“Are you going to test Rocky’s clothes, too?” Cullen asked.
“If I have probable cause.”
Leigh was about to continue with some legal babble to explain how she would do her job, but she cursed and gave the leg of her desk a good kick. It hurt, the pain vibrating through her boot to her toes, but she hadn’t been able to hold back the frustration. No, it was more than frustration. It was a gut-punch of anger.
“Rocky will fight me every step of the way,” she said on a heavy sigh. “And while he’s fighting me, it’ll also be a distraction from the investigation.You’rea distraction,” she added when Cullen reached for her. “You and your clothes,” she grumbled.
He looked, well, amused by that, and as if she would put up no protest whatsoever—which she didn’t—he pulled her into his arms and brushed a kiss on the top of her head. “My party suit or the clothes I’m wearing now?”
“The latter.” She squeezed her eyes shut, and just for a moment, she let her body sag against him. “Hot cowboy clothes.”
Leigh couldn’t see his face, but she suspected he was smiling. After all, she’d just confessed that his well-worn jeans, faded blue work shirt and scuffed boots appealed to her more than his suit had. Then again, Cullen looked good in anything. And nothing. Especially nothing.
That, of course, only proved to her that he was a distraction.
She forced herself away from him so she could get some coffee and do some work while they waited for Rocky, Kali and Austin’s lawyer. That was the plan, anyway, but the plan took a little detour when Cullen leaned in and kissed her. This was no peck like the one earlier in the break room. No. This was the full deal.
Cullen certainly hadn’t lost any skills in the kissing department. He was still darn good at moving his mouth over hers. Still good at making a kiss feel as if it was full-blown foreplay. And his taste. Mercy. It was foreplay, too.
He dropped his hands to her waist, nudging her closer while also nudging her lips apart with his tongue. She remembered this. Another kick of heat. The urgency he created when he deepened the kiss.
Leigh sank into him, all the while the sane part of her yelling that she should knock this off. She listened to the sane part, knew that it was right, but she lingered a little longer, letting the kiss and Cullen’s touch slide through her.
It took some willpower, but Leigh finally untangled herself from Cullen and stepped back. She didn’t dodge his gaze because she needed him to see that this had to stop. Maybe she got that point across, maybe not, but either way, he didn’t reach for her.
They stood there, their breaths heavy, and with the heat searing around them. She might have been tempted to go back for another round, but she was saved by the bell when her phone rang.
“It’s Cash,” she muttered after glancing at the name on the screen.
There was no need for her to explain that Cash was her brother, because Cullen and Cash had gone to school together. Had both been star football players. They hadn’t stayed close, but then, like Cullen, Cash hadn’t stayed particularly close with anyone in Dark River.
Including her.
It’d been at least six months since she’d gotten a call from him, and Leigh doubted it was a coincidence that Cash was getting in touch with her now while she was neck-deep in a murder investigation.
“Leigh,” her brother greeted the moment she answered. “I just got a call from one of your deputies, Yancy. He gave me a heads-up that you’ll be initiating a search warrant for Kali Starling’s and her parents’ residences.”
Yancy worked fast, and it took Leigh several moments to realize why Cash was telling her this. Cash was the sheriff of Clay Ridge, a town about twenty miles from Dark River, and Kali and her parents lived in Clay Ridge.
“Yes,” Leigh verified. “Kali was on scene at a party last night where a woman was killed.”
“I heard. The dead woman was Cullen’s ex. I also heard you haven’t arrested Cullen.” Cash paused. “How much grief is Jeb giving you over this?”
“Enough,” Leigh answered honestly, knowing it was going to cause Cash to curse.
It did.
“Damn it, Leigh, you shouldn’t let him run roughshod over you like that,” Cash snarled.
And there was their sibling conflict in a nutshell. After doing almost daily battle with Jeb, Cash had left home and hadn’t come back. Not even for her when Leigh had insisted on staying. Cash saw that as a weakness on her part, claiming that she was Jeb’s doormat. But Leigh saw it as putting up with Jeb so she could be where she wanted to be and have the job she’d always wanted.
“Jeb’s never going to accept you as sheriff,” Cash went on. “Not really. I mean, he might say he’s okay with it, but I promise you he wanted one of his sons to take over the job.”
“That’s probably true,” she agreed. “That’s why I’m focusing on the badge. You understand that,” Leigh reminded him.
Cash paused for a very long time. “Yeah. I understand.” She heard him drag in a long breath. “I’ll help grease the way for the warrant and will have one of my deputies execute it. What exactly do you need from Kali’s place?”
“Any and all blue dresses. She wore a blue dress to the party,” Leigh explained when Cash made a “huh” sound. “Also, if the warrant includes it, I want a look at her computer. Specifically, her emails. Her car is here in Dark River so one of my deputies will handle that search in case the dress is in there.”