Her Valentine Sheriff

She was still angry at Natalie. At the moment, they weren’t on speaking terms. It grated on her, knowing that in Natalie’s tinted reality, Eli had been nothing more than the last in a long string of broken hearts. Her sister had always been a bit of a narcissist, but her selfishness had hit an all-time high with this one. Without a word of explanation to anyone, she’d left the state with a wealthy fellow the family had never even met. It was cruel, even for her.

How could Natalie have done such a thing? And to Eli, of all men? He deserved so much better than that.

He was a decent guy through and through. He didn’t purposefully snub anyone, not even in high school, when he was the handsome and sought-after star running back on the football team. He went out of his way to make folks feel welcome—even going so far as to take pity on an awkward ninth-grade girl standing alone in a shadowed corner of her first Sweetheart Social.

He wouldn’t remember that particular incident, of course.

But she did.

She’d never forgotten any of the kind things he’d done for her over the years. To be honest, if only with herself, she’d have to admit that her feelings for Eli had shaded every romantic relationship she’d had over the years. No other man could compare to him, or at least to the man she’d built Eli up to be in her mind. It wasn’t fair to the men she’d dated, and it definitely wasn’t going to make working with the man Eli was now any easier.

He could hardly live up to perfection, and that was pretty much what she’d made him out to be.

Past tense. That part of her life was over long ago. She was over this. She was over him. She had to be. Now more than ever. How else would she be able to endure working with him every day?

And she was going to work with him. It might have come as a complete shock to her when Captain James had arranged for the two of them to work together in the new K-9 unit, but she wasn’t about to turn down the opportunity she’d been praying for. If she presented a competent K-9 unit to the Serendipity Police Department, she’d be able to use that reference to get other clients in surrounding small-town areas, places that might otherwise not be able to afford to train such units. It was her dream to run a full-time training kennel, and she found she couldn’t give it up, not even to spare Eli the discomfort of having to work with his ex-fiancée’s sister.

She sank into the plush forest-green easy chair in the corner of her living room and folded her legs, wrapping her arms around her ankles. Resting her forehead on her knees, she closed her eyes and offered her heart to God in prayer.

She didn’t realize how much time had passed, but at eight o’clock precisely, Eli knocked rhythmically on the door, shave and a haircut, two bits.

She was ready, and she hoped he was equally prepared for his first real lesson with Bullet. He’d seemed a little aloof about the dog on Friday.

She opened the door and smiled in greeting, and he simply marched past her.

“Let’s do this,” he said over his shoulder, already halfway to the den.

No Hello.

No Good morning.

No How was your weekend?

Just a curt Let’s do this, in a voice that, while not what she would term callous, was nevertheless, in Mary’s opinion, a little rough around the edges. Or maybe she was being oversensitive, and he was ready to get down to business.

“Okay, then,” she answered blithely, tamping down her own emotions. Eli was probably nervous. She decided to cut him a break—this one time. She passed him, heading through the den toward the backyard without glancing around to see if he followed.

She didn’t have to. She felt his gaze drilling into her back and knew he was scowling. What was up with that? Had he fallen off the wrong side of the bed? Eaten soggy cereal for breakfast?

As she stepped outdoors, she paused a moment, enjoying the sight of Bullet playfully barking and chasing Periwinkle and Sebastian around the yard. The dogs always made her feel better.

Eli was still staring at her, waiting for—something. For his training to begin, she supposed.

“Bullet, volg,” she called crisply, bringing the dog to heel.

“Do I have to talk like that—in another language?” Eli asked, stepping beside her and crossing his arms over the wide expanse of his chest. “What is that, anyway? German?”

He was so close, and so big, that she had the impression he was invading her personal space. She wished it didn’t rattle her, but it did.

“You’re close. It’s Dutch. And, yes, I’m going to be teaching you a few Dutch words. Bullet is trained to respond to the language, though he knows most commands in English, as well.”

“It figures,” Eli groused, his brows lowering over startlingly arctic-blue eyes. “Dutch language for a Dutch dog. Just what I need. My partner and I not only have communication problems, we don’t even use the same language.”

Mary chuckled and laid a hand on his arm. “Bullet isn’t really Dutch, and that’s not why we use the language. He was bred right here in Texas. The foreign words help us—and the dogs—stay in the zone.”

He shrugged one shoulder and quirked his lips. “I thought I was done being forced to learn new languages when I graduated from high school.”

