Free Dangerous Deputy by Talya Bosco Page A

popped the tab of the can and took a sip. “I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting you to be out on a date.”
    She slid deeper into the couch, trying to look much more relaxed than she really felt. “So sorry I didn’t wait for you and another weekend of pity fucks.”
    He hissed through his teeth. “That’s what you think last week was about?”
    “Are you telling me Jim didn’t ask you to hook up with me? That Jim didn’t know you were going to be with me on Friday night?”
    He put his drink on one of the side tables before answering her. “You got all that from one thirty-second answering-machine message?”
    “What the fuck am I supposed to think?”
    The pained look in his eyes hurt her more than she would have expected.
    “God dammit, woman! I didn’t want to do this. I didn’t want tonight to go this way.”
    “What the hell did you expect after throwing me over your shoulder and kidnapping me? Declarations of love?”
    He sighed heavily and sat in the chair opposite her. “I don’t know what I expected. Hell, I wasn’t even thinking when I did it. I just wanted to see you, to get a chance to explain.”
    Part of her wanted to lash out at him. To tell him to go to hell. But another part, the more reasonable, and maybe the more hopeful part, wanted to let him tell her what had really happened. Tell her what she had missed.
    “Fine. Explain.”
    “When I met up with you Friday night, it was part circumstance, part planned.”
    He really was gorgeous. She couldn’t help but admire him, even as pissed at him as she was.
    “You never asked me what I was doing on the road to Jim’s. He’d asked me to check on you because he knew you weren’t used to being in the country. Believe it or not, the idiot cares for you and wanted to make sure you were feeling safe.
    “When I saw Carrie’s car, my cop instincts kicked in. He hadn’t told me yours was in the shop, so when I saw it, I jumped. I knew you were home alone. Carrie couldn’t have been driving it. I assumed the worst.”
    “Not the most brilliant of deductions, was it?” Despite wanting to hear what he had to say, she couldn’t let go of her anger. Striking out at his intelligence wasn’t exactly sensible, but there it was.
    “Well, as you pointed out the other day, sometimes I can be rather dense, especially where you’re concerned. When I saw it was you, I didn’t have the chance to tell you Jim asked me to check up on you before I smelled your breath.”
    “And like a good cop, you had to make sure I wasn’t drunk.” Her voice was much less surly now. She understood that urge.
    “And, well, you know where it went from there.”
    Julia’s cheeks heated with embarrassment. She had no one to blame but herself for what happened then. She was the one who had started it. “And after?”
    Dennis sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “After, it was too late. After, well, I didn’t want to ruin it. I was enjoying the weekend. And I don’t mean just the sex.”
    He sat beside her. He grabbed her hands between his. “I enjoyed being with you. Whether it was in bed, watching TV, eating breakfast, or even when we went shopping. I liked just being with you. I felt like I’d known you for years. I was comfortable with you.”
    He looked down at their intertwined hands. “I’m a fucking sap, I know. Not to mention a lowlife for not telling you. But I didn’t want to risk it. I figured I’d tell you eventually, but not then.”
    “And what about Jim’s statement about the weekend?”
    “That was him being an ass. He’d made a comment about us shacking up to get you off his hands. Had even said he’d pay your rent. I don’t think he was serious. Just his twisted sense of humor.”
    Unfortunately, Julia knew exactly what he was talking about. More than once she’d been the butt of one of Jim’s bad jokes or stupid comments. Sometimes she wondered how the man had managed to keep any friends. And then she would meet them and be