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“Ah, yeah. I ran a bit further than I intended. Do you know where the sheriff lives?”
“Yeah, back that way a few miles.”
Crap. That was going to take her a while to walk.
“Could take you there if you like,” he told her.
“Oh, but it’s out of your way.”
“It’s no bother. Really. Wouldn’t like to suffer the sheriff’s reaction if I left his woman out on her own in the cold when it was getting dark.” He gave her a smile.
She bristled a bit at the ‘his woman’ part. She had a name after all.
You haven’t offered your name, though, have you? So how is he to know?
“Are you sure?” For some reason, she felt reluctant about getting into his truck.
“No problem, ma’am. Hop in.” He climbed in, leaving the decision up to her. Which made her feel a lot better about her decision to catch a ride. When she got in and shut the door, the locks engaged, making her jump.
“Automatic locks.”
“Of course.” Silly her. Why was she so jumpy? “Is this truck yours?”
“Sure didn’t steal it,” he said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
“I didn’t mean to imply anything. It’s a really nice truck.”
“My mother recently died. She left me some money.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” she said sympathetically.
He nodded. “Buckle your belt.”
She did up her belt and he put the truck in gear, moving forward. They drove along for a few minutes but when he didn’t turn around, she looked over at him. He was a handsome guy. Tanned skin, black hair, a bit of stubble.
“Um, isn’t Ed’s place back that way?”
“Yeah, I just have a quick errand to do down this way then I’ll backtrack. You don’t mind, do you?”
He could have told her before she’d gotten in the truck. But since he was doing her a favor, she could hardly complain about it.
“Of course not. Do you have a phone? Would you mind if I called Ed?”
“Sorry.” He grimaced. “It’s just died.”
Okay, she was starting to feel really antsy now. “Have you lived around here long?”
“No, I don’t live here.”
“You’re visiting someone?” she asked as they turned down an old road. This felt wrong. How did he know where Ed lived if he didn’t live here? They pulled up outside a small cabin. It looked slightly rundown as though no one had lived here in a while.
“You could say that.” He stopped the truck and got out. Then he walked around the front. She stared at him in surprise as he opened her door.
“Oh, I’ll just wait here.”
He shook his head. “Afraid not, my Rose.”
“What did you call me?”
