Julie Lindsey - The Sheriff's Secret

“No. That’s standard practice. Carl’s been with the group long enough to know that.”

“Do all the members have the same problems?”

Tina shot him a knowing look. She’d already made it clear she wouldn’t divulge her patients’ personal information. “They’re all dealing with PTSD and severe emotional trauma for various reasons. Some members are former military. Some are abuse survivors.”

“How did you spend the extra time you had with Steven?”

Tina sighed. “Occasionally I’d use the time to educate and encourage. Other times, he’d tell me things he wasn’t ready to share with the group. It was all very up-and-up.”

West repositioned his grip on the wheel, relaxing his hands and leaning back against the seat. “I didn’t mean to imply otherwise.”

“You didn’t. I just want it stated for the record.”

He cocked a brow. “This isn’t going on a record. We’re just two old friends talking.”

She turned her face to his, a sad smile on her full pink lips. “Is that what we are, West?”

“I’m not sure what we are now,” he admitted, “but I was engaged once to a girl who looked a lot like you.”

She dropped her gaze to the handkerchief briefly before pinning him with a powerful stare. “I’m not that girl anymore.”

“No,” he agreed. “Clearly, that girl has been upgraded by time and experience.” He reached across the seat to give her knee a playful push. “I think the girl I knew would be proud.”

A smile bloomed on her lips. “Thank you for saying that.”

“I meant it.”

She caught his fingers in hers and squeezed. “I know.”

West released her to pull his cruiser into the lot outside her office.

The crime scene was roped off now, and two members of his team worked their way through a rain-soaked lot, careful not to miss anything that might lead them to the shooter’s identity. Plastic yellow teepees with bold black numbers anchored the shattered glass and polka-dotted the surrounding area.

Tina shuddered beside him.

“I’ll be by to check on you and Lily as soon as I can, but I’m going to pay the hospital pharmacist a visit now.” The one who’d asked her out multiple times during her pregnancy. “What did you say his name was?”

“Chris.”

West itched to tighten his fingers around hers once more, but he wasn’t sure how many times he could force himself to let go.

Tina rolled her head against the back of the seat, turning sharp blue eyes on him. “Tell me this wasn’t because someone thought I was spending too much extra time with Steven.” Her body tipped slightly toward his. The change was small, nearly imperceptible. So much so, Tina probably didn’t even realize. But West did.

He felt the too-familiar pull at his core, an urge to meet her in the middle.

No amount of time would change that about them. He and Tina were human magnets in need of connection. Being near her without being hers was a new and ugly sensation. He didn’t like it.

West cleared his throat. “We’ll know more soon.” His thoughts drifted back to Carl Morgan. The timing of Carl’s absence with the shooting today was highly suspicious, and West didn’t like the way Carl had looked at Tina. Definitely not the way a patient should look at his therapist, and it had taken all of West’s self-control not to smack Carl’s grubby hand away when he’d reached for her arm. The look in Carl’s eyes when she recoiled was satisfying, but delivering the weirdo a solid right hook would’ve been even better. “We’ll see what my team turns up and what Tucker and Chris have to say once we find them. We’ve got to follow the facts.” Lucky for Carl, being creepy wasn’t against the law, and West’s gut instinct wasn’t grounds to hold him.

Tina rolled her eyes, instantly looking a decade younger. She nudged his arm with a grin. “You still do that, huh? Answer my questions with random truths when you don’t want to lie or upset me with the one I’m asking for.”

Her hand lingered on his arm, warming him to the core.

West fought a budding smile. “Would you prefer I lie?”

“As if you could.” She cracked the door open and swung her legs into the brisk autumn wind.

He circled the car and met her halfway to hers, toting the bags she’d packed at home earlier. “Slow down.” He caught her wrist in his fingers, cursing himself instantly for the thrill it gave him. “Hey. Take a minute before you drive. You’ve had one hell of a day. You’re worried about your baby, your safety, your group.”

She stopped to face him. Her shoulders drooped. “I’m okay to drive.”

“Okay, then tell me you have a plan before you shoot out of here. If you’re planning to get a hotel room, you’d better change cars and register in cash under a different name. I’m going to need your contact information regardless, in case we have reason to believe you’re in danger.”

Her face went slack. “Maybe I could take Lily to Disneyland for a week. Or the beach. We can go somewhere far away for a while.”

“Maybe.” He’d like to think he’d have the son of a gun behind bars before dawn, but the odds certainly weren’t in his favor, and he couldn’t promise he’d have him caught in a week, either. “How long can you afford something like that?”

“I don’t know.” Her voice ratcheted an octave as fear changed her expression to something panicked and feral. “I’ve never been stalked, or hunted, or anything like this before, if that’s even what this is. You’re the expert. What are we supposed to do?”

West couldn’t give her an answer. He didn’t have one.

He ached to fold her into his arms and kiss her head like he used to. He wanted to fix this. All of this. He’d never wanted anything more than to keep her safe and make her smile. And ten years apart hadn’t changed a damn thing.

Tina groaned and rubbed her eyes. “I need coffee. I need to fix my face, paste on a smile and make sure Lily doesn’t pick up on any of the horrific things rolling through my head.”

She pried her keys from her handbag and beeped her car doors unlocked. “I’ll get Lily and Ducky, then I’ll figure out where we’re going before your deputy leaves my place. I’ll call you as soon as I know.”

He shifted his weight. “I’ll head over to your house as soon as I can.” He passed her the bags, and she tossed them onto her passenger seat.

Tina slid her hand down the length of West’s arm, catching his fingers in hers. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“Always,” he said, returning the gentle squeeze.

They stood in palpable silence for a long moment, evaluating one another, it seemed. There was obviously something more Tina wanted to say.

She didn’t.

Instead, she dropped behind the wheel of her car and motored away.

They were beginning to make a bad habit of this.

Her leaving, and him watching helplessly from behind.

Chapter Five

Tina turned onto the main road with a sigh of relief, thankful to put a little distance between herself and the man causing her already shocked and broken heart so much unnecessary confusion. She dialed Mary and set the phone to speaker.

Thankfully, the call connected on the first ring. “Hi, Tina,” Mary answered. “How are you? Is everything okay?”

Tina checked her mirrors and adjusted her defrost vents. “I’ve been better. How are you and Lily?”

“Lily’s sound asleep, and a strapping young deputy is patrolling my neighborhood, so I’m not doing too bad, either.”

“Great.” A smile edged over Tina’s lips. Mary was Tina’s first friend after moving back to town. She wasn’t much older than Tina’s mom, and she missed caring for children, so the arrangement with Lily was perfect all around. “Well, I’m finally on my way. Can I bring you anything?”