Chapter Nine

"He's not even a veteran," Everlee told Shane. "Butch never served anyone but himself, and he's been an addict for years. He's a thief. Stolen valor. None of those medals he's wearing are his, neither's the uniform. His mom probably bought the stuff for him at the Army/Navy surplus thrift store. She's an enabler, treats him like he's still her baby boy. Guess that's what happens to moms when they only have one kid."

"Not so," Shane said quietly. "I was my mother's only child, but we were always a team, the two of us. It was us against the world, and I'm no baby."

That was for sure. "Where's your dad?"

"Don't know. Mom never said. He left when I was a little kid." Shane shrugged like that was no big deal. "How about you? Did you live in Washington all your life before you moved here?"

"Yes, born and raised. Lived in Fife with my parents until I joined the Air Force. First assignment was JBL, Joint Base Lewis McCord. Married badly, as you just saw." She ran a hand through her bangs, then over her head to the back of her neck. "Divorced quickly. Had a chance to start over at JB Elmendorf-Richardson up north, so I took it. Best decision I ever made."

Well, second best. Leaving home was first, always would be. But there was no way she'd ever tell Shane why she'd really joined the Air Force, or how thrilled she'd been to finally put on Air Force blues. The day she'd enlisted was the day she'd put the past behind her, and in the process, gained a real family she could rely on, and saved herself. All those Disney princesses had it wrong. Waiting around, pining for some Prince Charming to stumble by was stupid. Smart women did not do that.

"You liked Alaska?"

"Loved it. I'd go back in a second, but there's not much decent work for civilians up north, and nobody has benefits or pays as good as Alex."

"So now you run down bad guys."

It might've seemed like a trite thing to say, but Everlee caught the ring of pride in Shane's statement. "Yes, and I'll do it again, anytime, anywhere. Finch had it coming. He killed two little kids while fleeing arrest. Just ran them over like they were garbage in his way. No slowing down. No remorse. And they were in a school crosswalk! The bastard was on the street selling his shit the same freakin' night."

"That's something to be proud of, what you did."

"Well, of course. And I am. I'm not always a klutz, you know."

Shane slowed his truck, then turned into the overflowing parking lot of a small barn painted white and black, Holstein cow colors. The neon sign in the shape of a giant ice cream cone that commandeered the peak of the barn declared: Farmer Boyz. Best Ice Cream in the State.

Strings of Christmas-colored lights glowed from the eaves, outlining the repurposed barn in dazzling reds, blues, yellows, and greens. Even the black spinning rooster weathervane at the uppermost point of the roof was fitted with tiny, sparkling white lights. A small crowd waited patiently in lines at the four front windows.

"Sit tight," Shane said as he pulled around the building to the opposite side.

Well, hello there, drive-up window. "I had no idea this place was even here, and it's so close to where I live. How'd you find it and I didn't?"

"Maybe because I'm parked over there." He stuck his chin at the RV park across the street. "My rig, I mean."

Interesting. Shane lived less than a mile from Arlington Heights. That put him less than ten minutes from TEAM HQ. "You live in a trailer? Like an RV?"

"No, like a fifth-wheel rig. It's on blocks for now. Got the wheels covered to protect them from sun damage, even installed skirting this time. Where'd you stay in Anchorage? Officers' Quarters?"

"Nah, nothing as fun as a travel trailer, either. I had my own apartment."

"What's up with your ex?"

She blew out a tired breath. "Long story, short, we met just before I joined the Air Force. Didn't take long to wise up. We were together six and a half months, only married five. After the divorce, I got myself reassigned to Alaska, and he stalked me to Anchorage. You'd think he'd learn. Hell, you'd think I'd learn. We're over, but he keeps whining and trying."

"He ever hurt you?"

Everlee ran a hand over her hair, fluffing the coppery-colors at the same time she wanted to tear it out. "Not a conversation for tonight, sorry." Her marriage and her messed-up family were the last things she wanted to discuss with Shane. Talk about buzzkills.

After waiting behind three cars full of kids, Shane pulled up to the take-out window. The freckle-faced teenage girl there handed him a stack of napkins and cheerfully said, "Hi, Shane! I was hoping you'd come by tonight." She nodded at Everlee. "He's one of my favorite regulars. Are the dogs with you?"

Everlee liked this girl. "Sure, they're in the back seat. Hey, I'm Everlee. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too. I'm Hailey. His dogs are so cute. Hi, Dolly! Hi, Molly!" She handed Shane two dog biscuits. "What'll it be? The usual?"

He passed the dog treats to Everlee. "Yes, one medium vanilla cone, please. Also…"

With one knee on the seat, she leaned across his lap and told Hailey, "One small chocolate fudge brownie on a waffle cone, please."

"Coming right up!"

In the short time it took to give the order, Shane's much larger hand landed on the small of her back as if he thought he needed to steady her. Which he didn't. Not really. Everlee wasn't in danger of slipping, but the warmth of his hand was too good to ignore. And somewhere along the line, her palm had ended up on his muscular thigh.

A thrill ran up her spine. Everlee froze where she'd perched. They were so close. Eye to eye. Nearly mouth to mouth. Shane was so much larger than her, and man, was he beautiful. The familiar scent of starch mingled with manly deodorant lifted up from his body and wrapped around them like an inviting, intimate bubble.

