Silver Bracelets: A Loveswept Contemporary Classic Romance by Sandra Chastain Page A

burgers, and prime steaks on the grill. People started to eat instead of drink and gamble. Food wasn’t as profitable.”
    “And cheaper cuts and more beans would never be acceptable for you, would they?”
    “You got it, Sarah. If a man is going to do a thing, he ought to do it well. By the way, I picked up some spare lumber yesterday. I’ll make you another shelf or two in your pantry so that you can organize your food better.”
    “Asa, I hate to tell you, but I don’t have that much to organize. I’m more into fast food. Since I don’t cook I don’t need to know where anything is, do I?”
    Asa started to reply, then caught sight of her expression and concentrated on his driving. She couldn’t see the value in keeping her pantry in order, but he’d teach her. There were so many things he could share with her when she relaxed and stopped trying to be such a rebel.
    When? What was he thinking? This woman would never be any more practical than shewas now. She didn’t know how and wouldn’t want to be if she did. He didn’t know why he was even thinking along those lines. He didn’t even know why he was still here.
    The Cobb sheriff’s department wasn’t where he belonged, at least not forever. He’d only taken the job because Jeanie had needed him. Now she was gone. Sooner or later he’d have to get back on track.
    Sarah didn’t need him. Sarah wasn’t his responsibility. Sarah was a breath of fresh air, and bottled air lost its potency. He never wanted her to lose that special zest for life that she carried around like an aura.
    This morning she was wearing a different perfume. It was crisp, lightly sweet, like the fragrance of a meadow of wildflowers. He could almost picture her in the springtime, in the mountains. She’d be standing by a running stream, surrounded by rhododendrons, waiting for … him.
    By the time they parked in Asa’s reserved space at the sheriff’s department just off the courthouse square, Asa was wondering what he had started by inviting Sarah to come along. She couldn’t help but see this as a date. She couldn’t mistake his interest either.
    Sarah hadn’t commented on being called for duty at the Sheriff’s booth. She wasn’t quite sure what Asa expected from the day. She finally decided that trying to formulate a plan that would please Asa was foolish. Even if she made one, she was unlikely to follow it.
    By now Asa surely knew what kind of personshe was. She couldn’t be something she wasn’t, and neither could he. Today would be a good test of whether or not their relationship could survive the outside world.
    She gave a quick little sigh. Their relationship. Dare she even go that far? Yes, she decided, she could. And this was the start. Where they went from here, she couldn’t control and neither could Asa. They would just have to follow the winds of chance. Because, whether or not Asa wanted to admit it, they’d stirred up a whirlwind and every time they were together the intensity grew.
    By two o’clock everybody in Cobb County had brought their plate for a ladle of the Sheriff’s special black-eyed peas. Sarah had added a chunk of hot cornbread and a greeting. More than one of the local ladies had come through for a second helping and an invitation for Asa Canyon to join them. He thanked each of them, then said he’d check with Sarah about attending. Once Sarah’s name got officially linked to Asa’s, Asa’s line shortened. Sarah’s friends kept on with the wisecracks and warm hellos.
    “Do you really know everybody in the county, Sarah?”
    “No, there are always a few newcomers. But sooner or later, I get to know most of them.”
    Perspiration was running down Asa’s face. His eyes felt like they were filled with dry sand. For all practical purposes he hadn’t slept sincehe’d met Sarah Wilson. He didn’t know why he was standing out here in the sun serving peas when he ought to be finding the murderer of the vagrant they’d found last night