Page 18 of Seducing the Sheriff (Charming Butte #2)

It wasn’t as if I was unaware of early land appropriation being an ugly truth in the settling of the US, but this touched me in a more personal, intimate way.

Before me were Diego Vazquez’s handwritten records and maps, letters, and more.

This was someone who was an integral part of the origins of my new home.

Jim sighed. “I’m afraid you’ll run across many stories like theirs the more we dig.” He checked his watch. “Dang it. We need to wrap this up in about twenty minutes. Feels like we just got started.”

“Same,” Cash agreed.

We bent to our task again, Jim handing us little notepads and souvenir firehouse pens so we could write down anything significant.

“Hey!” Cash straightened in his chair. “I think this might be something.”

I leaned over to see what he was pointing at, and Jim came around from behind his desk.

Jim snatched up the old photo, his brow furrowing.

All I’d managed to catch was a slightly blurry picture of a couple and two small children.

It was also black and white, and the glimpse of what they wore suggested it was from an earlier part of the twentieth century.

Jim’s eyes widened. “Look at those rock formations to the right of the house. In particular, the boulder that’s partially sticking out.”

He placed the five-by-seven photo back on the desk, and we hovered around it. Jim turned on the desk lamp and bent the gooseneck arm to shine the light on the photo. Immediately, I saw what Cash meant.

“Those are the rocks behind my house, right off the deck!” I straightened, excitement thrumming through my body. “The house is much bigger now, so you can’t see them from the front anymore.”

Cash nodded with a big grin. “Which means Mr. Thomas Benning was probably responsible for building onto it.”

Jim straightened with a laugh. “I guess I never put two and two together.”

Cash tilted his head. “How’s that?”

“Well,” Jim began. “Benning was Charming’s first pharmacist. He came from New York and settled here with his wife.

They eventually had four children, as I recall.

” He scratched behind his ear. “I never delved much deeper than that. I’ll confess that I know more details about the troublemakers and heroes than the day-to-day folk who lived and worked here. ”

I could understand that. Who doesn’t love a good story filled with action and adventure? There were plenty of books and movies about Billy the Kid, Butch Cassidy, and Kit Carson. Stories featuring Joe the grocer and Mabel the dressmaker’s exploits didn’t exactly star in people’s memories.

Cash ran a finger around the edge of the photo as he gazed down at the figures. If I could see what thoughts ran through his mind, I imagined he was as taken with their backstory as I was. It struck me that if that was true, it made me feel closer to him. He was invested in the story of my home.

“Dang it.” Jim sighed. “I should’ve left five minutes ago.” He regarded us. “Tell you what. I can’t let you fellas stay or take the files, but when you have time, come back. Even if I can’t search with you, I can give you access to the building whenever I’m in here puttering around.”

We both rose from our chairs, and Cash extended his hand to Jim for another shake. “We’d appreciate that.”

I was chomping at the bit, so I hoped the chief would be back soon. “Thanks. I’m dying to go through all the photos and read that pile of newspaper clippings.”

Cash chuckled. “Same. I think we might’ve struck gold.”

Jim walked us out, and I did my best to keep moving forward.

My attention was grabbed several times, but I managed to tear my eyes away from the enticing exhibits before getting caught.

Although judging from Cash’s side eye and smirk once we were outside, maybe I was more transparent than I realized.

As Jim climbed into the truck, Cash mentioned to him that I was interested in eventually having some sheep on my property and asked if Dex might have some tips for me.

Jim said he’d pass that message along, and I thanked him for both the help with our search and the inquiry.

I kept to myself how touched I was that Cash thought to ask him for me.

The signs were there, had been all day. My studlicious sheriff would only need a minor nudge in the right direction. Or more accurately, in my direction.

Convincing Cash to BBQ some burgers and knock back a couple of beers on my back deck, ‘so we could discuss our discoveries’, had been one of the easiest tasks ever. He’d even hinted that he was hoping I’d ask so we could come up with some theories while it was all fresh in our minds.

Suuuure…

But it had worked, and that was all that mattered.

“How rare do you like your meat?”

I stood poised with a spatula at the small portable, covered grill, lid raised.

We’d bought all the supplies in town before we made our way back.

In other words, spent over an hour between the hardware store and market.

Not only hadn’t I stocked up on grills and charcoal yet, but there wasn’t a condiment to be found in my barren kitchen.

Neither of us had commented on the occasional curious glances as we did our shopping, but I was sure I wasn’t imagining things.

After all, I was still the dead body guy who’d recently moved into town, and he was the hot sheriff.

If I weren’t in the middle of the saga, I’d be wondering what was going on behind the scenes, too.

On the other hand, I really was wondering. I was about to take a leap into the unknown. Yes, we’d become more flirtatious as the day wore on, but that wasn’t a guarantee that my next move would work. I wasn’t exactly known as the master of seduction.

Cash dropped down off the deck. I’d set the grill up in an open area in the dirt about ten feet from the house.

Since I hadn’t been able to put up the steps or railings yet, minor leaps were necessary.

Cash approached me, his relaxed gait something I found particularly alluring when viewed from behind, but not so bad from the front either.

“What did you say about my meat?” He handed me an open beer bottle, his half-finished one in his opposite hand. “I figured the heat might be making you thirsty.”

He didn’t know the half of it. I accepted the cool bottle. “Thanks. And I was curious about how much pink you like in your burgers.”

“Ohhh…” Cash snapped his fingers. “Darn. That’s what you meant.”

