Page 25 of The Harborer
The question was innocent enough, but there it was, that familiar stab behind his breastbone. He glanced over at her. “Maybe some other time. Let’s talk about you.”
He’d obviously flustered her by skating past the subject of his father. Guilt gave him a poke, but to her credit, Amy recovered quickly. “I’m a boring only child. My parents are a run-of-the-mill couple who live in the Bay Area and play bridge with the same group of friends every Wednesday night.”
Amy might’ve been the only kid in her family, but boring she was not.
“So whatdoesour county’s fearless deputy look for in a love interest?”
No ideawas his knee-jerk response—and maybe that was the problem. The women he’d liked in the past weren’t alike, not physically or in personality. The only common denominator was that they had X chromosomes.
“Not exactly fearless,” he snorted. “And as for what I look for, I’m not looking in the first place, so I can’t say I have an answer for that one.”
He had toyed with asking Neve out—right before Reece got his head out of his ass and married her. Same with Hailey, Noah’s wife. Shane had a bad habit of showing up late to the game, realizing he liked someone right before another guy swooped in and made a move.
So what had drawn him to those particular women?
Their warmth. Their strength. Their softness. They’d been through hell and still chose kindness. They rolled with the punches and gave more than they took.
Amy was cut from the same cloth, which probably explained why she was close friends with them—and why Shane’s thoughts kept drifting to her. And why it burned him up to see Micky treat her like an afterthought.
They’d barely been underway when he made a slow turn to square off the block, nosing his truck into the alley behind her darkened café. A pair of brake lights left the opposite side of the alley, took a sharp turn, and headed away from Bowen Street. The brake lights winked off, but no taillights replaced them. Did the vehicle have burned-out lights, or was the driver unaware he or she hadn’t turned them on? Shane debated following in order to find out, but when Amy gestured toward her back door, his attention zipped back to her.
He parked, and she flung open the passenger door and hopped down before he could cut the engine. “Hang on,” he ordered. “I’m coming with you.”
She glanced at him over her shoulder, her dark eyes wide. “You don’t have to.”
“I know, but I’m doing it anyway. And while you’re busy doing your thing, I’ll make a sketch for camera placement. I’ll also make sure no more stuff got moved.” Alarm flashed in her eyes, and he instantly regretted putting it there. Striking a casual vibe, he grinned at her. “Gotta make sure the coffee beans are safe. Imagine the frenzy this town would go into if they couldn’t get their fix.”
Amy inserted her key into the lock with a mild chuckle that sent relief through his bloodstream. “And the day-old pastries, I’m sure.”
He exaggerated mock surprise. “You have leftover pastries and didn’t tell me?”
“Come on in, Deputy, and let’s see what I can rustle up. I can’t believe you’re hungry after all that food you put away at Miners.”
She had paid attention to what he’d eaten? Even though he’d barely had a chance to talk to her? The thought she’d noticed kind of tickled him. But that was Amy. Always thinking of everyone else, always doing for everyonebutherself.
She flicked on a few lights and moved toward the kitchen. He followed, a question that had been percolating all day finally surfacing, but she tossed out one of her own first.
“I noticed you and Micky talking at Miners. It seemed pretty serious.” She let it hang there, no doubt waiting for him to explain.
“You know how it is,” he replied casually. “We start talking engines, and things get intense.” He wasn’t about to give her the low-down on what they’d really been discussing. “Let me askyousomething. Right before the train pulled in, Micky was talking to a lanky guy wearing a dark beanie. Any idea who he is?”
She came to a stop in front of an industrial refrigerator and parked her hands on her hips. She didn’t look at him. Instead, her eyes darted around when she said, “His name’s Benny. I met him once when he and Micky were on their way to go fishing. Micky says he’s a friend from high school.” She turned her back to him. The motion seemed off for her, but he let it go.
Shane racked his brain but didn’t remember a Benny from high school. “Did Mick say if the dude was older or younger than us?” If he’d been a few grades ahead or behind, Shane might not have remembered him. “Or if he lives around here?”
She shook her head again, and her hair feathered over her shoulders like a glossy, jet-black curtain. “I honestly don’t know. I only met him briefly, and he wasn’t exactly the chatty type. Is there something important about this guy?”
“Nope. I’m just naturally curious about faces I haven’t seen in town before.” He pointed toward the fridge. “What are we looking at?”
She pivoted toward the appliance once again. “Nothing. I’m just wondering whether I’m the one who left the fridge door ajar.” She pushed on the door to close it, then opened it again.
“Did anything spoil?”
“I don’t think so. Either it wasn’t open for very long or it’s cold enough in here that the interior doesn’t need to cool down too much. Otherwise, the seal would have made it a lot harder to open just now.” She pulled the door a little wider and peered inside. “Huh.”
“What?”
She turned to look at him, pleats between her dark brows. “A few items aren’t in the same place.” She chewed on her thumbnail. “It’s possible Cade did that after the Big Event.”
