Stirring Attraction by Sara Jane Stone

space.
    â€œIt’s more storage than break room,” she said.
    Dominic nodded and headed for the desk. He set down the file. Then, he picked up a pen, moved a few things around, and located a notepad.
    â€œHave you found something?” she asked. “In the file?”
    â€œNo,” he admitted. “But I have an idea.”
    Her hope surged but was quickly chased by doubt. What if he was trying to calm her? What if he wanted to avoid another night on her couch watching her sleep? He’d refused to let her take a shift watching over him. She’d waited until the sun rose, when her fears subsided, to offer. Still, the answer was no. Instead, he’d driven her over to his dad’s place and taken a shower while she’d enjoyed eggs with the police chief again.
    â€œI know you probably did this for one of the deputies, but I want you to make a list of anyone who might have held a grudge against you.”
    She accepted the pen and paper from his outstretched hands. “You’re right. I did this at the station. I couldn’t come up with many names though.”
    â€œNo angry ex-­boyfriends?”
    She raised an eyebrow. “Aside from you?”
    â€œI’m not upset with you, Lily.” He ran his hand through his overgrown locks. “I’m just . . .”
    â€œDetermined to show the world your surly side?” She carried the pen and paper to the desk and sat down.
    â€œI’m pissed off at how everything turned out.” He folded his arms in front of his chest and leaned back.
    â€œYou can’t change the past.” She glanced down at the blank piece of paper.
    â€œNo, but I can do something with your list. More than my dad and his deputies had time for, I’m guessing,” he said. “My father is good at his job. But he has a lot on his plate. When all the facts pointed to a random guy, and no other leads appeared, well, he set the case aside. It’s been weeks and there’s no proof someone is after you.”
    Except in my imagination.
    â€œIt felt personal,” she said. How many times had she repeated those words? Each time hoping that someone would believe her. Because if they couldn’t catch him, if they couldn’t put an end to her paranoia, how was she going to show up for school and teach her kids? She couldn’t tend bar forever. She barely knew how to shake up a drink.
    I belong with five-­year-­olds.
    â€œIs the list I made for the police even in the file?” she asked.
    â€œIt is,” he said. “But I want you to start from scratch. And take your time.”
    â€œThis won’t take long,” she said as she picked up the pen. “My dad is the only person I’ve argued with recently. And I think I would have noticed if he came after me with a knife. Plus, he’s back in rehab. Court-­ordered this time after a driving-­under-­the-­influence arrest.”
    â€œDid he have any friends? Someone who might pick up his cause?” Dominic demanded.
    â€œI put one of his old drinking buddies on the original list. Your father looked into him and said he was locked up in Salem that day. Plus, the guy who attacked me was younger. The men who spend their days drinking with my father aren’t physically fit.”
    â€œWhat about at work?” he asked.
    She felt him move behind her and read over her shoulder as she jotted down the names she’d placed on the list for the police. “I get along with all of the other teachers. I love the principal.”
    â€œAnyone jealous of Ted?” he asked.
    â€œAgain, just you.”
    She added three additional names, writing “new” in parenthesis next to each one. Then she turned and handed him the paper. “Two disgruntled parents and a guy I met in a bar during a girls’ night out. I never learned his last name and I don’t recall what he looked like, but he went home with my friends.