Susan Mallery - Hold Me

He rose and walked closer to the map. The terrain grew rough within just a few miles of town. There were dozens of popular hiking trails and camping spots. Just last year, there’d been a flash flood through a campground. The rushing waters had endangered a group of girls and their leaders. He wanted to make sure that didn’t happen again. That if someone got lost, he or she would be found quickly and safely.

With the new software program, searching would be easy. He knew there would be a learning curve, but in the end, the effort would be worth it.

As soon as Mayor Marsha had told him about the new program, he’d started reading up on it. The results were impressive, and he was looking forward to learning the ins and outs of the system.

And maybe of Destiny Mills, as well, he thought with a grin. She was beautiful. Tall, curvy. A redhead—his personal weakness. There was something about the combination of red hair and pale skin that got his attention. And if she had freckles, all the better. A man could go looking for freckles and not resurface for days.

She was his type in other ways. Single, according to scuttlebutt, and in town for a limited amount of time. He was a man who enjoyed serial monogamy. Having a predetermined expiration date on a relationship was his idea of perfection. If the lady was interested, he was more than willing. At least in the short-term.

Every now and then he wondered if he should want more. That forever thing other people seemed to seek. He’d seen love. He even believed in it. But he’d never felt it. Not the romantic kind. Lust, sure. Liking, absolutely. He loved his sister and his country. He would do anything for a friend. But fall crazy, let’s-get-married in love? That hadn’t happened.

At this point, he figured it wasn’t going to. And he could live with that.

* * *

MAYOR MARSHA WAS in her late sixties, with white hair swept up in a loose bun and piercing blue eyes. Her suit was tailored, her pearls luminous, and she had a kind smile that made Destiny feel immediately at home.

“Welcome to Fool’s Gold,” the mayor said, her voice warm. “It’s lovely to finally meet you.”

“Likewise.”

Destiny shook hands the way Grandma Nell had taught her—firmly, while looking the other person in the eye. You’re a human being, not a fish. You should act like it. Because Grandma Nell had advice for every situation. Not all of it was appropriate, or even helpful, but it was nearly always memorable.

“I’m happy to be here,” Destiny told the mayor. “We’re going to have a good summer getting STORMS in place.”

“Your boss, David, said I would enjoy working with you, and I can see he was right. I like your attitude,” the mayor told her. The other woman looked past her and nodded. “Here comes the rest of our meeting.”

Destiny turned and saw Kipling strolling into the mayor’s office. There was no other way to describe the easy way he moved. A neat trick, she thought, taking in the slight limp that no doubt came from the horrific crash he’d survived the previous year. What must he have been like back before the accident?

If she were someone else, looking for something different, Kipling would be a temptation, she thought. But he wasn’t or she wasn’t. Regardless, he was wrong for her, and she knew better than to start down the wrong path. She’d seen way too many emotional disasters in her life to take the chance. Sometimes you take on the bear and sometimes the bear takes you on. If it’s the latter, then you’d better run like hell.

Destiny held in a chuckle. Yup, Grandma Nell had always had a practical streak in her. She would take one look at Kipling, push Destiny aside and ask for a little privacy. Then she would have her way with him and toss him aside. Because the relationship drama she’d grown up with hadn’t started with her parents, although they’d been the worst offenders. No, bad marriages and broken hearts went back generations on both sides.

Kipling hugged the mayor, then kissed her cheek before nodding at Destiny.

“Good to see you again,” he said.

“You, too.”

Mayor Marsha led them to a seating area in the corner of her office. Once they’d claimed their places, she began the meeting.

“Destiny, the town is thrilled to have you here, helping us launch our HERO program.”

Destiny nodded even as she glanced at Kipling. She saw him wince, and couldn’t resist pretending she didn’t know what the mayor was talking about.

“HERO program?”

“Help Emergency Rescue Operations,” Mayor Marsha told her. “What we’re calling Fool’s Gold’s search and rescue organization. We held a contest, people submitted names. The city council narrowed it down to ten, and then we voted. HERO won.”

“It’s still a stupid name,” Kipling grumbled.

Destiny held in a grin. “You don’t like being a hero?”

“Let’s just say I take a lot of crap about the name.”

“Challenges build character,” she murmured, thinking he’d probably liked G-Force a whole lot better.

“Yet another place I’m not lacking.”

He winked as he spoke, which made her want to laugh. But this was supposed to be a professional setting, so instead she turned her attention back to Mayor Marsha.

“STORMS will work well for what you have in mind.”

“I’m counting on it,” the mayor told her. “We were very lucky to get the money we needed. Between our federal and state grants and a very sizable anonymous local donation, we’re fully funded for the next five years. Including your part in this.”

Impressive, Destiny thought. STORMS didn’t come cheap. With the software itself, the equipment required, the expense of mapping and training a team, the price was over a million dollars. And that didn’t include the cost of running a search and rescue operation.

“We’ve had excellent success with our software,” she said. “Your terrain is perfectly suited for what we do best.”

“Excellent. You and Kipling have a plan?”

Kipling sat as relaxed as he had before. “We’re getting one together. Destiny has to map the area and feed the information into her software. Then we’ll do some beta testing on the program. We’ll make the August first deadline.”

“Good.” Mayor Marsha nodded at Kipling, then turned back to Destiny. “Do you agree that we’ll meet our deadline?”

“We’re on schedule to have the program up and running by mid-July. The extra two weeks are a buffer I’m hoping we don’t need.”

Destiny didn’t like unexpected problems. Part of her job was anticipating issues before they happened. She prided herself on a smooth rollout.

“And how is Starr settling in to life in Fool’s Gold?”

The mayor’s shift in topic caught Destiny by surprise. Worse, it took her a second to remember who Starr was and why, for the first time in over a decade, she suddenly had someone other than herself to worry about.

“She’s, ah, doing okay. I guess. We just got into town yesterday.”

The mayor nodded knowingly. “Yes, it must be difficult for both of you. She’s your half sister, isn’t she? You have the same father but different mothers?”

Destiny felt her mouth start to drop open. She consciously kept her lips together as she nodded. “Yes, that’s right,” she said cautiously, not comfortable discussing her family. Because it was so much better when people didn’t know.

She glanced at Kipling, who looked only mildly interested in their conversation. Did he know who she was? He hadn’t hinted that he did.

“Fifteen is a difficult age.” Mayor Marsha shook her head. “That’s about when the trouble started with my own daughter. She was a headstrong girl. And that was a very long time ago. As for you and Starr, I hope you’ll consider Fool’s Gold your home as long as you’re here. If you need anything, just let me know. Oh, I have something for you.”