Page 20 of Rogue Wave

I loved autumn in Northern California. Most people would probably pick the summer because it was warmer, but July was colloquially known as “No-Sky July,” and August was “Fogust” because of how frequent the thick fog was that time of year. Autumn, in my opinion, was better—still mild out, but far less fog.

Today was a beautiful example of that. Cool, crisp morning, but it would eventually get nice and warm this afternoon with full sunshine. My front porch faced the rising sun, so I decided to come out with my thick blanket, curl up on my chair, and read a book with the sun shining on me. There was no better combo than vitamin D and a good book.

It was a great book, too. Slow-burn hockey romance, and I was finally getting to the good part. That was probably why I didn’t hear two people get within a few feet of my porch.

“That must be some good book,” a loud male voice with a spark of mischief said.

I knew that voice to be Dougie’s, so I chose to keep my eyes fixated on my book. “Shhh…I’m at the good part. Hold on.” I held up one finger in the universal sign for “just a second.”

I heard his deep laugh as I finished reading the last page of my chapter.

Okay, I could at least stop there—for a moment.

When I finally looked up, it was to see both Dougie and Hank standing there—Dougie looking amused, and Hank looking…well…like he usually did. Grumpy.

“I called out to you, and you didn’t even react,” Dougie informed me.

“Sorry, but the characters in my book finally kissed. After eighteen chapters. Eighteen! Usually there’s at least one sexy scene by now, so I was a bit distracted.”

They both stared at me for a moment as if I were crazy. Then Dougie’s mouth transformed into a huge smile. Hank’s look was more neutral but very intense. I wished I was a mind reader so I could know what he was thinking. Though it was probably frustration related to his job…or me…so maybe I didn’t want to know.

I did not have to be a mind reader, however, to know what they were doing. Dressed in their usual running gear, it appeared they were off for their morning jog, with Dougie in his special running prosthetic.

I wasn’t always awake this early in the morning, so I wasn’t sure how often they did this together, but the few times I’d been up and about at this time of day, I’d seen them either headed out or coming back from their run.

“Well, we won’t keep you then,” Dougie said. “Enjoy your book.”

I pretended to look back down at my book and read, but a few seconds later, I glanced up at the backs of both gentlemen as they walked away. Mostly the back of one man in particular—Hank.

His heather-gray running shorts were molded to him like a second skin, highlighting his chiseled thighs and Roman god-like butt. His back muscles flexed as he and Dougie began to jog off down the street.

Yesterday on the beach had been eye-opening. I’d discovered a whole new side of Hank that I’d never seen before—a nice side…other than his backside.

He was kind, thoughtful, and considerate of my feelings. I knew it was likely part of his job as sheriff, but I couldn’t help wondering if maybe he liked me a little more than I thought.

Oh, how I wished he liked me. It would certainly make things a lot less awkward if the feelings were actually reciprocated, considering I thought about him while using my vibrator.

The few fantasies—okay, more like a few dozen—with Hank starring in them occupied a slightly concerning amount of my downtime. After yesterday’s conversation at the beach, the frequency of those fantasies was only getting worse.

He’d been friendly, supportive, and even sweet. It wasn’t much, but his words felt like an olive branch. At least I figured it was as much of an olive branch as this man was likely capable of. If I hadn’t known better, I would’ve thought I was talking to Hank’s nonexistent twin brother—the nicer one.

Hank had an intense look that would have made me nervous if I didn’t know him better. Not that I knew him well, but I’d gotten to know him at least a little bit over the last two months. He was polite but had an edge to him. Same with Dougie, though Dougie was friendlier on the outside and at least had a humorous side. If Hank had a funny bone, it was hidden very well under all that muscle and rarely poked through. He was always so kind to all the other neighbors, and yesterday he’d finally shown me a softer side.

I wished we could be like that more often. It certainly would make being neighbors easier.

I loved my neighborhood and my neighbors—even Sheriff McStickler himself—so I wanted to stay here forever. And my house was just about a dream come true.

My house was a craftsman bungalow with a huge front porch. I had a driveway but no garage, which was the only thing I disliked about my place. There was a carport off to the far right side, but it didn’t help much when the wind blew the rain sideways. Plus, there wasn’t an entrance on that side of the house, so I still had to walk all the way around to my front porch to get to my door.

Inside, my house was a simple three-bedroom, two-bath, single story layout. Everything had been updated about five years ago, so while it wasn’t brand-new, it still felt fresh and modern.

Technically, I was renting it for a year with the option to buy it from George once the lease was up. George originally owned every house on the street except Dottie’s, and apparently, he did this lease to own with all of them. He was notoriously particular about who he wanted living on our quiet little street, so he essentially “tested” renters first. If he liked you, he let you stay.

And I wanted to stay. The location was unbeatable, and the neighbors were welcoming and friendly—minus Hank.

Maybe I just needed to kill him with kindness. Challenge accepted, Salty McCodeEnforcer.

I had just finished my dinner break at work and was headed back to the tank area so that Vivi could head home for the night.