The Sheriff and the Mayor (8 page)

He
blew out a breath as he parked behind her ridiculous small car in her driveway.
She was exhausted, running on zip energy. Just like him. She was probably sore,
too. Although he knew she was in pretty good shape, he also knew how she must
have pushed her physical limits today to work with those young girls. He
worried about her, even if she didn’t.

He
watched her climb out of her car and glance anxiously back at him. She looked
resigned when she realized he wasn’t simply following her home, understood that
he meant to come in with her. And, no doubt, she was worried about him, too.
More specifically about what he intended to do to her. She didn’t need to worry
that he would really hurt her. He’d never do that. But he certainly planned to
burn her sweet ass.

She
didn’t wait for him, instead marched right into her house and turned on the
lights. What she didn’t do was close her front door. She might be dreading what
was about to happen, but she wasn’t refusing him entrance into her home. Relief
swept through him at that.

She
stood at the entrance to the great room with her chin tipped up, attitude
galore sparking out of her green eyes. “We’re both tired. Both feeling testy,”
she stated, boldly facing him.

“Then
let’s get to it.” He nodded toward the great room.

Just
to push his buttons, she sassed him. “I take it that you don’t mean having
quick and dirty sex.”

For
a second he blinked at her. His cock immediately hardened and that was exactly
what it wanted. He wasn’t going to be swayed by his lower brain. “Maybe later.”

“I
don’t think so, cowboy.” While she could have insisted he leave—and probably
should have, she pranced into the other room. “I really don’t know why I’m
doing this,” she muttered grumpily.

“Because
you know what a brat you’ve been acting today. Answering my calls, but hanging
up before we could talk.” That still ticked him off.

She
flipped on a table lamp and then stomped over to the window and closed the
curtains. “It was payback.”

“I
had a hell of a lot more serious matters on my mind to think about when you
called me.” He did feel a guilty, though.

“You
could have given me some kind of explanation. Something more than ‘
I can’t
talk now.’
” She faced him and he saw the hurt in her eyes.

He
sighed. “I’m real sorry about that, sweetheart.”

Some
of her bluster faded, some of the hurt as well. “But you’re still upset with
me. Still want to…”

He
gave a curt nod. They were both tired, like she’d said, so he looked directly
at her. “Pull those jeans down.”

Her
eyes widened and he saw her sharp intake of breath. He waited to see if she
would do it. This would be a telling point for them. If she didn’t obey, she
would be telling him they were essentially finished. If she did… Well, they
still might be finished.

She
seemed to barely breathe as she stepped in front of him. Her lower lip
trembled, but she undid the tight-fitting jeans and pushed them to her knees.
His mouth watered as he stared at the scrappy bit of black lace bikinis. His
heart thudded. He wanted to…

Then
she shoved the panties down as well.

He
was dumbstruck, brain dead. He could only think about sliding into her warm
body, driving deep.

Surprising
him, she snapped her fingers in front of his face. “Are we doing this or not?
Because if we aren’t, then I’m going to bed. Alone.”

He
shoved the lust aside, focused on his irritation once more. “Stretch over,
Cassie Anne.”

Now
she backpedaled. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

He
patted his knee. “Over. Now.”

What
had she been thinking provoking him like that? What was she even doing about to
slide over Dalton’s lap? To be spanked. She didn’t like getting spanked, didn’t
want to go to bed with a sore bottom. But instead of changing her mind, she
sucked up the courage to ease across his hard thighs. The denim rubbed against
her mound and she tingled low in her body. The reaction irritated her.

“Good
girl.” He nudged her forward a bit more.

“I’m
not
a girl,” she protested, although she always felt like a naughty girl
when he spanked her.

He
gently rubbed her bottom, stroked a calloused finger between her legs, and
flicked her clit. “No, darlin’, you’re definitely not a girl.”

“Stop
that.” She squirmed, uncomfortable with him discovering the moisture beading
between her lower lips. “Just do it. Spank me, I mean.”

His
hard hand landed firmly on her right buttock. She sucked in a breath. “How
about not so hard?”

Instead
of obliging her, he sent a half dozen biting smacks down. She yelped and craned
her head back to glower at him, her braid landing in her face. “I’ve changed my
mind.”

To
her surprise, he raised both hands. “Your choice.”

If
he let her up and she didn’t take this spanking, she knew there might not be
any saving their relationship. Was she actually ready to give up on them?

