The Mighty Quinns: Devin

“Ten-four, boss.”

He started the cruiser and steered it toward the high school, his mind still mulling over the reality of seeing Elodie again.

He’d always wondered what kind of woman she’d become. As a teenager, she’d been sweet and silly, far too naive and willing to love unconditionally. She’d softened his rough edges, made him believe that he could be something, do something with his life. She’d always seen the best in people and refused to believe the worst, even when the truth slapped her in the face.

Dev had been the opposite. By the time he was seventeen, he’d amassed a rather sizable chip on his shoulder. He’d witnessed firsthand how the town and the Winchesters could wear a person down. He had just one plan, and that was to get as far away as fast as he could. And he’d done just that, leaving the day after his high school graduation.

He’d worked odd jobs and put himself through school, getting a criminal justice degree in five years. He’d been all set to enter the police academy in Atlanta when his mother called. The Winchesters were bankrupt, she was about to lose her job and her home, and she had no idea what to do.

Dev had returned to Winchester within the month and had been lucky enough to sign on with the local police department as a rookie patrolman. As the town economy worsened over the next five years, many of his fellow officers moved on to better jobs. And two years ago, he’d been the senior officer in the department and accepted the job of police chief—at a greatly reduced salary from the last police chief.

But Dev liked his job. He knew what he was doing was important. If the town had any chance of bouncing back, it would happen only if he could keep crime at bay. A single meth lab, a car theft ring, even a clever burglar, could bring it all crashing down. Once the town had a reputation for trouble, no one would want to live there or visit and the town would never recover.

His attention focused on a small group of smokers, huddled near the edge of the school parking lot. Dev threw the car into gear and slowly pulled up in front of them. “You boys really want to spend the rest of your life buying cigarettes? You get hooked now, it’s much harder to kick it later. It’s an expensive habit.” Dev turned and grinned at Jimmy Joe. “And where are you getting money for smokes, Babcock? After spending all that cash on those tires for your brother, I’d think you’d be broke right about now.”

Dev got out of the car and stepped in front of Babcock. “The rest of you can check your homework. I need to have a word with Jimmy Joe.” The boys exchanged glances and the group slowly broke up.

When they were alone and the others were out of earshot, Dev leaned back against the cruiser and crossed his arms over his chest. “I know you stole those tires from Feller’s. The only thing I don’t know is what you plan to do about it.”

Jimmy Joe stared down at the ground. “What can I do? I can’t give them back. My brother already put them on his car.”

“I’m sure if you offered to pay for them, we could work something out.”

“I don’t have any money,” Jimmy Joe said.

“Not now. But if you find yourself a job, you’ll have some cash.”

“There are no jobs,” he said. “My dad’s been looking for two years.”

“You really want to fix this?” Dev asked.

Jimmy Joe nodded.

“After school, you walk over to the hardware store. I’m going to leave a list of supplies for you to pick up. You can pay for them on my account. Then I want you to bring everything over to Zelda’s. I’ll meet you there.”

“What are we going to do?”

“We’re going to turn you into an upstanding citizen of Winchester,” Dev said. “And until you pay Marv back for those tires, I don’t want to see you spending money on cigarettes.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Now, get to class. No more trouble.”

Dev watched the kid walk away.

One by one, he’d deal with the problems in Winchester. It was all he could do. Lately it seemed he was scrambling just to keep ahead of the game instead of doing anything proactive. But if Jimmy Joe showed up at Zelda’s, he could count his day a success.

Dev got back into the cruiser. Now he needed to address another problem. But this problem promised to be more personal than professional.

* * *

ELODIE WINCHESTER SLOWLY climbed the porch steps of her childhood home. Somewhere in the distance, a blue jay’s call echoed in the quiet morning breeze. She reached out and ran her hand along the painted rail, now weathered with age and peeling with neglect.

Made of the local red brick, the house was a sprawling homage to the Queen Anne style. A wide veranda circled the entire first floor, interspersed with simple wooden columns that held up a shingled roof. It had been built by her great-grandfather at the turn of the century, completed just ten years after he opened his textile mill.

But the house had been empty for six years and she could see the work that would be required to bring it back to its former glory.

