Not to be left out, Dakota came over and wanted his turn.
“See what I mean?” Trent said. “We have room here, and the means for some feed.”
Cullen tried not to get attached, but these two made it difficult. “What happens when I leave here?”
Trent shrugged. “Let’s not worry about that now. We can set up a schedule for everyone to help out. I just need some stalls to protect them from the weather.” He turned to his brother. “So what do you think? Will you help out?”
“Hey, this was your mother’s place.”
Trent frowned. “She wanted you and Austin to have a part of this place, too.”
Leslie might have been his stepmother, but to Cullen she was a true mother. His biological mother had died when he and Austin were only ten. Leslie had worked tirelessly to make them a family again when she married their father and brought the brooding thirteen-year-old Trent into the household. It wasn’t instant love between the boys.
Cullen tried to hide his smile at the memories. “Okay, it’s not a bad idea. So could I ride Dancer?”
“You could, but if you want a good hard ride, I’ll bring over one of my saddle horses.”
He found he was excited about the idea. “We’ll see.”
A familiar compact pulled into the driveway. Shelby and Ryan were home. Cullen felt a little kick start around his heart. He was anxious to see how the boy would be around horses.
Once they were out of the car, he motioned for them to come over. Shelby took Ryan’s hand, and they started toward him. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her sexy walk in those formfitting jeans.
She reached them, and she looked first at Trent. “Hi, Trent.” Then she turned to him and smiled, and his gut tightened. “Hi, Sheriff.”
“Hello, you two.” He leaned down to the child. “Want to see who moved in today?”
The boy nodded and reached up so Cullen could lift him. He hoisted the boy up and put him on the railing of the wooden fence. He called to the horses, and soon they came to the railing. So they’d been trained well.
Cullen reached out his hand and stroked the horses. “This is Dakota and this is Sassy. They’d like you to pet them.”
The boy looked at Shelby to see her nod also. “Go ahead, Ryan.”
Cullen was a little surprised that Shelby wasn’t more protective. Then he got a bigger surprise when she came to the railing and greeted the horses herself.
“Here, like this, Ryan.” She rubbed her hand over Dancer’s face, and the gelding loved it. “He’s gentle,” she said. “Now, you rub Sassy.” She took the boy’s hand and ran it over the horse’s face.
Ryan giggled. “Tickles.”
“It’s a good tickle,” Shelby said.
With Ryan busy with the horses, she asked Cullen, “You’re boarding horses now?”
He nodded to his brother. “It’s more like Trent rescued them.” He shrugged, admitting he wasn’t the hero in this story. “And we have room here in the barn.”
She smiled, and Cullen felt the impact deep in his gut.
“Good job, Sheriff,” she said. “Come on, Ryan, I need to fix us some dinner.” She said goodbye to Trent, then started off toward the cottage, but stopped and looked back. “Sheriff, it’s only leftovers, but there’s plenty if you’d like to come by about six.”
Without waiting for an answer, she walked off.
“Whoa,” Trent said and slapped Cullen on the back. “Nice invitation, bro. You gonna go?”
“I shouldn’t.” Yet, he couldn’t take his eyes off her cute rear end. “I can’t get involved.” There were too many unanswered questions about Shelby Townsend.
Trent nodded. “I went through the same thing about two years ago with Brooke. Some of us just don’t trust easily. But hey, you’d be a fool not to take a second look at her.”
He thought back to the past year of his life. “It won’t be the first time I’ve been called that.”
* * *
AN HOUR LATER, Shelby was calling herself every kind of crazy. What had she been thinking? She had no business asking the sheriff to dinner. Her time here was temporary. She might need to move on just to keep Ryan safe. He was her first and only concern. She was the child’s only family, and Georgia trusted her to be his guardian.
The picture of her sweet new employers, Bess and Bill Cummings, came to mind. She knew she’d impressed them with her skills at the restaurant. She loved that the diner was filled up most of the day with customers wanting to eat her food. And she couldn’t wait to do her first wedding reception. A couple had a tasting in a few weeks, and Shelby wanted to come up with something special. If the truth be told, she didn’t want to leave here.
There was a knock on the door, and her heart skipped a beat. She didn’t have time to analyze the reaction, and went to answer the door. She stopped in the kitchen doorway to see that Ryan had let Cullen in.
The sheriff had crouched down to her nephew’s size. “Hey, buddy. It might be a good idea if you ask who is there before you open the door.”
The boy’s blue eyes widened with fear. “Because of monsters?”
“Just because there might be a stranger.”
The boy nodded. “Okay.”
“Good.” Cullen stood and looked across the room to Shelby. “Hi. I hope I’m not too early.”
“No, I’m just heating up the lasagna in the oven.”
He inhaled a long breath, causing his already-developed chest to expand more. “I thought I smelled something garlicky.”
“Probably the bread.” She motioned for him to follow her. “Come into the kitchen. I’m finishing up the salad.”
“Need help?” he asked.
Need help with what? He sure didn’t need any more help being sexy, or too handsome for his own good, or for being too nice to Ryan. He was guilty to all the above. She needed to keep her radar sharp, because this man made her forget all her instincts. Not good.
“I think everything’s just about ready.”
He stepped up to the small table. “Wow, this all looks pretty good for leftovers.” He looked down at the red-checkered tablecloth, and white plates set out with a wooden bowl filled with salad greens. Candles. Had she overdone it?
“I should have brought some wine.”
She shook her head. “Don’t you have to work tonight?”
“No, I’m off tonight. Of course, I’m on call. So you’re probably right, I shouldn’t drink. I don’t like to have any alcohol if I’m going to get behind the wheel.”
Not every law enforcement officer felt that way. She recalled seeing Gil drunk when he showed up at Georgia’s door. She shook away the bad memory.
“I’m glad. There are too many crazies out there already.”
He nodded in agreement. “Well, I’m hoping I don’t have to go any farther than from here to my bed next door.”
“Long week?”
“A long two weeks getting acquainted with the area and the way they do things here. These men love Sheriff Carson. I’m an interloper in their community.”
“You’re only doing your job.”
“Law enforcement is a special brotherhood. We take care of each other... Or most of them do.”
She