She headed over to the coats hanging by the door and pulled one on that had been patched in three places. It looked thicker than Ellie’s, but that wasn’t saying much since the Spritzers were the poorest family in town. If the rumor about Ellie’s mother being pregnant again was true, then things were about to get more worrisome for the family.
“I won’t keep you long.” Isaac moved to the door and held it open, allowing Miss Brogan to precede him into the cloudy afternoon.
As soon as she stepped outside, she sucked in a breath of winter air. “I must admit, Sheriff Cummings, I didn’t give much thought to what winters would be like when yer sister offered to bring me to Eagle Harbor.”
“Colder than Chicago, huh?” He offered his arm, then led her around the building to Center Street.
“And Ireland.”
Did they even get snow in Ireland? Isaac scratched his head and eyed the clouds to the west, dark and heavy enough they’d probably drop a foot of snow or better overnight.
“What did ye want to speak with me about?”
Your accent. Your family. Your fiery hair. Whether there’s snow where you come from in Ireland.“Has Virgil O’Byrne bothered you at all since Thanksgiving?”
She stopped walking, right in the middle of the street, and turned to look at him. “That’s why ye stopped by? To make sure that brute’s leaving me alone?”
“Is there another reason I should have stopped?” Like perhaps she wanted to see him? Talk with him? Take a walk?
Her throat worked. “No. I just… thank ye. For checking. I appreciate it.”
“You don’t need to thank me for doing my job.” But he’d hardly complain if she wanted him to stop by and take her on another walk when they didn’t have anything official to discuss.
She started walking again, her hand still tucked in his arm. “Not all lawmen take their job as seriously as ye.”
That was probably supposed to be a compliment, but he couldn’t quite take it as one. “What do you mean? Did Sheriff Jenkins ignore other problems you had while here?”
She raised her head to the harbor, letting the wind toy with the loose tendrils of her hair, and he could almost see her standing on Ireland’s emerald slopes, her face raised to the sea while the sun brushed her skin. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
Was she this unapproachable with everyone, or just him? She seemed to get along with Victoria, Tressa, and Ellie well enough. And she and Lindy had lived together for several months before Lindy married Dr. Harrington. Surely she wasn’t so standoffish with them. “Whatever happened to you, Miss Brogan, just tell me it didn’t happen here. That you weren’t hurt because Sheriff Jenkins was remiss in his duties and that there aren’t scoundrels in town I need to be watching for.”
“Not here, no.” She drew in a deep, shuddering breath. “But I thought I saw a shadow last night.”
“A shadow?”
“When I came home from the Oaktons’, though it was gone too quickly for me to be sure.”
“A shadow of what?” They turned from Center Street down Front Street, where the wind off the harbor whipped at their coats.
“A man, maybe two. Like I said, it was just a glimpse when I rounded the corner of the bakery, then it was gone.”
His muscles tensed beneath where her hand lay on his arm. “You ought not be going about town unescorted right now, especially after dark.”
“It wasn’t quite dark, but I probably stayed out later than I should have.” A shudder traveled through her. “I’ll make sure to get home earlier from now on.”
They turned down South Street, already heading back to the bakery. “If you need an escort, don’t hesitate to ask. I’m happy to assist you in any way.”
“Thank ye.”
They continued quietly for several minutes, heading down Front Street and then turning onto 3rd Street. The soft patter of their footsteps filled the silence between them, and snow sparkled around them, with yesterday’s dusting of several inches still laying pristine over the town. Her hair truly did flame against the whiteness, a single, unmistakable splash of color so vibrant he nearly reached out and fingered one of the flyaway strands hanging by her ear.
They rounded the corner of 3rd Street, bringing the bakery back into view. “Miss Brogan, might I stop by and see you tomorrow? Take you on another walk, perhaps?”
Her brow furrowed. “To make sure Mr. O’Byrne hasn’t called? Or that I didn’t see anything more in the shadows?”
“Ah…” He cleared his throat. “I was more thinking I’d visit you as a man interested in a young lady than as a sheriff doing his job.”
She jerked her hand off his arm, and a haunting pain etched tiny lines around her eyes and mouth. “I don’t think… or rather, it’s probably best… that ye don’t. Come by, I mean. Unless it’s on official business.” She wrapped her arms around her middle. “It’s nothing against ye, but what I’m trying to say is?—”
