Hot as Heller by Lucy Lennox

5

Declan

I was running on two hours of sleep, a giant cinnamon roll from the new bakery, and a vat of coffee. To say my mood was less than ideal would be an understatement.

So when one of my brothers called to ask me a favor, I was inclined to tell him where to shove that favor. The only thing that kept me from biting his head off was the knowledge I owed him one. A big one. He’d been the one to offer pro bono legal help to my partner when all the shit had gone down with the department’s bribery scandal back in LA. And even when Nick had been clearly guilty of the charges against him, my brother Patrick had given him a strong defense and had negotiated an impressive plea deal for him.

I owed Patrick big-time, and seeing Tess, Nick’s ex-girlfriend, on my stoop last night was a reminder of it.

“Can’t I have one of my deputies do it?” I asked with a sigh. “You have no idea how high-maintenance Finn Heller is.”

Patrick laughed. “No way. I promised her he’d get the best man on the force. One has to assume that’s you, Peanut.”

Leave it to one of my brothers to be loving and condescending in the same breath. “How do you even know this agent? Is she a client?”

“You know I can’t tell you that. But I can tell you she’s Olivia’s tennis partner at the club. She and her husband are friends of ours. In fact, you’ve probably met them at the holiday party before. Iris is tiny, and her husband is a giant. Olivia always makes rude jokes behind their backs about the physics involved during sex.”

That rang a bell. I remembered the husband more than the wife. Sexy as hell, but a pompous jackass who name-dropped in every sentence.

“Yeah, okay. Whatever. But this is a big ask, so now you’re going to owe me one.”

His warm, familiar laughter made me smile. Moving away from my family had been the only downside to my relocation to Colorado.

“That’s not how this works,” he said. “We’ll be even if anything. Don’t you remember when Nick wanted to bribe the judge on his case?”

Heat flooded my face. My partner had hidden his corruption incredibly well until he’d been caught. Then it had seemed like almost a game to him.

My hesitation must have betrayed my emotions because Patrick’s voice dropped the teasing tone. “It’s okay, Dec. You know I’m used to shit like that. He wasn’t even close to the worst of my clients. And I was happy to do that for you. Okay?”

I was the youngest of five boys. They’d always been just as protective and loving toward me as my parents had been.

“Okay. Yeah. Ah… speaking of Nick, Tessa showed up here last night.”

“Really? Is she okay? I saw her about six weeks ago when Nick signed away his parental rights. Since you’re listed as her next of kin, she told me I could disclose it to you.”

I hadn’t known she’d listed me as next of kin, but she’d told me about the parental rights. Thank god. Nick Kimball had never been father material.

I thought of how Tess had been so exhausted she’d burst into tears before I’d taken her inside and put her to bed. “She’s not okay. It’s been rough on her back in LA, financially and emotionally. Her business dried up, and all her so-called friends have suddenly evaporated. I told her to stay here with me for a while. I have room, and she needs someone in her corner.”

“She’s lucky to have you. It’s probably good for her to disappear until this crap dies down. As long as some of these bribery cases are still making their way through the courts, it’s going to remain active in the tabloids.”

At least Nick’s plea deal had saved us all that long, drawn-out process. He’d begun serving his long sentence as soon as Patrick had made the arrangements.

“I’ll have to find her a doctor or midwife, but I have a friend whose sister is a nurse. I’m sure she can help.”

“Good. Listen, I have to go. Things might not be busy in a small-town sheriff’s department, but they’re bonkers here. I’m due in court in about twenty minutes. Call Mom. She got downright sniffly the other night because you weren’t there for her special spaghetti and meatballs.”

I ended the call laughing. Our mother made spaghetti from a jar with frozen meatballs and tried to pass it off as an old family recipe passed down through generations from some Italian ancestor who didn’t actually exist. As soon as we were old enough to figure it out, we started calling it “Mom’s special spaghetti and meatballs,” and it cracked us up every time.

Leave it to Patrick to lift my spirits. My improved mood lasted all of ten minutes until Penny announced the arrival of “that adorable boy from that show.”

“Send him in,” I grumbled.

Somehow in the twelve or so hours since I’d seen him last, Finn Heller had become exponentially more attractive. Maybe my mind was playing tricks on me with an attempt to downplay his looks in my memory. But here he was in the flesh, about as sexy and compelling as a human being could possibly be.

