"i've been better." he glanced at nadine long enough to manage a smile. "how's the store?"

"a little worse for wear, but open for business. the insurance adjuster will be out later to take a look."

"good." he nodded and came to a stop before darcy, his warm brown eyes shaded by the brim of his hat. "everything all right with you?"

"yes, sir, sheriff. deputy cameron is just checking out the scene."

nadine backed away. "i'm going to head back to work."

darcy shot her a look that said, don't you dare, but the other woman just grinned mischievously and backed away.

chris leaned back against the truck next to her. too close. when he crossed his arms, his biceps brushed hers.

"where's deputy morales?" darcy asked.

"she was making some phone calls and jim was helping her out with some things. so i thought i'd find you and see if you needed anything."

she exhaled softly, feeling that tiny twinge of discomfort that came with knowing someone's interest was deeper than could be reciprocated. she and chris had dated in high school. he'd been prom king to her prom queen. they'd had fun together, been wild and reckless as kids usually were, and she'd enjoyed being with him, but it had never been serious for her. he was a good guy in a lot of ways. plus, he kept himself in prime shape and was great looking. but he didn't get to her, not the way she needed.

"i'm set," she answered. "i've turned everything i have over to deputy cameron."

"i'd heard that." the intimation in his tone put her back up.

darcy straightened away from the truck and faced him from the sidewalk. "watch it, chris."

"i think we need to talk about this. why are you always going for a dead end? first jim, then this guy-" he gestured toward jared with a flick of his wrist. "i'm right here, darcy. we're good together. you know that."

"seriously? we dated when we were kids for chrissakes."

"we have history," he argued. "who knows you better?"

"honestly, chris, you don't know me at all." she thought back to when she'd woken up to jared in her bed. the things she'd said to him...the raw sexual things she'd demanded of him...she could never say such things to chris. it didn't matter how long she'd known him. the connection she needed to be so open wasn't there. "where is this coming from anyway?"

"i've been patient, darcy." pushing off his hat, he ran a hand through his thick mahogany hair. his eyes were hot with frustration. "i mean, you're back in lion's bay. i figured that was the big step. i knew you had some adjusting to do so i've kind of hovered on the side."

"come on, chris. are we going to have this conversation now? here? really?"

"i know you're going through a rough time. you need someone solid, darcy. someone who can anchor you. not jim and not some fly-by-night outsider."

"we're not talking about this," she said, low and quiet. "you're under a lot of pressure at the moment. we all are. so i'm going to give you a pass today and forget you brought this up."

"i should've asked you out before now. is that what you're saying? i tried to do the right thing by giving you some space, but i gave you too much space."

she sighed. "who knows? maybe if you'd asked me out when i first got back, i might have said yes. maybe i wouldn't have. we'll never know. it's a moot point right now. i'm working. so are you. and i'm presently involved with someone."

"involved?" he snorted. "he's passing through, darcy. don't forget that."

"i haven't, but you seem to have or your boxers wouldn't be in a twist and we wouldn't be having this conversation. we're going to collar our torch, chris, and everything is going to go back to the way it was, then you'll be embarrassed over this conversation. let's put it behind us."

jared walked out of the building. "everything all right?"

"everything's fine," darcy said. "sheriff miller just wanted to offer his assistance."

"you get deputy morales the list of part-time residents, sheriff?"

chris straightened and shoved his hat back on his head. "your partner's got everything she asked for."

"good." jared bared his teeth in a semblance of a smile. "morales will let you know if we need anything further."

she waited until chris had driven away to say, "see? you underestimated yourself. you worked with him just fine...without your fists."

"he managed not to talk too much." he looked at her. "but he was laying it on thick for you. you handled that well."

shrugging, she moved to the truck. "that wasn't his style. this case is really getting to him, i guess."

"or the thought of you with another man is." he opened the passenger door and paused, looking at her. with one arm draped on the roof of the cab and the other resting on the window frame, he looked casual, relaxed, and extremely delicious. "you know, being so easygoing with your brush-offs make them harder to accept."

