Chapter 3
“Nick? Nick, where are you?”Grant willed his heart to remain calm. He couldn’t panic, not after he’d gotten in that argument with the deputy. If she saw him rushing around calling for his son, he’d get another earful.
“Nick!” he hollered a bit sharper. “Where are you, kid? You know you have to tell me where you’re going.”
Rocky Ridge was a small town. There were only so many places the kid could hide—even in town square. Sure, for the last week there had been a few incidents that had raised some brows, but that didn’t mean Nick was in danger.
Grant ducked to look under his truck and peered in the back of the bed. He opened the doors only to find the cab empty.
Next, he hunted around the statue and at the nearby park. When he couldn’t find Nick there, he started down the street to look in the stores. Already he was torn between wanting to tear that kid a new one and pulling him into his arms so he could never escape again.
“Nick!” he yelled once again just as the deputy’s car drove down the street toward him. The vehicle was slowing. Great. She could tell. He didn’t know how, but she knew he was looking for his kid.
He stopped with exasperation. Well, at least he could ask her for help.
Grant strode toward the car as it came to a stop next to the curb and the window rolled down. That was when he noticed the small child in the back seat.
“You have got to be kidding me!” Grant ducked down and stared at the deputy. “What are you doing? Is this some scared-straight bull?—”
A sharp look from the deputy had him biting his tongue. Instead, he yanked open the back door and glowered at her from behind. “I never gave you permission to take my son. I wasn’t going to say anything to anyone, but I think I’m going to have to file a complaint?—”
Officer Whitfield’s mouth fell open and she jerked her car into park before she shoved the door open and gave him a withering look. “Excuse me? I would never. You need to give your child a talk about stranger danger. Maybe explain why it’s not such a good idea to climb into an unknown person’s vehicle without asking you first.”
Before Grant could snap at her, Nick interrupted him.
“But I do know you.”
Both Grant and the officer turned their attention toward Nick.
He grinned. “You’re a police officer. We’re taught at school that if we’re scared or lost, we can find a police officer and they will help us.”
Grant couldn’t help but be proud of Nick for putting the woman in her place. On the other hand, even he knew Nick hadn’t been lost. This whole situation had been intentional. He swung his gaze back to the deputy and bit back a smirk when he witnessed the frustration filling her expression.
Nick continued. “You have the coolest car. Dad, can we take a ride with her? It can go over a hundred miles an hour, but Officer Whitfield said we couldn’t because we weren’t in a police chase. So, we just went the boring speed limit.” Nick clamored out of the squad car and hopped from one foot to the other, tugging on Grant’s wrist as he stood beside him on the sidewalk.
Why was this happening? Didn’t Grant already have enough going on? He couldn’t just have one week where everything went according to plan? Heck, he’d be happy to have a single day where everything happened the way it should.
Based on the interaction they’d had with Officer Whitfield, he couldn’t imagine that this situation would turn out well at all. There was only one way out of this.
Grant took ahold of his son’s hand and dropped down to his level. “Nick, what you did wasn’t okay. You can’t just go running off like that. Police officers are there for emergencies, and that’s not what had happened.” He glanced toward the officer, noting that her expression had softened slightly, before returning his attention to his son. “You need to apologize to the deputy. She’s working right now and I’m sure she has better places to be.”
The radio crackled but it was clear enough for Grant to hear the person on the other end say “Sagebrush.”
Slowly, he got to his feet. If she was being called out to Sagebrush, that meant the recent vandalism problems were still occurring there.
The officer lifted her radio to her lips. “Copy. This is Deputy Whitfield. I can head that way.” Her eyes cut to Grant. “As it so happens, I’m on my way to Sagebrush Ranch.” Her eyes softened further as she dipped her focus to Nick. “I suppose I could take you along if that’s where your dad is headed.” Her gaze locked with Grant’s. “With your permission, of course.”
He didn’t hesitate because he was worried that Nick wouldn’t be safe. What was safer than spending time with an officer of the law? It was the sour interaction he’d had with the deputy that fueled his desire to refuse.
Grant’s gaze dropped to Nick, who was once again bouncing from foot to foot. “Please, can I? That would be so cool. Then I could tell Sawyer at school that I got to ride in a real police car.”
If it wasn’t for the pair of large eyes that resembled the kid’s mother’s, Grant might have been able to turn him down. No one had warned him how hard it was to say no to a kid. He was still so new to this parenting gig.
A sigh burst from his lips, and he shot a pointed look at the officer. “Fine. But I’m going to need a badge number.” He turned his sharp gaze to his son. “And the second you get back to the ranch, you’re going straight to your room. End of discussion.”
Nick darted past him, but Grant grabbed hold of his shoulder, successfully stopping him from climbing into the car.
