The previous sheriff had given up trying to keep Billy out, and now, when Earl was arrested for lawnmower drunk driving, Billy was hauled off to jail with him. She gave Earl credit for knowing he was going to get drunk and riding his lawnmower to Beam Me Up instead of his truck. More amusement, Billy and Fuzz were the only animals allowed in the bar. Fuzz she got, but a goat in a bar? Only in Marsville.
She smiled as she headed for Earl’s cell. She liked the old man a lot, and... She stopped when Mason strolled in as if he didn’t have a care in the world. After quickly activating the recorder on her phone, she crossed her arms and waited for him to notice her.
At seeing her, his eyes widened, then he smirked. “Checking up on me, boss lady?”
“Just how long does it take to change a tire?” She tapped her finger on her watch. “You’re almost two hours late.”
“Well, I’m here now.”
“This is the third time you’ve been late when on jail duty, and you’ve already used the flat tire excuse before. You seem to think—” She paused when Tristan and Fuzz walked in. She would swear the dog and man gave Mason the stink eye.
“Morning, Sheriff, Mason.”
Skye nodded. “Good morning, Chief.” Mason seemed to think the interruption meant he could walk away. She grabbed his elbow. “Let’s step outside.”
He tried to pull his arm away. “I don’t need a damn lecture.”
She tightened her grip. “Outside. Now.”
With a grunt to let her know he wasn’t happy, he headed for the door. She glanced back at Tristan and shook her head, telling him not to get involved.
As soon as the door closed behind them, Mason turned on her. “You get off on embarrassing me in front of the chief? I don’t appreciate your lack of respect.”
“Respect has to be earned, Mason, and you haven’t earned it. You’ve had a poor attitude since the day I was appointed sheriff, you don’t show respect to your fellow deputies, and you resent the responsibilities of your job.”
His eyes turned mean. “You think you’re hot shit, but when you showed up, getting the job that should have been mine, I wondered what made you leave a cushy chief deputy sheriff’s job to come to a Podunk town.” He stepped into her personal space, his expression pure menace. “So I made a little trip on my days off to your old stomping grounds. Had a few beers with some of your buddies from the sheriff’s department. Thought it was a wasted trip until I found one that had some interesting things to say about you. Want to know what Gary Jerrican had to say?”
Oh, she knew exactly what Gary would say. He was Danny’s best friend, one of the few deputies who believed Danny’s lies. Even though she was furious with Danny for the lies, Gary for gossiping about her, and Mason for going out of his way to dig up dirt on her, she crushed the urge to defend herself. She couldn’t show him any weakness.
She also crushed the urge to step back or better yet, push him away. “You need to worry about yourself and the responsibilities of your job, Mason. You’re suspended without pay for a week. Take the time to think about how much you want to keep your job, because you need to be a changed man when you come back or there won’t be a job waiting for you.”
His face turned red, and he bumped his chest against hers. “You don’t want to mess with me, lady, unless you’re ready for everyone to know what a conniving bitch you are.”
“Back off right now before I fire you on the spot.” She didn’t bother telling him that the mayor and town council were aware of what had gone down in Florida. She’d been upfront about everything during her interview, and a few days later her former boss had backed up her story on a Zoom call with them.
“You do, and I’ll file a sexual harassment complaint that you came on to me. It’ll be my word against yours, and with your history—”
A low growl sounded, and she glanced down to see Fuzz staring up at Mason. The dog’s ears were pinned back, and his lips lifted, showing his teeth. Mason finally removed himself from her space. For that alone, Fuzz was her new hero.
“Tell you what, Mason. You’re fired. I’ll follow you to the station so you can turn in your badge, gun, and car.”
“You’re going to be fucking sorry, bitch.”
Chapter Twenty-One
The tension between Skye and Mason was escalating. Tristan pressed his feet to the floor to keep from storming out the door and...what? Playing hero? Well, yeah. He’d love to be her hero, but this was her battle. If he interfered, she’d probably shoot him.
When Mason bumped against her, he growled. Fuzz had his nose stuck against the glass door, and he growled right along with Tristan. He got the warning look to stay out of it that she’d sent him before walking out with Mason, and he understood that if he went out there it would undermine her authority, so he kept his feet glued to the floor. He deserved a medal.
Fuzz growled again, and Tristan eyed his dog. “Go protect our girl,” he told Fuzz as he opened the door.
Fuzz shot out the door, a dog on a mission. “Feel free to bite him,” he said after the door closed behind Fuzz. A few minutes after Fuzz joined them, Mason stormed toward the parking lot. A pity Fuzz didn’t get a good bite in.
Tristan opened the door for her and Fuzz. “You okay?”
She glanced back when Mason’s tires squealed as he tore out of the parking lot. “Yeah, I just fired him. Would you do me a favor? Mason was on jail duty today. Can you hang out until Johnny gets here?”
“You bet. I came over to see if Earl was sober enough for me to sign him out and take him and Billy home.”