Page 6

Chapter Six

NEIL

I pull out the single sheet of paper inside the folder and hold it up. “Your entire report is Shit got real .”

“I didn’t exaggerate.” She crosses her arms over her chest, and my eyes go straight to her cleavage.

Goddamn it, I know she unbuttoned her uniform on purpose to distract me. The problem is it’s working a little too well. All I can think about is running my tongue between them and then my dick. I have to distract myself with the square root of pi to stay on task.

“Look, this might work for your everyday crimes in Cottonwood, but this is a serious case.” I sigh and shove the pink paper back inside the folder and toss it on her desk.

“You can scribble down whatever you want onto colorful scented paper on your own time, but I have to answer to some very powerful people. If I go back with shit got real , what do you think is going to happen?”

Her arms fall to her sides, and her shoulders slump. I hate that I’ve taken some of the spark out of her, but this could get a whole lot worse.

“It was my second day on the job,” she sniffles, and her head falls forward.

“Georgia,” I say softly. I don’t know if it’s seeing her so sad and broken or knowing that she’s out of her depth, but I pull her against my chest and wrap my arms around her gently. “It’s okay, I’ll help you.”

“You will?” She sniffs again as she looks up at me. “I thought you were here to get me in trouble.”

“No.” I shake my head and wipe a tear off her cheek. “I’m here to make a report on what happened, nothing more.”

I don’t add exactly what else I’d like to happen between us because it’s not a good idea.

Getting involved with her could cause so many problems for her and this investigation.

If someone found out, they could have me pulled and send in someone who is looking to make a name for themselves.

They could change Simon Gregory’s death to a murder and have someone completely innocent splashed all over the news.

I was sent here to perform a quiet investigation while finding out the facts.

Yes, there’s pressure from his family to find fault with someone in particular, but I can drag this out and stall for more time.

As much as I hate it, I release Georgia and take a step back. Then another. She seems better after the hug and wipes away the last of the tears.

“All right, so now what?” She looks ready to do something, and I know the feeling. When my emotions get too heavy, I like to throw them into work.

“You’re going to let me interview you and take the report.

We can go step by step and then I’ll help you fill out all the correct paperwork.

” I take out my phone so I can record the conversation, and she looks at it skeptically.

“Don’t worry, this is just so I can transcribe it later.

I like to do my interviews like a conversation. ”

“Okay.” She takes a deep breath, then sits down, and she’s starting to look more like herself. “But I’m going to need fuel for this.”

She reaches into her desk and pulls out the biggest bag of Hershey Kisses I’ve ever seen. “My god, where did you find a bag that size?”

“I’ve got my sources.” She opens the bag and takes one out, holding it up. “I might be willing to share if you can keep a secret.”

“Your secrets are safe with me,” I say, and as much as I shouldn’t be saying it, I mean it.

I don’t know why I feel such a strong connection to this woman, but the longer I’m with her, the more I feel certain I can trust her.

Hell, she might end up telling me she killed Simon Gregory and I’m not sure I’d tell anyone.

She tosses me the Kiss, and I unwrap it before popping it in my mouth. “It would save time if they didn’t wrap each individual one in a bag that size.”

“That’s what I’m saying!” She shakes her head. “It’s like they don’t have smart people in charge.”

The grin tugs at my lips, but I have to focus. “All right, so let’s start with the day of the accident. What did you do before you got the call?”

I check my phone to make sure it’s recording then sit back in my chair with my notepad. Georgia leans back too, trying to mimic my casual seating, but she goes too far and almost falls.

“Whoa.” Her chair snaps back into place and then she starts again. “Okay, it was my second day on the job, so I woke up and put on the same uniform from the day before because I didn’t think about having to wash it every time and needed to order more than one.”

Again, I have to hide my smile as I clear my throat. “Okay, got it. Then what?”

“Then I remembered I wanted a gun but I’d never shot one before, so it didn’t seem wise to just get a real one.” She huffs like that was obvious. “So I broke into the high school and took it from the drama department.”

“Um, I didn’t say this before, but if you’ve got some side crimes you’ve committed, maybe leave those out of the official report. Okay?”

“Oh.” She thinks it over and then nods. “Well then I guess I borrowed the bubble gun to complete my outfit.”

“I’ll make a note that you used air quotes around the word borrowed.”

“This is exciting stuff.” She puts her feet up on her desk and pops another Kiss into her mouth.

“After the fit check, what happened?” I watch as she thinks it over for a second and then snaps her fingers.

“I went by Sofa King Cozy to talk to Lane. She’s building a table for the nook in my parents' kitchen.”

“That’s the furniture store downtown?”

She nods. “Yeah, her and her twin sister Liv run it.”

“That’s right next to Clean Kitty where Quinn was taken. Did you see anything suspicious that morning?”

“Just the sounds of them fucking.” She slaps a hand over her mouth, and her eyes go wide. “I want that stricken from the record.”

I sit up from my chair and lean closer. “This could be important, Sheriff. You should probably give me all the details.”