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I’d avoided running down her street the last few mornings, but maybe I should time it so that I ran into her this morning.
I took off at an easy jog, slowly picking up the pace as I warmed up. I’d timed my route so I’d have run five miles by the time I got to Main Street, where Sophie’s bakery was located. I hoped she kept the same routine so I’d see her go in, but at the same time, I knew a predictable routine made her vulnerable to a criminal.
My neck prickled with tension, and I ran faster, hoping I hadn’t missed her. I rounded the corner to Main Street and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw her in front of her store. I slowed so I could stop to say hello.
I wanted to make sure she was okay.
Sophie looked up as I approached. This time, I paid closer attention, and there was a flash of fear before she covered it with a polite smile. “You need water?”
I could have run home and gotten a drink, but I had so many questions. Was she afraid, was she safe, and even deeper questions, like what had her life been like over the last ten years? Was our breakup easy for her?
I stopped in front of her, rubbing the ache in my chest. “I could use some.”
She unlocked the door and pushed it open for me. I waited close by while she locked up and reset the alarm.
This morning, her long red hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and she wore another pink bakery T-shirt with black leggings.
She moved toward the refrigerator behind the counter, and I sat in the same spot I did the last time I was here.
Colton hadn’t asked me to keep an eye on her, and she wasn’t my responsibility, but I couldn’t seem to stay away.
When she set the bottle in front of me, I slid a credit card across the counter. “I didn’t pay the last time I was here.”
She smiled, but it was tight. “Your money’s no good here.”
“What if I make it a habit to drop by every morning?” I lowered my face, tilting my head to the side, trying to break through the veneer she’d put on when she saw me. She was perfectly polite, but I wanted the real Sophie.
Her eyes flared. “Are you going to?” She shook her head. “Never mind. Don’t answer that.”
“You should run it.” I nodded toward the card that sat between us.
“You’re welcome to stay and drink that, but I need to get started on the baking.” She flung a thumb over her shoulder at the kitchen.
Then she turned and moved toward the kitchen, and I was mesmerized by the gentle sway of her hips. Her ass, encased in those tight pants, left nothing to the imagination. I loved this curvier version.
Unscrewing the cap, I listened to the soft tick of the clock on the wall and drank down the entire bottle before moving around the counter to throw it into the recycling bin. I should tell her I was leaving, but when I moved to the doorway to the kitchen, I stopped to watch her.
Music played from her phone as she moved around the room, gathering ingredients and setting them on the stainless-steel counter in the middle of the room. One side of the room had expensive-looking appliances, including the double-door stainless-steel refrigerator and multiple ovens. The other side had sagging shelves stacked high with cooking utensils, bowls, implements, and ingredients.
It was a stark contrast to the relative newness of the front counter and eating area. She’d clearly spared no expense on the appliances, but the shelves were another story “You need a new storage area?”
She startled and placed her palm on her chest. “You scared me.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to.” I moved closer to her, leaning a hip against the counter.
She licked her lips, looking slightly uncomfortable with me in her space. “The shelves. Yeah. I couldn’t justify the expense. I want the front area to look inviting to guests, and I need the best equipment to bake, but those could wait.”
Growing up on the lumberyard, I was handy with wood. I helped Dad build shelves before he hired out for that kind of thing. It was on the tip of my tongue to offer to help her, but I wasn’t sure she’d like that. Would she be too proud to accept help from me? Would she think I pitied her? But I needed something to keep me busy, and I needed to stay close with this burglar still out there.
I couldn’t tell her that’s why I was offering or even why I was here. I knew she didn’t like Colton suggesting she needed to change her business model to be safer, and she wouldn’t appreciate my interference either. I had to come at it from a different angle.
“I could make new shelves for you. Would you like them to be open, or would you prefer closed cabinets?”
Her eyes brightened before she carefully schooled her features. “I like to see what I have, so open, but you don’t need to help me. You just moved home. You have your hands full.”
My gaze drifted from her mouth to the apron she deftly tied in the back. The movement caused her chest to push out, and my brain was swiping through images of my hands on her fuller breasts. Testing the weight, my thumbs tweaking her nipples. Did she still have a dusting of freckles on the tops of her breasts?
Sophie tipped her head to the side. “Are you okay?”
