As if, in the silence, Willie’s thoughts had strayed in the same direction as Rick’s, the woman was looking wistfully in the direction of what had once been Caitlin’s office.
Rick cleared his throat. “Hey, Wil, those buzzes from before? What were they about?” he asked, pointedly drawing Willie’s attention away from the closed door. He rather her remember that she was annoyed at him than think about what had happened to her beloved HSD.
“Oh, uh. Right.” She shook her head, leaning back in her desk chair, tucking the binder away. “Well, it wasn’t me calling, actually. It was Natalie.”
Rick kept his features neutral as he stood at rest, hands folded behind his back. He knew it. He knew it. “Really? What did she want?”
“She didn’t tell me. Only called in to report you weren’t answering and she was getting worried. You know, Ricky, I think that she’s gotten a little fond of you.”
He wanted to sigh and just managed not to. Natalie Newton. At twenty-two years old, she was more than twelve years younger than Rick. Before he left for the Marines, there was no way the girl would’ve even been on his radar. Now that they were both working under the Hamlet sheriff, he couldn’t escape her.
Hamlet was a small town, less than two hundred people total. He knew damn well that pickings were slim. Somewhere along the line, she decided that he was the best she could hope for. He was a local who left Hamlet only to return a world-weary man, and Natalie made it no secret that she was interested in Rick.
When she couldn’t snag his attention by going down to Thirsty’s and pestering him to buy her a drink, she came up with a new plan. As the one-year anniversary of Caitlin’s murder slipped by last month, Sly decided it was time to add to their numbers.
Willie transitioned from part-time deputy to full-time secretary. With Sly as the sheriff of Hamlet, that left two deputies to serve under him: Rick and a gangly eighteen-year-old kid called Ethan Oliver. Natalie applied to be the third and was deputized at the end of July.
Since then, Rick did everything he could to keep their relationship professional. He didn’t want to hurt the kid. She was a sweet little thing. Of course, that was the problem right there. He needed someone tough, someone strong, someone he wouldn’t be afraid to hurt. And Natalie, with her porcelain skin and blonde curls, reminded him of a doll. Fun to play with, but way too easy to break.
He even tried to get Sly to tell her that it was against policy for two members of the Hamlet Sheriff Department to form a personal relationship outside of work. Besides the fact that that was bull—and since Sly was his best friend, he already had a personal relationship with him—Sly thought it was funny, watching the big former Marine dodging a kid half his size. And if Natalie finally wore him down? Sly was all for it. He wanted Rick to stop mourning a ghost and find a woman that would complete him.
Easy for Sly to say. He’d been in a relationship with Maria De Angelis for almost two years.
Lucky bastard.
Sly wasn’t the only one who wanted to see him settled down. Willie was right there with Sly, giving Rick a little push right toward Natalie.
“I know she’s a little… mmm, aggressive, but she’s a good girl. I know her parents. The Newtons are a good family, too. You could do a lot worse.”
So she was trying to play matchmaker again.
No, thanks. That was the last thing he needed.
“Has Sly reported in yet?” Rick asked.
“Not yet, sug,” Willie said, a glint in her eye that told Rick that she knew exactly what he was doing and that, just this once, she’d let him get away with it. “Sheriff said he was planning on stopping in, doing some work if the computers were up and running, but the line went down earlier. When I let him know, he said something about catching a late dinner.”
Which meant he swung by Ophelia. If he heard from Sly tonight, he’d be surprised. Then again, if that outsider found her way to Ophelia—and with the help he gave her, she should—Maria and Sly would have another guest for supper.
It was a running joke that Sly was absolutely devoted to Maria. But Maria? Her true love was her bed and breakfast. She’d take a guest in a heartbeat, even if she already had plans with Sly.
Willie stood up from her desk chair, reaching for the puffy coat she had resting on the back.
“Now you’ve checked in and Ethan’s taking the late patrol, I’m finally going home to my kids. You can walk me out.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Rick waited for Willie to shimmy on her coat, pack up her tote, and grab her bag. Once she was ready, they both headed out to the parking lot together.
In the time since he’d parked and gone inside the station house, night had fallen completely on Hamlet. The moon was starting to peek out from behind the line of trees that bordered the street.
“Phew.” Willie shivered. “Is it colder than a witch’s tit out here, or is it just me?”
“It’s October. Gets cold in October.”
“Yeah, well, thank the Lord for automobiles with heat.”
Rick murmured his agreement as he followed her around to the backside of the station house. His truck was parked out front, closer to the entrance, but Willie wanted him to walk her out to his car so that was what he was going to do.