Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
SHERIFF HUDSON
Igrip Travis’s key in my hand. He let her drive his truck. That man is obsessed with his truck, and he just gave Kindred the keys? I’ll have to keep an eye on him, maybe have a few words.
I stare at the slammed door. I think I do better when I don’t speak at all, but her hand stroking my chest had me wanting to grab her wrist and pull her back. I didn’t trust myself inside her house right now, and I’m not sure whether she actually wanted me there or was just being polite.
Kindred can be a smart-ass and talk a big game, but she’s always doing the right thing for others.
It’s how she is. That is why the town loves her so much.
You can’t be a real brat and get that kind of adoration.
The woman has a sweetness that is unmatched.
It’s rare in the world, or it has been in mine.
I know she’s up to something, and I’m sure she’s dragged Candy into it. I pull out my phone and fire off a text to Hollis before pulling up the app with the cameras.
The thing is, once I started thinking it over, I knew I wouldn’t have installed those cameras and missed a single inch of her property.
I think someone moved them. I’ll have to go back to check.
It had to have been when she wasn’t home, or I would have checked the footage when the movement happened.
It’s always some kind of animal for the most part.
I might be overthinking this, but you can never be too sure.
You let your guard down, and that’s when shit happens.
I was sure Travis was gay, but here I am thinking of ways to dispose of his body.
I could have the whole bar shut down and pull the licenses.
Not really sure how you do that, but I could figure it out. Then Kindred would kill me.
I go ahead and call Rusty to see if he can have one of the boys at the shop come take Travis’s truck back. I toss the key under the driver’s seat when he tells me he’ll handle it.
Hollis: They are going out to dinner.
Me: You sure?
Hollis: What my girl said, and she’s a terrible liar.
I slip my phone back into my pocket when Kindred steps back out.
She’s changed her coat to a long one that’s mid-calf, letting me get a real good look at the boots she has on that disappear up into the coat.
I can’t help but think of her completely naked under there except for a tiny pair of panties. Which ones would she wear?
“You got a date?”
“You never know how the night might go.” She shoots me a smirk. It’s not her normal one. This one feels flirty and sexy, but my mind is likely fucking with me because all the blood in my body has gone straight to my dick. I open the passenger door for her. “Thanks,” Kindred says, slipping in.
When I slide into the driver's seat, the dome light is on, and I see Kindred's bare knee and part of her thigh, the coat having slipped open. She’s honestly trying to kill me. How the heck am I going to last all night knowing she’s roaming around dressed like this?
Don’t get me wrong; she looks absolutely stunning, but it should be for my eyes only.
“What do you have on under there?” I bark before I can check myself. She snaps her head toward me, narrowing her eyes.
“Don’t go all big brother on me. It’s a dress.”
“I’m not your brother, so get that shit out of your head.” I throw my cruiser into drive harder than I should.
“Don’t be a jerkoff.” No, that’s what I need to do. I need to get away from her and jerk off so I can straighten my head back out so I’m not barking at her. “I’m always wearing dresses. You know that.”
She does, and I enjoy the fuck out of it. Though a pair of skin-tight jeans on her isn’t bad either. All of those delectable curves on display. One day soon, I’ll trace every inch of them with my mouth.
I remain silent for a few streets. “To Candy’s place?”
“No, she’s meeting me at Nevicare, so you can drop me there.” That’s the Italian place in town. It’s one of the nicer restaurants. We fall into silence until we pull up outside the restaurant. “Thanks.”
Kindred reaches for the handle, but I bring my hand down on that bare thigh of hers, right above the knee. She freezes.
“I didn’t mean to snap at you.” She nods. “Cupcake, I—”
“It’s just the things you say sometimes, Hudson. I don’t—”
“Hudson.” My fingers ever so subtly stroke the inside of her thigh. Fuck, she’s soft everywhere. “Call me Cash.” I don’t know why, but suddenly I want to hear my first name from her lips. Everyone calls me Hudson. They have since I entered the Army, but Kindred’s different.
