Buch lesen: «The Deputy's Perfect Match»

Chapter One

In the corner booth of the Sandpiper Café, Accomack County Deputy Sheriff Charlie Pruitt stared at the three Duer sisters.

“Let me get this straight—you want me to arrest the new Kiptohanock librarian?”

Watercolor artist Amelia Scott fidgeted on the cracked green vinyl upholstery. “Not arrest. Investigate.”

Her sister, Caroline Clark, nodded. “Technically speaking, Miss Shaw hasn’t broken any laws.”

Charlie raised one eyebrow. “Then technically speaking, this sounds like a waste of taxpayer dollars and the department’s manpower.”

Amelia moistened her lips. “We’re asking you, as an old family friend, for a favor.”

His attention cut to the youngest sister, sandwiched between Amelia and Caroline. She’d been uncharacteristically silent during the morning meeting. Everyone in Kiptohanock had always believed he and his childhood sweetheart, Honey Duer, would marry one day.

Everyone, including him. Until a certain Coast Guardsman by the name of Sawyer Kole arrived on the Eastern Shore four years ago. Charlie had been cast aside like yesterday’s fish guts.

Until Sawyer Kole abruptly left the Shore. Then Charlie played the fool by taking up with Honey Duer again. When Kole returned as suddenly as he’d left, once more Charlie had been jettisoned from Honey’s life like so much flotsam.

He grimaced. Charlie was all too aware that in the love department, the town of Kiptohanock considered him a laughingstock.

Charlie grabbed his regulation hat off the seat beside him. “If we’re done here—”

“Something’s not right about that woman.” Honey placed her hands on the sticky linoleum tabletop. “She’s hiding something.”

The fluorescent lighting caught the sparkle in the diamond ring on Honey’s finger. He squared his shoulders. Honey was lost to him forever. She was now Sawyer Kole’s wife and pregnant with their first child.

Past time for Charlie to move on with his life. But so far, he had only his career. And law enforcement didn’t come close to soothing the raw, empty places Honey’s absence left in his life.

Strapped in the stroller beside the booth, Amelia’s nine-month-old son, Patrick, let out a wail.

Amelia fumbled through a diaper bag and handed Patrick a cracker. “We’re living on borrowed time, girls. Nap time awaits.” The baby made smacking noises as he gummed the cracker.

“Why do you think the librarian is hiding something?” Charlie fixed each of the sisters with his most intimidating look. “Has she done or said something to make you feel threatened?”

Caroline’s gaze flitted toward the plate-glass window overlooking the town square. “She hasn’t exactly said anything...”

He crossed his arms over his brown uniform. “What has she done to raise your suspicions?”

Amelia fiddled with packets of sweetener. “She’s always hanging around our family. Trying to insinuate herself. She insisted on helping Daddy grill hot dogs for the Fourth of July cookout. And she wanted to be my nursery helper during Vacation Bible School in June, but not help Miss Pauline’s second-grade class.”

He rolled his tongue in his cheek. “Right. ’Cause such civic and church behaviors are so often warning signs for deeper, deviant issues.”

Caroline glared. “You need to get serious about this, Charlie.”

“You three need to get serious. Ever think maybe you have overactive imaginations?” He blew a breath between his lips. “Or a paranoia complex?”

Amelia shook her head. “I thought the same as you, Charlie. That Honey was imagining things, until I started noticing the librarian’s behavior. She has a way of almost disappearing into the background. Then suddenly you realize she’s been there listening the whole time.”

Charlie fought for patience. “Why am I not surprised this originated with Honey?”

Honey’s eyebrows arched. “Are you implying I’m a drama queen?”

“If the pearls fit...” He shrugged.

Caroline bit back a smile. “Be that as it may, Honey’s right. Once she expressed her concern, I noticed how Miss Shaw is always studying the Duers. Not staring at the Colonnas or the Turners. Just us.”

He frowned. “Like a stalker?”

“She watches us.” Honey folded her hands over her rounded abdomen. “Especially Sawyer.”

“This is about...?” Charlie hardened his heart. “I’m outta here.” He began easing out of the booth.

“Miss Shaw watches all of us,” Honey said. “Sawyer most of all. But not in a romantic way. It’s just strange. And it scares me.” Her brown eyes misted. “Please, Charlie. We were friends once...”

