You Belong to Me (Brook Hollow 1)

“Scrawny my ass,” she mumbled grouchily. “I am fit and healthy.”

She took a deep breath and put her car into drive. As she headed for her house, she noticed his headlights following behind her. What an asshole, she complained silently. She felt like calling him a few bad names, but with her luck, he’d arrest her for it. She heard the sheriff was his older brother so he would side with Lincoln over some stranger who was new in town. She hated that she felt so many mixed emotions around Lincoln. She felt desire, but it was mixed with anger, and a little bit of intimidation. Why couldn’t he just chill out a bit? She just didn’t understand his bad attitude. Was he mad at the world or just her? He knew nothing about her or her difficult life.

After a few minutes, she pulled into her driveway. Since her clothes were already wet, she decided to make a run for the porch. The small yellow house was cozy and represented a fresh start on a drama free life. Brook Hollow was a safe place for them to start over. Lincoln would not ruin that for her or her sister. Lily needed the peace this town made her feel.

Since it was dark, Jessy was fumbling with her keys, looking for the one that would open the front wooden door. The house was dark and quiet. Hopefully her sister did not hear her over the loud thunder. She did not want to upset Lily. She already worried over Jessy’s late hours. Jessy could imagine Lincoln and her sister teaming up on the lectures.

“Need more help?” The deep voice startled her.

Jessy shrieked and turned behind her to see Lincoln standing behind her with his arms folded across his chest. She put a hand on her racing heart and glared at him. What was his problem sneaking up behind her like that? She expected him to drive off once he saw her run up to the porch. “Jesus, Lincoln. Why are you here? You almost gave me a heart attack.”

She saw his lips slightly curl upward as if he wanted to smile but didn’t know how. Did he enjoy making her angry?

“I wanted to make sure you got home safe. It’s my job.” His deep voice was filled with amusement, so why didn’t she feel any amusement?

She put the key in the lock and turned it until it opened. She looked up at him, not going in. He stood a head taller than her but then again, she was of average height. “Thank you for doing your job, Officer Ramirez. I bet you do your part to make the women of Brook Hollow feel safe,” she retorted sarcastically, ignoring her racing pulse at being so close to him.

“I try.” She could feel his eyes roaming up and down her body. Her traitorous body, of course, reacted with tingly sensations running rampantly inside of her. She cracked the front door open but didn’t go inside. Thank goodness the porch light was off, or he might see how her nipples hardened at him being so close. Usually it was as if he couldn’t stand being too close to her so he left right away. Right now he was crowding her space and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it, besides turned on. The rain continued to pour down and loud booming thunder was coming closer. Jessy loved a good summer storm, but tonight she wanted to put the pillow over her head and fall asleep quickly. Her feet ached from spending hours on her feet. Being a bartender wasn’t her dream job, but it paid the bills.

“Is that all officer or are you going to give me another ticket?” she snapped wanting him to leave.

It was his turn to

roll his eyes. “Still angry about that, Jessy? It was for your own good.”

He took a step closer to her and she was sure her heart stopped beating. She stood still, frozen to the spot. He ran his thumb across her lips and she wondered how his lips would feel on hers. He quickly took away his thumb as if regretting touching her.

“Take better care of your car, Jessy,” he told her seriously, but softly. “Coming home so late at night on that long stretch of road is dangerous.”

“Then maybe you should ask the big bosses of the city to put street lights out on that section of the road. Ever heard of those?” she replied, feeling aggravated. Like she had a choice driving down that road. She had bills to pay and that was the first job she found. Later, she wanted to look for something else, but when they arrived in town they were low on money and Jessy had taken the first job offer she found.

“Come to the next city council meeting then. They welcome suggestions. Take care.” He turned and walked down the porch steps and into the pouring rain. Jessy watched him get into his police vehicle. The man was way too confusing. She went into her warm house and closed the door locking it back up. Hopefully the sound of the storm would lull her to sleep right away. The last thing she needed was to try and figure out Lincoln Ramirez. He was out of her league and that was that.

