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I planted my fists on my hips as I spun to face him. “Go away!” I bellowed back, knowing there was no way he wouldn’t hear me.
He reeled back and his expression registered several layers of shock. “What the hell did I do?”
“I talked to Alesha! Did you really think I wouldn’t find out? Leave, or I’m calling the cops!”
Nick opened his mouth, ready to argue, but after a sweeping glance at me, he closed it again. I figured my eyes probably were blazing enough that they could have cut through the glass like some kind of super-spy gadget. Another half a minute passed, our eyes locked together from our opposite positions behind the glass.
A soft chirp called to me over my shoulder, a reminder set to go off each morning to open the front door. Often times I got so wrapped up in baking or writing down a new recipe idea that I got lost and forgot to go unlock the door and would be reminded by my customers knocking. My early bird clientele was a lively group of seniors who would go on for days if the shop was locked when they arrived.
It was easier to set the alarm than to be reminded about my mistake for a week.
I backed down from my standoff with Nick, flipped the alarm off, and went to the door to unlock it.
When I turned back, Nick was gone.
I breathed out a sigh and pushed back my hair. “Good riddance,” I told myself, wishing it didn’t have to be that way—but I wasn’t going to put up with a grown man trying to get to my sister. “Fuckwad.”
The morning carried on like normal—other than the fact that Nick wasn’t there like he had been every other morning since arriving in town—and in the hour before the lunch rush, a different familiar face came to visit.
“Good morning, gorgeous.”
I glanced up at Aaron’s arrival and gave him my best smile, hoping it didn’t look as forced as it felt.
He arched a brow as he strode over to the counter. “Damn, Nick was right.”
I bristled at the mention of Nick. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You’re surly today.”
My hands balled tight. Very few people could get away with calling my surly.
Fortunately for Aaron, he was one of them.
“I’m not.”
He leaned against the case and stared down at me with a disarming look that was a blend between concern and amusement. “What’s up, buttercup?”
“Nothing…” I growled.
“All right, all right,” he conceded, holding up his hands. “Listen, seriously though, Carly, I heard about last night. Are you okay?”
I nodded, the grumpiness fading slightly. “Yeah. It shook me up, but I’m okay now.”
“I wish I’d been here. If I had been, even Gemma wouldn’t have been able to stitch that asshole back together again.”
I couldn’t help but smile softly. “Thanks, Aaron.”
“So, come on, tell me what’s wrong. Nick told me you wouldn’t even let him in the shop this morning. That doesn’t sound like you…”
I blew out a sigh, my side swept strands of hair billowing away from my face. “He crossed a line with Alesha. Or, at least she says he did. I don’t know what to think yet, but right now, I need him to stay away from me until I figure it out.”
“Are you serious?”
I nodded. “I know she’s not exactly a reliable source of information, but I’d hate to think she’d lie about something like that.”
“He forced himself?” Aaron hissed, his hands clenching into tight fists on top of the bakery case.
“No, no, no.” I shook my head frantically. God, if I wasn’t careful, I was going to be giving Nick a death sentence. “Alesha’s been flirting with him since he stepped into town. If anything, he was the coerced.”
Aaron didn’t look comforted. His face remained contorted with twisted rage.
I sighed. “I’ll figure it out. I just didn’t want to deal with it this morning.”
The bell tinkled at the front of the shop as a new customer entered. I smiled and called out a friendly “good morning” before turning my attention back to Aaron. “Your usual?”
He shook his head. “No. I gotta go take care of something.”
“Aaron!” I called after him as he stormed away, but it was too late. He was gone in an angry flash, his jaw set, eyes blazing.
What have I done?
13
Nick
* * *
“Adams, my office. Now!”
Aaron’s roar echoed through the hangar, shocking me into dropping the bit I’d been fussing with. What the fuckin’ hell? First Carly, now this?
Should have stayed in bed.
Or rather, on Carly’s couch.
I pushed off the floor and went after Aaron. A second later, I was in his office, staring into his nearly black eyes. “What’s wrong?”
Aaron crossed his arms. “I’m only going to ask you once. You bullshit me and your ass is out of a job. Got it?”
