Serving Trouble (Second Shot 1)

“It’s not enough,” she said softly, the pain in her chest slowly filling out and taking shape.

“It’s all I’ve got.”

Chapter Twenty-­Two

“HE’S OUT THERE, Noah. I know he is.”

Noah leaned back against the bar and looked over at Caroline. His conversation with Josie had left him with a hollow, panicked sensation circling his chest. But he’d barely had time to think about whether pushing Josie away was the right thing to do before Caroline showed up at the bar with news that left him questioning damn near everything.

“If Dustin’s here,” he said slowly, “why did the private investigator send proof that he was in California?”

Caroline had used his dad’s computer to check her email and learned the guy Noah’d hired in California had found Dustin alive and well. Yeah, the scumbag was stalking his ex-­wife, which violated the restraining order Dustin’s ex had filed. But there was no sign their former CO had followed Caroline to Oregon.

Caroline threw her hands up in the air and began pacing the empty bar. As soon as she’d arrived, Noah had locked up even though he’d only opened for business five minutes earlier.

“Maybe he drove back,” she said. “It’s been weeks since he shot at us.”

“In his email, the investigator said he spoke with Dustin’s ex-­wife. Dustin’s been bothering her ever since she got the order. She’s placed a handful of calls to the police.”

Caroline stopped in the middle of the room. With her hands on her hips, her long hair flowing over her shoulders and her expression turned to pissed-­as-­hell, Caroline looked a helluva lot like the last woman who’d left this bar. Except the angry marine wasn’t about to declare her love.

And Noah didn’t feel the same all-­consuming need to keep Caroline safe. He wasn’t about to let her get shot or locked up again. But with Josie . . . the thought of anything happening to her . . .

Crazy, wild panic. He felt it pulsing through him.

“If it wasn’t Dustin,” Caroline challenged, “then who shot at us?”

“I don’t know.” And yeah, that fact drove him close to crazy too.

“Maybe it’s one of the guys,” she said. “Someone who served with us and blames me for pressing charges against his beloved CO.”

“Could be,” Noah agreed, reaching for his phone. “I’m going to call April and see if she can come in and cover the bar. Then I’d like to walk the woods around the barn and have a close look at that hunting stand.”

He made the call, promising April a Saturday night off with pay if she’d come in now. And thirty minutes later, he climbed into the driver’s seat of his truck while Caroline buckled her seat belt.

“I heard you tell April that you might not make it back before closing,” Caroline said as they turned out of the parking lot.

“I’m going to find this bastard tonight. Or hell, at least find out who has been sending the pictures.” He glanced over at Caroline. “I don’t want you always looking over your shoulder.”

She left out a rough bark of laugher. “Finding him won’t erase my paranoia, Noah. If I’m discovered here, I could be arrested. That threat won’t go away and you can’t change that.”

“I wish I could,” he ground out. “You don’t deserve to live like this. Hiding and afraid.”

“But that’s life. And, Noah, it’s about time you realize that there are some things you can’t change. You can’t always save the day.”

He pressed on the brakes as they approached a red light. “You’re the second person today who has tried to drive that point home.”

“Josie?” Caroline said.

He nodded.

“Did you listen?”

“Right now keeping her safe is my top priority,” he said gruffly.

“Then your priorities are messed up.”

“You really are losing it,” he murmured as he hit the gas and they sped toward his childhood home.