Page 19 of Surly Sheriff
“But about last night …” He trailed off, giving her a sheepish look.
Humph. Last night.
Beau had not said a word on the drive home from the veterinarian clinic. He managed a curt goodnight when he grabbed one of the cartons of Chinese takeout Nate had left on the counter.
And then he disappeared into the basement where he slept.
His brush-off had stung, but mulling it over as she lay in the soothing bath, she decided to ignore the slight. There definitely was an attraction between them, but acting on it was pointless. Her time in Clearbrook was limited.
“I was rude,” he continued.
“It’s fine, Beau. Really.”
“Rae …” He exhaled a hearty breath.
She held her hand up. “I’ll be ready to leave in twenty,” she said and turned tail.
Back in her room, she dropped the towel, slipped on bra and panties while looking at her meagre pile of clean clothes. She’d been hoping to put a load through the washer this morning, but there wasn’t time.
Shaking out the jeans from yesterday, she deemed them still wearable, and grabbed her last clean T-shirt. She pulled a comb through her hair, eyeing the dark roots with a critical glance.Time for another bleach. She winced at the thought. Years of coloring was taking its toll despite the high-quality product and regular intensive conditioning.
She smoothed on foundation, outlined her eyes with a dark pencil, applied a layer of mascara followed by her go-to plum-colored lipstick, and made her way down the stairs while shrugging a lightweight sweatshirt over her head.
To her horror, there was no coffee in the machine. “Dammit,” Rae cursed when the container for the coffee granules came up empty, too.
“We’ll stop at the drive-thru on the way,” Beau said, entering the kitchen. “Ready?”
“Just need my sneakers,” she said, moving to the shelf beside the front door. She slipped her feet into her black low tops, and he bent beside her to remove his boots from the shelf. That close, she could smell him. A wonderful aroma of citrus and spice. And Beau.
She stepped back and watched him work his feet into the clunky footwear. “What did you do in the army?”
“Marines,” he said.
“Sorry?”
“I was in theMarines, not the army.”
She wrinkled her brow. “There’s a difference?”
The look he gave her was one of disbelief. “Uh, yeah, Rae, there is.”
“I get the Navy versus Air Force versus Army—”
“As Marines, we operate on all three levels.”
“So, you’re like the crème de la crème of the military?”
He grinned, donning a faded red cap. Backwards. “Exactly.”
“Okay, then, Mister-I-Am-A-Marine-Not-A-Sol—”
“Master Sergeant.”
“Master Sergeant?”
“Rank before retirement.”
She huffed. “Master SergeantStirling, what did youdowhile serving in theMarines?”
