Junie was backing away in fright, and he had started moving around the counter when the door opened. The bell over the door jingled, and it was the most beautiful sound she’d ever heard. Three teenagers stumbled in laughing, not noticing the drama unfolding at the counter.
Junie put on the best smile she could and waved over Preston’s head. “This customer was just leaving. What will you kids have?”
Preston had never even turned around to see who it was. His eyes remained locked on Junie. “I’ll see you soon, Juniper,” he said, then he turned and walked out, the bell jingling cheerfully behind him as if nothing at all was wrong.
Junie stood frozen behind the counter, the shiny silver chastity belt gleaming up at her from its box like a trap waiting to snap shut. The man really did have a death wish.
Junie glared at the box, repulsed, as if the heavy silver belt might suddenly come alive and wrap itself around her like some shiny trap. It then occurred to her that Tanner had mentioned he might drop by this morning. Oh no… oh no, no, no.
She had to get rid of this ridiculous, terrifying thing before he saw it, or, for that matter, these teenagers standing at the counter saw it. She could just imagine one of the girls saying, “I’ll take one of those.” Or worse yet, asking her what it was.
If the teens saw it, she would be mortified. If Tanner saw it, Preston would be dead within the hour, and she would lose her Daddy to the state police. She’d lost him once. She wasn’t doing it again.
Stuffing the box under the counter, she quickly filled the teen’s orders. Fortunately, they were picking up a birthday cake to go.
When she was alone again, she snatched the gift up, but some icing on her fingers made the box slip, knocking off the top and spilling the belt out on the floor.
Damn it!
Heart hammering against her ribs, she wiped her fingers with a napkin, set the box back on the shelf, and squatted down to retrievethe lid and belt. Just as her fingers closed around the belt, the bell over the door jingled brightly.
Dear lord, please don’t let that be Tanner.
She eased up just enough to see over the counter and jerked back down.
It was Tanner.
Her stomach dropped straight through the floor. He was going to be so mad. And not only at Preston. Hadn’t he told her to quit accepting gifts from Preston? The thought of his disappointed Daddy face made her bottom crawl with nervous dread. She could already picture the stern look in his eyes, hear the low, commanding tone of his voice, and knew there was a very real possibility that she’d end up over his knee with her panties around her ankles before the day was through.
She stayed crouched behind the counter for one panicked second longer, clutching the lid like a shield, hoping against hope that she could put it away before he saw it.
The heavy thud of boots across the wooden floor was like the sound of the apocalypse approaching her rear end. She considered dropping to her hands and knees and crawling into the kitchen like a scared little mouse, hoping he wouldn’t notice her.
“Junie, I saw you peek from behind the counter. Are you hiding from me?”
She was sure he could hear her heart beating from across the room. Swallowing hard, she slowly peeked over the top of the counter again. The second she saw him, she moaned.
Tanner towered over the counter, his broad shoulders blocking out most of the morning light. His smile disappeared the moment his sharp eyes landed on her face. She smiled back, holding the lid and chastity belt behind her back.
“This oughta be good,” he said, a hint of amusement in his tone.
“Hey!” She tried to sound bright and innocent, even as her cheeks burned hotter. “What brings you into town?”
Tanner crossed his big arms over his chest, one eyebrow slowlylifting in that way that always made her melt. “Just tell me if I need to sit down before you tell me what’s going on.”
“That’s a great idea!” Her voice came out a little too high and squeaky. She shifted nervously behind the counter, still clutching the items tightly behind her back. “You sit down, and I’ll be with you in just a minute, just have to put something away.”
His eyes narrowed, and worse, there was no sign of him sitting down.
“Mm-hmm,” he said. “Show me your hands, Cupcake.”
“Wh-what? Why?” She clutched the lid even tighter, heart racing wildly.
“Because I said so.”
Tanner leaned forward, resting his big, muscled arms on the counter, his sleeves pulling tight around those powerful biceps. Those were arms that could deliver a very hard, very thorough smack when he decided she needed one. She’d learned that firsthand, and right now she had zero desire to make him want to repeat that lesson right here in the middle of her bakery, where any customer could walk in at any time.
Facing down his intense stare was no easy feat. She had to do something. She slowly shifted the lid to the hand that clutched the belt, then held out one empty hand, fingers trembling just a little.