"why?"

"because women are supposed to be emotional. pissed off, vengeful, sad...whatever. something. brushing a man off like a gnat makes us realize we never got to you at all. or that we were much too easy to get over."

"that's sexist."

"maybe. no one's ever accused me of being pc." he pushed his sunglasses up, revealing cool blue eyes that scorched her. "i want to go to seattle, take a look around the area where the tipster placed his phone call. and i want to take you to lunch. since it's your day off, it's not a problem for you to get away, is it?"

"no." and she wouldn't have to wear her uniform. she was looking forward to hitting him with something flirty. "i just need to change my clothes and my ride."

his slow, sexy smile did a number on her. she stood there a moment, absorbing the sensation of being so highly attracted to a man. not just physically, but in every way. he'd called her easygoing and she thought that was true. she'd long avoided drama with men and anyone who was high maintenance. but her irritable lover wasn't scaring her away. she wanted more of him, the good and the bad, the rough and the smooth.

"ready?" he asked.

"no," she said honestly, "but that's not stopping me."

chapter eight

jared wondered what the hell he'd gotten himself into when darcy came out of the house. she'd changed into a strappy, fitted red dress that bared toned arms and lithe legs that ended in heeled sandals. her dark hair drifted around her shoulders, and she'd touched up her eyes and lips with a light application of cosmetics.

his breath caught. more than her physical attractiveness, it was her sultry confidence that riveted him, the indefinable essence of her that so perfectly aligned with something deep inside him.

"are you still there, cameron?" supervisory deputy holt asked through his cell phone's speaker.

"yes, ma'am. sorry."

"we've pulled the photos and video from the surveillance cameras around the payphone. they're not very helpful. the subject wore a hooded sweatshirt and kept his head down, but they're being e-mailed to you. maybe one of the locals will see something familiar in the body language."

"we'll run it through. thanks." he straightened as darcy reached him. "i'm going to visit the location myself. i want to time the trip and see if something in the vicinity jumps out at me. it's possible he picked the payphone at random, but just in case, i'll check it out."

"send me an updated report by morning."

"yes, ma'am." he killed the call, shoved the phone in his pocket, and caught darcy by the hips to pull her close. "you look amazing."

"thank you, deputy." she accepted the compliment with an easy self-assurance.

a heartbreaker, he thought grimly. the kind of woman a man was never sure he possessed completely. that aloofness stirred his most primal proprietary instincts, and he was slightly irritated that he was no more immune to her allure than any other member of the male species.

but then she'd confessed today that they were "involved," and she wasn't the type of woman to use one man as an excuse to extricate herself from another. for now, she was his. it was up to him to decide if he wanted to keep her, and if he did, take the steps necessary to make that happen.

"you're scowling at me," she pointed out wryly, her cool fingertips smoothing the line between his brows.

"sorry."

"what's wrong?"

jared shook his head. "you're perfect, darcy. just the sort of uncomplicated and undemanding female a guy like me hopes to pass some time with. it's driving me fuckin' crazy."

"that makes absolutely no sense," she said wryly.

"tell me about it. kiss me."

"all right. don't move."

he forced himself to relax. "go for it."

stepping closer, she brushed her mouth across his. the kiss was soft as a butterfly's wings, barely there. her tongue darted out, licking the seam of his lips, dipping just a tiny bit inside. he groaned, fighting the urge to drag her close and take over. he wanted her to give to him whatever she chose, however much she chose.

her hands went to his shoulders, then the one not holding her little clutch purse cupped his nape. her head tilted and she sealed her mouth over his. she deepened the kiss, unraveling him stitch by stitch. he couldn't say why, couldn't figure it out. she was a pretty woman he'd met twenty-four hours before. they'd fucked like feral rabbits, which should've worked her right out of his system. physically, he'd been thoroughly satisfied. yet he couldn't catch his breath because of a chaste kiss. his lungs heaved and burned, his heart pounded violently.