“I
mean it, Cassie. This is
your
choice.” His gaze held hers, but she
couldn’t read what he really felt.

“You’ll
be done with me if I don’t let you spank me.” She tried to see his reaction,
but his expression still gave nothing away.

“We
might not find our way out of this problem between us. Spanking you doesn’t
have anything to do with that.” He carefully put his hands on her slightly
tender bottom. “But I’m a spanker.”

Meaning
if they did manage to salvage their relationship, she would face spankings from
time to time. She might not like them, but they weren’t that big of a problem.
If she loved him enough to want to be with him, she would accept his ways.

She
settled back down, uncertain and confused. “I don’t know either…about staying
together or not,” she admitted. She planted her hands on the floor. “I can’t
believe I’m saying this, but spank me anyway. I probably do deserve it. And I
know you need to do it.”

She
heard his sigh of relief and then felt his body stiffen. His hands went up, and
then one came down fast and hard. He didn’t say another word; spoke only with
that hard hand. By the time he was done, she was a limp, sobbing mess draped
over his lap.

When
she’d recovered a bit, he helped her stand and helped her out of her clothes.
All of them.

Still
without speaking he bent her over the sofa he’d sat on. As she struggled to
stop sobbing and braced her hands, he shoved down his jeans. He didn’t even ask
if she was ready for him, they both knew she was. His hands gripped her waist,
she held her breath, and he rammed deep.

It
only took a few long intense thrusts before she cried out in her release. He
followed seconds later.

“I
love you, Cassie.” He pulled out of her body and eased her up as well. “But…”

He
didn’t finish the sentence, but she understood. “I love you, too, Dalton. But…”
Tears filled her eyes as he redressed and silently left her house.

It
struck her as she heard him drive away that they hadn’t used protection. Just
one more possible problem to add to the rest.

Chapter Seven

It
was finally Saturday, finally the day of the Grangeville Parade that kicked off
the bulk of the events in the town’s celebration month. Cassie wasn’t really in
the mood for a day of putting on a happy face and pretending everything was
great. Yes, the floats had gotten finished and, as far as she knew, all of the
other things involved with today were ready to go as well. Excitement was in
the air all around town.

As
she set her coffee cup on the counter and glanced around her kitchen, she felt
lower than low. She hadn’t seen or talked to Dalton since the other night, and
that hadn’t been a good time for either of them. Certainly not her. She’d slept
on her stomach and grumpily cursed him as she cried herself to sleep. He’d
spanked her and then taken her from behind, fast and quick. Sex. Not making
love. Worse, it had been
unprotected
sex. She’d also realized that
hadn’t been the only time they hadn’t taken precautions.

Tears
threatened again and she blinked them away. She didn’t have time for them. She
didn’t have time for worrying about the slim possibility that Dalton had
managed to get her with child. Something he had wanted for a long time. He
would no doubt be ecstatic if it were true. In truth, she didn’t
hate
the idea, but she’d rather have been involved in the decision to make a baby
together. Okay, maybe she had been, because she’d been fully aware of what they
were doing. She could have stopped him.

Why
didn’t you?

She
couldn’t think about that now. She was expected to be at Halley’s Hardware in a
half hour to
ooo
and
ahhh
over all of the floats before they
headed down the parade route on Main Street. This parade would be the last of
the town’s events that she would participate in. She’d talked with the town
council yesterday, something that had been difficult to do, but necessary.
She’d changed her mind about running again, partly because of the problem
between her and Dalton, partly because maybe he was right. While she liked
doing things for the community, she had taken on way too much and it was
wearing her down. After being kept so long from doing anything that her ex
hadn’t approved of—which had been nothing that didn’t make him happy, she had
wanted to do everything. She’d felt needed by the community, really needed for
the first time in her adult life.

But
the community didn’t particularly need
her
; they just needed
someone
who could be a leader, someone who cared about the town. Jim McAdams cared and
was willing to give his time. They might not agree on everything, but he would
be good for the town. It was time she moved on, focused on
her
life. And
it was time she made a firm decision about Dalton.

She
picked up the cup and took another sip of coffee. Dalton had patiently stood by
her all this time. Even though he grumbled and complained a lot about her being
the mayor, he had actually supported her. He’d listened to her and given his
opinion on matters. Yes, they often hadn’t agreed, but he’d been there for her.

