Fighting Chance (Misty Grove Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

Obviously it wasn’t the lasting kind of love.
    “You know me better than that, Millie. Besides, looks can only get you so far.” She’d met her fair share of attractive males with egos the size of Texas, men who thought they could get away with being assholes because of their looks. She had no patience for the type, especially when she had shining examples of big-hearted and selfless men with the likes of her brother and Colt Montgomery.
    “Just a cautionary reminder. Remember what happened to the last one?”
    Cassie groaned. “Yes. My legs have been closed for so long, I think I’ve re-grown my hymen.”
    “Well, you have your vibrator,” Millie stated matter-of-factly.
    “Jesus, I did not need to hear that.” Lucas muttered in annoyance.
    Cassie suppressed a chuckle and settled for a smirk. Millie was sort of the matriarch of the bunch because Colt and Matt were not married. She had handed Cassie her first vibrator and had given her a quick sex education lesson. Given what Cassie had been through before she was twenty, what followed was a very sheltered life. Sheltered in that she hadn’t left Buckland County in twelve years. She’d been protected against the outside world, but sometimes she wondered if Colt was just trying to protect the outside world from them.  
    Plates of grilled chicken, brown rice, and steamed broccoli landed in front of her and Lucas.  
    “You said you have my favorite?” Her heart sank. She was so hungry.
    “Sorry, that was just fluff talk. Your sheriff had me ruffled.” Millie smiled almost dreamily.
    “Hmm ... maybe I do need to take a closer look at him.”
    “Eat your food, missy,” Millie said with mock sharpness. “And if you come back after you and Lucas train at the gym, I’ll save a piece of pecan pie for you.”
    “You do have my favorite.” Cassie beamed at the other woman.
    “Just don’t tell Wyatt.”

    *****
    Trent spent the day on dispatch calls. He caught some teenagers vandalizing a new-age herbal tea shop, investigated an elderly lady’s complaint of mysterious noises from her basement thinking someone had broken in, and arrested a shoplifter. His least favorite call of the day was arresting a husband for domestic abuse. The man was dead drunk and high. A neighbor had called 911 after seeing him backhand his wife before dragging her into the house. Trent had heard the scream of help after he knocked on the door, so he and Brooks broke the door down and charged in. The wife was in bad shape, bloody, probably with a broken nose, and her right wrist listed awkwardly. It took all of Trent’s self-control not to beat the bastard up, and he knew it wouldn’t be satisfactory anyway since the husband could barely walk when he’d handcuffed him before hauling him into his cruiser.
    Brooks followed the ambulance to the hospital, so he could get a statement from the wife, but Trent figured there wouldn’t be any charges filed. He’d heard murmurings from the neighbors that this wasn’t the first time this had happened.
    He was right. Brooks returned after three hours to report that the wife refused to talk to him. Husband was gonna walk the next day. Dammit.
    “Where were you this morning?” Brooks asked him after they’d finished filing their reports.
    Here he was, trying not to think about a certain hazel-eyed woman, but his damned deputy had to stir up his day.
    “I was in Misty Grove checking on Cassie Reed. I wanted to make it clear the next time Bowman’s thugs pay her a visit, she let us know.” His jaw clenched as he returned his attention to his laptop. “Anything else?” he asked sharply.
    “Jeez, Sheriff, bite my head off, will you?”
    “Excuse me?”
    “You’ve been a ball of tension ever since this afternoon, even before our last call with that shithead husband. Just wondering.”
    “Never had a bad day, Brooks?” At his deputy’s continued wary expression, Trent sighed, feeling guilty. He pinched the bridge of his nose and