Deputy Daddy. Patricia Johns

the charges. It was pretty serious. I could have ended up in juvenile hall.”

      “Ouch.” Yes, it sounded like he did understand. “Getting arrested—did it do you any good?”

      He was silent for a moment, then shrugged. “It certainly scared me straight.”

      Lily glanced at the clock on the wall. They’d need to leave soon to get to her aunt’s place on time, and this conversation was getting more personal. What was it about Bryce that kept her slipping right back into that unprofessional territory?

      “You ready?” he asked.

      “I just need to put the car seat into the back of the car,” she said. “And I’ll drive.”

      She felt more comfortable driving—it kept her in control, and right now she needed that.

      As Lily turned toward the door, her sandaled foot hit something wet on the hardwood floor. Her heel slipped, and her heart flew to her throat. Just as the thought sparked in her mind that she was about to fall, a solid arm shot out and clamped around her rib cage, catching her in one arm, with the other broad hand placed protectively over the baby’s back. Bryce pulled her hard against his side, and she could feel the solidness of his ribs against hers.

      Lily sucked in a surprised breath and looked up, past that strong shoulder and into Bryce’s face, which was now only inches from her own. She could see the roughness of his stubble, the tiny lines around his eyes, and could feel the heat of his breath against her cheek.

      “You okay?” His voice was low and warm, and his grip on her loosened as she regained her balance.

      “Yes, I’m fine. Thank you.” She looked down at the baby, who didn’t seemed the least fazed by their near fall.

      “Good.” He released them then, and her waist felt suddenly cool where his arm had been. She looked over to find his eyes pinned to her, his expression revealing nothing of what he was feeling underneath. She was struck by how quickly he’d moved and by how easily he’d caught her.

      She let out a shaky breath.

      “Let’s go then,” she said quickly, unwilling to admit to herself how nice it had been to fall into those strong arms. She couldn’t get used to that. He was helpful, he seemed genuine, he was willing to look into Aaron for them...but he was also very temporary, and he knew too much. She should at least try to regain some professional composure with this man. He was her first guest, after all, and she wanted to do this right.

      Unfortunately, she was bringing him to a family dinner to investigate her aunt’s fiancé. “Doing it right” had pretty much sailed. She might have to start fresh with the next guest, and just accept that things had gotten out of hand with Bryce from the start.

       Chapter Four

      Even though the baby was in a rear-facing car seat, Bryce kept looking back to check on her. From her silence, he concluded she was sleeping. He didn’t have to worry; she was most certainly Lily’s job now, but Piglet had snuggled her way into the back of his mind. Maybe it was how he’d met her at the police station, or her clear preference for him his first night at Lily’s place, but he still couldn’t shake a certain feeling of responsibility for the kid.

      “Is she sleeping?” Lily asked.

      “I think so.”

      The sun was low in the sky as they drove down a rural gravel road, the shadows stretching long and slow like taffy. The road ran straight, going up and down unending hills so that they went from golden evening sunlight to chilly shadow, and then back up again. The mailboxes at the end of driveways out here didn’t have numbers, they had names: the Wetsteins, the Millgroves, the Burnetts.

      Lily leaned back in the driver’s seat, comfortable and relaxed. She tugged her fingers through her hair, pulling it away from her eyes, and Bryce looked quickly away. She was pretty in a way that seemed to draw him in—her milky skin, those sky-blue eyes, her long lashes—and he had to keep some firm control on his impulses. He wasn’t here to get attached, and just because he’d landed in Lily’s B and B with nothing but time on his hands didn’t mean that he had the luxury of letting himself feel.

      Lily had tried to back off to more professional territory this evening, and he hadn’t complied. That had been selfish on his part, but he found himself liking this view into her life. She was tender but tough, and he’d realized that her opening up the way she had was comforting. She was one of the few people who hadn’t treated him like a live grenade since he’d punched Leroy.