Read Online Hard Rain by Darlene Scalera - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Darlene Scalera
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Sheriff, but if things start to get too wild, we’ll head to Hank’s house. Sixteen feet above ground, it’s plenty high enough not to worry about being washed away should the tidal surge hit.”
“What are you going to do when the winds rip the roof off?”
“We’ll be fine, Sheriff. Come on back down after this thing passes through. Bring the pretty lady andwe’ll all have a beer together and raise our bottles to Damon.”
“If I do, I expect you all to be here.”
“It’s a promise, Sheriff.”
Amy and Jesse headed back to the Bronco. Jesse took a final look at the group as he started the engine. Several waved. He released a frustrated sigh.
“Crazy old goats,” Amy said with such vehement disgust that Jesse half smiled as he steered into the storm. “Drinking beer and sitting around swapping fish stories as if this were no more than a Friday-night poker game. I hope they get the damn pants scared off them when the storm hits.”
“If it does hit, they’ll lose more than their pants.”
“Couldn’t you arrest them? Force them to take shelter?”
“Technically, they aren’t breaking any laws.”
“We should have strung them up like rodeo bulls, thrown them in the back of the Bronco and hauled their stubborn butts back to Turning Point.”
Jesse’s smiled widened against his wishes. “They’re men, not livestock.”
“Well, a rock’s got more common sense than the lot of them.”
“Maybe, but I’ve lived long enough in Turning Point to know when a man’s mind is made up, there’s little chance of changing it.”
Amy crossed her arms over her chest and huffed an indignant breath. “Sometimes stubborn is another word for plain pigheaded.”
He turned his face away, hiding the smile he’d concealed several times already. She’d been as fervent and fiery at eighteen, her passion no small part of her appeal. He’d had no doubt when she’d come to tutor him that she saw him as a quest, a confirmation of her fervent belief that any human being with enough grit and guts could accomplish anything. What he hadn’t realized was that she would make him believe it too. She would have sacrificed her dream for him. It was why he’d sacrificed his.
Jesse examined the sky again. Amy followed his gaze.
“There’s time,” she told him.
But neither knew how much.
CHAPTER FIVE
A MY ALLOWED five minutes of silence before she began questioning Jesse again. His attempts to avoid answering her earlier questions had only increased her curiosity. She was determined to learn as much as she could about the sheriff.
“So, you never married?” she asked point-blank.
He gave her a long, level look.
“You didn’t think I was going to let you off the hook that easy?” She smiled. He didn’t.
“According to Lurie, you’re the catch of the county and the ladies are willing to wait in line for their turn.”
Jesse frowned, vertical lines forming between his brow. “I warned you not to put much stock in Lurie’s tales. She’s a great gal, but what comes from between those lips tends to be embellished, if you know what I mean.”
“She said you’re harder to hogtie than a prize-winning bull, but you let the ladies know that up front. A real gentleman. Only that makes them try all the harder.”
Jesse shook his head. Then, as if in surrender, he released a low chuckle. Amy smiled despite her realization he was charming her as easily as he had the female population of the lower Texas quadrant.
“Lurie thinks once you find the right girl, you’ll fall faster than a twenty-one-year-old at his first happy hour.”
“For once Lurie is right.”
Amy was surprised by his rare frankness. Encouraged, she continued. “You’re not afraid of commitment. You just haven’t found the right girl yet?”
“I didn’t say I hadn’t found the right girl yet.” He stopped as if realizing where the conversation was heading. “Are you always so damn nosy?”
“No,” she said, so
“What are you going to do when the winds rip the roof off?”
“We’ll be fine, Sheriff. Come on back down after this thing passes through. Bring the pretty lady andwe’ll all have a beer together and raise our bottles to Damon.”
“If I do, I expect you all to be here.”
“It’s a promise, Sheriff.”
Amy and Jesse headed back to the Bronco. Jesse took a final look at the group as he started the engine. Several waved. He released a frustrated sigh.
“Crazy old goats,” Amy said with such vehement disgust that Jesse half smiled as he steered into the storm. “Drinking beer and sitting around swapping fish stories as if this were no more than a Friday-night poker game. I hope they get the damn pants scared off them when the storm hits.”
“If it does hit, they’ll lose more than their pants.”
“Couldn’t you arrest them? Force them to take shelter?”
“Technically, they aren’t breaking any laws.”
“We should have strung them up like rodeo bulls, thrown them in the back of the Bronco and hauled their stubborn butts back to Turning Point.”
Jesse’s smiled widened against his wishes. “They’re men, not livestock.”
“Well, a rock’s got more common sense than the lot of them.”
“Maybe, but I’ve lived long enough in Turning Point to know when a man’s mind is made up, there’s little chance of changing it.”
Amy crossed her arms over her chest and huffed an indignant breath. “Sometimes stubborn is another word for plain pigheaded.”
He turned his face away, hiding the smile he’d concealed several times already. She’d been as fervent and fiery at eighteen, her passion no small part of her appeal. He’d had no doubt when she’d come to tutor him that she saw him as a quest, a confirmation of her fervent belief that any human being with enough grit and guts could accomplish anything. What he hadn’t realized was that she would make him believe it too. She would have sacrificed her dream for him. It was why he’d sacrificed his.
Jesse examined the sky again. Amy followed his gaze.
“There’s time,” she told him.
But neither knew how much.
CHAPTER FIVE
A MY ALLOWED five minutes of silence before she began questioning Jesse again. His attempts to avoid answering her earlier questions had only increased her curiosity. She was determined to learn as much as she could about the sheriff.
“So, you never married?” she asked point-blank.
He gave her a long, level look.
“You didn’t think I was going to let you off the hook that easy?” She smiled. He didn’t.
“According to Lurie, you’re the catch of the county and the ladies are willing to wait in line for their turn.”
Jesse frowned, vertical lines forming between his brow. “I warned you not to put much stock in Lurie’s tales. She’s a great gal, but what comes from between those lips tends to be embellished, if you know what I mean.”
“She said you’re harder to hogtie than a prize-winning bull, but you let the ladies know that up front. A real gentleman. Only that makes them try all the harder.”
Jesse shook his head. Then, as if in surrender, he released a low chuckle. Amy smiled despite her realization he was charming her as easily as he had the female population of the lower Texas quadrant.
“Lurie thinks once you find the right girl, you’ll fall faster than a twenty-one-year-old at his first happy hour.”
“For once Lurie is right.”
Amy was surprised by his rare frankness. Encouraged, she continued. “You’re not afraid of commitment. You just haven’t found the right girl yet?”
“I didn’t say I hadn’t found the right girl yet.” He stopped as if realizing where the conversation was heading. “Are you always so damn nosy?”
“No,” she said, so
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