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Cassie Dewell had been planning on a quiet morning back in her own office, reviewing potential clients when she heard the sound of the entry door open indicating the arrival of a visitor. Before her eyes even had time to rise from the standard request form, she heard Denise's voice rapidly change from warm welcome to overly excited. There was only one person she knew that could have Denise's voice reach that octave and Cassie smiled in amusement before schooling her expression.
“Well, hello, Beau,” Denise nearly gushed from behind her desk. “What brings you in here this morning?”
Cassie looked up towards the entry of the office. Her own desk had a clear line of sight through the glass walls of the space that had once belonged to a financial advisor. The Dewell & Hoyt office itself was just an old bank that she and Cody had barely refurbished before moving in. Cody had been concerned about affording the lease but she had fallen in love with the original hardwood flooring. Cassie frowned briefly at the reminder of his loss.
But Beau's deep, smooth Texan drawl pulled her attention back to the front office. As expected, the tall broad form of Sheriff Beau Arlen filled the doorway nearest to Denise's desk. He was leaning against the jam with his right shoulder but the posture did nothing to diminish his size. Cassie had yet to get used to just how ridiculously Texan the man was from his neatly trimmed beard down to his boots and layered in denim. She could just make out the glint of the overhead lights on the badge clipped to his belt that peaked suggestively from under his dark denim jacket.
“Oh, just a quick visit.” He answered with his standard half smile that he seemed to reserve for the older woman. The two were relentless flirts with each other in some sort of verbal game. “I'm still working on the casserole, by the way.”
Denise grinned, “Well, if you need some help eating that, it is one of my specialties.”
Cassie did her best to hide her amusement at their playful banter. Cassie's own relationship with Beau had developed its own similar game where he tried everything possible to make her laugh and she did everything she could to not let him. These interactions with her assistant and friend fell into that category, too.
“I’m actually here to talk to Cassie. Is she… “ Beau trailed off as his gaze turned to scan the rest of the office and landed on her own.
She waved at him without standing up. “Hey, come on back.”
Beau's smile brightened as he gave a short nod to Denise and strolled back towards Cassie.
She was glad to see his mood seemingly improved since they’d left the Sunny Day campsite. She had left shortly after the Sheriff had taken a man into custody who was still refusing to identify himself. She hadn't wanted to cause him any more stress. Beau had already been juggling the barely controlled chaos of the investigation and the personal stresses with his daughter, ex-wife and her new husband. It was a side of his personality she had not seen previously.
“Well, don't you look all bright and bushy-tailed this morning,” she asked.
He grinned and dropped into the chair across from her at the desk. “Well, you could say that.”
“What's up?”
“Emily is going to be staying with me for a few days,” Beau started.
Cassie smiled. “That's great, Beau.”
“I guess Carla and Avery are…” he trailed off with a pseudo-disinterested sea-sawing wave of his hand and glanced away. “And Carla needs to go to California for court prep. So…” Beau shrugged nonchalantly.
“I see,” Cassie replied, now watching Beau's body language intently.
She fought the frown forming on her lips. She wondered sometimes if he was actually this easy to read or if he just didn't bother because she was a private investigator and would see through subterfuge anyway.
Cassie could tell he was happy to be able to spend time with his daughter but was also uncomfortable with why. During the course of his double homicide investigation at Sunny Day Excursions, Beau had uncovered an SEC investigation into Avery's company, Haypoint, and that Avery had been keeping this from Carla. It didn't take a P.I. to put together that this might be the current cause of tensions between the newly married couple. Was Beau feeling guilty about it?
“Anyway,” he shifted in the chair and leaned forward. “I was hoping to ask you for a favor?”
Cassie immediately nodded, “Of course. If I can, sure.”
Beau breathed out a quick burst of air in relief and his shoulders relaxed. Cassie suddenly wondered if she had been too confident about her ability to read him from just moments before. His entire demeanor seemed to change. She hadn't realized just how tense he'd been.
“Well, like I said, Emily is staying for a few days but it wasn't really planned for her to be with me until after the trip and the trip, well,” he lifted a shoulder again in a rueful shrug. “Well, it ended prematurely.”
“Yes, it did.” Cassie agreed quietly. There was no good way to address a double murder in normal conversation and he was clearly still unnerved for something like that to have happened in proximity to his child.
“So, I hadn't planned any scheduled time off for myself this week,” Beau continued as if Cassie hadn't interrupted. “But, everyone at the department really stepped up for me and so I was able to reschedule my duty shifts until next week. But if this thing with Carla doesn't resolve soon and she's also got Court coming up and Em gets to stay with me beyond that… I'm going to need some help.” Beau's green gaze met hers again.
Cassie nodded. “What do you have in mind?”
“Well, I was hoping that, maybe, Emily could come here?”
“You mean here? As in, this office?” Cassie replied, her eyebrows furrowing in thought.
Beau nodded hopefully.
She watched him silently for a moment. Beau was a good man and all her interactions with Emily pointed to him being a good father. But she also knew he was a little overprotective. She did have to admit, though, the recent double murder even had her checking in on her own son who was also currently at summer camp. The difference, however, was that Kai was only nine years old whereas Emily had recently turned sixteen.
Cassie gave him a soft smile, “Isn't Emily a little old for a babysitter, Beau?”
He frowned and leaned back with a disappointed slump.
“Hey, Beau,” Cassie continued. “I'm not saying ‘no’ here but we're not really…” she gestured with an open hand to the empty front of the building, “... designed for babysitting.”
Cassie could see Denise at her desk looking towards them with undisguised interest. She was about two minutes away from joining them.
Beau rubbed a hand across his mouth before leaning forward again. “I'm not looking for a babysitter. That's not what this is.”
Cassie just nodded and patiently waited for him to continue.
He slowly sighed in resignation. “Look, this thing with the dead backpacker and the two dead campers really rattled me, okay? I'd take Emily into the Sheriff's office but there's no way she's going to go for that. Plus, she'll be bored. I mean, there's things she could do but there's regulations on what access she'd be allowed to have without being an intern. And being the daughter of the sheriff makes getting her an internship at the county on short notice and without the proper paperwork and with a rather alarming rise in the homicide rate of late… Well, let's just say I'd have to answer some political and ethical questions I'd rather just avoid right now.”
Cassie leaned back in her chair as Denise appeared in the doorway.
“At least, if she's here, you'll have something for her to do that will keep her busy and out of trouble.” Beau continued looking from Cassie to Denise and back again. “And I'll know she'll be safe.”
The honest intensity in his gaze nearly drowned her but she pulled her eyes away to glance at Denise.
“What do you think, Denise? Can you find enough work to keep the sixteen-year-old daughter of the county sheriff entertained?” Cassie grinned as relief spread across Beau's face.
“Oh, I think I can wrangle up something for her to do,” Denise replied, putting a hand on Beau's shoulder and squeezing gently.
Cassie nodded. “Of course, Beau. Just let us know when.”
Beau's easy smile lifted the corner of his lips and the grin reached his eyes once more. “Thanks. Both of you.”
“Anytime,” Cassie responded.
He stood then and slid one long arm around Denise's shoulder in a quick side hug. “I gotta go pick her up now. I'll call you once I know more.”
Cassie and Denise watched him walk quickly for the door and out onto the street.
“I wonder how hard that was for him,” Denise said quietly before glancing at Cassie with a sad smile and returning to her desk.
Cassie sighed and looked back down at the assortment of potential clients in front of her and asked herself the same question.
end.