Liam's Perfect Woman (Home to Harbor Town 2) - Page 20

“I’m not the police chief yet,” Liam said mildly. Unlike Natalie, Roger seemed to understand Liam perfectly, because he gave a booming bark of laughter and relaxed back in his seat.

“Ernie Prang—he was the chief back then—didn’t take too kindly to trapping in Miller Lake,” Roger said slyly.

“I know,” Liam said. “He always said it was unsportsmanlike.”

“How do you stand on the matter?” Roger asked, his pale eyes sparkling with mischief.

“I stand where the law does,” Liam replied.

“In other words, I better not be caught laying fish traps when you get sworn into office.”

Liam’s shrug and easy smile looked casual enough, but Natalie got the impression Roger Dayson would definitely think twice about putting illegal fish traps into Miller Lake once Liam was the face of the law in Harbor County.

“Like I said, I haven’t been sworn into office yet. But I’d like to think I’ll have better things to do with my time once I am chief then to crack down on a sixteen-year-old misdemeanor,” Liam said dryly. “So please…go on with your story.”

“Well it was after sunset by the time I headed back to the cabin. It was a full moon that night, so I took a detour to the beach to get a good look at it. That’s when I saw your father.”

“How long after sunset was it?” Liam asked.

Roger shrugged and his eyebrows pinched together. “Couldn’t have been much more than twenty minutes or so after dark.”

“Was there anyone else on the beach but my father?”

Roger shook his head. “Just me and your dad.”

“And?” Liam prompted when Roger clammed up and took a long drink of his beer. “Did you two speak?”

“No…not really,” said Roger, suddenly seeming uncomfortable.

“What happened?” Liam persisted.

Roger’s glance at Liam was a bit anxious. “Your dad…he was real upset.”

“How do you know?”

The man made a sheepish motion with his head. “He was crying.”

“Crying?” Liam repeated in a deadpan tone. Natalie examined his profile. His facial features remained unreadable, but she sensed he was stunned by Roger’s words.

“Yeah,” Roger admitted. “I’ve never really…heard anything like that before. Your dad…he was a big man. You have the look of him, so you must know what I mean,” he said with a significant nod toward Liam. “It just took me by surprise to come upon a man like that so obviously upset. He didn’t take too well to me seeing him, either. When he noticed I was on the beach with him, he looked like he was going to tear me to pieces for intruding on such a…you know…private moment. I’m not going to lie to you, I got off that beach like a fire had been lit under me.”

Liam just stared.

“Did he seem intoxicated?” Natalie asked, covering for Liam’s apparent shocked state.

Roger shrugged uncertainly. “Maybe. Mostly he seemed like someone had just told him his best friend had been killed. He looked like a mess, you know?”

“And you two never actually spoke?” Natalie prompted Roger.

“Nope. It left an impression on me though. To this day, in my mind’s eye I can just see him standing alone on that beach. He was the picture of misery. I felt terrible for interrupting him,” Roger mumbled glumly before he took another swig of his beer.

Liam straightened slowly, seeming to rise out of his thoughts.

“The crash happened about a half hour after you saw him, I’m guessing, given what you said about sunset. Isn’t that right?” Liam asked, looking to her for confirmation.

Natalie nodded.

A strange expression came over Roger’s face. Natalie saw him studying her glasses and the uncovered scarring on her temple as if he was seeing her for the first time.

Tags: Beth Kery Home to Harbor Town Billionaire Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net
readsnovelonline.net Copyright 2016 - 2024