Her Small-Town Sheriff. Lissa Manley

herself for noticing anything about him at all. She had bigger things to focus on here.

       Such as getting stuck with him as her discussion partner. Well, not stuck, exactly. He was a nice guy and all, and would probably make someone else an excellent sounding board. But did it have to be her?

       She’d already promised herself to stay disengaged from the Winters family. This little situation hardly qualified. Carson would be privy to her untidy business before long, and he’d know all about Justin. And her personal heartbreak.

       She unbuttoned her coat, telling herself to calm down, to keep perspective. This new development wasn’t the end of the world. She should know; she’d lived through the seeming end of her world when Justin had died. No contest here.

       Okay. So. Everything was fine. She needed to relax and go with the flow and, as Rebecca had said, respect the process. To heal the wound on her heart, she had to make a choice that wasn’t comfortable—how true—but that would lead her to a better, more settled place. Eventually.

       Besides, she’d already told Carson she was game if he was, and it wouldn’t be cool to ditch him now because she was an emotional wimp.

       She straightened the sweetener holder, then jiggled her foot under the table, waiting for him to return, going over what she needed to do in the next twenty minutes.

      Loosen up. She stopped shaking her foot.

      Talk. She cleared her throat and opened her mind to sharing what had happened to her.

      Listen. She steeled herself to hear about Carson’s story.

      Deal. Tricky. But, hopefully, not impossible.

       Carson came back with two cups of coffee and two apple tarts, complete with whipped cream and caramel drizzle. “Thought you might be interested in something sweet,” he said, putting her coffee and treat, along with some utensils, on the table before her.

       She blinked, her mouth watering. “How did you know those are my favorite?”

       “I didn’t.” He sat and grabbed a napkin from the napkin holder. “They just looked good.”