Page 12 of Bennett

The stoic sheriff took a sip of his coffee and gave her a flat look. “You’re as bad as my wife. You enjoy watching grown men embarrass themselves.”

“Only a lot.” Laurel grinned, crossing her arms. “And it’s a free show.”

Bennett, who had been silent through the whole exchange, finally spoke in a low, steady, voice laced with dry amusement. “You enjoy this too much.”

She snapped her gaze to him, finding his eyes already on her. She tilted her head, and slowly curved her lips. “What gave me away?”

The handsome man held her stare, and for the briefest moment, something flickered there. Something quiet, unreadable, causing her pulse to quicken.

Before she could examine it too closely, Cooper threw up his hands. “Great. Now I feel dumb.”

“Doesn’t take much, Coop,” Matthew said, and the others laughed.

Laurel chuckled, shaking her head as she grabbed the empty carafes. “I’ll be back. Try not to strain yourselves thinking too hard.”

As she turned to walk away, she caught one last glance from Bennett—measured, amused, like he was trying to figure her out.

Good luck with that, buddy.

She could handle Bennett Vaughn.

She just had to make sure she didn’t start enjoying it.

Chapter Three

Bennett was still thinking about the damn trivia exchange long after Laurel had walked away.

Which was a problem.

He wasn’t the kind of guy who let things or people take up space in his head. His job was to assess, process, and move on. That was how he’d operated for years, and it had served him well.

But something about Laurel Sinclair had him off balance.

Not just because she was sharp or because she delivered her sarcasm with the kind of effortless confidence that made it impossible not to engage. It wasn’t even the way she’d smirked at him when he got her trivia right, only to immediately try to stump him again.

No, it was because for the first time in a long time, he’d actually enjoyed himself.

And that was unfamiliar territory.

“You two need to check out the site on the way back,” Mac said, setting down his coffee, gaining Bennett’s attention. “Carter might need help with those new security feeds. I want eyes on the vandals.”

Bennett nodded, pushing aside thoughts of Laurel and her too-damn-intriguing smirk. “Roger that.”

Gabe, who had been quietly stirring his coffee like he wasn’t paying attention, finally looked up. “Need me there?”

Mac shook his head. “Not yet. We’re still in the property damage stage, nothing serious enough to warrant an official report. If that changes, you’ll be the first to know.”

The sheriff nodded, then gave Bennett a pointed look. “That waitress giving you a hard time, Vaughn?”

Before he could answer, the radio on the sheriff’s shoulder crackled.

Gabe said something into the device, then stood, amusement gone. “Got to go. Let me know if things change,” he said, dropping money on the table before rushing out the door.

“At least he got to finish his breakfast today,” Matthew said, then turned an amused gaze on him. “Doesn’t mean you get out of answering his question, though.”

Cooper snorted into his coffee. “Yeah. Laurel had you squirming.”

Bennett shot him a look. “Not how I remember it.”