What was it about him that made my breath come faster and shallower? He was too young, too… perky, too… everything.

“Hi, Sheriff,” he said, holding out his hand. “I’d like to apologize for last night and thank you for your intervention.”

He said this like he’d been rehearsing it on the way over. Still, I glanced down at his hand like it was going to bite.

“Just doing my job,” I said. As soon as my hand clasped his, my lower belly tightened. His grip was warm and firm, but his hands were soft and tender. I didn’t want to be attracted to him, but he was making it (and me) hard.

“Great. That’s what I’m here to see. I appreciate you agreeing to let me shadow you this week. I hope it’s no bother.”

I bit back a complaint that of course it was a bother. I had a county to keep in order, new deputies to train, and a large film project causing all kinds of traffic, zoning, and crowd control problems.

“No bother at all,” I said instead. “Have a seat.” I led him into my office and gestured to the plastic guest chair in front of my desk before taking a seat in my own chair. “What exactly can I help you with?”

I figured the best course of action was to determine what he wanted to learn or observe and then dive right in. Maybe once he had the information he needed, we could finish early.

Finn blinked at me, sooty eyelashes dusting his cheeks just above the sprinkling of freckles that made him look so young. “I, um…”

“I was under the impression this was an action film,” I said. “With shooting and explosions. Car chases and stuff.”

He scraped a tooth over his bottom lip. “Well, yes.”

“Which, as you probably know, isn’t normal fare for a small-town sheriff’s office in the Rocky Mountains,” I added.

His forehead crinkled. “But you’re not from here. You were a special operations detective in Los Angeles until recently. Weren’t you?”

I nodded. “I was. But it was a rare day when I chased a suspect to the inevitable mountainside cave explosion,” I said drily.

Pink suffused his face. “You know about the cave explosion scene.”

I nodded again. “My first official day as sheriff was spent talking the county council down from allowing your people to literally blow up the side of Rockley Mountain. Yes, I’m familiar with the plans.”

“They wouldn’t have actually blown it up,” he said. “Most of it is done with special effects.”

He must have had more faith in his director than the guy warranted. Nolan Trainor had actually submitted a request to use blasting agents for a live explosion shot. Thankfully, Tiller Raine’s attorneys had been better than Nolan’s, and the landowner had prevailed.

“They actually attained approval for a live detonation of a temporary structure. So, they’re still blasting, just not making a permanent dent in our mountain.”

Finn’s eyes widened. “They… they wanted to blow up part of the mountain?”

He was very good at acting naive.

“The movie apparently ends in an explosion that creates an avalanche.”

He nodded. “Well, sure, but that… I thought that was the kind of thing that would be done with CGI.”

“The show runner told me this director prefers shooting things as real as possible. Just be glad there’s such a thing as a stunt double.”

Finn’s forehead creased in a frown. “I’m not using a stunt double. It’s one of the reasons Nolan cast me in this role. You’re right about him being a stickler for authenticity. There are several rock climbing scenes, and I’m… I’m good at climbing. I just didn’t think it meant he’d want to blast into a real mountain.”

He looked down at his hands which were clasped in his lap. Gone was the flashy celebrity who’d handed me his keys with a dismissive wave the other night in front of Mikey and Tiller’s place. In his place was someone I couldn’t figure out.

Finn Heller wasn’t just good at climbing. He was famous for it. The show he’d been on was about a family known for their unusual luck. Everything went right for them, regardless of how dangerous or ill-advised. As a result, the youngest Clover kid had been a danger-seeker until finally finding his passion: rock climbing. Finn had spent the next several seasons playing a serious rock climber.

Finally, I understood why this particular actor had been cast in a big-budget action film. He was known for climbing, and the hero in the movie they were here filming was a rock climber. I only knew about it since they’d had to schedule extra security and crowd control perimeters the days they were shooting climbing scenes on the other side of the mountain.

No matter how skilled I knew him to be, when I pictured Finn hanging from Slye Peak, my palms started to sweat. Just one more piece of the Finn Heller puzzle that was driving me crazy.