Elodie had never really looked at the house from a maintenance viewpoint. To her, it had always been more like a fairy castle, with its high-peaked roofs and rooftop widow’s walk. Now it was her house, the only compensation she’d received after her father had raided her trust fund in a futile attempt to save his failing investments.

All of her siblings had suffered the same fate, but most of them had already been drawing on their trusts for years. She’d had the most to lose, so she’d gotten the only thing left that hadn’t—or couldn’t—be sold.

The house had been on the market for years, but its deteriorating condition and the floundering town had driven away all the qualified buyers. No one in Winchester could afford to buy it, much less live in it. And no one from out of town wanted to live here.

She pulled the keys out of her pocket and opened the front door, letting it swing wide before she stepped across the threshold. To her surprise, the house didn’t smell musty. Although the air was hot and stuffy, the scent of lemon oil and floor wax lingered in the air.

As Elodie strolled through the nearly empty rooms, she ran her finger over chair rails and mantels, finding barely a trace of dust. The sound of running water startled her and she followed it to the back of the house where the kitchen was located. A slender figure, dressed in a familiar gray uniform, stood over the sink.

“Mary?” Elodie said. “Mary Cassidy?”

The woman turned, a bucket clutched in her hand. “Miss Elodie. I heard you were back in town. The minute I did, I came right over. The place is a bit dusty, but I’ll have it sparkling again in no time.”

“Mary, I don’t understand. Have you been cleaning here all along?”

She nodded. “I just couldn’t let it all go to ruin,” Mary said. “I come once a week and do what I can. I have to say, it’s much easier without all the furniture.”

“Who is paying you?”

“Oh, no one. I don’t need to be paid. I just want the house to look presentable. For you and the rest of the family.”

Elodie stared at the woman in disbelief. The family had left six years ago and they’d closed the house a few months later. “I—I don’t know how to thank you,” she murmured.

“Are you planning to stay here?” Mary asked. “If you are, I’ll go up and get your room ready. Most of the furniture is still there. We’ll need to get the electricity turned on, but the plumbing works just fine. And with this weather, you won’t need heat.”

“Mary, it’s not necessary for you to— I mean, I can’t pay you a lot. I don’t have much left.”

“Oh, don’t you worry about that, Miss Elodie. I’m sure we’ll sort it all out later. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m just going to get to work on your bedroom.”

“Thank you, Mary.”

Elodie watched as the woman hurried off. An image of Dev flashed in her mind, and she sucked in a sharp breath. Twice now, she’d been reminded of him. Earlier this morning, when she’d seen a man who resembled him, and now, coming face-to-face with Devin’s mother.

Her thoughts returned to the policeman. Maybe she’d just been hoping that he’d still be in Winchester. Elodie knew the odds were against it. He’d always wanted to leave. And why would Dev stay? There was nothing for him here, especially now that the jobs had dried up. And she hadn’t really seen the guy’s face. He’d worn sunglasses and a baseball cap pulled low over his eyes.

But there had been something familiar about the man’s mouth, she mused. It reminded her of that crooked smile of Dev’s that she remembered so well.

Drawing a deep breath, she started out of the kitchen, then stopped short.

There he was. Dressed in navy blue, a badge hanging from a chain around his neck. But the cap and the sunglasses were gone. Elodie swallowed hard. “Hello.” It was all she could manage.

“The front door was open,” he said. “I thought it was you this morning.”

“I thought I recognized you, too.”

He grinned in that same sweet boyish way she remembered. “You haven’t changed a bit,” Dev murmured. “Still...beautiful.”

“Devin Cassidy.” Her heart slammed in her chest and her knees trembled. This was crazy. They’d been high school sweethearts, but that had been years ago. Why was she having such a powerful reaction to seeing him again? Other than the fact he was now an absolutely gorgeous specimen of manhood. “You look...older. I mean, you look like a—a grown-up.”

“Elodie,” he replied with a chuckle. “Still the most honest person I’ve ever met.”

“You’re a—a policeman?”

“Chief of police, actually,” he said. “What are you doing back in town?”

