The Deputy Gets Her Man

Tyler extended his hand to the lawman. “I’m Tyler Pickens. Nice to meet you.”

Hank shook his hand. “Deputy Hank Harrigan. Same here,” he said. “I think I remember seeing you at the Chaparral several years ago. When the rustling ring was busted.”

“You probably did,” Tyler replied. “I was there to help hunt for Alexa. Thankfully, Jonas found her before anything terrible happened.”

Hank nodded. “Yeah. A real Texas Ranger to the rescue. All of us around here were impressed by him.” He glanced over his shoulder to a table across the room, then back to Rosalinda. “Well, I’d better get over to my table. My buddies are waiting. See you in the morning, Rosa. And you take care, Mr. Pickens.”

Tyler nodded at Hank’s parting words before he turned his attention to Rosalinda. Now that her coworker had left, her expression had become strained.

“What’s the matter?” he asked her. “Are you worried about him seeing you having dinner with a suspect?”

“You’re not a suspect. Not exactly,” she corrected, with a grimace. “I just wish—well, it doesn’t matter. Anyway, one way or the other, he would’ve probably heard about you and me having dinner together.”

Tyler put down his fork. “Are you interested in him? I mean romantically?”

She grimaced. “No. But he’s sort of interested in me. And I’ve always put him off by telling him I’m not interested in dating. Now he’s going to think I was lying to him.”

Tyler glanced across the room to where the deputy had taken a seat at a table with two more law officers. From the corner of his eye, he noticed all three men were glancing surreptitiously in their direction. He didn’t know whether to be amused or irritated by the attention.

“Your partner is going to believe we’re dating just because we’re having a meal together? That’s being pretty presumptuous, isn’t it?”

She didn’t answer immediately and he glanced across the table to see a faint blush had painted her cheeks a soft pink. The color made her features even lovelier.

“I’m sorry. That was silly of me to say. It’s just that … well, I don’t do this sort of thing for any reason. And Hank knows that.” She quickly dabbed her lips with a napkin, then changed the subject completely. “If you’re finished, I’d like to leave now.”

Clearly, she was flustered. But whether he was the reason for this change in her, or if it was the sudden appearance of Deputy Harrigan, he had no way of knowing. Something Tyler was certain of, though, was that he was far from ready for his time with this woman to end.

“Sure. I’ll signal the waitress and we’ll get out of here.”

Five minutes later, Tyler had settled the bill and the two of them left the restaurant by way of a side door. The exit led onto a large deck where patrons could take their meals outdoors. Since it was dark, only a handful of people were sitting around the wooden tables partaking of drinks.

Beside him, Rosalinda lifted her face skyward and let out a long sigh. “It’s good to be away from prying eyes. Besides, the night is beautiful. It’s much nicer out here, anyway.”

Not wanting her to make a quick dash to her vehicle, he curled a hand around her elbow. “Let’s walk over to the back of the deck and look at the creek,” he suggested.

She hesitated, but only for a moment. “All right.”

Since the restaurant and adjoining deck were built at the base of a mountain, the property behind it consisted of thick forest. Directly beneath the back side of the deck, a small creek tumbled its way down the hillside toward a larger branch of water. In the light of day, trout could be spotted swimming in the crystal clear stream. Tonight, the only things visible were shiny dapples created by moonbeams slanting through the pine boughs.

As they stood side by side, staring down at the moving water, Tyler told himself he should drop his hold on her arm, yet he couldn’t bring himself to lose the contact. Her skin was warm and soft and her nearness made him feel like a man again. A man strong enough to love and protect a woman. It was a sensation he’d believed he would never experience again and it filled him with immense pleasure.

He said, “I’m sorry if my being here tonight will cause you trouble at work.”

“It won’t. I’ll simply explain to Hank that you and I had a few more things we wanted to discuss.”

“You mean about the arson? Or each other?”

Her attention on the creek, she let out another long breath. “We’re not supposed to be discussing each other.”

Releasing his hold on her arm, he eased his hand onto her shoulder. The moment his fingers pressed into her bare skin, her face twisted around to his, her lips parted and Tyler’s heartbeat quickened.

“There are other ways for a man and woman to learn about each other besides talking,” he murmured.

“Mr. Pickens, I—”

“It’s Tyler to you.” Lowering his voice, he added, “Ty, if you’d like.”

Her dark eyes widened just a fraction as they settled on his mouth. “Ty.”

The whisper of his name was all that passed her lips before he decided to cover them with a kiss.

Chapter Four

Time was nonexistent to Tyler as his lips roamed over Rosalinda’s. The seconds that were ticking away didn’t matter. At least, not to him. All that did matter was the unexpected pleasure warming his blood and making him forget the loneliness of the past years.

But then, just as quickly as he’d started the kiss, she ended it by easing her mouth from his and placing a step between them.

“I have to go,” she murmured, her gaze riveted on her feet.

As she turned to leave, Tyler caught her by the upper arm and for one split second he considered jerking her back into his arms and kissing her again. But he quickly squashed the urge. Something told him that Rosalinda was too important to waste on a momentary indulgence.

“All right,” he said slowly. “I’ll walk you to your vehicle.”

With his hand gently curved around her arm, they walked across the wooden deck, then down the steps to where a row of cars were parked along the street curb. Along the way, she remained silent until they reached a black pickup truck with the county sheriff’s logo stamped on the side.

“Here’s my truck,” she told him.

They paused in front of the vehicle and though Tyler knew he should drop his hand and allow her to leave, he couldn’t bring himself to let her go.

“I’ve enjoyed this evening, Rosalinda.”

Her gaze fluttered up to his face and even though there was only the streetlamp to illuminate her features, he could see a pained look in her eyes. Had his kiss done that?

“Thank you for dinner, Tyler.”

She said his name with easy sweetness and the sound poured through him like warm honey and coated all his rough spots.

“My pleasure.”

Her lashes lowered at the same time her tongue came out to moisten her lips. It was all Tyler could do to keep from bending his head and kissing her all over again.

“I’m sorry if I seem a little weird to you,” she said with a sudden rush of breath. “But I—Well, kissing is not something I’ve done in a long, long time.”

“Neither have I. I wasn’t sure I even remembered how.”

Her eyes widened. “What was that? A test just to see if you could?”

Groaning, he bit back a curse word. “Not hardly. That was pure instinct. A beautiful woman standing next to me in the moonlight. I might seem old to you, Rosalinda. But I’m not dead by any means.”