Page 4 of Surly Sheriff
She grabbed Jack’s hand and scrambled up the embankment. The well-trained dog knew her job and closed in on the other side of Jack, herding him along. Beside the minivan, she crouched in front of Jack and peered intently at him. “Listen, kiddo. The man in the truck is hurt, and the firefighters will need to pull him from the truck. It will be very scary. Momma doesn’t want you to get scared. So” — she caught his chin in a firm grip and looked him straight in the eye — “I need you to stay here with Xena and not look. Can you do that for me? Please.”
After a short hesitation, he capitulated. “Okay, Momma.”
She placed a kiss on his forehead. “Love you, Jack.”
His arms wound around her neck. “Love you, too, Momma.”
Rae relished the moment, taking comfort in his guileless devotion.
Jack released her and turned to his dog. “Xena. Come,” he said and clambered into the back of the vehicle.
She shut the door after them, pulled in a fortifying breath, and walked back to the accident scene.
It wasn’t hard to find Beau amongst the bustle of emergency personnel. Tall, dark hair, solid body, clad in brown cargo pants, shirt, and cap.
Just like she remembered him before he left for work that last day.
She rubbed a hand over her chest. It hurt so freaking much to see him again.
“Ma’am?”
Rae shifted her eyes from the man who haunted her dreams to the person approaching her. A young man wearing the same attire as his boss.
“Deputy” — she glanced at his nametag — “Jacobs,” she greeted.Was this Nancy Jacobs’s grandson?The boy had been in college when she lived here.
“You called in the accident?” Deputy Jacobs asked.
“Yes.” She explained what happened, ending with, “How is Andy?”
He cocked his head. “You know the driver?”
She nodded. “It’s been a while.”
“And you are?”
“Raegan Stirling.”
“Rae—” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple visibly bopping. “Did you say Raegan Stirling?”
She lifted her head and met his wide-eyed stare. “Yes.”
He paled, turned, and rushed away, and Rae heard something along the lines of “shit hitting the fan” before out of hearing distance.
Well, that doesn’t bode well for you, Rae.
Not that she had expected to be welcomed with open arms.
A scant minute later, Beau strode from behind the truck and halted on the edge of the gravel, his anger palpable across the strip of asphalt.
A full-body shudder tore through her at his piercing look, and she wrapped her arms around her midriff, her heart racing.
Dueling emotions warred within. On the one side, she wanted to flee from the coming confrontation. But she also wanted to fling herself at his feet and beg forgiveness.
He stalked across the road and stopped a couple of paces from her, staying silent, his eyes raking over her face and down her body.
His lips curled into a sneer, but he said nothing.
She dropped her arms, straightened her shoulders, steeling herself from collapsing into a blubbering heap. “Hello, Beau. How—” She faltered for a beat and dug deep for composure. “How is Andy?”
