“Clumsy. Hungry. A park ranger. Good at basketball. Beautiful.”
Holly’s eyes popped open in surprise, mirroring his own thought. Beautiful? Why had he blurted that out? She paused, caught off guard, but started again with another clue.
“Rick broke up with me in part because I’m…” she said, raising an eyebrow.
“Tall?”
“Bingo.” She nodded. “Second word. Lots of animals have these. Bears are short and stubby. Horses—”
“Tails,” he guessed. “Tall tale.”
“Time,” his mom said. “Good job, you two. Let’s add up points and see who won.”
“First, I gotta hear the too-tall break-up story,” Tracy said. “What kind of loser does that?”
Cole spent the evening taking crap from his siblings and getting “looks” from his parents. Looks that said, “We were right about Holly. You should go for it.” At least, that’s what hethoughtthey said.
A couple of times, he caught Holly staring at him, almost studying him. Probably wondering what she’d gotten herself into and how fast she could get out of it.
They came in second, and Holly celebrated with a third brownie.
His sisters said their goodbyes, and his parents shuffled off to bed. He and Holly sat on the back porch, enjoying the cool night air.
“Sorry about tonight. My family can be a little overwhelming.”
“Oh, no. It was great. I love how your family is so close,” she said almost wistfully. “Even when my folks were together, it was just the three of us. We got along all right, but it was neverfun. I always wanted siblings.”
“You’re welcome to take mine.”
“Seriously,” she pressed. “You’re lucky to have them.”
“I know. I know,” he admitted. “All things considered, they’re pretty great.”
Sirens wailed in the distance, and traffic noise filled the night air.
“It never really gets quiet here, does it?” Holly asked.
“No. But you get used to it. It’s just background noise, like crickets and frogs.”
“Is it over now? Now that there’s no one to testify against?”
“I think so. I doubt Cruz was beloved enough that his crew will feel the need to avenge his death. Plus, word will spread that I killed him. So any beef would be with me. We have a CI who’ll let us know if he hears anything about retaliation.”
“I’m sure you’re right,” Holly said. “I’m not worried. Anyway, my friends and I have a plan if anyone comes to town for us.”
“Oh, yeah,” he said. “What’s that?”
“Have you ever seenHome Alone?”
“Yikes.” He chuckled and rolled his eyes.
Other than his sisters, most of the women Cole knew were from work. His fellow officers were brave, strong, and a lot like Holly. She was different in that she also had a soft, self-deprecating, funny side. Like anyone, she had some scars—her dad’s betrayal, her mom’s abandonment, her broken engagement—but she took it all in stride and never seemed to let it get her down.
She gave as good as she got, was fun to be around, easy to talk to, and he felt lighter in her presence. Like she was a ray of sunshine in his otherwise dreary world. He could be himself with her. And what was more, he liked who he was with her. More than just the gruff cop—good at his job, but kind of an asshole.
Were these warm, fuzzy feelings the result of his long overdue vacation? Or did it have something to do with the pretty brown-haired park ranger sitting next to him?
Holly turned to him. “I don’t know if I ever thanked you for today. You saved my life.” She kissed his cheek.
