Page 10 of Ronen
Grayson “Becks” Beckett, the previous sheriff who had hired me to replace him, and Jamie had once worked together, that much I knew. Becks had worked for the C.I.A., so it made sense that Jamie had too, based on their long friendship.
The only difference was that I could find some record of Becks’ history with the agency. For a short time, he had headed up the cyber-crimes division, and before that he’d had some fancy title that really didn’t give much away as far as what his position had entailed.
There was nothing on Jamie Sinclair that I could find, which as a cop, made me curious and suspicious.
There was his life in Sweet Alps until he was eighteen, there was a brief mention in the local paper of him getting accepted at Quantico, and then nothing. Not a mention of the man anywhere, across the internet or public records. He had just…disappeared.
Until he had returned to his hometown and built Sinful Playgrounds, a kink club on the outskirts of town.
Since Jamie and Becks were best friends, I had casually tried to get information out of Becks one day over lunch, before he had retired.
The old wolf had stared at me with his nearly black eyes and softly told me to drop whatever I thought I was up to. Telling me that some things were better left dead and buried and that Jamie was an upstanding citizen in Sweet Alps.
He had also casually reminded me that the Sinclairs were one of the founding families of the town, were all richer than Midas, and they had a strong reach. Which might come in handywhen my position came up for renewal and I had to run a reelection campaign.
The fact that I hadn’t heard Jamie come up behind me had me on edge. Seldom did anyone sneak up on me, ever. Especially one who was wearing black motorcycle boots.
How the fuck did he manage to make no sound wearing those on asphalt?
My dragon had excellent hearing, but even he hadn’t heard the man. A fact he was none too pleased about, if his huffing and puffing, was any indication. Hopefully he kept it inside, and I didn’t blow any smoke out of my nose or mouth. That would be awkward to explain.
“Figured it was you,” he commented good naturedly, popping a hard candy into his mouth. “Told Bash I was putting my money on you. He owes me. He said it was that high school kid Ro hired to work after school. While I will admit that boy does have hearts in his eyes every time he looks at Ronen, I just had a feeling.” He patted his stomach. “My gut’s never wrong. And I do like proving my husband wrong, so I decided to scope out the situation.”
“Uhhh,” was all my tongue managed, before my brain caught up with it. “I…don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just walking the lot. Making sure everything is…cool.”
Am I the only one amazed that you managed to pass the police academy entrance exam?My dragon snarked.Making sure everything is cool? Lame, dude, lame.
Look, Jamie Sinclair is scary, okay? My brain just zapped out for a second.
Pfft. He’s just a puny wolf. Need I remind you that you are a dragon? Fire. Big fire. Huge fire. Burn it all down to the ground fire.
No one knows that, and I’d like to keep it that way. And we aren’t burning anything to the ground.
Jamie scrutinized me, his intense eyes narrowed, and I fought the urge not to squirm under his steely blue gaze.
“And is everything…cool?” he drawled slowly, clearly amused by my stammered explanation, sucking on his candy.
Shoving my hands in my pockets, I rocked back on my heels. “As a cucumber.”
He snorted, reaching around me to pick up the rubber duck, turning it this way and that in his hand, before finally putting it back where I had placed it.
“It’s cute,” he commented. “Ro will like it. Even if he acts like he doesn’t. He’s kept them all, you know?”
“I…don’t know what you’re talking about,” I stammered, feeling like a teenager on his first date, getting the fifth degree from my date’s dad.
But I had noticed that Ronen didn’t have the ducks I left on his vehicle on display on his dash, as was the norm. At least now I knew he hadn’t just tossed them in the trash. The thought made me way happier than it probably should have.
“I didn’t put that there. That was there when I got here.”
Jamie laughed then, a deep rumbly sound, and nodded his head. “Sure, kid. Anyway, I like you.”
He patted my cheek, and I could do nothing more than stare at him wide-eyed. “I don’t know what the fuck you are, but I’m gonna find out. I always do. But I like you. You have my permission to keep–” he waved a hand towards Ronen’s Jeep, “not leaving cute little duckies for my son. Maybe in a few months, you’ll work up the balls to actually ask him out.”
Shaking my head vigorously, I told him, “Your son doesn’t really like me much, sir. But thanks for the…permission?”
Jamie shrugged, turning and starting towards…well, I didn’t really know where he had come from, but I hadn’t recognized any of the cars in the lot as any I knew belonged to him.
“He’d probably like you more if you’d stop losing his books,” he called over his shoulder.
