“Well, as you can see, I’m quite busy. So I may not be able to hang out with you for long.” Ronin casts an obvious look around the near-empty bar and shoots me a tiny smirk, his blue gaze dancing.
“Oh yeah, I can see you’re slacking off on the job. Maybe I should give William a heads up that his right-hand man is nothing but—” I pause for dramatic effect and finish in a stage whisper, “Lazy.” I take another sip, watching him over the rim of my mug. “Or, I suppose I could be persuaded to keep your little secret, at a cost.”
Ronin’s eyebrow quirks and my belly goes bottom up.
He can quirk that eyebrow at me all day long—damn that was hot.
I gently clear my throat as he pretends to ponder my offer, angling in closer to me across the bar.
His head comes to a pause next to mine and I find myself leaning into his space. Ronin’s breath tickles my ear as he replies, his voice suddenly an octave deeper thanit usually is.
“Tell me, Mel,” he murmurs. “What can I offer you in exchange for your silence?” He cocks his head to the side, his heated gaze meeting mine. “I’m desperate, after all. My job’s on the line here.”
“I’m desperate”will live in my mind rent-free now, thank you very much, my imagination running rampant with images of just how desperate I could make him.
Whoa there. Easy, girl.
“Desperate, you say?”
I pull back to set down my mug and lean one arm on the counter, the other coming up to tap my chin thoughtfully. Ronin’s gaze tracks the movement, following my fingers before rising to my lips.
“I think,” I begin, my heart pounding away furiously in my chest. “That?—”
“Well, what do we havehere?”
Ronin and I jerk apart, and I turn to meet Bree’s shit-eating grin directly next to me. I didn’t even notice her come in, and apparently neither did Ronin, judging by the deep blush creeping up his neck.
“Bree!” I proclaim much too loudly. “When did you get here?”
“About one desperate comment ago, I think?” Bree positively beams at us, her brown eyes flashing with mirth.
“Excuse me, I think I hear someone calling for me.” Ronin backs away from the pair of us, awkwardly spinning on his heel as he hurries down the bar. “Yep, definitely heard my name from just down here?—”
He disappears into the kitchen, the door swinging shut behind him with a soft click.
I fan myself with one hand, grabbing for my drink with the other. “Is it hot in here?” I ask, glancing at Bree.
“Nah, that was just the sizzling crackle of chemistry from whatever thefuckjust went down between you two.” Bree settles onto her stool and then places both hands under her chin, elbowson the counter, her face shining with glee. “Please, enlighten me on what I just walked into?”
“What? Nothing. Don’t be ridiculous. We were just…talking.” I aim for casual and nonchalant, but even I can hear the lie in my statement.
“Suuure.” Bree drags out the word, imploring me with one last look before shaking her head, a muttered “in denial, I swear” under her breath. She spins on her stool to face the door in which Ronin disappeared behind.“Ay, Ro!Get back out here and make me a drink!”
A moment later, the wooden door swings open as Ronin steps back behind the bar with an air of indifference that I immediately see right through.
“Get you something, Bree?” Ronin asks, shaking away the last of the awkwardness and settling back into his usual easy demeanor. He shoots me a wink before giving Bree his full attention.
My cheeks flush and I’m sure I’m as pink as a flamingo. My pale skin hides nothing. That wasn’t really an issue with Ronin before, but now?
Now there’s something tobehidden—feelings surfacing that I haven’t felt for a very, very long time, and I’m not quite sure what to do about that just yet.
Chapter Nineteen
MELLIE
Birdsong drifts in the air around me as I walk to work, my backpack bouncing on my back with each of my steps. My tote bag swings from my arm where it hangs, holding the current book I’m reading and the lunch I packed this morning. I never realized when I lived here before just how lovely mornings in Blue Fields could be.
There are a lot of things I’m finding out about my hometown. Little things I easily ignored when I was younger but are holding more weight for me now, like a beautiful morning walk to work, or an evening spent on my parent’s front porch drinking tea with my mom.
