Finding Forever (Smoky Mountain Lawmen Book 1) by Ashley Quinn Page B

squeezed.  They still needed to talk about what
happened last night and what they were going to do about this crazy attraction
they had for each other, but in that moment, Gemma didn’t care.  Because no
matter what else Ben was, he was her friend.
               
    It
was dark when Ben pulled into the Trent’s driveway for the second time that
night.  He’d dropped Gemma off hours earlier, eliciting a promise from her to
call him when she was ready to go home before he left her to go back to the
station. 
    Fifteen
minutes ago, she’d kept her promise and called. 
    Ben
had barely put the car in park when the front door opened and Gemma stepped
through.  He watched her turn and hug Marcie Trent before she made her way down
the sidewalk and climbed inside the car.  The glimpse he got of her face in the
interior light showed him a haggard, exhausted woman.           
    “How’s
he doing?” Ben asked softly as he backed out of the drive.
    Gemma
sighed, eyes closed as she rested her head against the seat.  “A mess.  But we
managed to get past the panic and calm him down.  He was asleep when I left. 
Marcie’s going to call the therapist first thing in the morning.”
    Ben
slid his hand over hers and said nothing while he offered silent support.
    They
rode in silence back to the Mabley’s house.  Halfway there, Ben felt Gemma
completely relax.  He glanced over and saw she had passed out against the
window.
    She
looked like herself again now that she was asleep.  Ben hadn’t realized just
how stressed she was until now when he could see the difference.  He suspected
that she hadn’t given herself a chance to properly grieve for her friend yet. 
Just thrown herself into work and helping Caleb at the detriment to herself. 
    He
knew how that went.  He’d done much of the same during his stint in the Army. 
And it always came back to bite him in the ass, just like he knew it would for
her too. 
    But
no matter when it finally overwhelmed her, he’d be there for her.  The woman
pulled at every emotional string he had and he couldn’t sit by and watch her
suffer without suffering right along with her. 
    Ben
shifted in his seat, not entirely comfortable with his thoughts.  She was
undermining all the defenses he’d erected to protect himself.  She’d already
slid firmly into the friend category and was quickly headed for the one he kept
behind multiple locks.  He didn’t do attachments to women past friendship. 
He’d seen how messy it was when it all went to pieces.  He had no desire to
ever go down that road.
    But
her perseverance and drive rivaled any of the men he’d served with and her
compassionate nature spoke to the same desire to do good in the world that Ben
felt.  It made him want to watch her work her magic on people as she helped
them cope with whatever ailed them whether it be emotional or physical
impediments.  And now that she was hurting he wanted to help her heal.  He
wanted to see her smile again, all bright sunshine and shining eyes.  He wanted
to be the one to hold her when she cried and to wipe away her tears.  The
shoulder she leaned on when she needed strength.
    Those
were scary thoughts for a man who had no desire to have a woman in a permanent
roll in his life.
    Ben
sighed as he pulled into the drive at the Mabley’s and shut off the engine. 
Any serious thoughts about the situation and decisions on it would have to wait
though.  He was as exhausted as Gemma.
    He
stared at her in the darkened interior of the car.  She looked so peaceful and
he was loathe to wake her.  He hit the switch to turn off the car’s interior
lights, got out, and walked around to Gemma’s side.  He opened her door slowly
so she wouldn’t topple sideways.  She shifted to settle more deeply into her
seat as the door moved away from her.  Ben got the door open all the way and
quickly unbuckled her seatbelt and put her purse in her lap.  He gently scooped
her off