How To Steal The Lawman's Heart

“Well, I don’t eat beef, but I pretty much like anything else.”

“In that case, I recommend either the poached salmon fillets with watercress mayonnaise or the salmon bulgogi with bok choy and mushrooms. That’s my favorite. If you want chicken, Brandon makes a mean pan-roasted chicken with citrus sauce.”

“Everything sounds delicious. I’ll try the chicken. If it’s as good as you say, I’ll try the others before I leave town.”

As Joni promised, her meal was delicious.

When the waitress returned to take away her plate, Carmen praised the meal.

“I’ll be sure to give Brandon your compliment. I’ll have to wait until after closing because his head is so big that if he gets one more compliment it just might pop.”

Carmen grinned. Joni’s friendliness was just what she needed after the icy reception she’d received from her family.

“So what brings you to our humble town?”

“My mother’s funeral.”

Joni instantly sobered. “I’m sorry.”

Carmen swallowed. “Thanks.”

Joni studied Carmen for a minute. “Was your mother Rachel Shields?”

“Yes.”

“I thought so. You resemble her. I met her when we moved here a few years back. She was a wonderful woman.”

“Thanks.”

Joni waited a bit before she spoke again, clearly giving Carmen time to get her emotions under control, which Carmen appreciated. “How long will you be in town?”

“I’m not sure. I planned on two weeks.” Carmen’s stomach instantly plummeted to her feet. What would she do if her family continued to ignore her overtures? She’d go bananas with nothing to do but brood.

“If you find yourself with time on your hands, or just need to get away from family for a while, I have the perfect suggestion for how to fill it.”

“I’m not a good waitress.”

“Are you kidding?” She laughed. “You’re much too nice to subject to my brother. He may cook like an angel, but he is the devil to work for.”

Joni’s words were spoken with affection and Carmen felt the slightest twinge of envy at the obvious close relationship between Joni and her brother. “What did you have in mind?”

“I was going to suggest you volunteer at the youth center. You might have passed it on the way over here. It’s that huge gray building on the corner of Maple and Oak.”

She’d noticed it.

When she’d lived here, recreation for teens had been limited to the one-screen movie theater or the beach. The beach generally won. More often than not they had been unsupervised. Too often, alcohol had been involved. She was living proof of the problems that led to.

Carmen was thrilled someone had built the youth center. She would like to help guide kids who might otherwise be tempted to stray as she had. But she wasn’t sure it was a good idea. Many people had been hurt by the accident and might blame her for their loss. Chief Knight certainly did. She didn’t know if anyone else felt that way, but she wouldn’t want any misdirected negative feelings to roll onto Joni.

Carmen sighed and bit back her disappointment. “I don’t know if I should.”

“Why not?” Joni seemed sincerely perplexed. “I’m the director of the center and I’d appreciate any help you can give.”

Carmen lifted the napkin from her lap and placed it on the table. “I’m Carmen Shields.”

Joni shrugged as if the name meant nothing to her.

“I was a passenger in the SUV that crashed into Chief Knight’s wife’s car seven years ago.”

“Oh.” Joni pulled out a chair and sat down.

“I don’t think he would want me to work with the kids. He’d probably consider me a bad influence, and other people might feel that way, too.” She tried to sound indifferent, but even to her own ears her pain was unmistakable.

“What happened?”

Carmen closed her eyes and sighed. The memory of that night was as vivid as though it happened yesterday. She could still hear the screams, the twisting of metal. “My friends were drunk. We were speeding and ran a stop sign, hitting another car.”

“You said you weren’t driving.”

“I wasn’t. But I should have been. I was sober.” But Donny wouldn’t give her his keys. Still, she’d hopped into the car, stupidly believing she could make him drive slowly.

Joni pondered that for a moment. “How old were you?”

“Eighteen.”

“You were young and stupid. Something all of us suffer from at one time or another.”

“That’s no excuse. Three people are dead.” The guilt she’d felt because of Donny’s and Jay’s deaths was nothing compared to knowing a perfectly innocent wife and mother had died, as well.

“I agree that’s tragic, but you weren’t driving. I don’t see how anyone could blame you.”

“Chief Knight does.” And her father blamed her for tarnishing the previously unblemished Shields name, ruining his plans for a political career. But not just that night. She’d begun pushing the boundaries of proper behavior long before then.

Joni reached across the table and clasped Carmen’s hand. “Chief Knight lost his wife. He needs someone to blame. Although why he chose you and not the driver is beyond me.”

“The driver died at the scene.” Carmen knew she may not have been legally responsible, but morally she had been wrong. “I could have tried harder to take the keys from Donny. But I’d been too busy trying to fit in. I’d finally gotten the cool kids to accept me and I wasn’t going to blow it by acting like someone’s nagging mother.”

“You can’t change the past. You can learn from it and try to make a difference today. Your past will give you credibility with the kids that no one else has.” Joni blinked. “Unless you’ll be busy with your family. You’ll only be here for a short while, so you’ll probably be spending a lot of time with them.”

“Not so much.” Unless her father had a change of heart, she’d remain the family pariah. Perhaps if he saw her doing something good, he’d realize she had changed and welcome her back into the family. And she truly did want to help. “Maybe you’re right. I’d love to work with the kids.”

“So is that a yes?”

Carmen smiled. “Just tell me when and I’ll be there.”

“Do you have a preference of activities?”

“I’m an artist by profession. If you have art classes or projects, I could help out.”