Page 51 of Irresistible

CHAPTER TWENTY

Tuesday Evening

Lilly closed the door, heard the lock engage, and let out a breath of relief. Popcorn barked and she patted his head. “I think it’s over. For good.” She walked into the kitchen and saw Brock busy. It looked like he was heating up soup and getting sandwiches together. “Are you making supper?”

Glancing up, he winked. “My specialty. Tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.”

She slid into a chair at the island and watched him open a bottle of wine. He poured a generous amount and brought it over. After he set it down, he kissed her head. “You don’t have to stay,” she said. “I’m fine.”

“I know.” Bracing his hands against the counter, he gave her a small smile. “I have a lot to tell you, and I’m hoping you’ll hear me out.”

“All right. We might as well get this over with.” When she saw him cringe, she felt bad for her word choice. Then she remembered what the last two months had been like and figured brutal honesty was best. One way or another, they were going to move on. Her heart didn’t have another choice.

Looking down, she noticed Popcorn sitting at her feet on guard. He hadn’t growled at Brock, but he wasn’t welcoming either. She got that. She felt about the same way. Best to keep on alert because who knew what was going to happen next?

Before she knew it, he had everything ready and they were sitting side by side at the island. “Thanks for cooking.”

“Anytime.”

They sat in companionable silence and ate. The quiet of the house was welcome after all the chaos of the afternoon. Between TRG, the sheriff’s department, and the paramedics, her neighborhood had been a three-ring circus. Add to that the local news station and she figured her neighbors were about done with her. “You think the news crews are going to come back?”

“I don’t think so.” He pushed his plate away and turned in his chair. “The story is over, and all they would get are pictures of you walking Popcorn.”

“I hope you’re right. TRG is now monitoring all my social media accounts, and they said there’s been a spike in searches for my name. The traffic on my website is through the roof, and I’ve had a ton of new followers on Facebook.”

“Are they buying your books as well?”

“Sales are up across the retailers. I’m not real comfortable with people discovering my books this way, but I can’t do anything about it.”

“I’m assuming they haven’t detected any threats or malicious activity.”

“They haven’t mentioned anything, so I’m assuming nothing has come up.”

“I’m going to work for them in about a month. They wanted me to start sooner, but I’m going to take some time off.”

She watched his face and noticed his easy smile. That wasn’t what she expected to see when he announced the end of his career as a sheriff. “So it’s over.”

“As of today.”

Covering his hand, she squeezed it. “I’m sorry.”

“Let’s go sit on the couch and catch up.”

Nodding her head in agreement, she got up and collapsed into the corner of the couch. Popcorn jumped up and sat next to her, thus ensuring Brock sat on the opposite end. She slid her hand over the dog’s head. When Brock joined her, she let out a little laugh. “Guess Popcorn is letting you know how it’s going to be.”

“Seems so.”

When he sat down and remained quiet, she decided to start things off. He might not want to stick around after he heard what she had to say. “I love you,” she said firmly. “With all the shattered pieces of my heart. I love you, and if that’s not good enough, then don’t drag this out. Let me go. If you’re not going to give me your heart, then you can’t keep mine prisoner. You don’t get to have it all.” As hard as her heart was beating, she was glad she had gotten those words out.

He stood abruptly and moved to pick her up. When he got butted in the leg by the dog, he looked down. “I know I screwed up, but I’m going to fix this.”

Watching him wait for Popcorn’s agreement about made her laugh. The mighty warrior was smart enough to respect how things worked in her house. Popcorn laid his head down and let out a little snuffle. Guess the dog was going to let him have his say. Before she knew it, he swept her into his arms and sat down.

“I love you, Lilly. I told you that when I walked out of here two months ago, and I’ve made sure to tell you that every day since. I just had to do some work to make sure I was going to be a good partner.”

“I already knew that about you. People talk about what they would do or choose in difficult situations, but they’re never really tested. Before the incident with Drew, I knew what you would do. What choice you would ultimately make. I had no doubts.”

“Well, I had a ton. The lethal warrior side of me has to be controlled, and I needed to make sure I had the tools to ensure that happened.”

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