His mind instantly jumped to his poor mother and brother. If he’d been reported as missing, which, after three days of absence from work, he’d assume he was, they’d be frantic with worry. “Do you have a phone? Did you call for help?”
“No. Well, I do, but it seems to be out. Otherwise I would have tried to get you to a hospital before the roads snowed out. I’ve been checking it periodically, but no luck yet. The power’s been flickering in and out, but I have a generator, so that’s not that big of a deal.”
If you’d gone to a hospital, you’d be dead.The thought popped up in his mind. He didn’t know why he was so certain, but he was. Genevieve had been able to save him when modern medicine probably would have given up on his sorry ass. “My family’s going to be worried sick.”
For the first time, her eyes softened. Her hand relaxed on the gun. “I’m sorry about that. I have an old ham radio, but unless you know more about fixing electronics than I do, I’m afraid it’s inoperable. If the phone isn’t working by the time the snow lets up, though, I can use my horse or dirt bike to get help. In the meantime, I’m afraid you’re pretty much stuck at this resort with me.”
All in all, not a bad prospect. In fact, if he didn’t know his mother was probably crying hysterically over her rosary at this very minute, he wouldn’t mind the forced vacation with this pretty woman at all. He didn’t remember much of his fevered dreams during the past couple of days, but he knew she’d been his rock through the hellish nightmare. “Well, at least the scenery is nice.”
She blinked. “Are you flirting with me?”
Alex grinned. He loved a direct woman, and Genevieve seemed upfront to the point of rudeness. “Yes. Why, is there a Mr. Hermit I should be worried about?”
She smiled back, and his heart skipped a beat. He’d heard of that happening, but Lord, it was a funny feeling. “No.”
“Me neither. I mean, I’m not married. No girlfriend. Or kids. Not that I don’t like them. Love kids.” He tried to clamp his mouth shut. He’d never been a smooth Latin lover, but he could hold his own in the flirtation arena normally. Something about her called out to the blushing fourteen-year-old in him, crazy over his first crush.
She was staring at him. “That’s…nice.”
“Sorry, I’m rambling a little. My brain’s still a bit messed up.”
“It’s okay. So, were you vacationing around here or something? It’s a little late in the season for tourists.” The admission of his weakness appeared to have relaxed her even more, because she settled onto the hardwood floor next to his bed. Her expression wasn’t exactly as soft and sweet as he would have liked, but the suspicion seemed to have eased a bit.
“No, I live down here.”
If he hadn’t been watching her so closely, he would have missed the stiffening of her body. “You don’t sound like you’re from around here. Besides, I’ve never seen you before. It’s a small county.”
“Brooklyn, born and raised. But I moved down here about three months ago.”
She was watching him with alarm. “You…you don’t know who I am?”
“Except for the woman who saved my life? No. Should I?”
“You must live in Newbury, then.”
She was referring to the larger, more cosmopolitan town a little farther south. “Nope. Harrison.”
There was no subtlety in her response this time. She physically withdrew from him.
“You really haven’t been there long then,” she said with no inflection. “Or you would have heard of me.”
Alex tried to figure out the new vibes in the room. Fear? Defiance? “Your reputation is so grand, then?”
Her eyes were hooded. “I wouldn’t call it grand.”
“Actually, I’m kind of pissed no one told me a young woman lived out here all alone. It’s a little too far for regular patrols, but it’s still under our jurisdiction.”
“Patrols?”
He shook his head and extended his hand, a bit ashamed to see the slight tremor in it. “We really need to introduce ourselves. What’s your last name?”
“Boden.”
“Genevieve Boden, meet Alex Rivera. I was just hired on as the new chief of police.”
If he’d thought the title would ease her misgivings about having a strange man who’d been shot lying in her house, he was dead wrong. He might as well have said he had become the new serial killer in town. Her face leached of color, and she stared at him with legitimate horror in her eyes. He reached for her arm in concern, but she crawled backwards.
“Are you okay?”
