me she’s not here, so my suffering will continue endlessly.
“She’s in the back. Give me a second.” With that worried expression on her face, she doesn’t give me time to reassure her before she disappears.
Scolding myself for the terrible start, I prepare myself to see her. To see Alice.
3
Alice
The moment Daisy comes in a rush from the front, her words tumbling over themselves, I don’t need to hear the name. A cold, leaden certainty settles in the pit of my stomach. I already know who is waiting for me.
I guess a part of me always knew he was going to come find me eventually. Still, the foreknowledge does nothing to steel my nerves, nothing to calm the frantic drum of my heart against my ribs.
Chewing on the inside of my cheek, I stir where I stand, my feet refusing to take the first step. “Can’t you tell him I ran away?” The plea is a whisper, desperate and childish.
Surprised by the reluctance in my voice, she glances over her shoulder before shuffling closer, her voice dropping to a hushed whisper. “You’re not in trouble, are you?”
My anxiety comes out as a brittle, fractured laugh, and I shrug my shoulders as if I could shake off the weight. “Not in thesense you think I’d be.” My next inhale is a shaky, useless thing that does nothing to fill the hollow ache in my chest. “He’s…He’s the guy, Daisy.”
She blinks, confusion knitting her brow. I watch it happen, the moment the pieces click into a terrible, inevitable picture. Her eyes widen. “Wait,theguy? Atlas?”
A hot, shameful flush trickles up my throat, branding me. I can only nod, my voice failing me. “Apparently, the sheriff of all people. Can you believe it?”
Suddenly, there’s an arm wrapped around me, and she’s pulling me into a hug. She’s making me squirm, but the contact is an anchor in the sudden, dizzying whirl of my panic.
“All this time, I’ve cursed the man who put you in this state, I’m not going to lie.” She pulls away, her hands rubbing my shoulders as if she could physically impart strength. “But Atlas? He’s a good man. A really good man.”
Her words are meant to comfort, but they only twist the knot in my stomach tighter. A good man made what we did so much worse.
I longed for him because he’s been out of my reach. Now that he’s here again, now that he’sreal, I want to run. Not away, but right toward him. I want him to take responsibility.
I want him to wantme.Not for another night, but forever. My expectations are high, and that’s all the more reason to put a bar between us.
“At least see what he has to say,” she urges, her gaze soft but insistent. “Now that I know he doesn’t plan on taking you away in cuffs, I think you can afford a few minutes away. If you want to back out, just say the word and I’ll be there.”
Clutching the front of my apron, I ignore the thud of my heart and nod my head. With her support, I find the strength to head toward the front of the shop.
Atlas is standing there in uniform again, his fingers tucked in his pockets. Trying to look nonchalant, the scrunch of his brows gives away his concern as he stares at the flowers.
My stomach clenches and tingles all at once.
Daisy follows behind me, helping my legs work. As she settles at her scheduling book for keeping track of orders, I drift around the counter.
“Um, hey.” Nearing him, I breathe in, and I’m hit with the same pine scent that has haunted me. “Let’s take a seat.”
There are a few benches against the wall, all small compared to a man of his bulk. Still, I sit and beckon him to join me. His knee immediately brushes mine, and my toes curl in my sneakers.
“Alice.” Murmuring my name like it’s something special, he’s not subtle about his staring at all. He’s not looking at me the same way he did the first time. He’s alert, panicked like he’s got one shot at this.
In all truth, I expected our paths to never cross again. I mean, he saw my belly. Leaving the police station, I gave him the chance to look the other way.
Instead, he came to my job, seeking me out. That has to mean something.
I nod, a tingle rolling up my spine from how nice my name sounds on his tongue.
“It’s mine…isn’t it?” The question comes out slowly and carefully.
