Their Holiday Together: The Bachelor's Christmas Bride\The Son He Never Knew by Victoria Pade

Author:Victoria Pade
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2014-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 3

“You look like hell, Deputy Reed.”

Chase leaned over the counter and sent Sue Ellen Parker—the sixty-something Crowley County dispatcher—his best grin. “You look mighty pretty today.”

A serious blush spread across the woman’s plump cheeks. “I thought you outgrew that silver-tongued devil tactic years ago. Just goes to show, once a bad boy, always a bad boy. And I’m thinkin’ your bad boy ways may be the cause of your fatigue.”

He wouldn’t argue that point. Having Jess in his bed had prevented him from getting much rest. Sometime during the night, she’d curled up against him and it had taken all his strength not to take up where they’d left off all those years ago. Repeating past mistakes never turned out well. And if he knew what was good for him, he’d scour the county and find her a place to live before he screwed up again.

He couldn’t think of a better resource for rental property than Sue Ellen, who knew everything about everyone, just like the town gossip, Pearl Allworth. But one huge difference set the two women apart—Sue was discrete while Pearl shot rumors around town like a human AK-47.

Chase sent a glance toward the small conference room across the hall where Buck was probably bullying Jess, hoping she might break. Danny was sitting in the corridor, his legs in constant motion. He felt sorry for the kid on many levels, the first being born to a bastard like Dalton Wainwright. Now to be dragged into a mess that could land his mother in jail, that sure as hell wasn’t fair. But then life wasn’t always fair. He’d learned that through experience.

Chase walked around the counter and took a seat next to the dispatcher, determined to do what he could to help Jess and her boy. Keeping his back to Danny, he asked Sue, “Do you know anyone who has a house for rent besides Wainwright?”

She took a pen from behind her ear and tapped it on the desk. “Is the remodeling going down the toilet?”

He lowered his voice and said, “It’s not for me. It’s for Jess and Danny.”

Sue raised a penciled-in brow. “What’s wrong with that big old house she’s been living in?”

Either Sue was playing ignorant, or she really didn’t know about Dalton. “Hard to believe you haven’t heard about what happened there last night.”

She exchanged the pen for a paper clip that she began to straighten. “I’ve heard, but as soon as she’s cleared, she should be able to move back in, right?”

If she was cleared. Chase hoped that would be the case for both her and Danny’s sake. “She doesn’t want to live there, and I can’t say that I blame her.”

Sue leaned forward and in a hushed voice asked, “Do you think she did something to him?”

Chase refused to take the bait. “Now, Sue, you know I can’t talk about an ongoing investigation.” He wouldn’t even if he could, especially not with Jess involved.

She patted her tightly-curled salt-and-pepper hair. “Sorry, but I can’t help but wonder if he drove her to it.

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