Serving Pride (6 page)

She’d thought he
was joking, but as she sat in the back of the cruiser she couldn’t
help but laugh.

“Are you really
going to make me sit back here the entire trip back to
Pride?”

He smiled at her in
the mirror. “It’s the law.”

“When did you get
so picky about following the rules?”

He smiled at her.
“Besides, this way you can’t distract me.”

“Distract you? Has
anyone ever told you the seat back here is
sticky?”

“It’s the cleaner I
use to disinfect them. I had Kevin Williams back there last week.”
He watched her eyes sharpen.

“Is he still
causing problems?”

“He’s gotten a lot
worse. He and Ricky are regulars down at the station. I guess they
were always heading towards trouble.”

“Well, I’m glad I
haven’t seen either of them since I left Pride eight years ago.
Tell me about yourself, Robert. What have you been doing since you
left Pride?”

She had been dying
to ask him that since the last time she’d seen him. So far she’d
heard a few details at the grocery store, but no one really seemed
to know what he’d done other than work as a cop in New Mexico. She
wondered if he had traveled like he’d told her he wanted
to.

“Well, I left here
and tried to find my mom in New Mexico. I worked so closely with
the police, I just sort of fell into becoming one. Then I did some
traveling for a few years. I went to Europe, China, and even
Africa." She saw his brows crinkled in thought. “But, I came back
to the States and then came home.”

“What brought you
back?”

“I suppose I was
just tired of not having a home. Besides, when I talked to my aunt,
she sounded a lot worse and I thought it was time I came back to be
with her. She’s the only family I have.”

“Robert? What
really brought you back to the States?”

He took a deep
breath and she could tell he was fighting something. “They found my
mom’s car. Roy had abandoned it in Vegas. I actually got my hopes
up that maybe I’d finally track her down. But I guess I’ve been
fooling myself into thinking she was still
alive.”

They pulled into
the empty parking lot at the Golden Oar and stopped by her car. She
watched as he got out and opened the back door for her. She got out
and closed the car door, trying not to notice how close he stood to
her. She leaned back on the car and pulled her jacket tighter
around her, blocking out the cold wind coming from the ocean. The
parking lot was dark and she couldn’t help thinking how good he
looked in his uniform jacket.

“I’m sorry about
your mother.” It came out as a whisper. He’d moved even closer to
her and she was finding it harder to breath.

“Amelia, what would
you do if I kissed you right now?”

She smiled and
reached for the front of his jacket to pull him the rest of the way
towards her. When their lips met, she could have sworn her toes
curled. His hands were on her hips, holding her close. She could
feel his heat radiating from his body and leaned even farther
against him, wrapping her arms around his narrow
waist.

“Mmm, you taste
just like you look.” He pulled back and looked into her eyes as she
felt the chill biting into her legs. The skirt was stylish, but the
stockings were doing little to keep her warm from the chill. “I
know it’s too cold out here to do this for much longer, but I just
have to have another quick taste.”

He bent his head and after the kiss ended, she no longer felt the
chill.

“I have next Monday
off,” he said as he walked her to the car. “I was hoping that you’d
like to go somewhere with me?”

She smiled. “As
long as I don’t have to ride in the back again.” He
chuckled.

“No, this time
we’ll take my personal car. How about I pick you up around seven?”
When she nodded, he leaned down and kissed her
again.

“Mmm, I could do
this all night, but I know how chilly it is out here. Go get in
your car before I decide to follow you home and finish this.” He
smiled down at her and then started to walk
away.

“Robert?” She
waited until he turned back towards her.
“Thanks.”

“For
what?”

“The ride home and
the kiss. I’ll see you on Monday.” She got into her car and looked
back at Robert’s car in her rear-view mirror. She laughed when she
saw him fist pump the air.

I
t took a few days
for everything to finally die down in town. Once the coast guard
had officially called off the search for George Jordan, most of the
reporters had quickly left. There were still several camped out in
Edgeview Hospital, waiting for news of Iian who had yet to
wake.

Robert had found
some time to hire two deputies. One was a young cop from Edgeview
and another an older gentlemen from another small town half an hour
away. Both had experience in law enforcement.

He settled into his
paperwork and his job and felt like everything was finally slipping
into a pattern. There had been quite a few parties around town
lately to keep him busy. It seemed the high school kids had decided
to have a week long party that hopped from house to house. He
didn’t mind staying busy, since it had kept his mind occupied
through the week. He didn’t know why, but he was actually nervous
for this date.

He’d dated plenty
over the years, but had never been in a steady relationship. It
seemed every time he started getting serious, he ended up pulling
out of the relationship. He knew why, too. He had a date with her
tomorrow night.

Amelia waited by
the front door, feeling like a teenager again.

“You look lovely,
dear,” her mother said from across the room.

“Thank you, Mom.” She said skeptically. It was hard to trust her
mother’s opinion, since she probably couldn’t even see her
clearly.

“Don’t pull that
tone with me, young lady. I may not be able to see you clearly, but
there’s nothing wrong with my hearing. Besides, I know what my
daughter looks like, and you always look lovely.” Amelia walked
over to her mother and gave her in a light hug.

“I’m sorry, mom. I’m just a little nervous.”

“I remember when
your father came to pick me up for our first date. Your grandpa
gave him the evil eye and tried to scare him off, but David just
stood there and took it all with a smile.” Her mother laughed and
still managed to look a little sad at the same time. “Thirty-five
years with that man and I wish I had thirty-five
more.”

“Mom, do you want
me to stay with you tonight?”

“Oh, heaven’s no.
You go out with Robert, have fun. After all, it’s what your father
would have wanted. He always liked that young man. Especially since
he came back to town. He had always hoped that you and he would get
together.”

“I know. It’s funny
how one little event could sway you both so
quickly.”

“Little event? We
owe that young man a lot. I believe he saved you that day. Beside,
Ricky and Kevin have done nothing but get in trouble since they
were born. Their parents never really gave them much attention.
What they needed was a good—” She was interrupted when there was a
slight knock on the door. “Oh, here he is now. You two go off, have
fun. Don’t worry about me. Betty was going to swing by later
tonight and play some gin.” Amelia bent down and kissed her
mother’s cheek.

“Night, mother.
I’ll see you when I get home.”

“There’s no rush
now, go and have some fun.”

When Amelia opened
the front door, she was greeted with a bunch of daisies. When
Robert moved them down to peer over them, his smile faltered and
she was satisfied that she’d worn the right
dress.

He looked very sexy
in a gray button-up shirt with dark colored pants. His leather
jacket made him look dangerous, something she knew she’d never
thought about him before.

“You look
beautiful.” He handed her the flowers and smiled even
more.

He just couldn’t
get over the hot red dress she was wearing. The fact that it was
skin tight didn’t escape his notice, nor did the low back and the
plunging neckline. Hell, anyone with eyes would easily be on fire
around her. He felt the heat just from sitting in the same car as
he drove towards Edgeview. Since the Golden Oar was still closed,
the nearest nice restaurant was fifteen minutes
away.

He didn’t know if
he’d make it through dinner with her and keep his eyes from popping
out of their sockets. He tried to get his mind off her body and
talked to her about anything he could think of.

He listened to her
stories about how she’d traveled after school, and how she’d gotten
her job in Portland. He knew most of it already from her father,
but hearing her tell it was more interesting. He couldn’t get over
how much she’d changed. She used to be very shy and had always been
quite the introvert, but now, listening to her, she sounded very
courageous and outgoing.