When he pulls back, I’m swaying slightly. “What was that for?”
“Reminding you that you’re welcome here,” he says softly. “Did you like the dessert?”
I smile, unable to help myself. “The buns were good. The other part… was better.”
He grins. “Good. That was the goal. I wanted to make your day better. Did it work? Even a little bit?”
I think about Luke’s voice, the cold knot of fear in my stomach, the crushing weight of inadequacy. Then I think about Eli’s hands, his laugh, the way he looked at me like I was the only woman in the world.
“Yes,” I whisper. “You made it better. A lot better.”
“Good.” He strokes my cheek with his thumb. “Then listen to me. Whenever you want dessert—buns, or otherwise—you just come by. You don’t have to call ahead. You don’t have to explain. You just show up.”
“I don’t want to be a bother.”
“You could never be a bother, Amber.” He holds out his hand. “Phone. Please.”
I hesitate for only a second before fishing my phone out of my coat pocket. I unlock it and hand it to him.
He takes it, his fingers brushing mine. He types in his number quickly, then hands it back.
I look at the screen. He’s saved himself under a new contact:Dessert Specialist.
A laugh bubbles up from my chest. “Really?”
“You did give me two bumps on the head,” he says, smiling. “And I gave you something to take the edge off. Seemed fitting.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I tell him, sliding the phone into my pocket.
I reach up, threading my arms around his neck, and pull him down for one last kiss. It’s slow and thorough, a promise of things to come.
We stand there for another ten minutes, just kissing against the industrial counter, ignoring the cold seeping in through the walls. I lose track of time, losing myself in the taste of him and the scent of cinnamon.
Finally, reluctantly, I pull away. “I really have to go. Jude will send a search party if I’m not home soon.”
“Okay.” He sighs, grabbing his coat from the hook. “I’m driving you home.”
“I have my car, Eli.”
“I know. I’m going to drive behind you. I want to make sure you get there safe. No arguments.”
The bossiness in his tone shouldn’t turn me on as much as it does. “Okay. Alpha.”
He groans, pressing a hard kiss to my lips. “Don’t call me that unless you want round two on the floor.”
“Tempting.”
We walk out into the night air. The snow has stopped, leaving the town blanketed in white and silent. I get into my car, theengine starting with a rumble. Eli climbs into his SUV, the headlights cutting through the darkness.
I pull out of the lot, checking my rearview mirror. He’s right there, following close enough to be protective but not so close that he’s crowding me.
Driving through the quiet streets of Fox Hollow, I feel lighter than I have in years. The shadow of Luke is still there, lurking in the back of my mind, but it feels smaller now. Dimmer.
Because I have a new number in my phone. I have the taste of cinnamon on my tongue. And I have a pair of headlights following me home.
I pull into the driveway, the tires crunching softly on the packed snow. In the rearview mirror, Eli’s SUV idles at the curb, its headlights cutting through the darkness, a silent sentinel watching over me.
I wave once, just a small lift of my fingers, and he flashes his brights in return before easing away from the curb. I sit there for a moment, the engine cooling, the silence of the car wrapping around me.
