With one last stern glare, he turned on his heel and headed for the door.
Jake
They say that therecomes a time in every man’s life when something happens that will change their life forever. After fifty-two years, it finally had happened to me. I was in love. I was a goner the minute I saw her, even if she obviously wasn’t that impressed with me. Yet.
“Now get the hell out of my store!”
Evie’s face was red with anger, but she was still the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. And I’d seen plenty of women in my life. She was about a head shorter than my six foot one, with a curvy body that I couldn’t wait to get my hands on.
Evie was dressed in tight black leggings that showed off her muscled legs and thick thighs. She wore a loose floral-patterned shirt that was left open, showing the tight pink tank top beneath. Full breasts strained the fabric, and I could see the indent of her trim waist. She wore at least a half a dozen bracelets on each wrist, a combination of beads and bangles.
But it was her face that convinced me that love at first sight really existed. Her face was heart-shaped, with a pointy little chin just below full red lips. Evie had defined cheek bones and large brown eyes, clear of make-up, with eyebrows that arched just enough to look like she was asking a question every time she looked at me. Her hair was a chestnut brown, almost black, cut in a blunt bob, with several bright pink streaks. She was quirky, breathtaking, and soon -—she would be mine. She just didn’t know it yet.
If there was one thing I’d learned during my twenty years in the military, it was the value of a strategic retreat. I headed towards the door, sliding a business card onto the counter near the cash register.
“Give me a call if anything else weird happens,” I repeated firmly.
“Yeah, right,” she mumbled.
I stopped by the door and turned to face her. “Call me.” I ordered in my best authoritative cop voice.
She rolled her eyes and waved her hand towards the door. “Goodbye now.”
I couldn’t help but smile as I walked down the street and headed back towards the police station that sat right at the edge of the main street downtown. It was a great little town, and I liked it a lot. It reminded me of the town where I’d grown up.
After doing my twenty in the military, part of that as military police, I’d retired and got a job in law enforcement in Atlanta. I stayed there for a few years until I had enough time under my belt to get the job I’d always dreamed of: small town police chief.
I’d moved here about a year ago to take the police chief role, but somehow I’d never seen Evie Fontenot before. I wasn’t much of a reader, to be honest, so I’d never had a reason to stop by her bookstore. That was going to change real quick. My Evie was quite the spitfire. I couldn’t wait to get to know her better.
I entered the station and smiled at Marci, our dispatcher.
“Did you check out the break-in at the bookstore, Chief?” she asked.
“Yeah. Looks like a prank or something.”
Marci frowned. “I hope so. Poor Evie has been through enough, she doesn’t need anyone messing with her livelihood.”