He stilled. Friends...when he’d hoped for so much more. But old loyalty to Honey warred with his better judgment.

“I cannot utilize official resources without legal justification.”

Caroline leaned forward. “But unofficially, could you make inquiries? At least talk to her?”

“You want me to spy on her?” His voice rose. “Seriously?”

Caroline’s mouth thinned. “Just get to know her. Find out what she’s after.”

Amelia lifted her chin. “Honey’s seven months pregnant, Charlie. She doesn’t need this kind of stress in her life.”

Honey’s lips trembled. “Please, Charlie...”

Charlie raked his hand over his head. “An unofficial investigation only. I’ll nose around. See what I learn.”

Amelia and Caroline exchanged relieved looks.

Honey smiled. “Thank you, Charlie.”

“And if I find nothing suspicious...” He motioned in the general direction of the Kiptohanock library. “You’ll let go of this, and leave the poor woman alone.”

“Why sure, Charlie boy.” Amelia winked at Caroline. “We’ll welcome her with open arms to our little fishing hamlet. Give her the same warm red-carpet treatment we give every ’come here.”

“You do that.” He edged out of the booth. “’Cause I’d sure hate to have to lock three Kiptohanock mothers in the county jail.”

Charlie made a show of placing his hat upon his head. “Not that I’m afraid to arrest the three of you Duers. I’m thinking more about the safety of the other inmates.”

Before the ladies could protest, he threw down enough bills to cover the price of coffee and Long John doughnuts. The lingering aromas of ham, fried potatoes and pancakes followed him across the crowded diner.

He yanked open the glass door in a whoosh of air. With a jingle of bells, he exited the café to do his duty. Which promised to be about as much fun as being Tasered.

Charlie shot a swift look at his watch. He’d have to hurry. No telling when the next call would come from Dispatch.

The cawing of seagulls vied with the sounds of water lapping against the town docks. The scent of brine filled his nostrils as he made his way past the gazebo on the square.

On the wide-planked steps of the brick Victorian that housed the library, he pivoted for one final look at his patrol cruiser in the parking lot of the Sandpiper. Out of habit, he surveyed the town.

The narrow Delmarva Peninsula—composed of portions of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia—separated the Chesapeake Bay and mainland from the Atlantic Ocean. The fishing village of Kiptohanock, Virginia lay seaside.

A white clapboard church hugged the Kiptohanock shoreline. Its steeple pierced the blue sky. Recreational and commercial fishing boats bobbed in the harbor.

Charlie’s gaze skimmed past the post office. The outfitter and boat repair shops. In the gentle sea breeze, flags fluttered outside the Coast Guard station. Emanating from the village green like spokes on a wheel, gingerbread-trimmed homes meandered down leaf-canopied lanes.

Home. It was his job to do everything in his power to protect Kiptohanock and the people who resided here. Including assess the threat level of a librarian?

Charlie removed his hat and grunted. Talk about fool’s errands. Swinging the stout oak door open wide, he ventured inside the cool interior. He waited in the high-ceilinged foyer and allowed his eyes to adjust from the bright glare of the midmorning sunshine to the more subdued lighting of the library.

No one manned the librarian’s desk at the base of the curving mahogany staircase. The cushy grouping of chairs also remained empty. From brief forays on behalf of long-ago high school projects, Charlie remembered that upstairs lay the fiction and science rooms.

He wasn’t fond of books. Nor was the library one of his favorite places. These days, once off duty and motionless, he went to sleep.

But he doubted much had changed in the library after old Mrs. Beal retired a few months ago. Nothing in Kiptohanock ever changed much. Which was exactly why he liked it here.

To the right, the oak-paneled room contained the reference section and a bank of desks topped by computer screens. But to the left, the soft murmur of voices drew him forward. Where he discovered chest-high bookshelves surrounding an open area with a large green rug.

A cluster of kids hunched over a book with a fierce dog on the cover. One of the children turned the page. There were giggles. The blonde child in the center of the group glanced up as his shadow fell across them.

The blonde child passed the book to Caroline Clark’s new stepdaughter, “I didn’t hear you come in.” The blonde rose in a fluid motion.

