Free Fried Pickles and the Fuzz by Calico Daniels

in town to know she was here with him. Especially all the single guys he’d caught checking her out as they strolled.
    After what seemed like an hour of smiling and chatting with what had to have been nearly everyone in the county , they found an empty bench on the back side of the gazebo.
    It was quieter behind the band ’ s speakers. Not silent but definitely quieter.
    â€œI’m glad you asked me to come with you tonight.” Heather squeezed his arm as they sat side by side on the little park bench.
    â€œI’m glad you agreed.” Bronson breathed a heavy sigh. “To tell you the truth , I wasn’t sure I’d have the nerve to ever ask you out.”
    She threw back her head and laughed. The tiny white lights suspended around the square cast a glow across her skin , making her look almost ethereal. A beauty that was almost too perfect to be real.
    Bronson reached out with his left hand and trailed a finger across her flawless cheek. Her laughter died , and she locked gazes with him. “I’ve been wantin’ to ask you out since right after I came to town.”
    She swallowed hard and turned her body slightly toward him, toward his caress. “Why’d it take you so long? I’ve been waitin’ for you to ask just about as long.”
    â€œWe sure make a pair , don’t we? Both of us waitin’ and neither one doin’.” He trailed his fingertips down her cheek and across the satiny skin of her neck. “Maybe we should just agree to make this a regular thing . T hat way neither of us’ll be stuck wonderin’ again.”
    â€œI like that idea. Dinner at the café every evening. Maybe a movie once a week.” Her eyes sparkled with the reflections of the lights.
    Did she just inch closer , or did he? “Only one date a week?” He tsked and slid his hand around to cup the back of her neck. “I think we can do better than that.”
    She leaned closer . “I do , too.”
    The moment their lips touched , Bronson knew he was in Heaven. She pulled her hand from the crook of his arm and slid it up his bicep and across his shoulder, threading her fingers in the hair at the base of his skull.
    â€œI could get used to this, Sheriff,” she murmured against his lips as they shifted to get closer.
    So could he. Their lips met again with tentative passion. His desire to ravage her mouth and the need to maintain at least some composure in a public place warred within him.
    Never in his life had he been so consumed with such a fiery need to know everything about a woman. Not just physically, but to really know her. Bronson wanted to know everything about Heather. What brand of shampoo did she use to get her hair to smell so summery? Was it some flavored lip gloss or just the simple taste of her that seemed to remind hi m of apples? Did she wear perfume or was the mouthwatering smell of her just that… her ? He needed to know.
    â€œSheriff?” Heather pulled back slightly and looked at him. Her eyes glazed with what he hoped was passion that rivaled his own. “I definitely think we’re gonna be spending a fair amount of time together for awhile.”
    He leaned back and tilted his head to the side. “Think you’re gonna get tired of me?”
    She chuckled and shook her head. “No , I don’t. I’ve got a feeling you’re gonna keep things interesting around here for a long time.”
    â€œThat’s certainly my plan.”

 
Tuesday
    Â 
    â€œI still ca n’t believe you two were suckin’ face right there on the town square.”
    â€œJust to clarify, it’s not like we had our tongues down each other’s throat.” Heather laughed and carried two cups of coffee to the battered little table in her apartment kitchen. She set one down in front of Beth Ann and took a sip of hers as she sat in the chair opposite her friend. “Weren’t you the one who said I should