Chapter 3
HAZEL
"Are you okay?" Tiffany asks me as I come into the shop a little after two in the afternoon.
Tiffany started out as a high school student who just wanted to make a few dollars to put gas into her car.
She's turned into the driving force behind our social media, and one of the reasons we are so booked and busy.
"I'm fine," I assure her, leaning into the hug. "Never thought I'd go to jail, but here we are."
"Were they nice to you?" She looks me over from head to toe, seeming to want to make sure everything is right where it should be.
"Yeah, they were actually very nice. All of them had something to say about Cal arresting me.
I'm really trying to let go because I know he has a job to do, but it's so damn annoying," I grumble.
In more ways than one. I've had a crush on that man since we were in high school, and I could never get him to pay any attention to me.
Let me do something remotely illegal and he's right there with lights and sirens.
"I know. I'm annoyed for you. But have you been looking at what's going on in Spotted in Whispering Pines?" She smirks, glancing down at her phone.
"I have, you probably can't see it because there are so many comments, but I commented too. I'm interested to see what Cal does since all those people have had something to say about it. You know he doesn't like it when others are critical of his work."
Tiffany looks up, gazing out of the front window of the shop. "Guess you're going to figure it out soon. Deputy Doody is here."
My stupid heart flutters in my chest. It usually does, although last night it didn't. Probably because I was so worried about what was happening.
But right now? I'm back to enjoying the way this man fills out a uniform.
He's so damn hot that it should be illegal.
A snort works its way out of my throat when that thought comes to mind.
Illegal? Heh. "Let's see how he's going to grovel, shall we? "
He's slow-rolling it into the bakery. Almost as if he's worried about what type of reaction he's going to get when he steps over the threshold.
Which is fair. If I were him, I'd be worried too, and although I understand why he did what he did, I'm still slightly pissed about it.
The two of us eyeball each other as he walks in, and closer to me.
"Hazel," he says, dipping his chin into his chest.
"Cal," I answer back, crossing my arms over my chest. "What can I help you with?"
He tucks his fingers into his bullet proof vest, and widens his stance in an effort to come down to my level. This is obviously uncomfortable for him. It is for me too, but I won't make this easier. He made this bed, he can lie in it. "First of all, I want to apologize for arresting you."
"You were doing your job," I remind him.
"I was, but I could've used discretion. The same type I got a bad rap for previously. I probably should've let you explain what the hell was happening, and taken some personal accountability for that."
He's surprising me with his carefully chosen words.
This isn't how I expected this to go at all.
I'm sure he's seen the uproar in our local group, but I didn't expect him to bend like this.
"Thank you, I accept your apology. I didn't even have to see the judge.
The Chief let me out when I explained to him what happened, and Earl came in, telling him that I've done this before, and we have a system.
It was inconvenient, but it didn't scar me for life or anything. "
"I'm glad," he says on a chuckle. "Still I'd like to apologize. Please let me take you out to dinner."
"That's unnecessary," I argue quickly, although I'd like nothing more.
This was one of my dreams as a teenager, that the hot guy from what was considered the wrong side of the tracks would invite me out to dinner in his truck.
Cal's overcome a lot, and I think that plays into his need to be well-liked than anything else does.
"Like I said, I forgive you. I can make a post in the local group if that would make things easier for you. "
"Please let me do this." He stands to his full height and walks across the bakery so that we're almost touching.
I have to tilt my head up to look at him.
"I've made a lot of mistakes in my life.
Came from a hard home life, went into construction, and then found the perfect job for myself in law enforcement.
Although I love this, I'm still learning, and I need to be more cognizant of the situations that people are in, especially considering how I grew up.
It would really be my pleasure to take you out, not to mention, I think we need to show the town that we're a united front.
They're taking sides, and it's completely unnecessary. "
My cheeks heat because I didn't expect this today, and I probably look like shit after my all-nighter at work, and then in jail.
There's a part of me that wants to blow this off and tell him no, but there's another part of me that aches for that teenager I was.
The one who wanted the quiet, brooding loner to recognize me, and reach out.
She wanted to be the person that he could trust, and his anchor in the storm of whatever was going on in his life.
I'd tried to befriend him back then, but it was difficult, because he just didn't let that many people close.
He's trying now, and who says I'll get another chance at this?
If there's one thing I've learned in life, it's that you have to take the opportunities that are given to you.
This is one I never expected, and I would be stupid to pass up.
So I find myself agreeing. "Okay, we can have dinner tomorrow if that works for you? "
A smile spreads across his face as he rocks back on his heels. "That's perfect. Thank you for giving me a shot."
"Don't make me regret it Officer Sutton."
"I won't. Give me your phone so I can text myself and you'll have my number. We can discuss what time, and where. I'll pick you up."
I find myself handing the phone over without argument, and I wonder where the fuck my backbone went. Down to my weak knees when this man smiled at me, I guess. "Alright, I'm looking forward to it."
His phone dings, and he flashes me a smile. "Me too, I gotta get going, but please know again, I'm very sorry."
"It's no big deal. See you tomorrow."
"See ya."
And with those words, he's out the door, and jogging toward his police marked SUV.
Tiffany whistles behind me. "Did it just get hot in here, or was it just me? Do you have a crush on Deputy Sutton?"
No one knows, except for me, about the crush I had on him in high school. I've never allowed myself to talk about it, but I want to now. So I turn to her, and give a slight nod. "I need something to eat, but follow me, and I'll tell you all about it."
We're primarily a bakery, but we make amazing sandwiches too.
I head over to our cold table where we store everything we need to make them, and start assembling, hoping that keeping my hands busy will allow me to tell her everything.
Tiffany is a lot younger than we are, and more than likely has no idea what kind of a home he came from.
"Cal's a year older than I am, but we were always in the same school together, for the most part.
While I grew up on the decidedly middle class side of Whispering Pines, he grew up across the tracks, both literally and physically.
I walked to school, and he was bussed in.
Even back then he was hot, and there were a lot of girls who had crushes on him, some guys too, more than likely.
He was nice to everyone. The same way he is now.
" I think back to the guy who would be willing to help anyone and give you the shirt off his back.
That used to make someone invaluable, and today, with the advent of social media, it can make people vulnerable.
"We flirted a few times back then, I would see him in the library, or in the lunch room, and he'd smile.
He had unruly hair back then that would fall right over his eye.
Every single time I saw it, I wanted to reach up and brush it out of the way. "
"Did he ever date anyone?" Tiffany asks, making her own sandwich.
"A few dates here and there, never anyone serious.
Even after we've graduated, I've never known him to have anything serious.
It's why I've always kept it in the back of my mind that there might be a shot for us one day.
But I never got up the courage to make a move, and we graduated.
Then he went into construction, I started trying to build this business, the only time our paths crossed was when he'd come in here for lunch. "
"Until last night," Tiffany grins, reaching for my sandwich and cutting it for me, before she finishes making her own.
"Until last night," I agree, taking a bite.
"I'm a firm believer in things happening for a reason, so there was a reason why he arrested me last night, and why he came in here today offering an apology.
Even if it's because someone pressured him into it, he still could've said no, so I'm going to believe it's meant to happen. "
"And you're going to tell me what happens on your date?" She teases, a smile spreading across her face.
"And I'll tell you what happens on my date."