Page 43 of All You Want
“I’ll be right over. Don’t go inside. Wait for me at the Sixty Miners.” I hang up and call Shane.
He’s on patrol, but I’m not letting him handle Tami.
“Where’s the fire?” Shane asks with the same tone of voice he used whenever Molly dispatched him.
“Nowhere. I need you back at the station to answer the phones. I have to do an investigation.”
“Investigate what?” He acts like he didn’t hear my direct order.
“We don’t need you on traffic right now. Caught any speeders?”
“Maybe one, but I let her go with a warning,” he says, and I can hear his smirking. “She wants you to drop off the empty picnic basket at her house.”
I suppress the groan deep inside my lungs, wondering why Tami told him about the picnic basket.
Maybe he made a pass at her, and she let him know she's been picnicking with me instead. Serves the city boy right thinking he can snag one of our mountain maidens so easily—although, what if Tami prefers city boys?
I throw off the ridiculous thought that’s been nagging me. Even if Tami wants someone more cosmopolitan, it isn’t a cop. It’s more like the slick Evan Graves type—the ones with a huge social media following and minor celebrity status—although I’m sure I can out arm wrestle him.
“I’m transferring all station calls to you. Try to get Mrs. Anderson in to cover dispatch, but I have to go.” I hang up and stride to the old cruiser sitting in the muddy lot.
Shane calls me back, but I don’t pick up. I’m on an emergency call, so I put on the siren and floor the accelerator. At some point, I’m going to have to send this misfit and his attitude back to the crappy streets of San Francisco he oozed out of.
I find Tami sitting at the bar of the Sixty Miners. She’s pale, and her hands shake. Paul finishes pulling the tap and sets a mug of draft beer on the counter for her.
It’s the first time I looked into her eyes since the night she soaked in my bathtub. They’re red-rimmed and tired, like she hasn’t slept well.
“Hey, tell me what happened.” It’s hard for me not to take her hands and comfort her, but I’m on a professional call, and I need to take a step back.
Just being so close to her ignites feelings that I can’t afford to entertain. Fact being the dream I had which felt so real. I can’t get involved with anyone who’s a potential conflict of interest, and I can’t seem to stop unrealistic thoughts of her from invading.
“I was supposed to meet Evan at Harrowing Haunts.” Her voice trembles. “The cell service is up and down, but he confirmed last night, although I haven’t heard from him this morning.”
“What did you see when you arrived? Shall we go over so you can show me?”
She swallows and puts money on the counter for the beer she didn’t touch. “I might have overreacted, but now that you’re here, I guess it’s not as bad as I imagined. It’s probably kids pulling pranks.”
“Maybe, but I’ll want to investigate. Your grand opening’s this weekend. Are you sure you’re ready?”
“We can get the window glass replaced, and I think the power should be restored by then. My guests have confirmed. The kitchen staff is ready, and I’ll have them cook some preview meals for us, if you’d like to come by later this week, and the weather’s going to be great.” She rattles on while wringing her hands, looking more nervous than I’ve ever seen her.
Usually, Tami is confident and exuberant. She’s optimistic and never worried about the future. She’s a cheerleader and encourages every new scheme. To see her trembling and hesitant punches me in the gut. It hurts.
“Tami, it’ll be okay. I’m sure of it.” We reach her property which looks a hundred percent better than the last time I saw it. The parking lot has been paved and still has the scent of newly poured asphalt. The landscaping is done tastefully with vines trailing up trellises set near the entrance, and the balcony and gables are newly painted a robin’s egg blue. “You did a nice job here. It doesn’t look haunted at all.”
“Looks are deceiving.” A little bit of that spunk she has returns as her face brightens. She points to the hillside rising behind the property and the dusky green trees. “But honestly, it’ll only be haunted for Spooky Fest and special events. I don’t want to be a one-trick pony, and there are other holidays besides Halloween to celebrate here. Can you picture this place dressed up in Christmas lights? Or on a sunny spring day?”
“Yes, I can see why this project means so much to you.” I’m amazed at how her words paint so many pictures in my mind. I can almost see myself sitting on the balcony on a hot summer day strumming my guitar with her at my side.
Too bad it can’t be so. A woman with the large dreams and appetite of a venture capitalist deserves a wealthy man who can travel the world with her and help her bring a small part of it back to Colson’s Corner. After all, she did graduate from Malibu University, a prestigious and upper-class school.
What would she want with a small-town sheriff like me? I bet I’m only the passing challenge for her.
“It’s my dream to transform Colson’s Corner into an international destination,” Tami says. “Imagine bringing people from all over the world to our town and letting them experience all the wonders we have here right under our toes.”
“Imagine…” I trail off and clear my throat, remembering I’m on an official investigation. “Show me the vandalism.”
The light goes out of Tami’s eyes, turning them a shade of light gray. She gingerly points to the large mailbox, and I spy bits of fur and a trail of blood oozing from the side.
