Chapter Five
Daisy
“Sheriff’s office has put out an instruction for all businesses to shut up shop on account of the storm coming in,” Danny says as I polish glasses behind the bar.
It’s been dead for the last few hours, and I’m not surprised to hear that the town is battening down the hatches.
“Grab your coat, and I’ll take you home. No arguments,” he says as I open my mouth to object.
“I’ll take Daisy home,” a familiar voice growls from the door, and I look up to see Drayton standing there, brushing snow off his hat.
Oh, hell, no!
“It’s fine. I can walk. The storm won’t be here for another hour,” I say stubbornly.
“Not happening,” Drayton shakes his head. “It’s well below freezing out there. You’ll have hypothermia before you get halfway home, and I won’t have the death of one of my residents on my conscience.”
“Danny just offered to give me a ride,” I try again, sending Danny a pleading look. The last thing I want to do is spend any alone time with his grumpy son. I might forget I’m angry with him and do something I’ll regret, like crawl into his lap and rub myself all over him.
“Makes sense for Drayton to take you, honey. You got the snow chains on, Son?” Danny asks.
“Few hours ago,” Drayton nods.
Ah, crap. There goes my last argument. I’m making it obvious that I don’t want to ride with him, but what can I do? It would be suicide to walk home in brutal weather like this. Looks like I’m going to have to suck it up and spend ten more minutes in the company of Mr. Sexy Grumpypants.
“I’ll just grab my things,” I sigh in defeat.
I bundle myself up in my coat, hat, and scarf and grab my purse. Waving goodbye to Danny, I follow Drayton to the cruiser parked outside. He’s right—it’s freezing out here. Much colder than it was a few hours ago. I can smell the threat of snow in the air, and I’m suddenly grateful I didn’t attempt to walk—no point in risking becoming a human popsicle for the sake of my pride.
Drayton crosses to the passenger side, holding the door open for me in an unexpectedly sweet gesture.
Don’t crumble, Jenkins. You’re angry with him, remember?
“Am I allowed to sit in the front of a police vehicle?” I ask, looking up at him in surprise.
“Sure. Unless you want me to handcuff you and put you in the back,” he replies, his blue eyes twinkling.
I’m suddenly assaulted by images of me handcuffed to his bed while he licks and nibbles his way down my naked body, and I squeeze my thighs together on the needy throb that blooms there.
I duck inside the car before he sees the fiery blush heating my cheeks, sure he’ll somehow know it’s not just from the cold. Those piercing blue eyes of his don’t seem to miss a trick.
Drayton slides in behind the wheel, and the interior of the cruiser suddenly seems to shrink. He has a presence that’s overwhelming but not in a scary way. He oozes an air of authority and protectiveness that appeals to me on some elemental level. I have no doubt that he’d go above and beyond to keep me safe. I don’t know how I know that, but I do.
“I owe you an apology,” Drayton says unexpectedly as he guides the cruiser onto the main road. “The woman who worked for Pa before you took advantage of him, but that doesn’t excuse what I said to you earlier. I’m sorry.”
His apology takes me completely by surprise. He doesn’t strike me as the kind of man who does it often, and my opinion of him rises several notches. It’s kind of hot that he can admit when he’s wrong.
“Thank you. I appreciate that,” I reply softly. “Danny’s been great to me. I’d never take advantage of him.”
“I know,” he says, glancing across at me.
“Ah, I see! Went back to the station and did a little digging, huh?” I ask, tongue in cheek.
“Guilty,” Drayton replies sheepishly.
“Oh, crap! You found out about my double life as an undercover agent, didn’t you?” I ask with a straight face.
Drayton’s eyes shoot to mine, and he bursts out laughing. “Knew it! Had a feeling Pa hired a spy.”