I blinked away the image and got back to the point. “I certainly can’t help you with the rock climbing portion of the film, not that you’d need my help for that anyway, so what other scenes are there I might be able to help you prep for?”

He looked back up at me. His eyes sparkled a little. “You know about my climbing?”

I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing I knew who he was. “You mentioned you were good at climbing. I’ve never been climbing. Ergo, I can’t help you with climbing.”

Ergo?Jesus.

I cleared my throat. “But car chases I could help with.” Finn’s eyes widened with excitement, so I threw up a palm to deflect it. “Not by participating in one, mind you, but by discussing techniques and tactics.”

Finn’s expression still held excitement as he nodded. “I would appreciate that. Thank you.”

His professionalism and gratitude made me uncomfortable.

Thankfully, we were interrupted by my new deputy.

Shawn ducked his head into my office with a quick knock on the doorframe. “Sheriff, sorry to interrupt, but there’s a 10-59 at the Barking Lot, and Penny said…” He glanced at Finn and chose his words more carefully. “You’d want to handle it.”

I stood up and gathered my things, halfway hoping this wasn’t what I thought it was. “Deputy Graham, this is Finn Heller. He’s shadowing me this week. Finn, Shawn Graham.”

They shared a quick greeting before I led Finn out the back to my vehicle.

“What’s a 10-59? Please tell me it’s a robbery in progress. That would be amazing.”

I turned to Finn. “It wouldn’t be amazing for poor Louisa, who runs the shop.”

He looked appropriately cowed. “No. Obviously. Sorry, I…”

“Get in the car.”

When we got underway, Finn scrolled through his phone until he found a site with radio codes. “What’s malicious mischief?”

I sighed. He was going to find out anyway as soon as we got there. “It means Mrs. Brainthwaite has decided Prancer needs a new sparkly collar, but she doesn’t want to pay for it because she’s still mad at Louisa for cutting Prancer’s toe fluff too short.”

I was quickly discovering Finn was the master of the slow-pan. “Say what now?”

“You heard me,” I muttered, turning on my indicator before pulling into the open spot in front of the shop. “This is what I meant when I told you I might not be the best person to shadow for your role. This is hardly Los Angeles, and you’re not going to see any exciting action here.”

Finn followed me into the pet store where I spotted an angry septuagenarian being blocked from exiting the store by a harried dog groomer.

I nodded a greeting at both of them. “Louisa. Mrs. Brainthwaite. What seems to be the problem?”

Louisa remained calm despite being obviously peeved. “She has three Nylabones and a squeaky squirrel in her purse.”

Mrs. Brainthwaite wouldn’t meet my eyes. She crossed her arms in front of her full chest. “Don’t be ridiculous. As if I’d deign to purchase any items from the likes of you.”

Louisa finally snapped. “Who said anything about purchasing?”

“Marla,” I said, softening my voice in the way I’d learned worked on the older lady. “We’ve been over this before. Either pay her for them or get them on Amazon. Which will it be?”

Now she met my eyes with fury. “I will not give my money to that corporate monstrosity! I support local or nothing at all, do you hear me?”

Louisa threw her hands up and huffed, but Finn was the one who spoke next. His voice was kind and gentle.

“But you’re not supporting local. You’re contributing to a locally owned business suffering. Is that what you want? For Aster Valley to go back to the way it was ten years ago when half the shops were shuttered and some of the store owners were forced to move away?”

I glanced at him in surprise. How did he know about Aster Valley’s history?

“Of course not,” Mrs. Brainthwaite said indignantly. “My own sister… my own…” She stopped and clamped her lips together, chin trembling a little. Her eyes darted to Louisa before she finally exhaled. “My sister used to own a T-shirt stand inside the main ski lodge. She… she was forced out of business when the resort closed.”

Louisa looked taken aback. “I never knew Alicia owned her own business. I’ll bet she was great at it. She’s such a people person. She comes in here with Pickles all the time and makes everyone laugh.”

Mrs. Brainthwaite’s entire face softened. “She does?”

Louisa nodded and gestured toward a little rotating stand with doggie bow ties on it. “She was looking at that green-and-white-striped tie for Pickles but decided to wait for Christmas.”

