As that sunk in, she began to feel more and more apprehensive as she watched him. What if a car didn’t slow down? What if someone slid into him and Dylan got hurt?
She even started worrying about him getting home. Just because he was a cop didn’t mean he was immune to folks like that Mercedes man sliding all over God’s green earth.
After another thirty minutes, Shannon knew she had to do something for him. Even if it was only something small—at least he would know that someone cared. Getting to her feet, she turned to Kimber. “You know what? It’s really cold out there. I’m going to go make a fresh pot of coffee and bring a cup out to him.”
Kimber’s eyes lit up, making Shannon realize that she might be trying to act all calm, cool, and collected, but she wasn’t fooling her sister one bit. “That’s a real fine idea. You know what? I’ll make it. I was going to get a snack anyway.”
“Are you sure?”
“Oh, yeah. You keep watch.”
She was gone before Shannon could even offer a token protest. When Dylan blew his whistle and yelled at somebody who was going too fast, her heart clenched. What if someone lost control of their car and hurt him?
It would be so awful.
And, she realized, it just might render her heartbroken. Not just because he was a good guy, but because she was starting to think of him as her good guy.
Uh-oh. What in the world was going on?
CHAPTER 13
“Hand in hand, on the edge of the sand, they danced by the light of the moon.”
—Edward Lear
Dylan was sure that she was going to get herself killed. There was Shannon, all dressed up in some kind of fuzzy oversized jacket, black leggings, furry boots, and bright pink gloves. Her brown hair was down and floating around her shoulders as she tromped towards him in the snow.
She looked exactly like she was—a pretty girl with great legs standing in absolutely the wrong place.
When he saw yet another driver stare at her instead of watching him or the intersection, Dylan felt his heart rise up into his throat.
“Shannon, go back inside!” he yelled.
She paused on the median she was carefully walking on. Then she held up a white paper cup. “I will. But I brought you coffee. It’s fresh!”
Of course it was. He was beginning to realize that Shannon was the type of woman to do everything as well as she possibly could. He couldn’t imagine her serving anyone stale, cold coffee. Maybe it was her West Virginia upbringing. Maybe it was just her.
Whatever the reason, he was toast. He didn’t think he was capable of hurting her feelings. “Wait a sec. I’ll come to you.”
Her eyes widened. “But—”
“No. Stay there.” Yes, he realized he was ordering her around, but he was doing his best to keep from telling her to go inside where she could be safe and warm.
She bit her lip and watched as a van with nearly bald tires slid into a right turn.
Please, Lord, don’t let the driver lose control.
After it made a successful right turn and disappeared out of sight, he walked over to Shannon. After scanning the roads, he relaxed slightly. Only a lone Subaru was nearby, and that driver was only going about ten miles an hour. It looked like the population was finally listening and getting off the roads.
“Thanks for this,” he said, taking a tentative sip. The hot liquid blazed a trail down his throat, showing him just how cold he’d been. And yes, it also was strong and tasted terrific. “It’s great.”
She smiled like he’d just given her a real compliment. “I wanted to do something for you. You’ve been out here for a while.”
After checking the progress of two plows about a hundred yards away, he smiled at her. “Want to tell me how you know how long I’ve been out here?”
“I might have been watching from my front window.”
He raised his eyebrows. “You’ve been watching me direct traffic?”
“Yep. It was my sister Kimber’s idea.”
“Oh. Of course.” He took another sip, draining the cup. “Thanks. This was real kind of you. I better get back to work.”
She looked disappointed. “Already? How much longer will you be out here?”
He shrugged. “Maybe another half hour, unless people start acting stupid and coming back out on the streets.”
“When you’re done, if you want, you could come over. I could heat up some soup or make you a grilled cheese.”
Even though they were standing out in the middle of an intersection and the snow was falling down around them, he grinned. “Grilled cheese, huh?”
She lifted her chin. “Everyone knows that nothing tastes better than a grilled cheese sandwich on a snowy day.”
“You might be right about that.”
“So?” She tilted her head slightly. Still watching him.
It was tempting. So tempting that he wished it were possible. “Thanks, but I can’t. I’ve got to check in at the station house.”
“Oh. Well, maybe another time . . .”
“That sounds good. After the station house, I need to see Jen. I’ve got a feeling that she’s already made me something, and she’ll be upset if I don’t eat it. I’m sure you understand.” Then, of course, was the fact that he and his sister were going to have to have a heart-to-heart about her trip to the bookstore, whatever was going on with that guy . . . and he was also going to have to apologize yet again for acting like a jerk.
“Oh. Yes. Yes, of course.” She held out her hand. “Let me take the cup from you. Be careful out there, Officer.”
“Always,” he replied, his cocky smile faltering slightly as he realized that she had already turned and was walking back. What had just happened?
The sound of honking horns interrupted his thoughts. Turning back to the job at hand, he blew his whistle, reminding the guy in the four-wheel-drive Land Rover that he might have a lot of money, but he didn’t own the road.
* * *
When he walked into the house two hours later, the first thing he noticed was the silence. Usually Jennifer had music playing and was busy in the kitchen.
But not only was the kitchen dark and silent, there was no sign of her anywhere. Or dinner made.
“Jen? Jennifer?”
“Yes?”
“Where are you?”
“Up in my room! Why?”
Why? Why was she up there? Why was he yelling up at her like he was a dad and she was his teenage daughter? “No reason. I’m going to go take a shower.”