Destined (The Rangers of Ridge County #1)

Chapter Ten

CHAPTER TEN

EMMETT

E very third Tuesday of the month had become the bane of my existence.

When I first assumed my post as county sheriff, I implemented Town Hall Tuesdays—which were meant to be a safe space for civic discussion, community engagement, and problem solving. It seemed like a great idea at the time. Though, I now realized why my predecessor had never done anything of the sort.

I loved my town and the people in it, but there was something about these meetings that turned the polite humans I knew into an unrecognizable pack of rabid canines. Currently propped against my sister’s glass display case, I listened as Rita Geyser droned on about how rude Tim’s new part-time employee was. After the first minute or two, I started to tune out the chatter. Only listening for buzz words. And tonight’s was “Thumper”.

Absent-mindedly, I scanned the crowd of familiar faces. My eyes glazed over until I spotted auburn hair in the far corner.

In the months since her arrival, I hadn’t gotten a solid read on Millie Rushing. She seemed guarded but pleasant. At least to everyone else.

We hadn’t necessarily interacted much. Considering she did her best to avoid me, and I’d made little effort to remedy that. I kept insane hours, and when I wasn’t at work, my mind still was. I barely had enough time for the people who loved me, much less for the ones who didn’t.

But I would be lying if I said I hadn’t thought of Millie often since our encounter at Vincent’s. Not to mention the night she’d phoned into the non-emergency line.

I questioned Deputy Yarbrough about it later that night, but he just said it was some misunderstanding.

Why did this woman have me so on edge?

“She do something to you?” Greer asked as she nudged me off balance. Taking a rag from her apron, she wiped at the smudges I’d unintentionally left behind.

“What are you talking about?” I asked, standing to my full height.

“You’re glaring at Millie like she stole your best friend,” my sister scoffed, not buying my nonchalance for a second.

“Denver is more loyal than that,” I mumbled. To which she responded with a stiff “uh-huh” before rolling her eyes and moving back behind the counter.

I peered into the crowd and watched as Rory bounced from table to table collecting dirty dishes and offering well wishes to each and every patron she passed. She moved with grace toward Millie’s table, and I opened my mouth to intervene but quickly shut it when both women smiled genuinely at each other. Like old friends reuniting. Rory laughed at something Millie said, but my focus zeroed in on Millie’s fingers as they reached to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. Giving me the perfect view of her profile.

Diverting my attention, I tugged at my collar. Suddenly concerned with how it choked my neck. Fuck , it was hot in here. My gaze drifted back to the two women who were now locked in an animated conversation.

Someone slammed a fist down, rattling glasses on a nearby table and inadvertently adjourned tonight’s meeting. Shouldering my way to the front of the space, I loudly announced, “That’s it for tonight, folks! We’ll reconvene next month. Same time, same place.” Before I could step away, a line formed in front of me—each person wanting a few more moments of my time.

I sighed inwardly but plastered a smile on my face.

“What are you going to do about Tim’s new employee?” Rita asked as she stepped into my personal space. I’d known her all my life, and she was good friends with my secretary. But damn, she was tenacious.

“Rita, I told you,” I sighed. “Him using your public WiFi isn’t against any law.”

“But it’s for paying customers,” she rebutted.

“Did you try discussing this with him?” I asked, my smile slipping.

“He won’t even acknowledge me when I try to wave him over,” she grunted, folding her arms across her chest.

“I’ll see what I can do,” I offered. “But I make no promises, Rita.”

“Thank you.” Rita smiled. “Your father would be so proud,” she added, then patted my arm before stepping aside and allowing the next person to move forward in line.

Over the sea of heads, I saw Millie deep in conversation with my sisters. They were smiling and laughing, and I wanted to know what was so funny.

Millie shared a hand shake with both of them before heading for the door, pulling my focus across the room with her lithe movements.

“Sheriff?” Jenny Michaels’s voice called, and I directed my attention back to where she stood in front of me.

What had she said?

“Hey, Jenny,” I sighed, trying to hold back my annoyance. She tried asking me out a few times since that day at Vincent’s, but I always turned her down. I saw her as nothing more than an acquaintance—something I’d explained repeatedly. Not to mention, I was ten years older than her. But she was tenacious, too.

“I asked if you had plans for dinner,” she said with a bat of her lashes, and I tried not to cringe at the insinuation.

Before I could answer, Greer came to my rescue.

“Emmett,” Greer called. “I need your help moving some equipment tonight.”

“Of course,” I said, thankful for the excuse she’d handed me. “Sorry Jenny,” I said, shrugging my shoulders.

Her smile didn’t fall, but the edges strained as she turned it on Greer .

“No problem,” Jenny replied before disappearing into the dwindling crowd.

I waved off the rest of the line and helped my sisters close up. Greer might not have needed help, but I was always glad to spend whatever time I could with them.

As we stepped onto the sidewalk, Greer locked the door behind us. Rory only lived a block away, but Greer was further from town than I was.

“So what were you two talking about with Millie Rushing?” I asked as we walked toward Greer’s vehicle.

“She’s helping us with our marketing,” Rory said, her excitement palpable.

“She’s legit?” I questioned, hoping my sisters did their due diligence. Something that was important now more than ever—considering they owned a business with assets.

“Absolutely!” Rory scoffed as if I was being ridiculous.

And maybe I was to some degree.