“I mean it, kid. You’re not to go wandering off. I set up that room for you so you have a place all to yourself. I need you to promise me that you will go straight home.”
Nick nodded vehemently. “I promise, Dad. Straight home.” Nick threw his arms around Grant and then climbed into the car.
The awkwardness between himself and the deputy had continued to grow throughout the conversation. He could thank her for bringing his son back and not pointing out Grant’s every mistake. He could even thank her for taking his son on the ride he desperately wanted. At the moment, he didn’t know what the proper response would be.
She glanced over her shoulder and turned around to face him through the window. “I’m sure you had quite the scare back there.”
“Yeah…” he said.
“I shouldn’t have to point out that you didn’t exactly have eyes on him.”
Grant frowned. “Then don’t.”
Her words solidified one thing: He didn’t have to thank her for anything. She was still clearly judging him for how he was doing as a parent. Well, he’d like to see how well she could do if she was new to all of this.
She tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. “However, I’ll admit, if my superiors knew that I’d let a child into my backseat without noticing them, I would likely get a stern talking-to.” She flushed and glanced up at him. “While I still firmly believe everything I said earlier, I can admit when a child is a bit much to handle.”
His whole body went still. Was she actually telling him that she understood where he was coming from? This could validate everything he thought he knew about his own kid. Maybe Nick was different. It was possible he was even harder to look after than a typical kid.
“I appreciate that,” he murmured. “It takes a big person to humble themselves and admit they were wrong.”
Things were looking up. Even if this cop didn’t approve of his parenting style, she’d been caught off guard by the kid, too. He wasn’t alone.
Her eyes widened. “I never said?—”
“Okay, you never said you were wrong. Not in so many words. But you did admit that he’s a hard kid to look after.”
He’d caught her with her back against the wall and they both knew it.
She wagged a finger at him. “That’s not what I said.”
Grant shrugged and flashed her a smile, to which her frown deepened.
“You know what I meant. You’re the responsible adult in this situation and you need to be more aware of your child even if you’re new to this.”
His smile faltered. How did she know that? This was the first time they’d met. “Did Nick?—”
The officer squirmed beneath his gaze. “Nick didn’t say anything.”
“Then how…” He leaned his forearm against the car just above the window. His eyes narrowed as if he’d be able to drill into her mind and discover what she was trying to hide from him. “You weren’t stalking me, were you?”
She sat up tall and straight in her seat. “Of course not.”
“Really? You didn’t run my information from my plates the second you got in that car of yours? I wouldn’t put it past you.”
Her mouth fell open but before she could say anything, her radio crackled, reminding them that she had somewhere to be. She snapped her mouth shut and her glower deepened.
“I have to head over there. I suggest that you get in your truck and follow me so you don’t lose track of your son like you’ve done already.”
“I’m gonna find out, you know.” Grant pulled away from her car. “There are few ways you would have been able to find out about my situation. You might as well tell me.”
“Get going, Mr. Shaw.”
“Yeah, Dad.” Nick’s voice came from behind her. “We have to go.” He poked his fingers through the grate. “Hey, since we’re running late, can you turn on your sirens?”
The officer rolled her eyes. “No, Nick. I’ve already told you there will be no lights, sirens, or speeding. Now sit back in your seat.”
Eyes darting over to Grant, she shifted into drive and pulled out into traffic.
Grant was torn between chuckling and being concerned. Technically, it wasn’t a big deal that she knew he was a recent father. She could have picked up that information from anyone since they’d parted ways. The town was small enough and he was new enough that anyone could have been gossiping about him.
He could practically hear it. They’d say “poor guy” and gab about the fact his ex hadn’t told him about Nick in the first place. All it would have taken was for Charlotte to tell just one of her friends for the whole town to know.
Shaking his head, he jogged toward his truck and climbed inside. There was only one thing that rubbed him the wrong way. If she knew he was a new parent, shouldn’t she be a little more understanding? It didn’t track that she would hold him to a high standard when he didn’t know what he was doing half the time.
The whole way to the ranch, he couldn’t get the officer out of his head. He’d quickly shifted from the fact that she was far too judgmental for her own good to wanting to know more about her. She was a deputy. He hadn’t heard much about her, but that wasn’t surprising considering he was so new to the area.
Still, someone with that kind of attitude was bound to ruffle some feathers. He’d have to ask around.
Her green eyes were the thing that made it difficult to put her out of his head. With eyes like those, she could have been a model or an actress. Absentmindedly, he hummed the tune to “Bette Davis Eyes” as he turned onto the now-familiar road that led to Sagebrush Ranch. With his luck, he wouldn’t see her again.
Or maybe it was exactly the opposite.
With her propensity for sticking her nose where it didn’t belong, he might not be rid of her that easily. But what was more surprising was the thrill that rocked through him at the idea of seeing her more often.