This was that magic moment when one of them should either back off or dive in. It wasn't going to be Shane. He hadn't moved a muscle, but he was still looking at her. Sharing her air. Holding her still. Her heart skipped a beat. The color of his eyes was such a deep, dark, intoxicating blue that a girl could get lost in there. Without thinking, the tip of her tongue snuck a quick taste of her lips. Wetting them. Teasing him.

Everlee was caught between doing something incredibly brave and kissing him, or chickening out and tipping back to her butt and out of his comfort zone—like she should. But what would his lips taste like? And why was he still touching her? Holding her? She wasn't falling, but he hadn't yet pulled his hand back. Instead he'd splayed his fingers. Did he want more? She was certainly willing to explore whatever was happening between them. Ever since he'd collapsed from that panic attack, she'd been dying to hold him and—

"That'll be seven dollars and thirty-seven cents!"

As if he hadn't felt anything, Shane jerked his hand away, and Everlee sank back in her seat. There. Over and done. Magic moment gone. Pffft. Just that fast they were teammates again. Nothing more. Darn Hailey.

While Shane handed a credit card over and chatted with the teenager with a crush, Everlee turned around and gave his girls in the back seat their treats. Both were waggling their tails, a hundred percent focused on Shane. Everlee knew how they felt.

That did it. The second she got home, she was losing that darned orthopedic boot, and tomorrow, bright and early, before work, she'd start running again. Maybe not her usual five miles, but she'd long enough to work up a good sweat and feel the burn in her thigh and posterior muscles again. She'd been sitting too much. All this recovery time was killing her, making her crazy and lazy. It was time to get her life back on track.

After Shane passed the gooey fudge cone to Everlee, he drove across the street and slowly through the RV park. Impressive. The individual camping sites were clean, shady, and private. There were only ten parking pads on each of the five, narrow one-way asphalt loops. It was more like driving through tunnels of giant sycamores lining the roads. Freshly cut green grass surrounded each long asphalt pad. Thick shrubbery separated them. There were enough trees that, except for the bright yellow and black welcome sign, the RV park was nearly hidden from the street. Everlee hadn't known it was there until Shane pointed it out.

"This here's my rig," he said as he pulled alongside a twenty-something foot-long fifth-wheel and shifted into PARK. Two empty dog crates sat side-by-side on the wooden porch. A green-and-white striped canvas awning extended from his rig over the crates. The fifth wheel's porch light was on, making everything look well-kept and homey, not traits she usually attributed to men.

"Looks nice," Everlee offered indifferently.

He wasn't inviting her in and this wasn't a date. They were teammates, that was all. Even if he did invite her in, it wasn't because he wanted her in his bed. She wasn't falling for this guy. Wouldn't even consider it. Nope. Teammates. Just teammates.

He kept the truck running while they finished their treat. She refused to play with her food in any way that might be suggestive. Didn't swirl her tongue over the tip. Didn't lick it, suck it, or pucker her lips over the melting blunt mass of it. Didn't look to see if Shane was watching, either. Nope. Just bit into all that rich, gooey goodness, and swallow by swallow, she ate that cone as fast as Molly and Dolly had eaten their dog biscuits. While she looked out the window.

Because Everlee knew men. She'd worked around them all her Air Force career. Every little thing a woman did with her mouth and lips could be construed as a sexual come-on. She suffered through a killer brain freeze, but at last, her ice cream was gone. Only the waffle cone remained when she turned back to Shane.

He wasn't watching her. Wasn't even turned her way. Just sat staring at his rig, licking his ice cream cone slowly, the tip of his tongue flattened to catch any drips before they melted over the edge.

Big mistake. Now it was her mind imagining all the things he could do with his tongue and those straight, white teeth. Those nimble fingers. Unfastening her seatbelt, she turned to watch him. He had no idea of the suggestive show he was giving her. There was something melancholy about the way his tongue lapped over and around the ice cream. He wasn't enjoying the treat. Just licking it out of habit, just because it was there.

"A penny for your thoughts," she murmured before she crunched the last of her cone into her mouth and swallowed it.

He shook his head, not telling her no, as much as shaking his mind out of wherever he'd gone. "Just thinking. I need to fill the propane tanks, but it can wait until we get back."

"Let's do that now. I've got time."

He shook his head again, still not facing her. "No. It'll wait." It was as if something heavy was now sitting between them. "I should get you home. Think your ex is gone by now?"

Shane turned to her then, his lips full and shiny and just-kissed wet. Okay, so he'd done the licking and she hadn't kissed him, but the moment was gone, and he was right. They had a job to do. It was time to go home.

So she told him, "Yes, Butch never hangs around for long."

And Shane drove her back to her apartment. When he dropped her at her building's rear entrance instead of the Dumpster, Everlee didn't wait for him to open her door. Just climbed out of the truck, put both boots firmly on the ground, then looked across the seat and told him, "Thanks for the ride. See you tomorrow."

"Alex's office," he reminded her.

She gave him a curt nod. Shutting the truck door firmly, she hurried around the rear of it in case he wanted to drive away. She wouldn't blame him if he did. The whole damned day had been one disaster after another. By the time she was on his side of the truck, Shane was on the ground waiting for her.

"Goodnight," she told him in passing. "Thanks for the treat, too. Next time, my turn."

He fell in step alongside her. "Glad your ex decided not to hang around."

"Yeah, I'll have to warn the complex managers he's been here. That ought to be fun."

"You can always stay at my place."

Everlee shook her head. "Nope, I'm good. Been dealing with Butch for years. He's not going to hurt me." Because I'll shoot him the next time he does.