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Oh no. She raised a brow. “Like what?” She couldn’t fathom what he possibly needed to tell her before work.
He eyed the coffee. “Would you consider putting the cup down?”
“Why?” There was no sense of alarm, only intrigue.
“I don’t want to risk getting hot coffee tossed in my face.”
She cocked her hip. “Ryder, there’s not one thing in this world you could tell me that would make me waste perfectly good coffee.”
He sighed. “All right, so here’s the thing . . . I’m kind of going to be your boss.”
Surprise flashed through her and she sputtered, “Excuse me?”
“I’m going to be your boss,” he repeated as though it explained everything and she was too dense to understand.
She shook her head. “Griffin’s my boss.”
“Well, yeah, but I’m the head of the town square grand opening project.”
Oh. My. God. This could not be happening. So, not only was Ryder her neighbor and current fixation, he was going to manage her work too! Was there no justice in this world? Eyes wide, she asked, “But how? You’re a cop.”
He shook his head. “I’m the chief deputy, a leader in the community. Small-town government isn’t all separated and segmented out into defined departments the way it would be in Chicago.”
She could not believe this. She put down her coffee and turned to face him.
His expression grew wary.
She clenched her fist. “So you’re saying after all this time that you failed to mention I was going to be working with you?”
He scrubbed a hand over his jaw, before shrugging. “I . . . um . . . thought it would be a fun surprise.”
“A surprise?” Her voice notched up an octave on the last word.
He gave her a smile she was sure charmed every woman he came in contact with. “Bad idea?”
“Bad idea, Ryder!” she yelled, then stalked up to him and jabbed him in the chest with her finger. “Mark my words, you are going to pay for this.”
“It’s not that big a deal.”
She screeched and jabbed at him again. “Not a big deal? Not only do I have to live next door to the most infuriating man on the planet, now I have to work for him too!”
“Well, when you put it that way.” His lips quivered.
She clenched her teeth. “I swear to God, if you laugh you’re a dead man.”
His expression turned serious but his eyes danced with amusement. He held up his hands. “I brought you coffee to make up for the omission.”
She poked him again. “That doesn’t absolve you.”
“I know.”
She let out a scream. She could not get away from this man. “I want to slap you across the face right now.”
The smile threatened again. “Would that make you feel better?”
“Yes.” She needed something physical to work out all her pent-up frustration.
He nodded. “Okay, go ahead.”