Mrs. Brainthwaite reached out to run a finger over the fabric of the bow tie. “But Pickles’ birthday is next month…”

Once everyone’s hackles had been lowered and Louisa had made a particularly large sale to Mrs. Brainthwaite, including the bones, toys, bow tie for Pickles, and a bag of organic, homemade treats—also made by a local Aster Vallian—Finn and I bid the ladies a nice day and made our way back to the SUV.

“You didn’t arrest her for shoplifting,” he said once we got strapped in.

“She didn’t shoplift,” I said with a smile. “Louisa didn’t let her leave.”

“But…” He looked back at the shop and then at me. “Small towns are different.”

“That they are,” I agreed. “It takes a little getting used to.”

“I like it,” Finn said softly.

We made our way back to the station, but before we arrived, Penny radioed in a 10-16.

“Negative. Have Graham do it,” I said in response. Finn began scrolling on his list of radio codes again.

“A prisoner pickup?” Finn said, with a thread of excitement in his voice. “Why did you say no? That would be great.”

“She needs to be taken down to Silverthorne. I assumed you couldn’t be that far away from the set.” It was a lie. I didn’t want to be alone in the car with him for the long drive back after dropping the woman off at the lockup in Summit County.

“It’s fine. All I have left today is a blocking meeting for a climbing scene. My trainer and I are doing it over dinner.”

My mind interpreted that last sentence in an inappropriate way that left me feeling testy. “Fine.” I called Penny back and told her I’d take the 10-16.

We swung by the department and processed the prisoner out. Finn listened to my safety instructions diligently and kept plenty of distance between himself and the woman. She’d been picked up on a routine traffic stop where the deputy had learned about an outstanding warrant on her in another county. All we had to do was transfer her, and since the deputy who usually did runs like this was on vacation, Penny had figured I’d appreciate the time away from all the chaos of the increasing tourist crowd in town.

She’d been right. Even the woman in the back of the SUV commented on it.

“What the fuck is all that for?” she asked as we drove down Main Street past a large crowd gathered outside the diner. She craned her neck to see if she could spot the cause of the gathering.

Finn sunk down in his seat and kept his head turned away from her.

“There’s a movie being filmed in town,” I said. “It’s brought in a bunch of lookie-loos. Some of the actors are probably having lunch at the diner.”

Finn turned to me. “Lookie-loos?”

I shot him a glare. “Fine. Idiot groupies with nothing better to do than stalk random people. Is that better?”

“I’m not sure anyone would call Crystobell Edmund a ‘random’ person,” he said with a smirk. “Tell me you wouldn’t sleep with her if she crooked her finger.”

I turned to him at a stoplight and said it straight up. “I would not sleep with her if she crooked her finger.”

The prisoner piped up. “Well, shit. You broken? Even I would sleep with the woman, and I don’t swing that way. Did you even see Party of Two? The hot tub scene? Jesus on a jump rope, that woman can steam the pants off anyone.”

I glanced at her in the rearview mirror. “I don’t swing that way either.”

Even though I didn’t want it to be so, I had all of my antennae focused on Finn’s reaction to my declaration.

He turned to look out the passenger-side window as if it was no big deal, but I noticed his grip on his phone turned white-knuckled. “Same,” he said casually.

I didn’t admit to already knowing about his sexuality. It was still my plan to not give him the satisfaction of thinking I knew anything about him.

“Great,” the woman said from the back. “I can’t even make up a sexual assault complaint with a couple of gays up in here.”

I couldn’t hold back a laugh. “That and there’s two cameras in here.”

She grinned wide at me in the mirror. “I’m just teasing. You seem nice. Too bad I didn’t get the bust-up in Rockley instead of Summit. I woulda liked seeing you again in court.”

Finn chuckled at that and began asking her what she’d been busted for. His questions were so casual, the prisoner had no idea she was confessing to crimes after she’d not only been read her rights but also after it had been clearly disclosed to her she was on camera.

I glanced over at him and caught his eye.

He winked at me.

I bit back another laugh and looked in the rearview mirror again. “Ma’am, you might be seeing me in court after all.”

This time, it was Finn who had to bite back the laugh. I tried hard not to feel like the two of us were in on a secret together, but it was hard.

I didn’t want to like Finn Heller. But that was hard, too.

Step one, I needed to stop palling around with this guy.