The Sheriff and the Mayor (6 page)

It
was…really. But she had so much else going on now. The day-trip felt like one
more burden for her to bear.

As
she parked in front of the detached garage, her cell phone rang. Frantic not to
miss the call and hoping it was he, she dug around in her purse. She
breathlessly answered without looking at the caller ID, “Hello! Dalton?”

“Where
have you been all day?” Dalton asked briskly, his velvety voice sounding thick
with exhaustion and annoyance.

Added
to her own tiredness, her mood soured. “Hello to you, too.”

He sucked
in a breath that she heard over the phone line. “Okay, sorry. It’s been a tough
day. Sorry,” he said again.

Somewhat
soothed, Cassie now sympathized and regretted snapping at him. “Did you have trouble
mending the fences?”

It
took him a second to answer and he sounded even wearier. “No. We had a rough
day dealing with fifty head of cattle being delivered unexpectedly early.”

He
yawned. “I needed to tell you I’m going to be extra busy this week. I won’t be
staying in town. Between my duties as sheriff and needing to help out here—”

“Got
it. You’re busy,” she cut him off. Her heart hurt, foolish as that was. He had
a lot going on, she knew that, but so did she. And he hadn’t wanted to be with
her this weekend, even if he had part of it.

She
could almost see him stiffening, scowling at her abrupt tone. But her ex had
put everyone and everything before her, too. He’d only had time for her when he
wanted to yell at her…or punch her out of his frustration with life. Yes,
sometimes she still had a big chip on her shoulder. It might not be fair, but
she didn’t feel up to apologizing.

“I
guess that means you’re too busy to go to Kansas City on Wednesday.” Why had she
brought up that subject? She was too busy as well.

He
muttered something under his breath, something that sounded bitter. “I had a
feeling you wouldn’t be all broken up about not going.”

While
not a physical blow, she felt it as painfully: his anger, his exasperation. Now
she felt bad. “As it happens, I needed to do something else that day, too. I
just didn’t know how to tell you.”

“Something
involving one of the upcoming community events, I suppose.” Resentment
tightened his tone.

“Look,
I’m tired, too. I’m not up to arguing with you.” She climbed out of her car,
closed the door harder than she intended. Had he heard the slam?

He
growled something, so that would be “yes.” Then he asked, “So where have you
been all day? I called your house phone. I must have left three messages.” He
heaved a sigh. “You didn’t answer your cell, either.”

Her
cell phone had been in her purse, in another room. It had been set on vibrate
ever since church, until she got in her car and switched it back to normal. She
hadn’t checked for messages before tossing it into her bag.

“I’ve
been at the Langley’s home all afternoon. There was a potluck and a couple
dozen people were there, wanting to talk about—”

This
time he cut her off. “Yeah, I know. About
those
events.”

She
didn’t bother responding. This wasn’t going well. She shouldn’t have even
answered her phone. “I should go.”

He
ignored her comment. “I suppose they’ve got you even more involved now.” His hostility
was obvious.

She
counted to ten, twenty, thirty, and then strode toward her house. “People are
excited. This is a
good
thing, although I realize
you
don’t think
so.”

“If
I didn’t know all of the other things you have going on as well, it might not
bother me so much. Dammit, Cassie, you need to learn to say
NO
sometimes.”

Okay,
ever since she’d started coming out of her shell again after being slammed into
it by her ex, she wanted to do everything. Someone who hadn’t been kept from
doing things could never really understand what she’d gone through.

“I’m
enjoying being able to say
Yes
,” she admitted defensively, hearing the
hurt in her voice.

“God,
darlin’, I’m sorry. I just worry about you.” He’d clearly recognized that he’d
gone too far.

Some
of her irritation faded. She knew he wanted to protect her and keep her from
taking on more than she could handle. Sometimes his being so protective could
be almost as bad as… No. He could never be as bad, as controlling as her ex.

Cassie
sat down on the porch steps, weariness pulling at her. Still, she softened her
tone when she said, “I’m stronger than you think, Dalton. I can handle more
than you think.” She hesitated. “Same as you. We’re both strong, both capable
of dealing with a lot.”

“I’m
coming!” he yelled suddenly to someone else, probably one of his brothers. Then
he said in a quieter tone, “Promise me you won’t make yourself sick taking on
too much.”

“I’ll
be fine.” His concern really did touch her.

How
much was too much? Excitement about the month of community events had been at a
high level this afternoon. Everyone had an idea. Everyone needed her opinion
and wanted her involved with every idea. And she, of course, hadn’t been able
to refuse anyone or anything. Just as Dalton had implied, she hadn’t been able
to say
No.
He definitely wouldn’t want to hear that.

