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Nearly everyone they passed on the way to his shop was dressed in old-timey clothing befitting the American late-1800s period. Along the way he pointed out several points of interest for her to look at when she explored on her own.
Lilianna loved seeing this place up close and in the daylight. It looked so different than last night. Down the street she noticed a bright sign that had the word Candy on it. Was there a candymaker’s shop here already?
Then she saw it. Directly across from the woodworking shop, in point of fact, was the Old West Town Candy Shoppe. There was a bay window with a very enticing display next to the door. If she could, she’d apply for any position inside and work her way up until they let her make candy.
“You like candy?” he asked. She hadn’t realized she’d stopped moving to stare. Lilianna spun around.
“I like to make candy.”
“Is that so?” He smirked again.
“I studied under a chef and everything. Someday I’d love to have my own place.”
“If you’d like, I’ll introduce you to Victoria. She just opened that candy shop last month.”
“I’d love to meet her.” Lilianna figured there wasn’t room in a town this size for two candymakers, but she would love to work with someone already established, certain she had a lot to learn.
Hunter walked to the side of the building where it didn’t even look like any damage had been done. Lilianna followed, taking note of the stealthy way Hunter moved. Careful. Methodical. Like a jungle cat on the prowl for a tasty meal.
She smiled at her own fanciful notions, noting that he also had a very nice ass tucked into those jeans.
He made his way down the alley between the two buildings, and before she got all the way to the middle, she smelled the water-soaked scent of burnt wood. The breeze must be blowing this direction now. He held open the door to his shop as she tucked her tongue back in from salivating over watching him walk.
As she passed through the threshold, he whispered, “Were you just staring at my ass?”
The tone of his voice said he didn’t mind. So she came clean. “Of course. It’s a great view.”
Over her shoulder she saw his luscious smirk.
There were three sections to Hunter’s woodworking shop. The front area where he had lots of carvings displayed, the center part where he worked, and the rear area where his office and the charred remains of a back room were.
“I’m so sorry, Hunter. I feel like I brought this all down on your head.”
“We don’t know that yet. Regardless, it’s not your fault. You didn’t set this fire.” He wrapped his arms around her, tucking her head beneath his whiskered chin.
She pushed out a long sigh. He lowered his face and kissed her passionately as if in a bid to convince her she wasn’t culpable for this mess.
Once their lips parted, he said, “Don’t forget. Meet me by the wooden doors in the bank’s outer hall at three o’clock, okay?”
“Okay?” But he’d been kissing her senseless, so she couldn’t really be held accountable for her memory later on.
Lilianna spent only a few minutes more in Hunter’s shop until the park opened, then she wandered around like a wide-eyed tourist staring at everything this Old Western town had to offer.
She saw the bank get robbed right before the sheriff, and a deputy showed up to have a gun battle in the streets with the robbers, who were then packed up into wooden coffins and swiftly photographed.
The general store had all sorts of interesting things to look at from the bygone era, and she wandered through there for well over an hour.
A few doors down, she then stepped into the saloon and had a genuine whiskey in an old-fashioned tumbler. She was invited to play poker by a couple of gentlemen seated at a table in the corner, but she declined.
They eyed her with more than just a little interest, and the shine in their lust-fueled gazes said other likely more salacious enticements might be available if she wanted them. But she wasn’t currently looking for a date or any scandalous enticements with other men. Dylan and Hunter filled her mind with plenty of ideas.
Wandering further down the dusty street, Lilianna stopped in a café for lunch. She had excellent roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy on the side for lunch before making her way back toward the other end of town and Hunter’s shop.
