The blinking red-and-blue lights caught Aria off guard.
She slammed the brakes, heart hammering in her chest as the siren wailed behind her. She hadn’t even been speeding that much—just a little over the limit. But this was no ordinary stretch of highway. This was the kind of nowhere mountain town where even the trees whispered about the Sheriff.
Her hands gripped the steering wheel as heavy boots crunched toward her car.
The door opened and he appeared.
Dark green uniform. Broad shoulders. Holster heavy on his hip. Sheriff’s star gleaming on his chest. His hat was tipped low, shadowing his eyes, but she could see the rough line of his jaw and the way his mouth didn’t do softness.
“Step out of the car,” he ordered.
Aria swallowed. “Did I do something wrong?”
“Step. Out.”
She obeyed