“Wish
I could be there with you tonight. I could really use some of your warmth, your
tenderness,” he said, sounding discouraged and tired. “Wish I could be with you
every night this week, as usual.”

She
wished it, too, but she understood, really she did. “Next week.” She swallowed
disappointment. “We’ll be together the next week.”

“Dammit,
I’m coming!” he yelled again. After he calmed a second, he said, “I’ll try to
stop by your place tomorrow sometime. Maybe we can go to lunch.”

“Sure,”
she answered, although she didn’t actually think he would stop by. Besides, she
probably wouldn’t be home. She had a lot to do, but she wasn’t going to remind
of that. “Go deal with your brothers. Get some rest, too.”

“Hell
but I miss you, Cassie.” She heard the truth of it in his fatigued tone.

“Same
here, cowboy.” It would be a long night sleeping alone, again.

***

She
raced around all over town Monday trying to get a handle on what had been
decided Sunday. She’d had to meet separately with the town council members
because they hadn’t been able to get together as a group. Getting their
approval, she’d then had to meet with several of the people from yesterday
about having gotten approval on their idea. She’d had to go to the high school
to meet with the cheerleaders who wanted to pull together a last minute float
for the parade on Saturday. And the ladies of the Grangeville Society had
requested a meeting, too.

Easing
her tired body from her car, Cassie realized that she hadn’t had a second to
herself all day. Normally this was the time of day when Dalton showed up for
supper and to settle in for the night with her. No matter how stressful her
day, she always looked forward to seeing him. Tonight, though, she was ready to
drop into bed, sleep the sleep of the dead.

She
walked like a zombie into her terribly lonely feeling house. It would be that
way all week without him here. Plunking her baggy purse on the breakfast table,
she blinked back tears. Darn it all, she wanted him here. Now. She ached to
feel his big, strong arms around her. She needed to hear his voice, even if he
were just arguing with her some more.

Swiping
at a tear that slipped down her cheek, she heaved a distressed sigh. When had
she become so dependent on Dalton to be happy? Her need for him was almost
scary.

He
hadn’t managed to see her today, which hadn’t surprised her. Of course, she’d
been scrambling like a wild woman, too. Her only chance to see him had been
when their vehicles had bypassed each other earlier and they’d shared waves.

Not
enough. She needed a Dalton fix. But she was too tired to take a chance on
driving out to the ranch.

She
dug in her purse for her cell phone and sank onto a chair beside the table.
Punching in his number, she waited impatiently as it rang. One time, two,
three, four, five, at six it usually went to voicemail.

Frustration
curled through her. Why wasn’t he answering?

Just
as she was giving up and pulling the phone from her ear, Dalton growled out,
“Can’t talk now.” He disconnected before she could even open her mouth.

What
the hell!

Chapter Five

Somehow
Dalton made it to his bedroom. He’d managed to hang up his hat down in the mudroom
and toed off his boots as well. He wasn’t bothering with more than that. In
three long strides, he dropped face down on his bed, fully clothed. It was near
four in the morning and he should be getting up in another hour to start a new
day.

What
day was it anyhow? Monday? No, Tuesday, right?

As
his mind started shutting down, he vaguely thought about how he usually helped
at the ranch an hour or two before he went to his sheriff’s job. He’d even been
working that crazy schedule when he stayed in town during the week with Cassie.
He was damn tired of working both places. But he wouldn’t be doing that today.

He
shifted his head on the pillow enough to breathe better. This had been a hell
of a long day. Well,
yesterday
had been. He’d briefly checked in at the
office and then, with things quiet there, he’d helped his brothers with more of
the tasks necessary after settling in the new cattle. His body had been sore
from the extra physical exertion since Sunday when the cattle had been
delivered. He’d been ready to drop when he’d finally sat down with his brothers
for a late supper.

And
then he’d been called away on a legal matter.

Even
fuzzy brained and half asleep, his mind’s eye saw again the half dozen
practically skin and bone horses. Everyone in the area generally stayed clear
of crotchety old man Jericho Hayes. But he’d actually done a good deed for a
change. When he’d stopped by his neighbor’s ranch to complain about a stench
near his back field, he’d discovered a sickening case of animal abuse. The
ranch and its livestock had been abandoned by the nephew who had recently
inherited the place. What the man had left behind….

Dalton
tried to forget it all for now, just drift off to sleep.

But
something worried at him. Something not related to the disgusting situation
he’d just spent the night dealing with. He couldn’t quite get a handle on
whatever it was, other than sensing it was important.

And
then he was too tired to think any more about anything. He needed sleep and
lots of it. Because he knew he’d be spending a great many hours and a lot of
effort over the next few days dealing even more with the animal abuse case.

His
last semi-conscious thought was that he missed snuggling against Cassie. Except
she was unhappy with him.

