Her instincts were usually right on the money.
Once she called him in for backup on a routine traffic stop of a gray-haired couple driving a sedan with Ohio plates. None of his other officers would have found anything unusual about them but Wyn had caught a subtle vibe about the pair and ended up asking their permission to search the vehicle. When the couple refused, he brought in Rusty, the drug-sniffing dog from the Lake Haven Sheriff’s Department, who found a quarter million dollars’ worth of heroin sewn into the hollowed-out seats.
He would have said she had her father’s cop instincts—except for the last few weeks he had served under her father.
“Have you met them already?”
“Yes. Well, the mom and the kids. Andrea Montgomery and two kids, Chloe and Will. I don’t know if there’s a dad in the picture. I didn’t see any evidence of one but that doesn’t mean anything. I said hello to them on my way to the trailhead. When I was coming down, I found her sprawled out on the trail with a sprained ankle. I helped her back to her house.”
“You’re on a roll. How many more people will you rescue today?”
She made a face. “I couldn’t just leave her there.”
No, she wouldn’t. Wynona was like her father in many ways, full of compassion and concern.
“What makes you think something’s off?”
“She doesn’t seem very crazy about police officers. When I told her I worked for the local police department, you would have thought I told her I drowned kittens for a living.”
“Plenty of people don’t like the police. That doesn’t make them criminals.”
“I know that. This was something beyond dislike. More like...fear.”
Perhaps she was exaggerating or had misunderstood the woman’s reactions but, again, he trusted her gut. He had guys in the department who could shoot the hell out of a bull’s-eye at the shooting range and one who could bench-press three-hundred-fifty pounds. None of them had Wynona’s instincts with people.
“You think she’s on the run?”
“Maybe. Maybe she’s got an abusive ex in the background. Or maybe it’s a custody case. Who knows?”
“Maybe she’s witness protection.” He couldn’t resist teasing her a little. “Maybe she testified in a mob hit back in Oregon and now she’s got a new identity here in Haven Point. Or maybe she’s a superhero and her secret identity is a suburban mom.”
She smacked his arm. “You can mock me all you want but something was up. My spidey sense is tingling about this one.”
Cade dropped the teasing tone. “Want me to run the plates and see if anything pops?” he asked.
“That might be overkill at this point. She hasn’t done anything wrong, as far as I can tell. I only wanted to give you a heads-up so you can keep an eye on things, especially since you’re just across the street.”
“I’ll do that.”
His phone timer went off and she raised an inquisitive brow.
“Just telling me the coals are ready for my dinner.”
She looked shocked. “You’re cooking? Really?”
“I guess you can call it cooking. Grilling, anyway. I’m throwing on a couple of steaks.”
“Ah.” Her stomach chose that moment to rumble with enthusiasm, so loudly that Pete looked up and cocked his head to the side. Wyn—the steadiest, most unflappable person he knew—looked flustered. Her cheeks turned pink and she gave an embarrassed-sounding laugh.
“That wasn’t a hint, I swear. I’ve got leftover Chinese at home.”
“I’ve got an extra steak, if you want it.”
He wasn’t sure which of them was more shocked by the invitation. She stared at him, eyes wide.
What was the big deal? They were friends. They had been for years, long before she ever came back to work for the Haven Point Police Department after her father’s shooting and Cade became chief.
He had known her since she wore her hair in braids on either side and those light freckles had been much more pronounced. Back in the day, he used to spend every spare moment he could at the Baileys’ house with his best bud, her brother Marshall. The warmth and peace there had been a foreign concept to him at first compared to the fighting and yelling at his own house but had quickly become addictive.
“Somebody ought to give you dinner,” he said gruffly when she continued to look at him out of wide blue eyes. “It’s not every day one of my officers runs into a burning building to save a couple of kids.”
“Thank heavens for that.” A dimple flashed beside the mouth he had never noticed was so lush and soft. “You don’t have that many officers and you certainly can’t suspend us all.”
“True enough.”
She appeared to consider the offer and he couldn’t begin to guess what was going through her head. He seriously doubted she was entertaining the same thought that seemed to ricochet through his brain—that something had changed between them the moment he saw her come bursting through the doors of that burning barn.
“I would actually really enjoy a steak,” she finally said. “I’m all dusty from the hike, though. Give me fifteen minutes to run home and change and toss a salad.”
“You don’t have to do that. The salad, I mean. I’ve got a head of lettuce in the refrigerator and can throw something together.”
“I’ll bring something. Just give me a few.”
He was inordinately happy that she had agreed. Probably just lingering relief that the situation today had turned out so well, except for poor Caleb Keegan’s broken ankle.
“They shouldn’t take much time to cook. I’ll wait until you’re back to throw them on. The coals can heat a little longer.”
“Sounds good.”
She headed for the door, whistling for Pete.
“You can leave him if you want. He can keep me company out on the deck.”
Again, she looked a little surprised. “Okay. He could probably use some water. Young Pete, behave yourself. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
She headed out into the soft dusk, leaving him with her dog, a couple of steaks and the uncomfortable feeling that he had just made a grave mistake.
DINNER. WITH CADE EMMETT.
What was wrong with her?
This had been a day for weird things. The whole moose debacle that she had nearly forgotten about, the fire, her suspension, their new neighbor and finally this.
She had tried so diligently to keep things casual and friendly between them. Since coming to work at the Haven Point PD, she felt as if she were walking on a knife’s edge, afraid she might reveal her growing feelings for him.
Working side by side in a small, intimate department was awkward enough. She was the only female in the department and had to constantly pretend she was just one of the guys. With the rest of the officers, it wasn’t an issue. She could laugh and joke, pull pranks and buy a round of beers at the Mad Dog on their downtime.
The problem was, deep in her heart lived the knowledge that she didn’t want to be one of the guys to Cade.
She knew there was no other option. He was her boss. While she worked at the Haven Point Police Department, that was the only thing that mattered.
The day had already been surreal