He explains so gently. I really don’t understand how someone with such a reputation for being the badass sheriff to never cross can be such a sweetie.
“I know, really,” I say, trying to mollify him and temper my own rising excitement. “I just want to look.”
Do I mean to bat my lashes and smile a little brighter than usual? Not really—it’s just kind of what happens when I’m around Sheriff Corbin.
He sighs the sigh of the deeply put-upon. “Well, when you smile like that, how can I say no?” he says, pushing off the counter.
I do my best not to wiggle with joy as I lock everything up and we head out the door. It’s the end of the day anyways.
Spring air caresses my face the moment we step outside. Pink and white cherry blossoms burst from every small tree lining Main Street. When the wind blows, their petals rain down on the pavement like snow. Early tourists have come to town, and I’m so happy to see the streets fuller after the long winter.
Sheriff Corbin opens the passenger door of his cruiser and offers me his hand to help me in. His palm is covered in calluses, and it’s so rough and large it dwarfs mine. A thrill runs up my arm, and I have to suppress a shiver of delight. Almost no one opens doors, let alone helps someone into a car anymore.
When I’m safely bundled in, he shuts the door softly and comes around.
Corbin
Fuck my entire life right now. The beautiful omega in the cruiser next to me smells like roses and lilacs, and it’s slicing through me like a hot bullet.
I’m gripping the steering wheel so hard my knuckles are as white as the cherry blossoms on the trees lining Main Street. Miss Heart’s wearing a light blue, ruffled peasant top. It's off the shoulder, displaying the entire column of her throat and shoulders. My teeth ache with the urge to bite that beautiful, deep-brown skin, velvet-soft and begging to bruise under my mouth. Her tightly coiled dark hair is pulled into two buns on top of her head.
“Sheriff?” Her voice cuts through my thoughts, and I realize she’s been speaking.
“I’m sorry, Miss Heart. My mind was on some paperwork I need to do later. What were you saying?” I adjust myself discreetly in my seat.
“I was asking if you were planning on going to the beach-opening party in a couple of weeks. Did Mayor Liu rope you into anything?”
“No, Erin's running security for the day to make sure no one gets too drunk or too rowdy. Plus, as my new deputy, it’ll give her a chance to meet everyone in town.”
Her face gets brighter. “How is Deputy Erin doing? Is she settling in okay?”
I try not to glance at her. I really do. But I couldn’t keep myself from looking at Miss Heart any more than I could keep myself from breathing. I can hold out for a little while, but not for long.
Her expression is open and truly interested. I’ve never seen her upset with anyone in town, even unruly customers. She calls if there’s a real problem—like with the woman who tried to shoplift last week. We caught her red-handed on video, and Miss Heart just shook her head and said she hoped the woman found peace elsewhere.
“She’s adjusting well. Far better than my last deputy.”
My last deputy was a lot of trouble. He’d had an unhealthy obsession with an omega in town. One of Miss Heart’s friends. She nods knowingly.
Finally, we pull up to the police station. I step out of the cruiser and discreetly gulp in the fresh spring air, clearing my lungs of the omega’s perfect scent. We head inside. It’s slow, as it usually is in a small tourist town. We mostly deal with drunk tourists and the occasional thief. That’s why I chose this department—I needed something as far removed from my old life as I could get.
“Hey, Winnie!” Erin calls. She’s a small omega with red hair and green eyes. She looks unthreatening, but her record tells a different story—expert marksman, record arrests as a rookie. I once asked her why she chose Lakeside Point and she said she’d show me hers if I’d show her mine. It was clear Erin had looked at my record. I never asked again.
“Hey, Erin! Slow day?” Miss Heart asks. Her lilac scent is steady, happy. It settles something deep in my alpha hindbrain.
“Slow enough. Just a little excitement with that furball in the back. But I’m guessing that’s why you’re here.” She winks. Miss Heart giggles and looks toward my office door. She glances back at me with a question in her eyes.
“Go ahead,” I huff.
Her smile is the goddamn sun. She skips, and I do mean skips, to the door and opens it slowly. The sound of claws skittering against linoleum rings through the office, then a loudAwww.There’s lots of low baby talk from Miss Heart.
“Any luck finding an owner?” I ask Erin.
She shakes her head. “Lilly came in earlier and gave the pup a thorough look. Not injured, but he’s got no chip, hasn’t been neutered, and doesn’t look like he’s had his shots yet. Probably escaped from a puppy mill or something. A little underfed, but not too bad.”
Lilly is the local vet. “So he doesn’t have an owner?”
I close my eyes to hide the way Miss Heart’s musical voice shocks my core.