* * * *

Lincoln Ramirez sat in his car with the windshield wipers and the rain hitting the metal roof of his police cruiser making the only noise. He was off duty so he had turned the radio off. He watched the heavy oak front door close. He should drive off and forget all about the infuriating, but sexy, brunette. From the moment he leaned down to hand Jessy Simmons a speeding ticket a few weeks back he had been drawn to her. He looked into her pretty green eyes and had been rendered speechless. Jessy was a sexy package with a sassy mouth that he itched to tame. Her sable brown hair was long and hung down her back in waves. She had curves in all the right places, making his body stand at attention whenever she was near him. He wasn’t happy about those feelings. Jessy was too much of a temptation. Seeing her in her uniform tonight had blown him away. Her full, round breasts had been on display in the tight white tank top had made it hard not to stare. Her black skirt had been so short he had wanted to pull it down to cover those toned thighs and long legs of hers. He briefly thought about grabbing her and kissing her, but forced himself to resist. She was in her mid-twenties, but she had an aura of innocence still surrounding her. He was thirty, but most of the times he felt older. His mother told him he had the ability to act like an old man. Lincoln was cranky most of the time and set in his ways just like his dad.

Jessy was a mystery and a wild card in his perfect orderly life. He didn’t want the hassle or drama of being in a relationship. He had watched his older brother, Abel, suffer in his drama-filled relationship just last year, and Lincoln vowed to stay footloose and fancy free. Jessy was a threat to that vow.

Jessy moved into town a few months ago, with a younger sister in tow. Not many people purposely moved to a rural town, away from the excitement of a bigger city, not single young women anyway, so it made him suspicious. Were they in trouble and would they bring it to Brook Hollow? He had asked his brother, who was the sheriff, if he knew anything about the Simmons sisters. Abel had shrugged and said no. Obviously he wasn’t too worried about Brook Hollow’s newest residents. He didn’t want his curious brother seeing how much he was intrigued by Jessy Simmons so he just dropped the subject.

Every time he saw Jessy he wanted to just grab her and kiss her until she shut up, so he did his best to avoid her at all costs. If only she knew how badly he desired her. How would she react? Did she feel the pull as much as he did?

He would not be able to stop himself at one kiss. He automatically knew kissing her would be addicting. Those snobby women she accused him of dating were nothing more than a pointless distraction. He hadn’t had sex with any of them since meeting Jessy. His days and nights were filled with thoughts of a sweet, young, and sexy brunette. He put his car in drive and drove away reluctantly. How was he going to keep resisting Jessy Simmons?

Chapter Two

Jessy sat across the booth from her younger sister Lily, sipping on a cup of hot coffee. They decided to have breakfast out this morning, but Jessy was still feeling exhausted. The storm was long gone and the hot sun shone strong in the blue sky. Missouri was a little hotter in the summer than she was used to. She had stayed awake longer than she wanted to last night, trying to figure out Lincoln and then chastised herself for caring. She yawned and saw her sister give her an amused smile. Lily looked fresh and well rested despite having jogged this morning. Lily often teased her, saying Jessy was like a cat. She preferred to nap on the couch on her days off, barely moving.

Lily grabbed a piece of toast and smothered it with jelly. “Bad night at work?”

Jessy set her cup down on the table and rubbed her face with her hands. Did her sleepless night show? Probably.

“Sort of.” Jessy poked at her pancakes, not wanting to mention that it was Lincoln who was messing with her mind and not her job. “The flat tire didn’t help.”

Jessy dropped her car off at the local garage to get a new tire and they had walked the few blocks to the small diner that served home cooked meals, according to the sign. It was filled with other diners with the same idea of eating out.

“I feel better knowing you’re getting a new tire, Sis. I can get extra hours at the store if we need money during the week,” Lily said seriously. Lily was five years younger than Jessy. Jessy had always sheltered her sister as best as she could. “That road is long and dark. I don’t like it.”