Free The Sheriff Meets His Match by Jacquie Biggar

Max. He’d ended up moving out when he turned sixteen, and managed to find a place to stay above a mechanic’s garage. The owner took him in, showed him the secrets of the trade, and Gabriel never looked back. But he always remembered to keep in touch with his little sis.
    Laurel reached out and hit the speaker button on the phone, careful not to ruin Tina’s hard work on her nails.
    “Gabe?”
    Rough masculine laughter flowed around the room and into her heart. “Still haven’t changed my ringtone, huh?”
    Laurel grinned at Tina’s bemused stare, her hand held mid-motion over the bottle of polish remover. “No, big brother, I think it suits you more now than when I picked it out.”
    “Ha, ha, very funny. A guy can’t get in trouble once with the cops or he never lives it down.”
    Laurel sent a quick glance across the table, but Tina had slipped away to give her some privacy. Good kid.
    “What’s up, Gabe?” She hadn’t heard from him since he worked on her car before she made the trek up north. Something told her this wasn’t a social call though. Her chest tightened. “Is Mom alright?”
    Ever since her bout of pneumonia while the kids were still young, Laurel’s mom had never quite regained her strength. Throughout their formative years, she’d been in and out of hospitals for various related illnesses. The kids had learned perseverance first-hand. She’d remained positive, no matter what was thrown in their path. Her prognosis? This too shall pass. And she’d been right, they’d managed. Sometimes by the skin of their teeth, but they still got by.
    “She’s good, don’t be such a worrywart.”
    Easy for him to say. No, she took that back. Gabe was almost as bad as Jack for bearing the weight of the world on his shoulders.
    “I’m calling about Bethany,” he added.
    Oh no, he’d heard.
    “I think I’d better come up to…what is it, Tipping Stream?”
    Tina snorted from her spot beside kitten little, her hand hurrying to cover her mouth as she stared at Laurel with widened eyes.
    “It’s Tidal Falls, Gabriel, and no, you are not chasing up here to watch over me.” She blinked away the moisture clouding her vision, darn allergies. “I’m fine. There’s no reason for Joe to come after me, and besides, the police are already looking for him.”
    For a moment the only sound was the clanking of tools in her brother’s garage, then he sighed. “What about Uncle Max?”
    Laurel glanced at Tina, and then away, hurrying into speech before he said anything incriminating, “He’s fine, I was surprised to see him.” She didn’t want to lie in front of Jack’s daughter, but what choice did she have? They had to continue this charade until Joe was stopped. “He heard of a new treatment in Seattle and decided to stay here while he waits on the results of the tests.”
    “Tests? What te…”
    She rushed to cut him off, “Listen, I have company right now, the sheriff’s daughter. I’ll call later and catch up with the family news, okay?” Her finger hovered over the end call button. “Love you, brother of mine. Take care of yourself, bye.” A slight press later and he was gone, leaving a melancholy hole in his wake.
    “Your brother sounds nice.” Tina said hesitantly. Her earnest gaze searched Laurel’s face. “You guys are pretty close, huh?”
    Laurel nodded and swiped under her eyes. Yeah, they were. They’d never been the type of siblings who fought over every little thing. Their lives were littered with enough obstacles; they didn’t need to add to the drama.
    She rose, intending to make a light lunch for the three of them—Ted should be arriving soon. Just then the doorbell rang for the second time that day and Laurel watched Tina’s face flare with color, her eyes bright with anticipation. She smiled and waved a hand in the direction of the front hall.
    “Can you grab that? I’m going to start lunch.” The final words were barely uttered before Tina scrambled to her