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She appeared in his doorway. On roller skates. With a sucker in her mouth. He closed his eyes and sighed. “How many times have I told you that you can’t wear roller skates at work?”
“How many times have I told you that if you keep frowning like that you’re gonna have more wrinkles than you already do? Besides, I don’t see why I can’t wear roller skates. Steven brought a friend in yesterday whose pants were halfway down his ass. Now, if I have to see hairy ass crack, I don’t get why people would object to me wearing roller skates.”
“That guy wasn’t Steven’s friend, Kiesha. It was someone he’d arrested. And roller skates aren’t appropriate for a sheriff’s department.”
Kiesha sighed and rolled her eyes. Lord help the man who ever took on this brat. They’d have to have far more patience than Ed. He’d always thought he was rather even-tempered. Kiesha was proof that wasn’t exactly true.
She slammed a hand down on her hip, giving him a bored look. “Is that why you called me in here? To ream me out over my footwear choices?”
; Do not respond. Do not snap.
“I called you in here because my coffee tastes like salt.”
“So?”
“So you made it for me! Did you put salt in my coffee?”
“Hey, if you don’t like the way I make your coffee then you know what to do, right? Make it yourself.”
“Kiesha!” he snapped. Had she really put salt in his coffee just because she objected to him asking her to make him one? She . . . that . . . it . . . fuck, he didn’t even have words.
“Gotta go! Got work to do, don’t get paid to sit around and chat with you all day.”
She disappeared. He thought about taking off after her. For all of five seconds. But that conversation would just go from bad to worse.
He really knew better than to ask her for coffee. That sort of stuff just pissed her off. Closing his eyes, he leaned his head against the back of his chair.
“Should have spanked her harder. Seems I was too lenient. Obviously, I did something terrible in a former life to deserve this.”
“Excuse me?”
He shot up, his chair rolling out and crashing into the wall behind him as he stood. He hid a wince at the noise it made.
“You okay, boss man?” Kiesha yelled from the front room.
“Fine!”
“The FBI woman is here!” Kiesha called out.
He closed his eyes again. Maybe he was dreaming? Yep, it was all just a bad dream. He opened them again. Nope, she was still there.
Georgina James. Dressed in a gray suit jacket and matching gray pants. With a white turtleneck underneath. Her hair was pulled back into a severe knot. She looked washed out. Tired. There were dark circles under her eyes and she’d lost weight from when he’d last seen her.
Concern filled him, but he didn’t let it show. Somehow, he knew she wouldn’t appreciate that.
Then it hit him. Georgina was here. Anger stirred. He was still pissed that she’d slipped out of town several months ago without saying goodbye. And he’d been certain that he wouldn’t see her again. Sure, he could have chased her down, could have confronted her. But what good would that do if she obviously didn’t want him?
Nope, he’d been burned before while chasing after someone who didn’t want him. Not happening again.
And whatever the reason she was back, he was certain it had nothing to do with him.
“I can see that!” he yelled back. Then he realized how ridiculous they likely appeared. “Excuse me one moment,” he said politely to Georgina.
Georgina stepped to the side so he could walk past. He hesitated. He felt the need to make something clear. “Uh, things aren’t always like this around here.”
“Yes, they are,” Kiesha called out. “Things are always like this.”
