Page 76 of Finding New Dreams

I opened the door, ready to storm the extra-wide, double-front door entrance, when Owen strode out of it.

With a worn leather duffel bag thrown over his shoulder, he tapped a few times on his phone. The door swung shut behind him, followed by a few beeps and what sounded like a heavy lock slamming into place.

My eyebrows lifted, and I whistled. “That’s some security, man. And some mini-mansion you got there.”

He grinned, his blond hair hanging closer to his shoulders than my dark hair did. “Yeah, modern security is a marvel.”

“So no tour?”

He tossed his duffel in the pickup bed with ours. “We’re on a schedule, remember?”

“Hmm, yeah. I would say my sister would understand, but we all know that’s a lie. Another time, maybe.”

Owen grunted, then greeted Wyatt as he climbed into the back seat.

As we buckled in and drove off, I twisted around to look at him. “Seriously, though, I need you to give me an honest answer.”

Owen quirked an eyebrow and waited. His wide shoulders dwarfed the seat back behind him.

I took a deep breath. “Are you…a masked crime-fighting superhero? If you are, I won’t tell. Swear.”

Owen and Wyatt laughed.

“No,” Owen said. “Just always dreamed of having a place like that.”

Wyatt glanced at him in the rearview mirror. “And you could afford that from your bookshop?”

“Uh-oh, you’ve got your sheriff voice going,” I teased him.

He sent me a piercing stare. “It is my job.”

“Well, no need to worry,” Owen spoke up. “Nothing illegal. I’ve had a lot of jobs, as you might recall. I saved a lot, and, on top of the Twisted Oak, I do some work online that brings in a decent amount.”

“It’s amazing that no one seems to know anything about it. But you definitely hid it well, so I’m sure that’s why,” I mused.

Owen grunted. “Speaking of secrets, how goes it with our lovely Rose?”

Wyatt snort-laughed.

I glared at him. “Don’t even start.”

Owen looked between us, his smile widening. “Must be good. What did I miss? I’ve been holed up at home the last couple days.”

“Well, that explains how you don’t know,” Wyatt said. “Cheryl practically camped out on every street corner today, spreading news of the almost-arrest of Rose and Flynn for public indecency.”

Owen’s eyes widened.

“Gossip-mongering should be illegal,” I grumbled. “You’re the sheriff, Wyatt. Why didn’t you arrest her for slander or defamation?”

“If I could make arrests for something like that, I’d need enough holding cells to fit half of Tangled River’s townsfolk. Besides,” he added, quirking an eyebrow at me, “were you or were you not engaged in and/or planning to engage in actual illegal activities on that beach?”

“No comment,” I growled.

Owen laughed, clapping me on the shoulder. “Good, good, don’t give them anything. Or you’ll end up on the front page of the Gazette. Sarah and Carter learned that the hard way.”

Wyatt rubbed his chin. “To be honest, I’m surprised our good ol’ newspaper editor doesn’t have that beach staked out for all the Tangled River troublemakers who like to go there at night.”

Owen’s smile vanished. “That would be a severe invasion of privacy, so hopefully he knows better than that. Public events and gossip are one thing. People’s secrets and private affairs are another.”

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