He blinked. She wasn’t a child. Just a very small, blonde adult. This five-foot nothing waif was the person shadowing the Duer family?

At six-foot-three, Charlie towered over the petite blonde. “You’re the new librarian?”

She tilted her head to meet his gaze. Her wheat-colored ponytail danced across her shoulders. “Yes, I am.”

In a glance, she took him in—from his creased khaki uniform trousers to the tie adorning his short-sleeved summer uniform shirt to his dark hair. And finally coming to rest upon the tan hat he carried in his hands.

Behind her black horn-rimmed glasses, her large blue eyes appeared owlish. Uncertainty flickered. “Can I help you, Officer? Is there a problem?”

He stared at her. The cork-soled wedges. The white denim capris. The fluttery candy-pink top.

This wisp of a creature was the Kiptohanock Stalker? He could probably encircle the librarian’s waist with both his hands and have room to spare.

“Is there a book I can help you find?”

Her voice was soft, as befitted a librarian, he supposed. And sort of sweet.

Charlie realized his mouth was agape. He closed it. “I don’t read.”

Guileless as a child, her sky-blue eyes widened. “Oh... I’m so sorry, but we offer a program for that. I’d be glad to help if you’re willing to put in the time.”

Unlike the Tidewater brogue Kiptohanockians spoke, she had one of those accents from anywhere and nowhere. Thanks to television, like most of America.

Then what she’d said registered with Charlie. And what he’d actually said to her first.

“I didn’t mean I don’t know how to read.” He shuffled his regulation shoes on the rug. “I meant that books are not for me.”

Pink tinted her pale features. “Of course you read. You’re a sheriff.”

In his line of work, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen a woman blush. He hadn’t been sure women still did. But the rosy spots of color brought the librarian’s face to life.

She wasn’t wearing makeup. To her credit, maybe she wasn’t a vain woman. She could have done much more with her appearance than she did, matter of fact.

Thank you, Honey Duer Kole, for yet another wild-goose chase. This was ridiculous. He was ridiculous. And Honey was certifiable. The little blonde cleared her throat.

He shook himself. Not like him to blank out. Law enforcement officers were apt to end their careers—and their lives—if not always on the alert. Time to beat an apologetic retreat and get back to real work.

“I’m not the sheriff. I’m just a deputy.” Hat in hand, he turned on his heel and headed toward the door. “Thanks anyway, ma’am. Perhaps another time.”

No mystery nor Mata Hari here.

The front door opened, but something made Charlie glance over his shoulder. In time to see the librarian’s face change. As Caroline Duer Clark crossed the threshold.

* * *

When aquatic veterinarian, Caroline Clark, sauntered into the library, Evy Shaw made herself as unobtrusive as possible behind the desk. Which was not a problem for Evy. She was used to fading into the woodwork.

Or in her case, fading into the bookshelves. She often wore her invisibility like a Romulan cloaking device.

She winced. Best to keep that bit of geekiness under wraps. Her passion for all things Star Trek didn’t exactly cause men to line up at her door.

Nine-year-old Izzie Clark bounced up from the reading rug. “Mom, you’ll love the books I got this week for us to read together.”

Caroline’s eyes softened at the sight of her stepdaughter. Evy had arrived in town a few weeks before Caroline returned to her estranged family. Caroline and Weston Clark’s romance first began in the library. And through a series of events involving sea creatures, Caroline, Weston and Izzie found their happily-ever-after with each other in a restored lighthouse.

Evy bit back a sigh. Minus the fairy-tale ending, she and Caroline had far more in common than the oldest Duer sister imagined.

There was a brief flurry of activity as parents started arriving. The children in the oceanside fishing community brought much-needed excitement not only to the library but also to Evy’s life. She loved children. And story hour was the highlight of her week.

“Goodbye, Miss Shaw.” Izzie waved. “See you next week.” The solid oak door shut with a decisive click.

Someone cleared a throat. Evy nearly launched into outer space and grabbed hold of the counter. Who—

A pair of piercing hazel eyes studied her. The dark-haired, broad-shouldered young deputy. She’d forgotten him while dealing with the Duer sister. This unaccustomed subterfuge was playing havoc with her nerves.

She put a shaky hand to her throat. With his height and build, the deputy was a former high school or college football player. Probably both. He’d be intimidating to someone on the wrong side of the law.

