Page 4 of The Harborer
“What about Micky?”
Now that sent a jolt to an already frayed nerve. “He has some stuff to do at his garage. After that, he wants to watch the trainarrive, so …” She didn’t bother finishing the sentence because it only would’ve sparked her temper all over again.
Shane didn’t say a word. Just continued watching her as she put the kettle on to boil, and she felt the weight of his assessment on her shoulders. Yeah, her own boyfriend wouldn’t help her. So which one of them was the loser in this scenario? Him for being a selfish jerk, or her for being with him in the first place?
Well, that was about to become a moot point.
Shane broke the silence. “The delivery today makes total sense now, but isn’t this time of day kind of late? You’re usually getting deliveries before you open or right at closing.”
Amy side-eyed him. Hedidnotice everything, but then again, she’d been following this routine pretty much since she’d opened the café. With only four square blocks in his hometown, the deputy wouldn’t have been much of a lawman if he hadn’t noticed who did what and when in such a compact area. Granted, his territory was much, much bigger than Fall River, but still, it was his home base.
Amy turned up the flame beneath the kettle. “They weresupposedto be here earlier with a special delivery, but I got a call from the owner that their driver hit an elk and totaled his truck. One of his employees happened to be on his way to Silver Summit, so he diverted him withtheirinventory. Thank goodness the driver wasn’t hurt.”
“Wait. Did you say the guy hit an elk?”
She nodded. The water came to a boil, and as she turned off the burner and poured scalding water into the beaker to heat it, she asked why it mattered. People and elk came together all the time on these mountain roads.
When she turned to look at him, Shane’s mouth hung open. “I was there.”
A little cry tore from her. “Were you hurt?”
He shook his head. “No, but I was the officer called to the scene. The vehiclewastotaled.”
“What about the driver?” Why her mind had leaped to Shane first was beyond her, but relief flooded her nonetheless.
“I checked him out.” Shane was a trained EMT who volunteered for search and rescue, so of course he took care of the guy. “He seemed okay, but I told him to go see his doctor when he got home. Hopefully, he follows my advice.”
Amy pulled down two mismatched ceramic cups while the coffee steeped. Though they were all whimsical, no two Mountain Coffee cups looked alike, and some customers had their favorites she kept aside for them each morning. Shane was usually on the go, so he got his brew in paper cups or the insulated mug with her logo that he’d bought from her years ago.“I can be a walking advertisement for you,”he’d told her with his trademark grin. He was considerate like that.
“Have you heard from Micky this afternoon?” Shane’s question took her by surprise, but it became clear why he posed it. “He met us there with his wrecker and hauled the driver and his truck to Durango. I thought he might have called to let you know he was going to be out of reach, though he should be headed back by now.”
“Oh. No, he didn’t call.” An unpleasant lump ofsomethingthunked in her tummy. She added more water to the beaker and set a timer. An awkward beat passed while she tried to stuff thoughts of Micky into a virtual box with a lid she could shut tight.
Shane drummed his fingers on the counter top, the tempo unhurried. “Well, that would explain why your delivery was so late.”
She cleared Micky from her mind at the same time she cleared her throat. “Yeah, and it makes what the owner did for me even more special, so two hours behind schedule seems like nothing. With the way deliveries go around here, it could have ended up being days. They were so worried about getting me my coffee that they gave me the stuff meant for the resort. Talk about jumping through hoops! I hope Silver Summit doesn’t findout, though,” she babbled. “But how sweet is that? I’m a little floored.”
“You shouldn’t be. People like doing things for you because you’re always going out of your way for everybody else.” He kept going before her blush had a chance to engulf her entire face. “Like the free coffee. Sure, you’re trying to build business with visitors, but I’m willing to bet you’ve ordered enough to cover your regulars too. You’re always doing for everyone else, and people notice.”
Amy did love helping out, but she had ulterior motives. How could she explain this to him without sounding self-serving? Because let’s face it, shewasself-serving. Even after six years, she was still trying to ingratiate herself with the town. Shane was descended from a long line of founding families that dated back to the nineteenth century, so his “birthright” gave him an automatic pass to stride around Fall River without people shooting him suspicious looks. He was in. Transplants like her—especially ones whose skin color was a little darker than most—had to work their tails off, and even that might never be enough to get her completely admitted into the “circle of belonging,” as she liked to refer to the old guard. That term was one she kept to herself, naturally.
Shane’s eyes flitted to the press. She checked her timer and started pushing the plunger down. “Almost there.”
“No rush.” He flashed her a kind smile.
Why wasn’t this man married with a couple of kids? With his calm, patient demeanor, he’d make a terrific dad. Plus, he was easy on the eyes. Some locals claimed to have spotted him hooking up at bars or clubs outside his jurisdiction, which made sense to Amy. Fall River was such a hotbed of rumormongering that she couldn’t blame him for keeping his personal life close to his search-and-rescue vest. There was also talk about him with a woman from Chicago who had visited Fall River a few times. None of this was her business, and though she tried not to listen to the gossip, it was nearly impossible when she was in the store every day. The townsfolk—especially the women—werefascinated by what the deputy was up to and chattered about him constantly.
Amy poured out their coffees. “You never take yours with anything, do you?” When she looked up at him, his eyes were pinned tightly to her, and he immediately looked away, letting them wander to her ceiling.
“No. I used to like cream, but it’s too much trouble when I’m on the go.”
“Would you like me to add some now since you’re relaxing? I’m happy to.”
His gaze returned to hers. “No, I’m good, but thanks.”
Something unidentifiable crackled in the air. She handed him his coffee and rushed to change the atmosphere. “I’ve been wanting to ask you about something that’s been going on here.”
He blew on his coffee. “What is it?”