“I promise it’s not as painful as you’re making it out to be. Only a few words and they’re fairly easy to pick up. You’ll have a good time working with Bullet. Before you know it, it’ll feel like it’s all fun and games for you—probably the best time you’ve ever had on the police force. K-9 is at least as exciting as guns and knives.”

Eli scoffed and shook his head, and Mary raised her eyebrows. Frustration burned deep lines of aggravation in her chest.

Why was the man being so contrary today? He was acting like a toddler who didn’t want to eat his vegetables. It didn’t add up for a man as normally well tempered as Eli Bishop to be so unreasonably grouchy—not without a good reason.

But what reason could he have? Something was certainly stuck up his craw. Was he that uncomfortable working with her?

She sighed inwardly. She wouldn’t blame him if he was. She wasn’t feeling entirely composed herself. But the two of them would have to find a way to overcome the awkwardness between them, or they’d never be able to see this project through to completion—and that had to happen. It had to happen.

Could she bring up the source of the uneasiness between them? Force the issue? Address the elephant in the room—the one by the name of Natalie?

She cringed. While it would probably be better to bring their issues out into the open, the truth was, she was a bona fide, full-fledged chicken—just hear her cluck! She could no more mention Eli’s relationship with Natalie than she could make the Earth orbit backward around the sun.

“We’ll start with some basic commands, and then we’ll play a few games,” she instructed, consciously shoving her own emotions to the side and hoping Eli would do the same. She would have plenty of time to mull over their issues later, when he wasn’t around to pick up on it. “Use volg to bring him to heel on your left side.”

“V-log.” Eli stumbled over the word. Bullet cocked his head, clearly interested in the strange man, but he didn’t respond to Eli’s voice as he had with Mary’s. That was to be expected. Eli had to learn to give the commands with authority, and Bullet had to learn to trust Eli. It would just take time.

Mary took two large steps backward, away from Eli, giving Bullet a subtle hint to focus on the man before him. “It’s volg. Try it again.”

“Volg,” Eli commanded in a low, firm voice, fisting his hands as he spoke. Bullet circled around him and sat perfectly at his left heel. Eli glanced up, his surprised gaze meeting Mary’s. A smile crossed his lips. “Now, that’s better.”

Her stomach fluttered and pride welled in her chest, though she wasn’t certain whether it was from Eli’s reaction or Bullet’s successful training. “Sure. See? It’s not so bad. You just have to practice the new words until they become second nature to you. Probably a lot like your job—working through the ranks, learning as you go.”

“Yeah,” he agreed soberly. “Working through the ranks.”

After applying the heel command successfully several more times, Mary taught Eli the words for stay, come, sit and down. Bullet, of course, already knew the commands. Eli fumbled through the Dutch, but he was a quick learner, and clearly determined to make it work between him and his new partner, which was exhilarating for Mary to watch.

Yet even in their best moments, there was some silent but unsettling subtext within the interchange between the dog and the man. It wasn’t anything so blatant that she could immediately pinpoint the problem and correct it, but the exchange wasn’t as flowing and straightforward as it should have been. Mary couldn’t quite put her finger on what was off about it, but something was wrong.

She took her cues from Bullet rather than Eli. The dog occasionally shied sideways, which was unlike the well-trained K-9. Bullet’s skittishness suggested his handler was agitated, and Mary watched Eli closely, looking for signs of anxiety. His expression was sober and his jaw set in determination, but she didn’t necessarily think that was cause for concern. Eli had always been a bit of a perfectionist. Clearly he wanted to be successful in his new endeavor. There was nothing wrong with focus and resolve. But sometimes when Eli would mix up his commands, the dog didn’t know how to respond and returned to Mary’s side, which only served to set Eli’s face into a deeper scowl and widen the distance between him and his new K-9 partner.

How was she going to get him to relax? He’d been so laid-back in high school. She remembered him as the guy who always had a smile on his face, and his nature had been easygoing and friendly. But that was only her teenage love-struck observation. Maybe that wasn’t his true personality at all...at least, not anymore.

People grew up. Things changed. And she couldn’t say it was the first time he hadn’t met her expectations. When he’d become engaged to Natalie, Mary had assumed he’d join in their family life and culture, but that had never happened. Serendipity was a small town with country ways, and family was a big deal here. Yet it hadn’t appeared to matter to Eli.

Maybe he wasn’t the way she had imagined at all.

Maybe he was still bitter and frustrated from being jilted only one week before the wedding.

Maybe he didn’t like this situation.