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“You remember what he looks like, right?” Isobel asked. “The man who bought these.”
“Yeah, sure. He’s the customer who helped us win that bet against your brother, but—”
Isobel patted his arm in reassurance even as she turned back to Gabby. “Shaw will take care of it. He understands more than anyone how hard it is to shake off an unwanted admirer.”
We all glanced at Shaw, who became a tomato red and had to clear his throat.
“Aww,” Camille cooed. “You made him blush. That’s so cute.”
When Gabby, Isobel, and I snickered, Shaw glared accusingly at Isobel. “I don’t see how this is funny or cute.”
Camille and I shared another grin. I glanced Gabby’s way to do the same with her. But movement caught my attention from the corner of my eye. A strange current made the hairs on the back of my neck rise even as I swiveled toward the front of the store, only to see a man through the display window striding toward the entrance.
And that man was Ezra Nash.
“Oh my God,” I gasped as he reached for the door handle. What the heck was he doing here? “Oh my God.”
“What…?” Camille startled in confusion as I thrust Gabby’s roses at her and dove toward the floor next to her, landing on my haunches. Then, using her legs as a shield, I practically crab walked—or more like crab sprinted—behind her so I could scurry toward a bookcase for sale and hide behind it. Panting hard, I pressed my hand to my rapidly thumping heart.
The bell ringing above the door made my pulse lurch even more.
“Hey, man,” Shaw greeted. “How’s it going?”
I peeked around the bookshelf, my fingers resting against the floor as a bedraggled Ezra ran a hand through his hair and gave Shaw a look that said, Don’t ask. But then he surprised me when he turned his attention to Isobel. “You have a minute to talk?”
The private way he said it and seeking way he looked at her signaled a connection. A bond. They knew each other well. Were close.
My mouth dropped open as I wondered who this woman was to him. Everything inside me instantly wanted to be jealous, but my brain kept reminding me she was with Shaw. Still… I wished someday Ezra would look at me with that kind of emotional need.
“Uh…” Isobel’s confused gaze slid to the place where I was hiding before guiltily jerking her attention back to Ezra. “Sure. In the back?”
He started to nod, then waved a farewell toward Shaw until something on the countertop caught his attention, waylaying him. I had wrapped both the cookies I’d left on his desk and the ones I’d brought here in the same decorative cellophane gift bag with gold swirling designs on them.
Holding my breath, I watched his eyes widen as he pointed at them. “Where did you get those?”
“Um…” Shaw shifted from one foot to the other, clearly not too good at being put on the spot, but at least not ratting me out.
Ezra narrowed his eyes accusingly. “Kaitlynn was here. When was Kaitlynn here? Wait, you actually know Kaitlynn? How do you know Kaitlynn?”
When Shaw didn’t have a ready answer, his eyes too big with the inability to tell a lie, Camille cleared her throat. “Did you say Kaitlynn? You mean that pretty blonde, long hair, with the perfect amount of wave in it? About my height? Blue eyes. Awesome shoes.”
Ezra whirled to her, his gaze intent.
Sucking in a gulp with his sudden interest on her, Camille stuttered, “Yeah, uh, yeah. She was in here a minute ago. You just missed her.”
“She was? Which way did she go?”
“She went that way,” Gabby lied smoothly, pointing northeast.
Spinning toward the doorway, Ezra hurried off, only to pause a few feet from the exit and point at Isobel, announcing, “I’ll be right back.”
I had no idea what he would’ve said to me if he’d ever hypothetically caught up to me outside, but it made me all warm and giddy to realize he actually wanted to speak to me again.
Unless, wait, what if he only wanted to accuse me a lying some more?
That wouldn’t be cool.
“And he’s gone,” Shaw said as soon as the door fell closed.
