“That was nice of you.” Even though he’d told her to forget about it.
When he held out his hand, she shook her head. “I haven’t had a chance to make a copy for you, and Dad needs this one back. I can bring it up to your place later unless you want to follow me over to the office while I go in and run off a copy.”
“I’d hate for you to go to all that trouble.”
She bit her lower lip as if giving the matter more thought. “I’ll tell you what. I was about to take my lunch break over at the diner. If you have time to grab a quick bite, you can read over the report there. I’m afraid there’s not much in it other than the initial crime scene details and the coroner’s report.”
“That sounds great. I’ll follow you over there.”
She nodded and drove away. Eli found himself smiling as he got back into his truck. A coroner’s report might not make for the best mealtime conversation, but at least he’d be having lunch with an attractive woman. Things were looking up.
SAFARA SNAGGED THEonly available parking spot, but luckily another opened up in the small lot behind the diner just as Eli pulled in. She was tempted to touch up her lipstick before getting out of the car, but she didn’t want to give him the impression that she thought this was anything like a date. No, this was strictly business, a professional meeting between a police officer and a member of the public.
Yeah, right.
If that were true, her hand wouldn’t be trembling as she reached for the file folder. She glanced in the rearview mirror as he climbed out of his truck. Today Eli had on jeans and a white T-shirt with a dark green plaid flannel shirt worn unbuttoned over it. In this part of Washington, the combination was practically a uniform—worn by most men and even a good portion of the women.
Uniform or not, Eli Jervain would stand out in the crowd. Part of that was his size. He had to be at least six three or four, all of it well-honed muscle that even bulky flannel couldn’t disguise. But his behavior stuck out, too. He always seemed hyperaware of his surroundings, constantly scanning the area as if worried an attack was imminent. Clearly Martin’s late grandson hadn’t been the only family member to spend time in the military.
And now Eli was staring in her direction with a slightly puzzled look on his face, probably wondering what was keeping her. How long had she been sitting there watching him in the mirror? Too long. After all, this was business as usual. He wasn’t the first citizen she’d discussed a case with at the diner.
However, he was the only one who kicked her pulse into high gear.
She grabbed her cell phone and joined Eli in the parking lot. “Sorry about that. I had to let dispatch know I was going to be unavailable for the next hour unless there’s a real emergency.”
Not exactly a lie, except she’d actually made that call before she’d spotted Eli at the grocery store. “Let’s see if there’s a booth available. If not, we’ll get lunch to go and eat at one of the picnic tables over at the park.”
He frowned and stuck his hands into his front pockets. “I might actually prefer that. I don’t always do well with crowds these days.”
Interesting, but she didn’t press for details. “Not a problem. We’ll run less of a chance of being interrupted that way. If you’ll tell me what you want, I’ll place the order. You can head on over to the park and stake out a spot for us.”
“You sure you don’t mind?”
“Not at all. I almost never make it through a meal here without someone deciding it’s the perfect time to complain about their neighbor’s dog barking or that the speed limit through town is too slow. Or too high, depending on who you talk to.”
Safara softened her comment with a smile. “I actually love my job, but I hate it when my fries get cold.”
He laughed. “I get that. I’ll eat them cold, but there’s nothing better than hot fries made with just the right mix of grease and salt.”
Eli studied the menu posted in the window next to the entrance. “Are their pies really homemade?”
When she nodded, he pulled out his wallet and held out three twenties. “My treat today. I’ll have a double cheeseburger, fries, a chocolate shake, and whichever pie looks good to you. I like fruit pies best, but I’d be happy with coconut or banana cream, too.”
Part of her wanted to say she could pay for her own lunch, but another part pointed out how long it had been since a handsome man had taken her out for a meal. Next time, she’d do the buying. As she tucked the money into her shirt pocket, she said, “Got it. A cheeseburger, fries, chocolate shake, and a piece of pie.”
He grinned. “No, not a piece. I want a pie—the whole thing. And if my fries are still hot when you get to the park, I might even share some of it with you.”
“Now that’s some serious motivation. Maybe I’ll cheat and use the siren and flashing lights to clear the way.”
“You do that, Deputy.”
ELI WAS WAITINGby the narrow river that snaked through the park. When he spotted her, he pointed toward a vacant picnic table some distance from where several mothers sat talking as they kept a wary eye on their children playing on the climbers.
She smiled as she walked by. She knew all of them and had gone to high school with three of them. Now that they’d seen her with Eli, she’d lay even money on getting a phone call that evening to ferret out all the details. Such was life in a small town.
Eli had picked up on their curiosity. “I take it you don’t often have lunch in the park.”
She plunked the grease-spotted bags onto the table and set down the box holding the pie with more care. “Not with a man, I don’t.”