I was sure my cheeks were already flushed from the heat emanating from the coals, so I figured he’d never guess I was blushing.

I averted my eyes, fixing my gaze on the patties as I poked the edges to keep them from affixing themselves to the rack. “So what's the verdict?”

In my peripheral vision, I caught Cash taking a big swig of his drink. “Medium well is good.”

I chuckled shakily. “Great, me too. One more flip should do it.”

“Sounds good. I’ll grab the tomatoes and lettuce.”

He patted my shoulder, and I tried not to shiver beneath his touch. As soon as he’d slipped back into the door off the kitchen, I sucked in a deep breath before slowly exhaling. I hoped I survived dinner.

For the next half hour, we enjoyed our meal, paper plates balanced on our laps, our beers perched on an upturned plastic tub I’d used in my move. That, and the molded plastic chairs from the hardware store, were my new—albeit temporary—patio furniture.

I drained my beer, then set the empty bottle down, steadying the wobbling glass before it crashed onto the deck.

“Well,” I said. “It’s officially porch time, so I need another drink.”

Cash snorted out a laugh as I rose. ”What’s porch time?”

I gestured to the open desert landscape. “The sun is setting low in the sky, which represents the official end of my workday. Which also means I’m ready to relax outside when the weather permits.”

“Ah, I see.” Cash smiled. “Are there different porch time rules for winter?”

I placed my hands on my hips, taking in the gorgeous view of the dusk. An ambient glow of goldenrod yellow with a tinge of apricot orange touched the horizon, and a measure of peace filled my chest. What a beautiful place to call home.

I let out a soft hum. “Rules? Not really. That’s been the blessing of working for myself.

If it’s rainy or cold, I kick back on the sofa and watch TV.

” I chuckled. “When I have a sofa, that is. In the summer, when the days are longer, I go with how I feel. Although half the time I work until I’m too tired to go on. ”

I stopped myself from adding the part where I didn’t stop because what was the point? It wasn’t as if anyone was waiting for me to sit down and spend time with them at the end of the day. I swallowed hard and ran my fingers through my hair.

“So, another beer?”

I regarded Cash, noting the slight wrinkling of his brow. “Sure. I’d like to share porch time with you.”

“Cool.”

I quickly turned before he spotted the tears welling in my eyes. After going inside, I took a quick trip to the bathroom so I could splash some water on my face. Getting lost in a personal pity party wasn’t going to forward my romantic mission.

I managed to pull myself together, reminding myself there was a tall, ruggedly handsome sheriff on my deck waiting for me. Looking a gift horse in the mouth was a sin under these circumstances.

“Here you go.”

I returned to the deck, beer in hand, then took a seat next to Cash. I may or may not have scooted the chair closer, angling it to my best advantage. He accepted my offering, giving me a wink as he took the bottle from my hands. Our fingers brushed, and I froze.

Now? Should I make my move now?

“Gorgeous.”

He’d already turned his head, so I knew he wasn’t referring to me. Actually, even if he’d been staring into my eyes dead on, I wouldn’t have thought that. I glanced in the direction he was looking and had to agree. The orange and yellows of the sky had deepened and were now edged with indigo.

I licked my lips. “It is. I have a feeling I’m really going to love it here.”

Cash met my eyes, our earlier staring contest taking on a softer feel. “I think you are, too.”

We leaned in at the same time, my lips meeting a fraction of a second sooner than his. I decided it counted. I was definitely the one who made the first move. However, Cash was the one who wrapped his palm around my nape, holding me in place while he took control of the kiss.

Cash pushed past the seam of my lips with his tongue. He took his time with me, exploring my mouth with slow, deliberate strokes. I answered with my own swipes, tentative at first, but as the moment stretched on, I grew bolder.

I placed a hand on the solid wall of his chest, curling my fingers into the soft cotton of his shirt as he deepened the connection between us. The lingering taste of the beer faded as the intensity of our kiss grew. Every rational thought was scattered like tumbleweeds being chased by the wind.

When we broke apart, his breathing was as ragged as my own. He rested his forehead against mine, idly stroking the back of my neck with his thumb.

“I swear I didn’t plan that,” Cash whispered.

“I did.”

A small gasp fell from Cash’s lips as he lifted his head and locked eyes with me. “You naughty, naughty boy.”

A wave of shyness swept over me. “Not usually. I surprised myself.”

One side of Cash’s mouth quirked in a smile. “I wasn’t saying that as a reprimand. More like a compliment.”

“Yeah?”

Cash’s smile turned into a grin. “Yeah. So, what’s next?”

“Ordering a mattress.”

He barked out a hearty laugh, and I fell into my own round of hilarity. The tension was broken, but it still didn’t answer the question of how naughty I planned on being that night.

“Hey.” Cash pulled me in for another quick kiss. “If I’m assuming too much, we can pick up this conversation another time.”

“Well…” As far as my dick was concerned, I wasn’t anywhere near to assuming too much. “You’re not. But my accommodations here make the Roadrunner motel seem like the Ritz.”

Cash’s eyes darkened. “I don’t care about that.” He trailed his fingers through my hair. “But whatever makes you comfortable.”

He was so damn polite. Was that what he meant about being old-fashioned?

I cleared my throat and channeled my inner brazen self. “I think a shower and blow job would be good for starters.”

Cash rose from his chair so fast that if I’d blinked, I would’ve missed it. “Works for me. What are we waiting for?”

I grinned and took his hand.

What indeed?