***

As
Cassie got ready the next morning later than normal, she nearly stabbed her eye
with the mascara wand. Blinking and bristling, she tossed the wand into the
sink. She’d go without mascara today. She wasn’t in the mood for patiently
applying it or anything else to do with looking good. Thanks to a restless
night. Thanks to Dalton.

“Can’t
talk now.”
His blunt words and abrupt
disconnection still haunted her. Making her even more frustrated, he hadn’t
called back to explain. Sunday he’d said he missed her and that he wished he
could be with her this week. Last night when she’d finally called him,
foolishly just wanting to hear his voice, he’d not had a moment to spare for
her. Besides their continued disagreements about her being mayor and her
community involvement, this was another sign that things weren’t going well
between them.

Well,
fine. Just darn fine
.

She
strode out of the bathroom, slid her feet into her favorite sandals, and
hurried downstairs. Grabbing her bag off the table in the foyer, she stormed
out to her car. She had errands to run, including getting groceries. She hadn’t
been able to make coffee because she was out of it and that was unacceptable. A
person couldn’t start off a new day without caffeine, at least she couldn’t.

She’d
no sooner stuck her key in the ignition than three cars pulled into her long
driveway behind her. She heaved a sigh as irritation curled through her. It
wasn’t even ten o’clock! Besides, she recognized Sarah Wiggins’ shiny black
Lexus, never a good thing. Cassie had spent more than enough time yesterday
with the president of the Grangeville Society. They weren’t “good buddies” or
BFFs.

Reluctantly
she got back out of her car. Car doors opened and the dozen ladies of the
Society climbed out, all of them appearing unhappy and determined.

What
now?
She’d thought they had settled
things about the group’s participation in the upcoming community events. They
had even agreed to not get involved with planning the picnic, leaving that to
the three older ladies who were determined to coordinate it alone. What could
they possibly want to discuss today? Here, at her home.

Sarah
led the way toward her, reminding Cassie of a mother duck leading her
ducklings. The late fifty-something, always primly dressed banker’s wife looked
particularly upset. Her mouth was pinched tight and her pointy chin thrust out.
As she drew closer, she blurted out in her no-nonsense tone, “We need to have a
meeting. Now.”

Coffee.
Cassie needed caffeine—and strength—to face Sarah and
the others. “I was just going to the store. Maybe we could meet—”

“
Now
.
This is important.” Sarah stopped at the back bumper of Cassie’s smart car,
stiffened her shoulders. “We have a crisis. Going to the store can wait.”

Cassie
bristled, disliking being told what to do. She wasn’t ready to deal with a
crisis, especially without at least one cup of coffee. “I need—”

“You
need to listen to us.” Sarah was not going to be put off.

The
other women surrounded Sarah, looking supportive and equally determined. She
nodded toward a reed-thin, brunette. “Alice’s husband went by the warehouse a
short while ago. You know, the warehouse where the six floats are being
prepared for the parade this Saturday.”

“And…”
Cassie prodded when Sarah stopped for a dramatic moment.

Sarah
looked peeved at being pushed. “He called to tell her that he found every one
of the tires on the floats had been flattened.”

Not
good
. “That’s a lot of tires,” Cassie
said uneasily.
Kids? Pulling a prank?
She’d heard that some of the
teenagers around town were getting bored with school being out. Still, this
seemed extreme even for that.

“There’s
more,” another woman bluntly added, interrupting Cassie’s thoughts. “Remember
all those cases of toilet paper and fake flowers? What the high school
cheerleaders were going to use to decorate their float? Gone. All of it.
Stolen.”

Cassie
felt a headache coming on. Her stomach roiled. “Well…” She honestly didn’t know
what to say. This was vandalism to the extreme and needed to be dealt with,
especially since the parade was only days away. But what could she do?

Sarah
glared at her. “This is a serious situation. We need to discuss what
you
are going to do about it.”

“Me?”
Cassie questioned warily.

“You’re
the mayor,” Sarah reminded her as if that settled the matter.

Cassie
drew in a calming breath. She really wasn’t responsible for handling
everything
that happened in town, although lately nobody seemed to be aware of that. Maybe
Dalton was right. Maybe it was time she backed away from being mayor. But the
idea annoyed her. She
liked
being mayor, most of the time. Today…not so
much.

“This
is the kind of situation that the sheriff’s office should handle,” Cassie tried
to point out.

Sarah’s
face pinched again. The other woman who had spoken earlier said, “Alice
reported the problem to them, of course. Right after she talked to her
husband.”

“Good.”

