Chapter One #2
“Okay, Miss Sharon, let’s get you into the car. I’ll turn the heat up and get you warm in no time.”
Climbing into the passenger seat, she pulled the seatbelt across her body with hands stiff from the cold.
Within seconds, the tall stranger slid behind the wheel of the cruiser and adjusted the heat, and she almost groaned at the feel of warm air hitting her sensitized skin.
She was so cold. It seemed like forever since she’d been warm.
The last place she could remember was the women’s homeless shelter, where she’d spent a couple of nights before Cooper’s men caught up to her.
She’d ended up sneaking away in the dead of night and done something she never thought she’d do—stolen a car.
It had been a crummy old hunk of junk, an older model, and she’d had no idea what she was doing, but she’d pulled a handful of wires from beneath the dash and did what she’d seen a thousand times in the movies and on television, fumbling with the wad of different colored wires, and somehow she’d managed to get it started.
Unfortunately, the heat hadn’t worked, and the passenger side window didn’t roll up all the way, so she’d been freezing for hours.
Still, it had gotten her away from San Antonio and Cooper’s men, which made it a golden chariot as far as she’d been concerned.
Biting back a hysterical laugh, she wondered if it had been reported stolen by its owner.
She’d abandoned it earlier that day when she’d run out of gas, and didn’t have enough money to buy more.
What meager funds she still had she was saving to buy food.
So far, she’d managed to make do, eating only once a day, but within a couple of days, she’d be broke and completely destitute, unless she could somehow find a job.
Good luck with that, dummy. Who’s going to hire a stranger in a small town? One who can’t claim an address or even clean clothes. Cooper or his men are going to catch up to me, and he’s going to kill me.
As they drove, Sharon stole glances at the deputy. He seemed kind, even warm in his quiet demeanor. But she couldn’t afford to let her guard down. Too much was at stake. The envelope in her pocket felt like a lead weight against her chest, its contents the only lifeline she had left.
“Do you know anybody in Shiloh Springs?” She shook her head at his softly voiced question. “Well, we’ll get your broken-down car straightened out this morning. Town’s got an excellent mechanic, and he can get your car towed in. I’ll make sure he puts a rush on it.”
“I appreciate it, um, Deputy…” She trailed off, realizing she couldn’t remember his name. Not that she needed to, she wasn’t planning on sticking around longer than it took to get warm, maybe grab something to eat, and then hit the bricks, getting as far away from the handsome deputy as she could.
“Dusty Warner.” The smile he directed at her was warm and friendly, and it struck her straight in her core. It had her wondering when the last time anybody looked at her judgment-free and friendly, simply because. “Need anything more than a warm place?” he asked, his tone sincere.
She turned to him, her throat tightening at the unexpected offer of help. “No,” she whispered, the lie burning in her throat. “Thank you.”
“It’s still a bit early. I know country folks tend to rise with the sun, but we’re probably going to need to give Frank a little longer to get up and at ’em.
There’s a great bakery in town, makes the best cinnamon rolls you’ve ever tasted.
I’m headed that way. How about I treat you to one of Jill’s rolls and a cup of coffee?
” The growl of her stomach answered his question, and he chuckled. “I’ll take that’s a yes.”
“Seems like I keep saying thanks to you this morning, Deputy Warner.”
“Please call me Dusty. Nobody in town calls me Deputy Warner. Shoot, folks probably wouldn’t know who you were talking about if you call me by that name.”
“Sounds like a wonderful place to live.” Nothing like Chicago, where she lived.
Had lived. She sighed, wondering if she’d ever see her home again.
Not that she had anything to go back to.
A sterile condo. Few friends outside of work, and those she’d worked with all turned their backs on her when she’d been tarnished by scandal. Cooper had made sure of that.
“Shiloh Springs is a wonderful place to live. Of course, I might be a little prejudiced, because I’ve been here long enough to get to know all the folks around here, and they are the best.”
The town lights of Shiloh Springs came into view, their festive red-and-green holiday glow a cruel reminder of a normal life she could never return to.
Clenching her hands into fists, determination hardened her resolve.
She would survive this. It wasn’t like she had a choice.
She was in a fight for her life, and she wasn’t about to lose—not to a lying, deceitful wretch like Cooper Madison.
Somehow, she’d find a way to prove her innocence and bring him down.