* * *
Why hadn’t Summer paid more attention when Tyler had talked about who he was hiring for work this season?
As this man, Clay, looked at her, she got the impression he knew her somehow better than he should. From Tyler? Or was he just that talented at reading people?
Summer didn’t know, but she wasn’t accustomed to such perceptive scrutiny, and didn’t like it. She made herself not break his gaze though, saying without saying anything that she wasn’t intimidated by him. Because she wasn’t. He may be seeing her at her worst right now, but Clay needed to know she was no damsel in distress, no pushover.
Still, he had a point about going to the police. “Fine,” she relented. “Turn left.”
He did so. Then said “thank you” so quietly she thought maybe she’d imagined it. Now it was her turn to study him. Strong, solidly built, definitely attractive. And yet, he didn’t seem pushy. Seemed steady, calm.
Actually he reminded her in some ways of her older brother Noah. He was the police chief of Moose Haven now, and at thirty was the youngest person to ever hold that role.
Clay had the same kind of bearing.
“You’re a cop, aren’t you?”
Clay glanced over, surprise on his face. She’d phrased it as a question but her tone had shown her certainty. He didn’t confirm or deny her suspicions. Summer kept going.
“What are you doing in Moose Haven, really?” she asked without waiting for him to answer. His silence was confirmation enough. Summer shivered. Had he been fired from some police department, was that why he’d needed a new job? She’d heard stories about dirty cops, obviously, though she preferred to think they were the exception rather than the rule. Still, Clay’s appearance right after she’d been attacked did feel a little coincidental...
Her brothers would have confidently called it “God’s provision.” Such phrases hadn’t slipped off Summer’s own tongue comfortably for years.
“I’m working at the lodge, I told you.”
“But you’re not like the usual workers. You’re different.” The words slipped out before she could analyze them, decide if they could be read into at all. Summer left them hanging there, and didn’t know what to make of it when Clay didn’t comment.
They pulled into the parking lot of the small Moose Haven Police Department without any more conversation between them. Summer exited the car as fast as she could and headed toward the double doors at the front of the station.
Not until she heard a car door slam behind her and then footsteps catching up did it occur to her that Clay might be coming inside.
She mustered up the strongest, most take-charge voice she could find. “Listen, thanks for the ride, but I’m good. I can take it from here.”
Was that a slight smile? “I’m sure you can,” he agreed as he reached for one of the front doors and held it open for her. Summer frowned a bit before entering the building ahead of him. “But they’re going to want to talk to me too.”
“Why?”
“Because like I told you in the car, I suspect you’re running from someone, not something. In that case, this is a crime or a potential crime and they’re going to want to know where I was, how I found you, if I noticed anything. It’s standard procedure.”
It might have been, but Summer feeling like this certainly wasn’t. She was already shaken up from the whole ordeal and now she just felt embarrassed by the way she’d treated Clay suspiciously, even after Tyler had managed to mostly convince her that he was one of the good guys.
“Fine.” She didn’t have anything else to say and ignored the tugs inside her heart urging her to apologize to Clay. She’d deal with those impulses later, but for now she wanted to stay focused on reporting what happened. It had been too long since she’d felt ready to move on with her life after what had happened in the past. Tonight she felt ready and she didn’t want this to slow her down.
He followed her into the building.
“Summer.”
Noah saw her before she saw him and swept her into a tight hug. Tyler was always the more demonstrative of her two brothers, so having Noah act this way surprised her. She hugged him back and tried not to shudder under the impact of realizing how deeply Noah had been worried. Her family had been her rock through all her troubles—she hated the thought of making them scared for her again.
“Come into my office.” He looked in Clay’s direction. “You too. Clay Hitchcock?”
Clay nodded and Noah gave him an approving smile. Any fears Summer had about him being on the wrong side of the law dissipated. To get past one of her brothers was difficult enough, but to get past both would be nearly impossible. Clay must be who he said he was.
Which left her really no reason to dislike him other than that she was still shaken up by him seeing her in such a vulnerable state—a state that had made her treat him rudely. It wasn’t his fault she’d been attacked, wasn’t his fault she’d learned several years ago that vulnerability with men was dangerous and to be avoided at all costs.
They went into Noah’s office and sat down in the uncomfortable wooden framed chairs in front of Noah’s desk. Noah went behind the desk, looking very officer-like and Summer felt a burst of pride in her brother. At least she knew he would do everything to find whomever had tried to attack her. The man who’d attacked her had really picked the wrong family to mess with.
“Why don’t you tell me what happened?”
Summer did so, remembering all the details, which surprised her and the men also, judging by the looks on their faces. She even remembered to tell them that her attacker was left-handed.
“Not something that necessarily helps figure out who did it but it could help you narrow down a suspect list,” Clay said so quietly Summer almost didn’t hear. She was more convinced than ever that this was a job he was used to doing and surprised herself by hoping she’d get a chance to talk to him about it later. It didn’t have anything to do with him, really, or how attractive he was in his quiet way. She was curious. That was all.
She swallowed hard.
“It’ll be okay, Summer.”
Noah thankfully mistook her expression for worry about the case, which it should have been, not angst over how tangled up her emotions felt from being rescued by this man, whether she wanted to be the type that needed rescuing or not.
“I hope so.” She hoped everything would be okay.
“What did you notice?” Noah turned his attention to Clay, and Summer let herself relax a little. She hadn’t meant to close her eyes, but when she heard the words safe house and her eyes popped open she realized she must have been nodding off. Her adrenaline was crashing, no doubt.
“What?”
“I think we need to take you to a safe house.” Noah’s words were firm and Summer widened her eyes even further, then started shaking her head.
“You can’t be serious.”
“Someone is after you.”
“Someone was after me,” she corrected. “I got away. That’s the end of it...isn’t it?”
“Why would she need a safe house?” Clay asked Noah. It didn’t seem like he thought it was necessary, either. Good, maybe her brother was overreacting. Although, was it Summer’s imagination or did she see something in Noah’s expression? Something that implied a bigger issue he wasn’t telling her?
“I have reason to believe it would be a good idea.” Noah stood his ground.
Summer shivered. “Why don’t you tell me what that reason is?”
Noah