Her
heart pinched as she admitted to herself that he’d been there for her, but she
hadn’t really been there for him. Not like he wanted and needed her to be. At
this point in his life, he was tired of dating around. He was ready to get
married and start a family.

A
tear trickled down her cheek and she dashed it away with one hand and set the
cup down again with the other. Dalton deserved better than a woman who had
burst free of an abusive marriage and been running scared from taking a chance
on another marriage. She wasn’t sure she would ever stop having the occasional
nightmare about what she’d endured. But Dalton had held her and comforted her
as she’d cried out in terror from one awful memory or another when they’d slept
together. She hadn’t wanted to burden him with her emotional baggage. She’d
told him time and again that if he found someone else…

Her
bottom clenched and unclenched. She remembered how he’d glowered at her for
even saying such a thing. A time or two he’d even spanked her for it. Her big,
sometimes gruff cowboy had one hard hand and he definitely knew how to use it.
Her
cowboy
. Yes, darn it. Dalton Reede
was
hers. Could be hers. If she
dug up the courage to fight for him. If she stopped running away from what she
really wanted.

A
glance at the clock on the stove warned her she had absolutely no more time for
thinking. She needed to go fulfill her duty as mayor. And then, as she’d told
the town council, she was leaving town for at least a week. She needed to pack
up her art materials and go stay somewhere with no distractions. Her showing
was coming up all too fast. As Dalton had been telling her, she had to focus if
she wanted to do this and wanted to finally take her artwork seriously. She
did. But, now she realized she also needed to spend serious time figuring out
how to win back the man she had recently hurt so badly.

***

“Aren’t
you going to the parade?” Evelyn asked from where she stood at the window in
the Sheriff’s Office. “If I didn’t have to listen for the phone, I sure would
be out there on the sidewalk. It looks like most of the townsfolk are lining
up, waiting for the parade.”

Dalton
sat behind his desk, straightening and re-straightening the files and small
notes in front of him. He hadn’t looked at any of them since he’d come in here
an hour ago. He didn’t want to be here, but he didn’t want to be at the ranch
either. He didn’t know where the hell he wanted to be…other than
not
watching the parade. It was a reminder of all the differences between him and
Cassie. A reminder of all the things she did that kept them apart. She gave
everyone else and everything else her time. He felt like he was last in her
life.

“Go
on out and watch. I’ll deal with the phone,” he said, forcing his problems
aside. “You’ve been looking forward to this. I haven’t.”

She
marched into his doorway, stopped with her hands on her hips. “Dalton Reede,
I’m sick and tired of you sulking around here. So are your deputies.” She
huffed in disgust. “I imagine your brothers are, too.”

He
scowled at her, but didn’t counter what she’d said. He knew everyone was
steering clear of him. His brothers had all but ordered him to leave the ranch,
tired of his grouching around.

“I
would think you’d be doing a happy dance at getting your way.” She shook her
head, her mouth thinning in displeasure. “Most of us around here are real sad,
though.”

“What
are you talking about?” He had been so involved with the animal abuse case and
then basically licking his wounds after walking away from Cassie two nights ago
that clearly he’d missed something.

Evelyn
studied him for a second and in the background he heard the high school band
tuning up down the street. “You don’t know, do you? Buried in your troubles.
Oblivious to what’s going on in town. Sad, Dalton. That’s really sad.”

He
blew out a breath. “Just tell me what you’re talking about. I’m not in the mood
to play games.”

At
first he didn’t think she would answer him. She could be as stubborn as he at
times, especially when she was unhappy with him. Then she looked straight at
him and said, “Cassie pulled out of the upcoming mayoral race. She told the
town council yesterday.”

Dalton
felt gut-punched. “She’s not running again?” Odd, he didn’t feel as good about
that as he’d thought he would. “Why the devil did she do that?”

The
sound of excited voices out on the sidewalk became louder. Evelyn looked torn
between wanting to tell him more and wanting to go watch the parade. She turned
away, said over her shoulder, “Surely a sharp man like you can figure it out.
You finally wore her down.” With that, she walked out of the office.

He
sat dumbstruck. He’d gotten what he’d been telling Cassie he wanted. She’d
changed her mind, again, about running for the community job that kept her so
busy and kept her from focusing on her budding art career. And it was a
distraction that kept her from committing
to him
, to building a life
together and having a family. He should be over-the-top happy about this change
of events. Why the hell wasn’t he?