Or someone with something to hide. Like her. On a quest to find her long-lost brother.

When he’d placed the Smokey Bear hat on his head earlier, he’d been on his way out the door. Until Caroline Clark arrived. The hat—Evy craned her neck—added another five inches to his already imposing stature.

“Can I help you, Deputy?”

He removed the hat. The muscles underneath his fitted uniform shirt flexed. Her attention skittered. Did he wear a Kevlar vest? How dangerous was the life of a deputy sheriff in peaceful Kiptohanock?

Mind your own business, Evy.

The deputy positioned the hat next to a stack of books on her desk. “I need a library card.”

“I thought you didn’t...”

He raised an eyebrow.

“I mean, you don’t seem the type to...”

He folded his arms across his chest. Which, for her, was eye level. His gold badge gleamed in the light of the green banker’s lamp atop her desk. Deputy Sheriff, Accomack County, it read.

“Is getting a library card going to be a problem, Miss... Miss...?”

“Shaw. Evangeline Shaw.” Was it suddenly hot in here or just her? “Getting a card will not be a problem, Deputy.”

“It’s Deputy Pruitt.” Hand extended, he reached across the counter. “Charles Everett Pruitt the Third.”

Her eyes flitted to his hand.

The deputy’s gaze caught hers and held steady. “I find it amazing that in as small a place as Kiptohanock, our paths haven’t crossed until now.”

She took his hand. His hand engulfed hers. Her heart stutter-stepped at the touch of his strong, warm fingers against her skin.

“Pleased to meet you,” she whispered.

Why was she whispering? Goose bumps tingled up and down her arm.

His lantern jaw tightened. Frowning, he extracted his hand from hers.

She angled toward the monitor and hit a button on the keyboard. “There are a few questions for you to answer on the application.”

“Fire away.” He crossed his arms again, tucking his hands out of sight beneath impressive biceps. “I meant that in a figurative sense, mind you.” His lips twitched.

She’d always liked men with a sense of—

Evy jerked her eyes to the screen. “Name? Oh.” She swallowed. “You told me already.”

She concentrated on typing the information. “Pruitt... Charles—”

“Friends call me Charlie.”

She stopped midkeystroke. Was that an invitation to be his friend, or was the deputy just being chatty? He didn’t strike Evy as the chatty sort.

“Address?” She was whispering again...

He rattled off an address belonging to one of the Victorian homes on a side street close to the town square.

The deputy unfolded his arms and planted his elbows on the wooden counter. “And how about you?”

Evy’s mouth went dry. The corded muscles of his forearms gave her pause.

He leaned toward Evy. “Where do you live, Miss Shaw? Turnabout is fair play, don’t you think?”

With his chiseled countenance, Mr. Law Enforcement bore a striking resemblance to Clark Kent aka Superman. He’d probably be very handsome if he ever relaxed his rigid features. With effort, she wrenched her gaze to the computer.

She poised her fingers over the keyboard. “I’m boarding with Pauline Crockett off Seaside Road. Near—”

“I’m familiar with Miss Pauline’s farm.”

“You’re a ’been here then. Isn’t that what the locals call themselves?” She focused on the screen. “Which makes me a ’come here. What’s your telephone number?”

“Why? Are you planning to ask me out, Miss Shaw?”

Her heart palpitated. She was unused to—and unsettled by—the oh-so-masculine attention.

She gestured at the computer. “It’s for th-the form.”

He laughed. “Turnabout is fair play, remember, Miss Shaw?”

She pointed at a tray of business cards with the library’s website and phone number. “I think I have enough information to process the application.”

Was he flirting with her? Or mocking her? She lifted her chin.

He straightened, his hazel eyes going serious. “I didn’t mean to... I thought we—”

“It will take me a minute to create the card. If you can’t stick around, I’ll mail it to you.”

He shuffled his big feet. “I can wait.”

“In the meantime...” She shoved a welcome folder at him. “Here’s information about the services available at the library. And a schedule of upcoming events.”

She gave him a nice view of her back. Better to get this over with ASAP. “In the packet are the conditions and privileges granted to you as a borrower.” She worked quickly to laminate the card.

