Bree had only known these beautiful babies for a few weeks, and she already knew it was going to tear a hole in her when she had to give them back to Melissa.
But that was stupid.Bree had been completely alone for the past three years since her mom died, and really even before that, when her mom had started to deteriorate.She was used to being alone.Lovedbeing alone.A few weeks couldn’t change her entire outlook on life.
But she was already afraid it had.
The knock she’d been expecting finally came.Now she was about to find out whether the choice to stay here was taken out of her hands.She opened the door.
“Officer.”She gave a nod of greeting.
“Looks like you were expecting me.”
God, he was still as sexy as she’d remembered.Half a foot taller than her with thick black hair and warm brown eyes, before she quickly looked away from them.He was dressed in jeans and a beige Henley that molded over his chest.
Studying his shoulders and biceps, Bree let herself imagine what it would be like to be in the arms of a man.Not any man,thisman.Being on the run most of her life hadn’t left time for any sort of relationships.Not friendships and definitely not romantic entanglements.She’d never wanted to.
But, now...
She finally looked up and found him staring down at her.He was waiting for her to speak.“Um, yeah, I realized you would probably have some questions about why I was still in town.”
He gave a nod.“Can I come in?”
“If I say no, are you going to arrest me?”
“Have you done anything for me to arrest you for?”One dark brow raised.
“Not today.”She meant it as a joke, but he was obviously taking her seriously.
“Then I guess I won’t be arresting you today.And if you tell me I can’t come in then I’ll leave.But I’ll take Mrs.A’s lemon pie with me.”He held up a paper bag.
Her mouth immediately watered.“That’s not fair, it’s my favorite.How did you know?”
“You’re breathing, aren’t you?Of course it’s your favorite.It’s everybody’s favorite.If it wasn’t your favorite then Iwouldhave to arrest you.”
She gestured for him to enter.“Since you have pie.”
“I also have a chicken sandwich from Mrs.A.She said you left without getting your normal meal and that you weren’t allowed to have the pie until you ate it.”
She took the bag and turned back toward the small kitchen table in the corner.He followed her in, closing the door behind him.
“Cheryl says I don’t eat enough.”Bree put the chicken sandwich on a plate.“She makes me eat at least one meal at the diner every day.”
He chuckled, a casually confident sound that mesmerized her.Bree couldn’t remember ever chuckling like that in her life.And if she had, it definitely wouldn’t have sounded that sexy.
“Mrs.Andrews sayseveryonedoesn’t eat enough.I would find it less suspicious if she wasn’t the owner of a restaurant.But in your case, I think she might be right.Between being a new mother and working every day, you’re probably burning a lot of calories.”
“Do you want any of this sandwich?”She gestured for him to sit with her, but he shook his head.
“No, thanks.I already ate plenty.”
She nodded.“So, Dempsey.Is that the same Dempsey as the teenager that comes in a couple times a week to help out at the diner?”
“That would probably be my cousin Robbie.My father’s brother’s son.I’ve got a lot of family that lives around here.How about you, got any family?”
She took another bite of her chicken sandwich.“None here in Risk Peak.”
He leaned against the wall, stretching his long legs out in front of him.“Oh, I’m damn sure I would know it if you lived around here, believe me.Got any family anywhere else?”
She took another bite of chicken and chewed it slowly, more to give her time to decide what to say.She had a driver’s license that said Bree Daniels.If he checked that out, it wouldn’t bring the whole world crashing down.So she was probably best off sticking with it.
