"I think you rescued yourself this time, Miss Josie." He offered a small smile. There was warmth in his gorgeous eyes for the first time since I met him. "You need to stop wandering off." Almost absently, he brushed tears from my cheeks with his thumb.
"I can take care of myself." Though I secretly did enjoy the feel of his strong embrace.
"You survived my brother." His grip tightened around me. "Josie, you need to be careful here."
"What do you mean?"
"I think you know."
Pressed against him, with the sense of familiarity hanging in the air between us, it was almost impossible for someone like me to lie. "Have we met before?" I asked instead. "Why do you seem to know me?"
"We haven't."
I waited for him to say more and strained to read him the way I could everyone else. The chip wasn't able to process anything about him. The silence stretched as we gazed at one another, a familiar tension stirring. This one I recognized - attraction, if not interest - but didn't want to.
This man was little better than Fighting Badger. The sheriff killed someone every Saturday at noon to the tune of a block party I wasn't about to attend.
"I better get home," I murmured.
He released me. "I apologize if my brother scared you, ma'am."
"Brother. Can you explain that?"
"I was adopted at an early age by the mother of Running Bear and Fighting Badger."
"So you fell from the sky."
The sheriff tensed. "That reminds me. We never finished our conversation about where you went for the year you were missing."
"We probably never will." I flashed him a smile. "Unless you want people in general knowing about your brother and his friends."
"Are you threatening me, ma'am?"
"Why yes, Sheriff, I think I am."
He studied me, amusement in his bright gaze. "I'll keep that in mind the next time you need rescuing."
"I told you. I can take care of myself." For the most part, anyway. I strode to my horse.
"Maybe you can right now, Miss Josie. But one day, someone like you is going to find her way into a problem she can't get out of. I'm likely the person who can help you."
I paused. Sometimes, I got the feeling we were talking around something we both know but were unwilling to bring out into daylight, like time traveling or psychopathic family members. I didn't quite know how to respond. Carter had said the sheriff was dangerous without specifying why or how. Whenever we met, I had the urge to leave too quickly to uncover whatever it was Carter wanted.