LITMIR.BIZ

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the month of love, I’ve resolved to change that.”

      The month of love?

      Was it possible she’d been so head down for the past few months she hadn’t even realized it was almost Valentine’s Day?

      Even as Darby asked herself the question she knew the answer was a resounding yes. Not only had she forgotten it was nearly Valentine’s Day, but she’d long stopped looking for a valentine. Or even a man to enjoy an occasional date. When had she stopped trying?

      Or worse, stopped expecting that she could be part of another relationship?

      For the longest time she’d convinced herself that she was well rid of Bo Gage. And while it pained her that he was dead, on a very real level, she was better off since their divorce. But had she somehow closed her heart off to believing that she could love again?

      Even before the reading of Bo’s will and the revelation of her inheritance, she’d been busy working. She’d had the occasional date or two but when they hadn’t turned into anything more, she hadn’t worried about it. Instead she’d focused on keeping her head down and her meager bank account growing.

      Funny how little she had to show for it.

      Maybe it was that little spark of defiance. Or maybe it was simply the idea of going out for an evening with an attractive man, no matter the pretense. Whatever the cause, Darby found herself warming to the idea of fake dating Finn, even with the warning bells that jangled like sirens in her mind.

      “You want to take me out?”

      “Every night, and I want to be as public about it as possible. Dates in the front windows of all the restaurants on Main Street. Walks in Red Ridge park, snuggling with each other for warmth.” He leaned in, his gaze direct. “We’re going to make everyone in town think we’re deeply in love and anxious to get married.”

      “No one’s going to believe that.”

      “Why not?”

      “Because—” Darby scrambled to find some answer but came up empty. “We’re not in love. People can see the real thing.”

      “Bo certainly made people think the real thing. He had a string of girlfriends, an ex-wife and a soon-to-be wife, and everyone believed he was as deeply in love with the next woman as the one before.”

      “That’s different.”

      “How?”

      “Bo was...Bo. He was charming and a sweet talker. But none of it was real. There wasn’t any substance beneath the veneer.”

      “Yet people believed it. Ate it up hook, line and sinker, best I can tell.”

      Finn made a convincing argument—people did see what they wanted to see—but could the two of them really pull it off? And while it was fine for him to brush off the danger of the situation, it was dangerous. He might be a big, bad cop, but he was also as vulnerable to a bullet as the next person.

      “You really think this is a good idea?”

      “I do.”

      “With me?” She pressed the point, unwilling to think too hard about the steady hum of desire that tightened her skin and tingled her nerve endings.

      “Absolutely.” That gaze never wavered, but Darby didn’t miss the subtle calculation he couldn’t fully bury. “But I’ll do you one better.”

      His gaze shifted then, focusing on Penny before roaming over the kitchen. When he finally looked at her again, all hint of calculation was gone. “You help me with this and I’ll pay off all your debts.”

      “You’ll what?”

      “Pay it off. All of them. I’ve got solid savings and I’m always open to an investment. You help me with this and I’ll see to it that you’re out from underneath whatever debt Bo Gage managed to run up in his twenty-nine years of living and then inconveniently deposited into your lap.”

      It wasn’t possible. Whatever emotions had carried her to this moment, from anger to sadness to frustration, none of them compared to the sheer disbelief at his words.

      “Why would you do that?”

      “I consider it a fair exchange.”

      “But you can’t pay for all of it. The house. The breeding business. I need a new dog because Penny can’t breed another litter.”

      “Then I’ll pay for a new dog. I’ll pay for three of them if you want. Tell me what you need to get set up and I’ll do it.”

      Three dogs? Not just fixing the business but an expansion, too? A real opportunity to go for it and make something of the business Bo had loved but clearly hadn’t had a head for.

      “But why?”

      “Why not? It’s my money. More, it’s my town and I want to invest in it. You help me catch a killer and I’ll help ensure Bo’s business continues on under your ownership and management.”

      “But—”

      “Consider it an offer you can’t refuse.”

      That cocky smile was back, along with something warm and endearing that made her think of naughty little boys who swiped extra chocolate-chip cookies then tried to hide the chocolate stains on their fingers.

      Only, Finn Colton wasn’t a little boy.

      And the stakes were far higher than a possible tummy ache from overeating sweets.

      “You want to catch a killer so badly you’ll put yourself in their sights?”

      “Yes.”

      “That’s the only reason?”

      The smile faded, all trace of humor gone. In its place was a sincerity that nearly took her breath away.

      “There is another reason. If I’m as wrong about you as you say—” He held up a hand before she could even protest her innocence. “Give me a chance to finish.”

      She nodded, willing him to continue. It hurt to hear how little he still thought of her, but she was willing to give him his due. “Okay.”

      “If I am wrong about you, and I’m perfectly willing to accept that truth, I’d like to see you end up in a better place. I’ve come to understand Bo Gage a bit better since his murder. It’s abundantly clear he made life easy for one person. Bo.”

      It seemed mean to speak that ill of the dead but Darby could hardly argue with Finn’s assessment. Bo had lived life for himself, the rest of the world be damned.

      “But the one other thing I’ve learned is that Bo loved his dogs more than anything else in his life. He loved Penny and he loved the litters he ultimately sold to the K-9 unit and beyond. More than once he’d head over to the training center, catching up on how a pup was doing and seeing that he or she performed to their utmost potential.”

      “He did love the business. And Penny was as important to him as anyone in his life.”

      “Maybe he saddled you with all this because he believed you’d take care of it. That you’d handle it and make something of it all.”

      Darby’s gaze drifted to Penny. The dog had eventually lost interest in their conversation and had stretched out near Lotte, her head on her paws and her eyes closed.

      “You have no reason to take care of her,” Finn continued. “Yet you’re caring for that dog as if she were your own.”

      The compliment—and the glowing kindness—had caught her off guard. Where she’d come to accept the grudging acknowledgment that Finn believed her guilty, it was something else for him to extend such a kindhearted thought.

      “She is now.”

      “Can you honestly tell me Hayley Patton would have done the same?”

      “I

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