Page 36 of Surly Sheriff
Rae cocked her head. “Nate served with you?”
Beau nodded. “For four years. He got out to take over the construction company when his old man retired.”
Mrs. Fisher moved closer to the counter. Rae steeled herself from stepping back, so nasty was the look the woman aimed her way.
“Mrs. Fisher,” Beau said, brusquely.
He became the recipient of Mrs. Fisher’s condescending stare. “Beauford.”
Rae frowned, not liking the way the woman bit out Beau’s name. Nor the way the woman’s eyes shifted from Beau and raked over her. Rae shuffled her feet, the halter top, cargo shorts, and canvas sneakers she had donned this morning no longer feeling like appropriate attire.
The woman’s peachy lips curled with disdain. “And you must be Raegan,” she said, her clipped tone matching her haughty stare.
Rae stiffened, and Beau placed a steadying hand on her hip.
Mrs. Fisher’s eyes narrowed even further as she caught Beau’s move. “Bella has told me about how you wormed your way into our family.”
“Dammit,” Beau exclaimed before Rae could formulate a comeback. He shifted her aside and stepped right up to thecounter. “Rae is a wonderful woman and has been an absolute blessing to Bella and Nate.”
“And to you, too, I see. One would hope you learned your lesson with Moira. But no, you’ve fallen for another hussy.”
“Who’s Moira?” Rae asked as Beau snapped, “That’s enough.”
Kismet barked.
Still at odds with herself after her unsettling dreams, and her conflicting emotions about Beau, Rae had had enough. “I don’t need to listen to this,” she muttered, and pushed away from Beau, striding from behind the counter.
“Rae! Wait!” Beau caught her arm.
Rae jerked free, her eyes smarting, darting about.
She needed to go. Now.
“Run, girl,” the hateful woman called out. “You don’t belong here.”
Blindly marching across the store, Rae held her head high, but her heart was breaking. She heard Beau and the woman exchange heated words, but she was too upset to take note.
She yanked the door open. Kismet pushed past her and raced onto the sidewalk. “Arf, arf!”
Concern for the dog replaced her fury. “Kismet! Stop!”
Kismet skidded to a halt, turned, tongue lolling, tail wagging. Rae caught hold of his collar. “Don’t run off like that,” she scolded. “It’s not a game.” Stooped over the dog, she tightened her grip on his collar and looked around, eyes smarting, searching for a handy escape route.
A shadow fell over her and a warm weight settled on her back. She flinched and shifted. The warmth lifted. But the shadow remained.
“Didn’t mean to startle you,” Beau said, snapping the leash to Kismet’s collar.
Drawing in a ragged breath, Rae released her hold on the dog, uncurled her spine, and faced him. “Leave me alone,” sheordered, looking past his shoulder, focusing her stare on the stores across the street. They no longer charmed. Instead, they mocked her.
You don’t belong here.Don’t belong. Don’t belong.
She swallowed the lump in her throat.
Beau cupped her chin in his hand, urging her to focus on him. His stare, filled with compassion, held her wary one. “Don’t listen to her.”
“She’s right. I don’t belong here.” Rae hated the thready sound to her voice. And she sniffed, hating the burn in her nose even more.
“Not true.Iwant you to stay.”
