so the bystanders could hear. “This young man ran out of that building and pushed you out of the way. I saw the whole thing.”
A smile tugged at the corner of Sophie’s mouth as the older woman recounted the incident—and Sophie was sure Mrs. Gleason would tell it again and again before the day was through.
Sophie’s legs trembled, rebelling at the idea of supporting her weight, and she leaned heavily against Cain as they made their way through the crowd to the curb.
“A car tried to run me down?” she asked, looking up at Cain. “What car?”
“It was a big, black car.” Mrs. Gleason patted Sophie’s arm as she accompanied them to the sidewalk. “The driver came shooting out of the alley by the pharmacy. He must have lost control or something because he headed right for you.” She picked up her grocery bags from the sidewalk. “The whole thing scared five years off this old ticker of mine.”
Sophie’s head pounded and her right forearm burned from road rash. Otherwise, she hadn’t sustained any injuries. With effort, she smiled at the older woman. “I’m so sorry I scared you. But I’m fine. Really.”
The air hummed with spectator whispers. An ambulance and a police car, approaching from opposite directions, slid up to the curb.
Cain’s breath fanned the back of Sophie’s neck and his arm cradled her shoulders, lending his support as they stood together on the sidewalk. The sheriff reached them first.
Sheriff Dalton nodded at Cain and doffed his hat at Sophie. “Ma’am, can you tell me what happened here?”
“I can tell you, Sheriff. I saw the whole thing.” Mrs. Gleason waved her hand excitedly.
“I appreciate that, Mrs. Gleason,” the sheriff replied, gently steering the woman and her bag of groceries down the street. “Why don’t you go over to the office and be the first one to tell Sally all about it. I’ll be over shortly and take your formal statement.”
Mrs. Gleason didn’t have to be asked twice. Shoulders tossed back and strutting with an air of self-importance, she hurried down the street.
The paramedics approached and made a cursory exam of both Cain and Sophie.
“We’re fine,” Cain said. “A few bumps and skin tears but nothing some peroxide and a bandage or two won’t cure.”
“Okay,” said Mr. Garrison. “Let’s get you both inside and I’ll have the two of you fixed up in no time.”
Thanking the paramedics before dismissing them, Cain and Sophie followed Mr. Garrison inside Cain’s office. Sheriff Dalton trailed close behind. Sophie allowed herself to wallow in the warmth of Cain’s body as he ushered her inside the building. She couldn’t be sure if it was the adrenaline rush from the near hit-and-run or the unexpected nearness of Cain Garrison that caused her stomach to flip-flop and her pulse to race.
Within seconds she was seated in the same leather chair she had left only minutes before.
Cain handed her a bottle of water.
She took a long gulp and welcomed the cold liquid as it slid down her dry throat.
Cain pulled a chair over to face her and leaned his forearms on his thighs. His worried expression creased deep lines near his mouth and at the corners of his eyes.
Mr. Garrison opened a first aid kit and took out a bottle of hydrogen peroxide, tape, gauze and a few smaller bandages.
Sheriff Dalton flipped his notepad open. “So which one of you is gonna tell me what happened?”
“I don’t know what happened,” Sophie answered honestly. “One minute I was crossing the street and the next I was flying through the air.”
Cain laughed out loud. “Yeah, I can see how you’d think that.” He turned his attention to the sheriff. “I was looking out my office window when I saw a black sedan shoot out of the alley and head right for Sophie…er, Miss Clarkston. I banged on the window to warn her but when I realized she hadn’t heard, I ran outside and pushed her out of the way.”
Sheriff Dalton eyed Sophie. “Do you know any reason why someone would be trying to run you down?”
Sophie shook her head.
“What kind of car was it?” the sheriff asked.
“Black sedan. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a good enough look to be able to tell you anything else,” Cain said.
“And you just happened to be looking out your window when you saw all this going down?” The sheriff pushed his hat back on his head, his expression skeptical.
“Miss Clarkston had just left my office.”
Sheriff Dalton looked at Sophie, shot a glance at Cain and grinned as though all of a sudden the reason Cain had been staring out the window at Sophie was pretty evident.
“Is Miss Clarkston a client?”
“Yes.”
The sheriff pursed his lips. “Whatever investigating you’re having done, Ms. Clarkston, do you think it could make someone mad enough to try and run you over with their car?”
Sophie shrugged. “I can’t imagine anyone wanting to hurt me, Sheriff, for any reason.”
Mr. Garrison dressed Sophie’s arm and then turned his attention to his son’s skin tears.
Sheriff Dalton slipped his notepad back into his shirt pocket. “Well, there’s not much to go on. But I’ll ask around. Maybe somebody saw the make and model or got some of the license plate numbers.” He crossed the room. “If either of you think of anything that might be helpful, you know where to get in touch with me.”
As the sheriff slipped out the door, he was almost knocked over by a person trying to shove him aside.
“Cain!” The woman burst into the room. “I just heard. Are you okay? I can’t believe you jumped in front of a car. Are you crazy?”
She ran her hands over Cain’s shoulders and down his arms, obviously checking for injuries. Her fingers cradled his chin and she grimaced at the scrape across his cheek. Her touch seemed possessive, familiar.
His wife? Girlfriend?
The tiniest twinge of jealousy stabbed at Sophie and her eyes widened in surprise.
Jealous? Over a man she’d just met? Couldn’t be.
No, the twinges of envy nagging at her were because he had someone to care about him and she didn’t.
She loved her father, but their nomadic lifestyle had robbed her of the opportunity to make any long, lasting friendships or date anyone more than once or twice. It had been a very lonely existence. And now that her father had vanished she found herself facing what she feared the most—being totally alone in the world.
“Were you hurt?” The woman tilted Cain’s face up. “You’re going to have a shiner, all right. You idiot. You could have been killed.”
“That’s