With the card hot off the machine, she faced him once again. “I should’ve asked for your ID first. Saved you the trouble of answering unnecessary questions. But per library regulations, I’m going to have to see some picture identification.”

A muscle ticking in his jaw, Mr. Law Enforcement fished his wallet out of his pocket. He extracted his license and passed it to her. She skimmed it for a split second.

She pushed his new library card and his license across the counter. “Here’s your card.” The less contact, the better.

Mr. Law Enforcement had a curious effect on her nerve endings. “There is a one-dollar replacement fee if you lose the card.”

“I won’t lose it.” The deputy inserted the cards into his wallet. “I don’t lose things I go after.”

She opened her mouth, thought better of it and clamped her lips together.

He smiled.

She caught the edge of the desk. The flash of those even, white teeth could blind a person. When he smiled like that, his stern countenance became almost handsome.

Evy placed her palms flat against the wood to steady herself. No almost about it. Deputy Charles Everett Pruitt the Third was quite handsome.

Heart-throbbingly handsome. He should smile more often. She wondered why he didn’t. Not that he and his smile—or lack thereof—were any of her business.

That was the problem with small towns like Kiptohanock. Especially small Southern towns. Everybody was into everybody else’s business. And the nosiness appeared to be contagious. She needed—to quote the stalwart Captain Kirk—to raise her shields.

Maybe local law enforcement made it a point to get to know newcomers. But Evy couldn’t afford anyone prying into her background. Not when she had so many secrets to keep.

* * *

When Evangeline Shaw’s expression transformed at the sight of Caroline, Charlie’s instincts kicked into gear. With her guileless blue eyes not so guileless anymore, he’d changed his mind about leaving the library.

Maybe the Duer sisters weren’t as off base in their suspicions as he’d imagined. Something was going on with the librarian.

He witnessed firsthand the melding thing the Duer sisters insisted she did with people. Practically blending into the background. Undercover agents could have learned a trick or two from the quiet librarian.

Exiting the library with Izzie chattering nonstop, Caroline did an admirable job of not blowing his so-called cover.

So he’d invented the need for a library card. Any excuse to justify his continued presence in Miss Shaw’s hallowed hall of books. But he’d embarrassed her with his mild stab at flirtatiousness.

Either she wasn’t the sort of girl who played games or, worse, he’d lost his appeal to women since Honey. Maybe Miss Shaw wasn’t into his type. Not every woman liked a guy in uniform.

“Was that everything you needed, Deputy?”

It hadn’t escaped his notice she’d misdirected his attempts to call him by name. He found her reticence intriguing. He found the touch of her hand disturbing.

Which might have been the most troublesome warning sign of all.

“I—I...” His gaze darted around the reception area. Searching for a reason to see her again. On behalf of the investigation, of course.

Charlie jabbed his finger at the purple poster tacked on the wall behind the librarian. “I want to register for the book club.”

Her brow puckered. “What book club?” As if unsure of his meaning. Or stalling.

“Do you have other book clubs?”

“No...only this one, which meets every Thursday night.”

“Then that’s the one I want to join.” He widened his stance, hips even with his feet. “It says you’re the facilitator.”

She turned and scanned the notice as if not trusting her memory. “Yes, I guess it does.”

“Okay then.”

She blinked.

“What do I need to do for Thursday? Just show up?”

She pursed her lips. Beautiful lips, he decided.

He scowled. Stick to the case, Pruitt.

Evangeline Shaw nudged her glasses higher onto the bridge of her nose. “Showing up is the least of what we do in the book club, Deputy Pruitt.”

She gave him a prim look he remembered an English teacher or two bestowing on him during high school a decade ago. “You need to read the book first. With today being Monday, I’m not sure you’d be able—”

“You don’t think I can read a book in three days, Miss Shaw?”

He also decided to make it his personal goal to be on a first-name basis with Miss Shaw and vice versa by Thursday.

“I don’t know if this particular book selection...” Again with the blush.

She wound a strand of her hair around her finger. “I mean, I don’t think this book would be your cup of tea.”

He grinned. “Good thing the only tea I drink is sweet.”

The blush deepened, and she stepped sideways. Barricading herself behind the stack of books?

He rubbed his chin. “How bad could it be? It’s not War and Peace, is it?”