His
mind shifted back to ‘having a family.’

A
family!
He’d been mentally kicking
himself for the last two days. How could he have been so stupid to have had unprotected
sex with Cassie? Obviously he’d been thinking with his lower brain. He’d been
desperate to make love with her again. But they
hadn’t
made love. He’d
all but forced himself on her in a rash moment of need.
Damn, damn, damn!

He
ground his teeth in frustration. She could have told him
No
and he
wouldn’t have taken her. At least he hoped he would have had the sense to back
away and do what was right.

But
she hadn’t stopped him, not even long enough to remind him to use a condom.
There was probably only a slim chance that he’d gotten her pregnant. He prayed
he hadn’t. As much as he wanted children with her, he needed for it to be a
decision they made together. If she were pregnant, they would deal with
it…together.

Sick
with the idea of what he’d done, of maybe having completely blown his chance to
ever have something good and forever between them, he angrily shoved all of the
files from his desk.

Well,
hell!

He
looked in disgust at the mess he’d made. His whole damn life was a mess. This
had to end. Neither of them could continue on this way. Did that mean he was
willing to let her go, stop trying to maneuver her into agreeing to marry him?
Could he accept that the best he could hope for with her was their being
lovers?

Closing
his eyes, he slumped, admitting defeat.

Yes,
he would accept whatever she was willing to give him. What he couldn’t do was
live without her. It was time he did some compromising. He needed to prove to
her exactly how much she meant to him. Maybe he’d even convince her to run again
for mayor.

No.
No, he wouldn’t do that. But if she changed her mind,
again, he would support her and stop being so damn negative.

He
pulled his cell phone from the clip on his belt and speed-dialed Parker. The
instant his brother answered he said bluntly, “I need you to come work for me
here today.”

“I’ll
be there in an hour.” Parker didn’t even ask why he needed him and Dalton was
glad he didn’t have to explain.

***

“What
do you mean you’re leaving town?” Rachel asked, gaping at Cassie. “Tomorrow?”
She puffed up in anger. “Is this about Dalton? I swear I’m—”

“He’s
a good man,” Cassie interrupted as she stood beside the high school’s float at
the end of Main Street that she’d just climbed off of. She’d spent the last
hour smiling so much her cheeks hurt. She’d hoped to at least see Dalton pop
his head out of the Sheriff’s Office when the float had passed by there. He
hadn’t. Stubborn man. She’d been certain he was there because Evelyn and the
deputies had been outside with the crowd watching the parade. “I’ve hurt him.”

Rachel
didn’t deny it, but she sighed and looked worried. “I hate to see you two this
way. You love each other, I know it.”

Cassie
nodded. “I’ve been frightened of… Well, of really letting another man get close
to me. Of making another mistake.”

“Dalton
would never—”

“No
he wouldn’t ever hit me and I know that, in my heart I know it. I have known it
for a while.” He would turn her over his knee, spank her good and hard from
time to time, but what he did was never abuse. Nothing at all like she’d
suffered in her marriage.

She
gave her worried friend a smile. “I’m done fighting my feelings for him. Now
I’m going to fight
for him
. At least after I get back from this short
retreat away that I absolutely must do.”

Rachel
looked relieved yet still concerned. “What if he doesn’t understand why you’re
going away? What if it just makes things worse between you?”

Cassie
was worried, too, but she had to do this. If she stayed in town, people would
continue coming to her about every little thing about the other upcoming town
events. She wouldn’t be able to paint in peace.

When
she got back, she would fix things with Dalton.

***

Leaving.
Cassie was leaving town
. He’d run
into Rachel and her family when he’d finally had a chance to search the parade
route for her after Parker had arrived to handle his duties. Rachel had been
reluctant to tell him about Cassie planning to go away somewhere tomorrow. He’d
panicked, his gut clenched in dread. He’d growled his frustration and said
things he didn’t mean. Fortunately Jim had walked up and taken him aside. He’d
told him to stop acting like a damn fool, by avoiding Cassie and now by
snarling around because she was finally getting around to focusing on her show
next month.

Dalton
felt calmer now, but he still worried about her leaving without their talking
first. He needed to apologize, grovel, whatever it took to get back on her good
side. More than anything he needed to hold her in his arms.