***Casey***
“Please, you have to help me!”
I rush forward, surprising the woman behind the desk.Her headsnaps up and she stares at me like I’m bat-shit crazy.Hell, I probably lookinsane, charging into the quiet sheriff’s office, crying and shouting.Shecloses her magazine with a sigh, and her expression turns wary.
“Calm down, ma’am.Take a deep breath and tell me what’swrong,” she drawls.
“It’s my father.He’s missing!”
Her brow quirks up in disbelief.Figures.In this small townof Canid, Montana, the severity of their calls probably peaks at cats stuck intrees.
“Missing?For how long?”
“A couple of hours, but—”
“You have to wait twenty-four hours—”
“I know, but you don’t understand—”
“Ma’am.”She cuts me off again.“I suggest you go home and—”
“Will you let me finish?”I yell in frustration.
The woman is unbelievable!I can’t get a word in edgewiseand the longer she stalls, the longer he’s out there.Alone.
“Ma’am, I’m goin’ to ask you one more time to calm down,”she says in that tone every cop seems to use.
“Fine.I wanna talk to the sheriff.”
“The sheriff’s a busy man.”
“I’m not leaving until I talk to him,” I reply, my stubbornstreak in full effect.
Crossing my arms over my chest, I drop down into one of thechairs facing her desk and stare her down until she finally leaves her seat andwalks over to the sheriff’s office.
***Ethan***
Damn paperwork.This is the only part of my job Ihate.My annoyance is further compounded by a sudden, steady buzz in my brain.I hear Mary talking to someone, but I push their conversation aside as the buzzextends itself to encompass my entire body.A slow hum radiates from my coreand a shiver runs down my spine.What the hell is going on with me?I’venever felt anything like this before.
Movement beyond my door catches my attention, and I look upto see Mary heading to my office.Can’t she handle the damn woman byherself?This isnotthe time to bother me.
“Sheriff?”
“Yes, Mary?”
“There’s a woman out here raisin’ hell ’bout talkin’ to you.”
“About her missing father?”
Her eyes widen in surprise.Yes, I heard.All my senses—notjust my hearing—are heightened.
“You heard?Well, I tried to explain to her how it works,but she’s bent on seein’ you.”
“Fine.”I sigh.“Send her in.”
I turn back to my computer screen, thinking about the timeI’m going to have to waste with this hysterical woman.The man probably justwent out for a drink or something to escape her.I don’t have time for this,and with the way I’m feeling, I don’t have the inclination, either.The slowhum gradually increases, becoming a hammering in my ears.
I smell her before I see her.It’s a sweet, subtle fragrancethat overpowers my entire being and sets my senses on alert.I take a deepbreath, my nostrils flaring as I get a waft of her sublime scent.It’s notperfume or anything external.It’sher.Whoisthis woman?I turn to face her, and it’s as if someone punched me in the gut, knocking thewind out of me.Her scent wraps itself around me, rendering my body motionless,my mind blank.She inflames my senses, leaving me reeling in a torrent ofemotion and…need.My heart skips multiple beats and proceeds to danceerratically, banging against my ribcage.
