in from ever going out. I didn’t mean to do that.”
Ava laughed. “I really like your sister. But you’re not keeping me here. I like being here. It’s calming.”
I had the impression maybe her life before she arrived in Pine Hills was the opposite of calming. “I don’t think you ever said -- where did you live before you came here?”
“Chicago,” she said
“That’s a big change.“ I’d been to Chicago before to stay with a buddy on one of our breaks from deployment. Chicago wasn’t quite as busy as New York City, but it was close. There were always people on the streets, even late at night. The horns from cars never stopped honking. The lights never went out. I definitely couldn’t see the stars there. “I’ve lived here my entire life.”
“I’ve never lived in a small town before. But I can see the appeal,” she said. “Where are we going to go first?”
“Well unlike Chicago, I can’t offer you the theater or an opera. Or even a rooftop restaurant. But we can go eat at the local steakhouse.”
“That sounds perfect to me,'' she said.
“And I’ll take you by the station and introduce the deputies to you.” I changed out of my uniform and into a fitted pair of jeans that Abigail said looked nice on me. I put on one of my newer polo shirts to go with it. My truck wasn’t quite as nice as her BMW but it would have to do.
I walked over to open the truck door for her, and she smiled at me as she stepped into the cab of the truck.
“Thank you,” she said.
“You’re welcome.”
This felt like a date. But it absolutely wasn’t. Did she think it was a date? Did I want it to be a date?
None of that mattered because I was in no position to be dating yet. And if she was on the run, having just escaped a crazy ex then neither was she. I was going to find a way to bring up the ex-boyfriend she had escaped from. I just had to do it delicately. Which was not my strong suit, according to everyone who knew me.
We went to the station first. We didn’t get too many calls at night so our secretary went home at 5:00 p.m. However, Barrett, who was my best friend and my deputy, was already there.
As soon as he saw us, Barrett’s jaw dropped. Possibly because I never brought anyone to the station. He rose from his desk as we made our way into his office.
“Barrett, this is Ava. Ava this is Barrett. My deputy.”
“Your deputy? I think I’m Pine Hills’ deputy,” Barrett said, pointing at me, while he smiled at Ava. “I think he forgot to mention that I’m his best friend too.”
Ava shook Barrett’s hand and I noticed Barrett’s eyes were glued to her face. I was going to have to cut that off. There was no way I wanted Barrett to get his hands on her. I loved the guy but he was not a reliable boyfriend. There was no way I was going to let Ava get tangled up in all that mess if she had just been through a difficult relationship. I’d give him a harsh warning later on, as soon as we were alone.
He raised his eyebrows and we silently communicated. “She is off limits,” I mouthed. He seemed to get the point, and he dropped her hand and stepped away. I was confident that he would be harassing me about this later. I’d be ready for it though. He could give me a hard time as long as he left her the hell alone.
Keeping Ava away might be a harder task, because while I was still glaring at him, she spoke up. “We’re about to go eat. Would you like to join us?”
So she definitely didn’t think we were on a date, not if she was inviting my buddy along to eat with us. Barrett looked back at me and then coughed. He was obviously trying to suppress a laugh.
“I appreciate the offer, but I am on duty here so I’m gonna have to take a rain check,” he said. He gave her a bright smile. “But it was so nice to meet you, Ava.”
I was going to kick his damn fool ass.
As we left Ava tilted her pretty face up to look at me. “He’s your best friend? Is he from Pine Hills too?”
Fuck. Was she interested in him?
My voice was gruff when I