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“I am sorry for being a pain in the ass, Knoxy.”
He patted my back awkwardly, most likely receiving a death glare from Mark. “It’s okay, Sutton. I know this has been hard for you.”
What surprised me was that, when I broke away from him, Candice took my place, throwing herself into his arms.
“Thank you,” she said quickly. And then as fast as she had embraced him, she was moving away with her eyes averted.
Knox hadn’t really even had time to respond. But I could see the heat in his eyes as he watched her walk away. There were so many things unfinished between the two of them.
Mark wrapped an arm around me again, and, with a quick goodbye to Earl and Knox, we headed down the street, following Candice to the car that was parked two blocks over.
Once we were out of earshot, she turned to me. “I know that I am an idiot to still care for that man.”
I tipped my head to the side. “Why do you say that?”
She shrugged. “After everything that happened with Natalie, my jealousy must have really turned him off. He hasn’t said one word, nothing.”
Mark opened the door for us both and then climbed behind the wheel.
“Candice,” he began, “you know that I am not a fan of becoming involved in other’s affairs.”
I grunted because he had said as much to me about a thousand times.
“But,” he went on, taking a deep breath, “I will say this. A man doesn’t look at a woman like the sheriff looks at you without having deep-set feelings for her. When you walked away just now, I almost expected him to go after you.”
Candice sniffed. “Then why didn’t he?”
“Maybe he isn’t sure that is what you want,” I said softly.
Mark nodded. “Also, remember that the man is a sheriff and about as noble as they come. He deals with women in crisis all the time. He isn’t about to put you in a situation that you feel uncomfortable with. The man cares; I just don’t think he knows what to do about it.”
Candice was quiet for a long moment. “So what do I do?”
I was about to open my mouth when Mark answered, “Let him know how you feel.”
CHAPTER 25