For a split second, she looks right at me, expression unreadable. Then she looks past me, smiling politely at the mayor, who says something about her dedication to the community. The crowd claps again, louder this time. She laughs softly, and the sound twists something in my chest I can’t name.
I take a step back, far enough that I can breathe again, at least on the outside. Inside, it’s chaos. I can feel the weight of her presence even after she sits back down.
Gabe leans closer, voice low. “You okay, Sheriff?”
I nod once. “Fine.”
He studies me for a beat too long, then lets it go.
The meeting rolls on—budget talk, upcoming fundraisers, disaster relief programs. I hear words like “reconstruction permits” and “fire assessments,” but none of it sticks. My mind keeps circling back to her. To the fact that the woman I spentthe night with isn’t just a local—she’sMillie Harper, Driftwood’s sweetheart, the volunteer everyone loves.
How the hell am I supposed to do my job when every time I close my eyes, I see her face?
When the meeting finally ends, people start filing out, chairs scraping, voices overlapping again. I stay near the front, answering a few questions from residents. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch glimpses of her moving through the crowd, head ducked slightly, avoiding my gaze.
Good.
Or maybe not.
Part of me wants to stop her. To say something—anything—to explain that I didn’t know. That if I had, I would’ve stopped before it ever started. But another part of me knows that’d only make it worse.
Whatever we were last night, it ends here. It has to.
When I finally look up, she’s gone. Only the faint scent of vanilla and something warm lingers in the air, a ghost of the night I should’ve forgotten.
Jake claps me on the shoulder, startling me out of my thoughts. “Not bad for your first meeting,” he says. “You’ve got the whole town talking.”
“Yeah,” I mutter, watching the doorway where she disappeared. “I bet I do.”
He grins, oblivious. “You handled yourself well. Everyone’s impressed. Captain Ashford too. I think you made a good impression.”
I nod, forcing a tight smile. “Thanks.”
But inside, all I can think is that my so-called fresh start in Driftwood just collided headfirst with the one woman I can’t stop thinking about—and the only one I’m supposed to stay away from.
As the last of the crowd filters out, I grab my jacket and step into the night air. The breeze carries the faintest trace of the sea, cool and sharp against my skin. The street’s quiet now, most of the shops dark. The glow from the town hall spills onto the sidewalk, fading as the door closes behind me.
I stand there for a long moment, hands in my pockets, staring out at the empty street.
I came here to start over. To do things right this time.
I fear I have already fucked everything up.
I walk past the parked cruisers outside the town hall, hands in my jacket pockets, jaw tight. Every step feels heavier than the last. I should go home, pour a drink, call it a night. That’s what a normal person would do after their first public meeting in a new town. But I’m not normal, and tonight I sure as hell don’t trust myself alone with my thoughts.
So instead, I turn left at the post office and head toward the station.
Driftwood’s police department sits wedged between a bait shop and a laundromat, one of those brick buildings that looks older than it probably is. The front windows glow with yellow light. Inside, I can already hear the low murmur of a police scanner and the rhythmic tapping of a keyboard.
When I push the door open, the bell above it jingles softly.
Jasmine’s behind the desk, headset on, half-listening to a call while scrolling through a spreadsheet. She’s young—mid-twenties maybe—with dark braids pulled into a bun and a mug of something that smells like mint tea steaming beside her keyboard. She glances up when she sees me, startled for half a second before she recovers and pulls off the headset.
“Sheriff Hill,” she says, sitting a little straighter. “Didn’t think you’d still be up.”
“Couldn’t sleep,” I tell her. “Figured I’d spend the evening here. Get a feel for how things run after hours.”
Her smile’s cautious but friendly. “You’re the first person who’s said that in years.”
