Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty-Two

Abbie decided any more talk about happiness and what that meant would require a serious conversation with a particularly stubborn detective. She knew she wasn’t misreading their situation. He was attracted to her at the least. At most, he might actually have feelings for her.

She’d seen his truck and the sheriff’s truck parked out front. There weren’t any open parking spaces so she pulled in the nearest one two doors down. Nervous and racking her brain how to start this conversation, she walked up to the sheriff’s office and reached for the door when she heard the sheriff and Beau talking.

Unsure whether she should interrupt, she waited to see just how intense the conversation was when she heard her name. Eavesdropping wasn’t usually her preferred method to gain information, but in this particular case, it seemed to be perfect timing. Glancing around to make sure no one saw her skulking outside the sheriff’s door, she leaned against the brick exterior of the office and pretended to be texting on her phone, and listened.

Abbie stood there, her breath held tight in her chest, her pulse pounding in her ears. She’d been on her way to talk to Beau about how he felt about things. About the possibility of staying in Jessup Peak. About living in a small town. Making a life here. About her.

"Eventually, I’d get bored. This isn’t my scene. I’m a city cop. Always have been."

The rest of the conversation played out like a slow-motion car crash she couldn’t tear herself away from. She told herself to leave, that it wasn’t her business, but her feet refused to move. She stayed, each word cutting deeper, confirming the fears she’d been trying so hard to ignore. Beau was here on a temporary basis and he clearly had no desire to stay—for his job or her.

After a few more moments, Abbie heard the sheriff’s voice grow closer. She forced herself to move. Quickly, she slipped down the street toward her car, her heels clicking faintly on the sidewalk. Only when she was inside her car, the door firmly shut hiding her inside did she allow herself to exhale.

Her stomach churned as she sat there staring into the hardware store’s window. She wanted to be angry, to rail against the unfairness of it all. But mostly, she just felt hollow. Beau’s words had been confirmation of what she already knew deep down: he didn’t see Jessup Peak as anything more than a temporary assignment. And why would he? He belonged in a world of big cases and fast-paced action, not in a sleepy little town where people spent their evenings chasing stray goats.

As much as she wanted to be mad at him, she couldn’t blame him. He was right—this wasn’t his scene. Just like it shouldn’t be hers, but since her trip back home, she’d found herself finding reasons not to return to the fast-paced city of Manhattan. She shook off the sadness. She was just being emotional. She’d let Beau get a little too close and now it was time to get back to the business of her life.

Abbie gripped the steering wheel and stared straight ahead. She’d spent years building walls, guarding her heart against the kind of pain that came from wanting something she couldn’t have. Guarding her heart against the pain that loss always brought. And now, she realized, she’d let those walls crumble for a man who was never going to stay.

She pulled her phone from her bag, her fingers trembling as she scrolled through her contacts. Without hesitation, she dialed Missy’s number.

“Hey,” she said when her assistant picked up. “Can you book me a flight back to New York? Tomorrow. The earliest one you can find.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line. “Tomorrow? Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” Abbie said, her voice steady despite the storm raging inside her. “I’m sure.”

She ended the call, tossing her phone onto the passenger seat as she started the car. She’d have to come back for the fundraiser. She certainly wouldn’t let her grandpa go through that without her support, but between the donation organizations and the horse rescue, he had plenty of help getting the event organized.

The rented car’s engine rumbled to life, a steady sound that barely registered over the whirlwind of thoughts in her mind.

She had to leave. She couldn’t stay here, not now. Not when she knew that if she stayed, she’d be staying alone.

As she backed out of the parking space, a single tear slipped down her cheek. She wiped it away quickly, shaking her head. She wasn’t going to cry over Beau Elliott. She wasn’t going to let herself feel anything for him.

She’d go back to New York, to her job, to the life she’d built for herself. A life where she was in control, where she didn’t have to rely on anyone else. It was better this way. It had to be.

But as she drove away, the ache in her chest told her otherwise.