I felt my cheeks flame.
“But for now, I have something we can do tonight.”
“What’s that?”
“Let’s go to the Town Hall meeting.”
I rolled onto my back and stared at him. “You’re joking, right?”
“I’m serious. It’ll be fun.”
“Afunmeeting? In town? Yeah, I don’t believe it. Sounds boring as heck.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Have you ever been to one here?”
“No, but I’ve been to plenty in Nashville.”
“I promise, babe. These are nothing like that. Get dressed.”
He slid out of bed and headed to the bathroom to turn on the shower.
I didn’t believe that any kind of meeting could be described asfun, and I definitely didn’t look forward to being surrounded by a bunch of townspeople in aconfined space. Silver Creek Farm was my safe haven. Downtown, I felt more exposed.
Chase returned to my side of the bed and reached for my hand. As if he could read my thoughts, he said, “I’ll be with you. If you’re going to be part of this community again, you have to remind them who you are, which is not an extension of your asshole ex.
He was right. Reluctantly, I sighed and swung my legs over the bed. Chase made sure to reward me greatly with yet another orgasm in the shower.
An hour later, we pulled into downtown. Most of the shops were closed, but cars lined the streets.
Chase found a place to park on the street, not far from the town circle where the beautiful old Town Hall was lit like a jewel in the center. Dozens of people were making their way inside.
Someone called Chase’s name as we neared the top of the steps. Keeping my hand firmly in his, we found Reid and Bristol standing near the entrance.
“Chase. Anna. Good to see you,” Reid greeted warmly.
Bristol stretched to kiss her brother on the cheek, then gave me a small smile after seeing our joined hands. “Hi, Anna. Nice to see you.”
“You, too,” I replied. “How are you feeling?”
“A little tired, but otherwise good.”
Reid turned to Chase, keeping his voice low. “How’s Jordan doing?”
“Fine. But I can’t shake the feeling that something isn’t right.”
Reid shook his head. “Not much I can do unless we come up with something concrete.”
I frowned. “Can’t you do an investigation? That boy istoo thin. He eats like he’s starving.Andhe showed up with that bruise.”
“I’m sorry, Anna. Lots of teen boys eat their parents out of house and home. That’s not a reason in and of itself. And when we questioned him, he didn’t say anything that would justify opening a case. His relatives might not be the best, but they don’t have any criminal record. Legally, my hands are tied.”
“That’s not good enough,” I said stubbornly.
“It’s not a perfect system,” he admitted. “But you seem to be developing a bond with him. Maybe he’ll open up to you. Keep talking to him. If he says anything that suggests he’s in danger, tell me immediately. Icanact on that. For now, CPS has cleared the home.”
I exhaled slowly. “I’ll keep trying. My gut says something is very wrong.”
“I believe you. But I can’t just march into his house and remove him. What I can say is that sending him to Silver Creek Farm might be the best thing that has happened to him in a long time.”
