Free The Mighty Quinns: Devin by Kate Hoffmann Page A

you trying to say?” Dev asked.
    â€œI remember when you weren’t afraid of anything.”
    â€œI’m not afraid,” he said, his jaw tight. “I just have a lot more to lose. I was just some punk kid back then, Elodie. I didn’t care about anything or anyone—except you. But I’m trying my damnedest to keep this town from crumbling into dust. Since the mill closed, a third of the population has left. Half of Main Street is boarded up. And I’m just trying to keep things in order until something or someone comes along with a lifeline.”
    â€œWhat kind of lifeline?”
    â€œI don’t know. Some kind of project that will bring businesses back. Some way to make this town attractive to tourists and then families.”
    Elodie thought again of her idea for the mansion. Could that be a starting point? The mill was standing empty. Maybe there was something to be done with that building, too? But putting Winchester back on the map was a long-term commitment. She’d come to town to take care of her own business and then leave. The last thing she wanted to do was get involved in some complicated project that might never succeed.
    â€œYou’re a good man, Dev.” She finished buttoning the front of her dress and then ran her fingers through her damp hair. “This town is lucky to have you.”
    â€œYou make me sound like some kind of Dudley Do-Right. I’m a small-town cop,” he said. “Nothing more.”
    She pressed her palm to his chest. “I wasn’t talking about your job. I was talking about your heart. A lot of people would have walked away from this town. A lot of people did, but you chose to stay and make a difference. That’s not duty. That’s love.”
    He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a fierce hug. “Thank you,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
    It was amazing how they understood each other. It was as if she could read his mind, anticipate what he was going to think or say. There was something exciting in finding that kind of relationship with a man. It made him even more attractive.
    He held her for a long time, the warm night breeze drying the last bit of dampness from her skin. And then, tipping her head back with the soft touch of his hand, Dev kissed her. His tongue teased at her lips, then invaded the warmth of her mouth, at first playful and then deeply passionate. There was a way he had of completely possessing her, demanding surrender no matter how innocent the encounter.
    Elodie had always maintained a safe distance with the men in her life, controlling her emotions and never allowing herself to become too dependent on anyone. But with Dev, the choice was out of her hands. She trusted him. She’d known him for most of her life. And nothing she saw in the grown-up man had changed her opinion. He was still her white knight, only now he wore a badge and carried a gun.
    When he finally drew away, Elodie sighed softly. It was so easy to kiss him, yet she knew with each kiss, with each intimate encounter, her choices would only grow more complicated.
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4
    D EV DROPPED E LODIE off with a kiss and a promise to come back when his shift was over. In turn, she promised to leave the kitchen door open.
    He’d promised himself he’d stay away from her until tomorrow, but after seeing her naked, after touching her and holding her, there was no way he could wait to be with her again. But it seemed that the fates had decided to ruin yet another evening for them.
    â€œYou were caught with a gun in the car,” Dev said, fixing his gaze on Jimmy Joe Babcock, who sat across from him in the interrogation room in the police station. “An unregistered gun. Do you have any idea how much trouble you’re in?”
    â€œIt’s not my gun,” Jimmy Joe said. “I didn’t even know it was in the car. I swear, I didn’t.”
    â€œWhose gun is it?” Dev