Taken With You Read Online Free PDF

life.
    But it had been so long since a man tickled her fancy, she was starting to wonder if her fancy simply wasn’t ticklish anymore.
    * * *
    I T WAS STILL dark enough for the truck’s headlights to be on when Matt drove into town on Saturday morning. It had taken him over an hour the previous evening to clean himself up, but now he was in uniform, fairly well caffeinated, and ready to start the day.
    As small towns went, Whitford was pretty typical of many in Maine. Tourists drove through on their way to the lakes or to a ski resort or the mountains, but rarely stopped. The town had some appeal, but it existed more out of habit than anything else.
    Until recently. In an attempt to save their snowmobile lodge, the Kowalski family had worked with a nearby ATV club and the state to get access from the trail system to the lodge. From there, riders had access to Whitford, and business had definitely picked up for places that offered food, lodging and gas. That trickled into the rest of the town’s economy and the residents went out of their way to welcome the four-wheeling crowd.
    It had been more successful than even Josh Kowalski—the youngest brother, who ran the Northern Star Lodge and had spearheaded the effort—had imagined, and that was where Matt came in. Even with a department ATV that Whitford police chief Drew Miller had managed to finagle a grant for, the local law enforcement couldn’t keep up with the increase in off-road traffic.
    His first job in Whitford would be leading an ATV safety course. Once kids reached ten years old, they could take the course and hit the trails. In the past, Whitford parents had had to travel to the nearest class they could find, but Josh had pushed to have one right in town to serve the surrounding area.
    Thanks to the early hour, Matt had no trouble finding a parking spot in front of the police station and he could smell the coffee as soon as he walked inside. A guy about his own age stepped through an office door and extended his hand.
    “Drew Miller,” he said as they shook.
    “Matt Barnett. Nice to meet you.”
    “Help yourself to some coffee if you want.”
    After he’d made himself a cup, he followed the chief into his office and took a seat. “I have a feeling running this safety class today’s going to require a lot of coffee.”
    “I’d be right there with you, but I’m having Dave Camden do it. He’s the school resource officer, so he knows the kids.” Miller smiled. “Plus, I’m the chief, so I don’t have to do it if I don’t want to.”
    Matt had a feeling he’d like this guy. “I appreciate you coming in early on a Saturday so we could meet. This will be a crazy week with a lot of driving time. I can’t move into the house I rented until next Saturday, so I’ll be commuting from my current apartment.”
    “Wasn’t a problem. My wife works the early shift at the diner, so I use the time to catch up on paperwork. Or to chase it, anyway. I never seem to actually catch up.”
    “I know what you mean.” Paperwork was the bane of any law enforcement officer’s existence. “I’m looking forward to making Whitford home.”
    “I think it’s a great town, but I’m biased, of course. Got a nice small-town feel to it.”
    “Hell, on my way in, I saw the barber shop has one of those old-fashioned poles. Brings to mind old men and hot lather shaves and listening to the ballgame on the radio.”
    “Good chance a game will be on, but Katie Davis isn’t old or a man. Gives a mean hot lather shave, but a word of advice. No matter where you’re from or who you root for, when you walk into the barber shop in Whitford, you’re a New England sports fan. Don’t piss off the woman with the electric trimmer in one hand and scissors in the other.”
    A woman who loved sports and knew her way around hot lather? “Is she single?”
    Drew gave him an amused look. “She’s engaged to Josh Kowalski.”
    Toes Matt wouldn’t step on even if he were the type to