“Not
really,” Sarah countered. “Evelyn, the dispatcher, was really rather rude. She
said they didn’t have time to deal with the matter today. Maybe tomorrow.
Maybe!
”

She
narrowed her eyes before continuing. “They’re working another situation, but
she wouldn’t explain what it was.” She glared at Cassie, like it was all her
fault action wouldn’t be taken immediately.

“Another
situation?” Was it the reason Dalton had been so sharp with her last night when
she’d called him? Still, he could have said that. Annoyance ringing in her
tone, she said, “I’m sure they will—”

“We
don’t want excuses! This problem can’t wait to be dealt with later! Whoever is
responsible for this outrageous act needs to be found and put in jail. Today.”
Sarah’s expression demanded attention. “Dalton Reede is…well, he’s…” She
blushed, uncomfortable with saying more.

“Your
lover,” one of the women offered and Sarah nodded.

Cassie
gaped at them. It wasn’t like their relationship was a secret, but really!
“Which means?”

Sarah’s
chin went higher. “It means that he will listen to you.”

She
really, really needed caffeine…maybe something stronger. “If Dalton and his
deputies are busy, they’re busy. I’m sure they will get to this matter when
they can.”

Her
answer clearly wasn’t good enough. The women began talking unhappily amongst
themselves. She thought she heard something about how Jim McAdams would make a
more responsible mayor.
He
would make sure the sheriff looked into a
criminal situation right away.

Annoyed
with them all, Cassie stood straighter and whistled to get their attention.
When they faced her in surprise, she said, “Go home, all of you. There wasn’t a
need for your whole group to come here to begin with.”

As
Sarah looked ready to protest, Cassie continued, “I’ll look into the situation
and go by the sheriff’s office.” After she went to the grocery store. After she
had a pot full of coffee.

Most
of the women appeared satisfied with her statement.

Sarah
and her two strongest supporters still frowned. “You’ll call me?” Sarah asked,
although it came out as more of an order than a question.

Cassie
gave a curt nod, turning back to her car. She eased inside and closed the door.
She was done talking to them. Unfortunately now she had to follow-up on what
she’d promised. She would have to go face Dalton in his office or wherever he
was.

***

“Oh
Dalton! Ohhhhh!”

He
suckled Cassie’s right breast and massaged the other one. His rock hard cock
was poised….

Pounding
on his bedroom door shattered the dream.
Dammit!
He couldn’t even have a
moment’s peace for a wet dream.

“What?”
he yelled out, opening his eyes in defeat.

“We
could use your help, big brother,” Parker said, sounding aggravated. “Unless
you’re planning on sleeping the whole day away.”

Dalton
glanced at the bedside alarm clock. Ten thirty. He’d gotten almost five hours
of sleep, which his body barely noticed. But he felt guilty for getting around
so late, although his brothers didn’t know he’d been out most of the night and
morning.

“What’re
you doing here? It’s too early for lunch.” He swung his legs over the side of
the bed. Slept in his clothes. He really had been out of it when he’d come up
here to crash.

“I’ve
got to run into town and pick up some more fencing. Which
you
were
supposed to do this morning.” His brother definitely sounded testy.

Dalton
strode to the door and pulled it open, scowling. “Look, I was out half the
night and morning working a case.”

When
Parker looked apologetic, Dalton calmed down. It wasn’t his brother’s fault.
“Sorry. I’m just angry as hell about the situation.”

“Anything
I can do?” Parker studied him in concern, his brow wrinkled.

Dalton
scrubbed a hand over his face. Thick bristles told him that he badly needed to
shave. He smelled pretty ripe. He needed a shower, too.

He
shook his head. “Thanks, but no. You’re busy enough here.” He drew in a breath
and felt frustration settling over him. “I’ll probably be tied up with this
mess for a day or so. Hopefully not longer than that.”

“What
mess? What happened?”

He
hated to talk about it, knew his brother would be as upset as he was. A good
rancher—which both of his brothers were—wouldn’t like hearing about something
like this. As Parker watched him patiently, he finally said, “It’s a case
involving animal abuse and abandonment.”

Parker
cursed under his breath and waited to hear more.

Once
again Dalton thought about the sickening sight he’d seen. “The city boy nephew
of Harrison Taylor that inherited his ranch… Well, he took off and left the
stock: six horses, some hogs, chickens, and four dairy cows to fend for
themselves.”

He
ground his teeth. “It looks like he’s been gone at least a couple of weeks,
maybe more.”

Parker’s
black scowl made it clear that he understood how bad the situation might be.
“Like I said, I’ll help if you need me.” He hesitated. “Craig would help, too.
You know that.”

“I
appreciate your offer, but my deputies and I will handle it.” His brothers were
good men, but they would have their hands full here what with the new cattle
and everything else to be done around the ranch. He sure wished he could stay
and do his share, but he had duties elsewhere. “I feel bad enough not helping
out here.”