Elodie wasn’t sure she wanted to get into the complicated details of her trip. But if she didn’t continue the conversation, he might leave, and she was certain she didn’t want that. In truth, she wanted a nice, long time to just stare at him, to admire the adult he’d become, to take in every little detail of his face until she’d erased the boy in her memories and replaced him with this incredibly sexy man.

“I’m here to tie up some loose ends. The house has been for sale for years and we’ve had no biters, so I’m considering donating it to the town or maybe to the county.”

“Why would you do that?”

“I can’t afford the taxes any longer. And there’s maintenance that needs to be done that can’t be put off. It’s become an anchor around my neck.”

“Instead of abandoning it, you could always stick around and make something of it.”

She laughed softly. “Like what?”

“I don’t know. It just seems to me that a Winchester should be living in this house.”

“Well, there will be one living here for the next week or two,” she said.

“You’re staying here?”

“It’s cheaper than a motel. I can rough it. Your mother is upstairs putting my bedroom back together.” Elodie met his gaze. “Has she been coming here all along?”

Dev shrugged. “I suppose someone should have asked you, but she wasn’t doing any harm. Your family was her life. She started working for your parents when she was a teenager. I think this is the closest thing she’s ever had to a real home and she couldn’t stand to see it neglected.”

“I can’t pay her,” Elodie said.

“That’s the last thing that matters to her,” he replied.

A long silence grew between them. “I—I’d offer you a cool drink, but I haven’t had a chance to shop.” She laughed. “And right now, I have no electricity for the refrigerator.”

His portable radio squawked. He grabbed it and clicked it on. “This is Dev,” he said.

“We’ve got a report of a 10-68 out on Highway 16, just west of Mike Murphy’s place.”

“I’m five minutes away,” Dev said. “I’ve got it. Out.” He smiled at Elodie. “I have to go. Duty calls.”

“I hope it’s not something dangerous,” she said.

“Nope. A 10-68 is livestock in roadway. I suspect one of Mike Murphy’s pigs got loose. He raises particularly brilliant pigs. They always seem to figure out a way to open the gate and run onto the road rather than crawl through the big broken gaps in his fencing and into the field beyond.”

Elodie laughed. “Glad to hear it’s nothing dangerous. I won’t have to worry.” A blush warmed her cheeks. Had that been too forward? After all, they were barely more than strangers now. And yet, it didn’t feel that way. He felt like an old friend, like someone she’d known very well and hadn’t seen for a few years.

“All right,” he said. “I have to get back to work. I’ll stop by later.”

“I’ll be fine,” she said. “Don’t worry about me.” Oh, now she was assuming he was concerned about her? “Not that I think you’re worried,” Elodie added. “You have more important things to deal with. So don’t—”

He reached out and pressed his finger to her lips. The contact was startling and undeniably intimate. “You’re currently residing in the village of Winchester, where I am the chief of police,” he said. “It’s my responsibility to worry about your well-being.”

Elodie forced a smile. “All right,” she said.

Dev nodded, then strode through the house to the front door. She heard it close behind him, and she sank back against the wall.

It had been twelve years since she’d last seen him and nothing had changed between them. He still had the ability to set her heart racing and turn her brain to mush. It had taken every ounce of her willpower to stop herself from touching him and running her fingers over his handsome face.

She’d met a lot of boys, and then men, since leaving Winchester. She’d had some serious relationships that had ended up imploding in a spectacular fashion. And in the midst of all that pain and turmoil, Elodie had always wondered if she’d left her one true love behind at age sixteen.

The notion was ridiculous, but it had stuck with her over the years. Maybe she’d been fated to love Devin Cassidy, and she’d never be truly happy unless she was with him. Elodie sighed. Or maybe she was searching for something—a sense of belonging, a place for her to finally feel safe and secure again. She was home, but it wasn’t the home she remembered. It was silly to get too attached to Dev simply because he was familiar.

She closed her eyes and let a delicious image of the dark-haired, blue-eyed man drift through her mind. How was it possible that he was still here, still single and— Elodie stopped herself. Was he still single? She hadn’t bothered to check for a wedding band. Surely she would have noticed that.

Elodie opened her eyes and pushed away from the wall. “Mary?” She ran through the house and took the stairs to her bedroom two at a time.

If she wanted to know more about Winchester’s sexy police chief, she’d simply ask his mother.

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