No One But You (Silver Springs #2)(40)

“I’m not interested in her romantically.” What Dawson had been feeling since last night called him a liar, but he hadn’t intended their relationship to be anything other than employer/employee and wasn’t going to let it move in that direction.

“The reality doesn’t matter,” Eli said. “He’ll perceive you as a threat and give you grief over anything he can.”

“I asked her to dance when we saw her the night Eli’s talking about,” Gavin said. “I felt sorry for her sitting off by herself, you know? And, just for that, he almost started a fight with me right there in the bar.”

Dawson slapped his jeans to get the dust off. “Yeah. I’ve seen a bit of that kind of behavior.”

Eli’s eyes widened. “Already? When did she start working for you?”

“Just a few days ago. But the beginning of anything is always the hardest.”

“You think he’ll settle down and let it go,” Gavin said.

Dawson settled his cap back on his head as he looked up at them again. “Once he gets used to the idea. What else can he do?”

Eli made a clicking sound with his mouth. “I don’t like what comes to mind.”

“Legally,” Dawson stressed. “He’s a cop, right?”

“The fact that he’s a cop makes it worse, not better,” Gavin said.

“Who’s going to hold him in check?” Eli agreed.

Dawson turned to stare at the fields he’d been working so hard to cultivate. He’d hate to see all his effort wasted. He had to stay focused. And yet...he couldn’t abandon a woman who was being bullied. “I guess I will, if necessary,” he said as he turned back.

“Don’t do anything.” Elijah’s voice grew firm. “If he comes over, call one of us. He’ll be less likely to act out with a witness around. You can’t let it come down to his word against yours.”

“Sure thing,” Dawson said. But he knew if Sly came out, there’d be no time to invite the Turners.

He waved as they left. Then he pivoted and saw Sadie’s face at the window, looking out at him. He wanted to go in and talk to her, to see how she was doing.

And that was specifically why he averted his gaze and went right back to the field where he’d been working.

*

Because the diner had been slow, they’d cut her an hour early, giving Sadie time to swing by a small clothing boutique, where she’d purchased a new blouse. Perhaps it wasn’t wise to waste money in her current financial crisis. She could continue to get by without another top. But she couldn’t remember the last time she’d had something new. She was working two jobs right now, so she had more money coming in than since she’d left Sly, and it’d been fun to feel as though she had someone she wanted to impress. She hadn’t bothered with that type of thing in ages, had barely let herself look at the eligible men in the area.

The sheer, sparkly fabric that covered a solid nude-colored tank underneath made her feel pretty, maybe even sexy in a subtle way, but Dawson had barely glanced at her when she arrived—and then he hadn’t come in. She stood at the window mired in disappointment as she watched him move away from her until he disappeared from view.

“What did you expect?” she said aloud. She’d been a fool to buy a new blouse. Last night had been an anomaly. Dawson wasn’t interested in her. She’d be crazy to get involved with him even if he was. She had nothing but his word and her instincts to rely on when it came to the issue of his parents’ murder. And Sly would become even more insufferable if he thought he had competition. It was better to keep her relationship with Dawson professional—which she’d known all along, of course.

Trying to shake off a sudden melancholy, she went up to his room to borrow an old T-shirt. She hadn’t worn her new blouse for more than an hour. If she took it off now, before she could spill or splash on it, she could possibly return it. And since she did Dawson’s laundry, and he never showed up at the house unless it was time to eat, she’d just change back before dinner and then wash and return his shirt to his closet with the next batch.

His T-shirt nearly drowned her. She’d never weighed much, but the longer she’d lived with Sly, the harder it had been to keep any meat on her bones. He made her so anxious she didn’t care to eat. Sometimes she’d throw up if she did, and that problem was continuing now that they were separated and financial worries added to the other concerns that weighed so heavily. She never knew what to expect from him; he kept her constantly on edge, constantly wary.

After folding her new blouse, she set it on the dresser and went about cleaning the room. She hadn’t made it upstairs before, so she figured it was time to dig in on the second story. Although she’d taken the dirty laundry from Dawson’s room, there was more, and the clean clothes she’d left on his bed before were now piled on the floor in a haphazard fashion because he hadn’t taken the time to put them away.

“Good thing you got me,” she mumbled and changed his bedding, dusted, vacuumed and cleaned and straightened the closet and drawers. She also wiped down the lighting fixture and ceiling fan and scrubbed the window, which looked out onto the front yard and the highway beyond.

While pausing there to rest for a moment, she saw a police cruiser go by. Whoever was behind the wheel didn’t slow down or turn in, but the sight of any cop car was enough to remind her of the panic she’d endured earlier when she thought Sly had noticed Dawson’s truck parked on her street. She hadn’t heard from her ex today—not while she was working at the diner and not after—so she’d begun to relax. But as the minutes ticked by with no word, she realized that could be foreboding. He always checked in, did whatever he could to remain in her thoughts and to encourage her to see him. She had no doubt that once he got her to come back to him, and was secure in the relationship, he’d treat her the same as before, but he swore that would never happen.