“You want me to call you Cash?” I touch her softly, and she relaxes, letting her hand drop from the door handle.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Not really sure.” I’m still trying to fully understand it myself, and I likely never will. That’s the thing when it comes to Kindred—I don’t understand all the things going on inside of me.
She stares at me for a long moment. “All right, Cash.” A soft smile plays on her lips. “It’s not the snapping that bothers me. It’s what you say.”
“I don’t want to do either. The snapping or words that hurt you.” Kindred turns slightly to face me more.
“I might enjoy it when you’re a little grumpy.” She holds up her fingers, showing way more than a pinch, which I would take as more than a little, but I’ll take her word for it. I don’t seem to be too good at understanding her at times.
“I don’t want to be an asshole.” My father was an asshole for no reason. A mean son of a bitch.
“You’re not an asshole. I don’t think you ever intend harm with what you’re saying.”
“That’s the thing, Cupcake. I have never in my life uttered a word that I thought might hurt you.” I would sooner cut out my tongue.
“You mean that?”
“We might go around and around, but I adore you.” I would tell her I love her antics, but they don’t need any encouragement. "I'm trying to be better with understanding."
"You're not good with the opposite sex. That's why you're reading those dirty romance books." There is a playfulness to her tone.
"Yes."
A full smile lights up her face. "Not even shy or embarrassed about it. You know—" She tips her head to the side. "I kinda adore that about you too. A lot of men would be embarrassed."
"If you want something in life, you have to find a way to work toward it." Sure, the library books might not be much, but it's better than nothing. Even if I don't learn shit from them at the end of the day, I know Kindred enjoys reading them. I'll start us a book club of only two. Exclusive.
"And you want what most others want in New Hope. The whole family with a wife, a few kids, and maybe a couple of kittens." I shrug. That all does sound nice, but what I want is her. "Are you bringing a date to the wedding?"
"No." I fight not to growl out my answer.
"Do you know what one is?" She laughs. I guess I didn't suppress that growl real well.
"I hadn't given it all that much thought. Like I said, I didn't know you were supposed to bring a date to begin with. It would be nice if you went with me."
"You'd want to go together?"
"Don't see why not. You don't have a date." Her brows rise. Shit. "I said that wrong. God knows you could have a million dates if you wanted." Well, maybe not. They'd be dead before they could show up for it.
"You think I'm that big of a catch?" Now she's smirking and wiggling around in her seat.
When Kindred gets excited or pleased about something, she can never sit still. Fucking adorable. It's on the list of all the things she does that work for me. I think anyone else wiggling all around next to me would be annoying.
"You are." Kindred's eyes assess me.
In my second year in the Army, the cartel captured my team while we were conducting an intelligence operation. Being tied to a chair and interrogated was less stressful than wondering what she is thinking while eyeing me up, and I'm guessing it's not a simple death like the cartel would give you.
"We can go together. I think a date would be better than reading about one in books.
I mean, you can keep reading them. I peeked at the pirate book you got and—" Kindred trails off.
It's dim inside my cruiser, but I swear she's blushing.
I haven't seen Kindred be shy about anything.
I need to read that one next. I wasn't sure how I could relate a pirate romance to real life, so it had been at the bottom of the pile. Now that I know she’s interested in it, so am I.
"So it's a date?"
“We’ll talk later.” To my surprise, she leans over and presses a kiss to my cheek. Her warm, soft, pillowy lips on my skin go straight to my dick. It takes everything in me not to turn my head and take her mouth.
I reluctantly let her knee go and watch her hug Candy before they go inside the restaurant together.
I don't know how long I sit there, but I make myself pull away from the curb.
If I'm going to stalk her, I should be better at it than sitting out front, fully noticeable.
But then again, the things I've been doing up until now haven't been working.
That might be the key. I should try them all a whole lot differently.