Page 27 of The Fragile Truth
He was both impressed and surprised by her astuteness. “No, I don’t. Therein lies the problem. The Chasings want to hire bodyguards to watch over Effie, but they still want to keep me and my police force on the hook.” He let out a long breath. “I’m supposed to come up with a plan by Wednesday. My deputies will have to work with the private security team. That’s the only solution I can come up with.”
“That sounds like it’ll work.”
“I guess. It’ll be tough for my deputies to work with people they don’t know or trust.”
“You could arrange the schedule in shifts,” Sadie offered.
“Yep, that’s what I plan to do.” He was about to say something else but stopped, a partial grin lifting a corner of his lips. “You don’t wanna hear all of this. I’m boring you stiff.”
“Not at all. I asked because I wanted to know.”
Something in the way she said the words aroused his suspicion. He looked her in the eye. “Why are you so curious about the Chasings?”
She looked puzzled. “I’m not. I’m curious about you and your work.”
The strip of tension between his shoulder blades eased. “Ah, now I see your angle.”
Humor curved her lips. “Are you always so quick to jump to conclusions?”
A chortle of surprise broke through his lips. “I’m a sheriff. It’s my job to profile people.”
“Not everyone’s a criminal,” she reproved.
He rocked back. “You sound just like my mom. She’s constantly saying, ‘Now, Ian, remember, everyone’s not a perp.’ That stands for perpetrator,” he explained.
She laughed. “Thanks for explaining that for me, Mr. Sheriff.”
Heat blotched up his neck. “Well, I wasn’t sure if you’d get it.”
“I wasn’t born yesterday.” She winked and then went doe-eyed as she batted her eyes. Her voice went innocently gooey. “Maybe the day before, but not yesterday.”
“Ha ha,” he said dryly.
Sadie chewed on her lower lip, looking thoughtful. “The night we met. What took you to Wilmington?”
His stomach knotted as he met Sadie’s eyes, wondering how she would react to his answer. “I went to see Lina.”
She nodded. “That’s what I figured. Why did you go and see her?” Tension settled around her eyes and mouth. “Do you still have feelings for her?”
“No,” he blurted. “Not like that.” He sucked in a short breath before continuing. “I questioned Lina about my former deputy, Brent Allen’s, death.”
Curiosity flickered in her eyes. “Did Lina give you any new information?”
“No. She repeated the same story I already knew. All the events you and I talked about at the pizza joint.”
She pursed her lips together as she shook her head. “Well, for what it’s worth, I hope Lina is captured soon.”
“Me too,” he sighed. Tired of talking about his work, he shifted gears. “How’s work at the restaurant?”
“I’m getting the hang of things. My feet are super tired by the end of the day.”
“I’ll bet.” He reached out to finger a tendril of her smooth, silky hair.
The corners of her lips turned down. “I’m getting along with most everyone.”
“Most?”
She sighed. “Denise doesn’t like me very much.”