he lost all rational thought, dammit. It especially didn’t help that, at this moment, she was surrounded by men who were trying to ply her with alcohol. Or knowing my luck, proposing marriage to her. I locked down on the growl vibrating in my throat before anyone heard it.
Looking up to Jaxon’s amused face, he laughed at my obvious torture. “That’s one hell of a girl there, Bobby. Want to tell me why you let her get away?”
Shaking my head, I rubbed my eyes with the palms of my hands. Looking back up, I found that not only did I have Jaxon’s full attention, but I also had the Sheriff’s attention. A calculating look on his face. “You’re telling me that you had Annabelle’s affections? You actually had that woman and you let her go?” His attitude seemed more serious than curious.
Scrubbing a hand over my face, I answered, “Yeah. Belle and I were together for two years. Letting her go was the biggest mistake of my life. I knew it less than a month after I did it. The problem was, by the time I figured it out, she was long gone. Now she seems to be so mad at me that fifteen years later she won’t even talk to me. I know I hurt her. Yeah, I’m an ass for doing it, but for the life of me, I can’t understand why she is as mad as she is after all these years.”
Sheriff Jenkins watched me thoughtfully. After what felt like an eternity of analyzing me like I was some bug under a microscope he nodded his head. “Don’t give up then, Baker. I’ll tell you that I’ve known Annabelle for the last ten years. She’s had a hell of a tough life in that time. That’s probably got a lot to do with her response to you now. Don’t bother asking me for details because I won’t give it to you. Annabelle’s a good friend of mine. I care a lot for her. Hell, I would have taken her off of the market years ago if she would have let me. So trust me when I say, I’m not tellin’ you a damn thing except this, if you still care for her at all like I think you do, it’d be worth your while to make a spot for yourself in her life. I think she needs it as much as you seem to want it. I also think ya’ll got an awful lot to talk about.” Turning in his chair so that he faced away from me, displaying his tense shoulders and stiff you-can-fuck-off body posture, the man was silently indicating to me that the conversation was over. I got his message loud and clear. That didn’t mean I understood it, or whatever it was that he was trying to convey to me. What a strange conversation that had been.
The next thirty minutes were a proverbial comedy about a bunch of drunken rednecks mixed with scantily clad women drinking, shouting, dancing, and a few brave souls trying their hand at the mechanical bull. During that time, I watched Belle pretend to throw back two more shots while acting like she was tipsy. Her movements appeared sluggish, but I knew that it was all an act since her, Declan and Riley had an elaborate game of ‘switch out the glasses’ going. Instead of Belle actually drinking her shots, either Declan or Riley would change them out with an empty shot glass from one of the patrons next to them, giving the impression that Belle was drinking heavily.
Dozens of people partied hard with the trio and, eventually, Belle staggered sloppily backwards for a few seconds. Turning, she continued a drunken swagger, pushing through the thick mass of bodies towards the back of the bar, but instead of continuing her path, she veered quickly to the right, stumbling through the door at the end, where the suspect had entered not so long ago. Henderson caught sight of where Belle had disappeared to and yelled for her to stop. Ignoring him, she pushed her way through the door. Henderson slid the beer he had in his hand to Declan, and then quickly left the area behind the bar to follow Belle into the back.
Travis Henderson had just unknowingly allowed the back of his bar to be infiltrated by a highly trained ATF agent. One who
Looking up to Jaxon’s amused face, he laughed at my obvious torture. “That’s one hell of a girl there, Bobby. Want to tell me why you let her get away?”
Shaking my head, I rubbed my eyes with the palms of my hands. Looking back up, I found that not only did I have Jaxon’s full attention, but I also had the Sheriff’s attention. A calculating look on his face. “You’re telling me that you had Annabelle’s affections? You actually had that woman and you let her go?” His attitude seemed more serious than curious.
Scrubbing a hand over my face, I answered, “Yeah. Belle and I were together for two years. Letting her go was the biggest mistake of my life. I knew it less than a month after I did it. The problem was, by the time I figured it out, she was long gone. Now she seems to be so mad at me that fifteen years later she won’t even talk to me. I know I hurt her. Yeah, I’m an ass for doing it, but for the life of me, I can’t understand why she is as mad as she is after all these years.”
Sheriff Jenkins watched me thoughtfully. After what felt like an eternity of analyzing me like I was some bug under a microscope he nodded his head. “Don’t give up then, Baker. I’ll tell you that I’ve known Annabelle for the last ten years. She’s had a hell of a tough life in that time. That’s probably got a lot to do with her response to you now. Don’t bother asking me for details because I won’t give it to you. Annabelle’s a good friend of mine. I care a lot for her. Hell, I would have taken her off of the market years ago if she would have let me. So trust me when I say, I’m not tellin’ you a damn thing except this, if you still care for her at all like I think you do, it’d be worth your while to make a spot for yourself in her life. I think she needs it as much as you seem to want it. I also think ya’ll got an awful lot to talk about.” Turning in his chair so that he faced away from me, displaying his tense shoulders and stiff you-can-fuck-off body posture, the man was silently indicating to me that the conversation was over. I got his message loud and clear. That didn’t mean I understood it, or whatever it was that he was trying to convey to me. What a strange conversation that had been.
The next thirty minutes were a proverbial comedy about a bunch of drunken rednecks mixed with scantily clad women drinking, shouting, dancing, and a few brave souls trying their hand at the mechanical bull. During that time, I watched Belle pretend to throw back two more shots while acting like she was tipsy. Her movements appeared sluggish, but I knew that it was all an act since her, Declan and Riley had an elaborate game of ‘switch out the glasses’ going. Instead of Belle actually drinking her shots, either Declan or Riley would change them out with an empty shot glass from one of the patrons next to them, giving the impression that Belle was drinking heavily.
Dozens of people partied hard with the trio and, eventually, Belle staggered sloppily backwards for a few seconds. Turning, she continued a drunken swagger, pushing through the thick mass of bodies towards the back of the bar, but instead of continuing her path, she veered quickly to the right, stumbling through the door at the end, where the suspect had entered not so long ago. Henderson caught sight of where Belle had disappeared to and yelled for her to stop. Ignoring him, she pushed her way through the door. Henderson slid the beer he had in his hand to Declan, and then quickly left the area behind the bar to follow Belle into the back.
Travis Henderson had just unknowingly allowed the back of his bar to be infiltrated by a highly trained ATF agent. One who
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