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Megan’s eyes cut to his and she frowned. “I’m allowed to take a day off especially if I’m doing research on my store. I’m sorry, why did you say you were here?”
“I didn’t.”
“Oh,right. So, what areyoudoing here, Daniel?” She straightened her back, rolled her shoulders and lifted her chin. “I thought you hated establishments like this.”
He seemed to battle with something he wanted to say but perhaps realized he shouldn’t. Her thoughts ran away with that concept. A multitude of things he might be keeping from her came to mind.
Why couldn’t she stop obsessing over what he was thinking? Sheesh.
“Just spit it out. You were here to keep an eye on the competition, right? You wanted to see what my store was like when it was operating.”
“Actually, I wanted to try some of the coffee you serve.”
Did he seriously admit to that? There was only one reason he would say something like that. And it was exactly as she expected. He wanted more information on her shop. “Well, you could have come to my bookstore to try some if you really wanted to. At least then I’d make some money off your recon mission.”
His features scrunched together in confusion. “Recon? No. I’m not trying to spy on you, Megan. I… I was just trying to see what you were offering so maybe if someone came into the shop and didn’t see what they wanted, I could let them know about your stuff.”
It wasn’t often that she was so thrown off she couldn’t speak. But Daniel seemed to be the one person who could manage to do it without much effort at all. “You… I don’t believe you.”
He shrugged. “Yeah, I don’t quite know what I was thinking either. Maybe I was hoping that we could help each other out. It’s not outside the realm of possibility for two similar companies to drive traffic to each other.”
Daniel was right, there was no denying it. Could they work together without things getting complicated?
One look at him and she already knew the answer.
Dang it, she liked him.
Her attraction had only gotten worse and there was no controlling it. If they were to work in close quarters with one another, she’d end up falling for him. Good thing he operated a completely separate business than her own.
“I can see the wheels in your head turning. Give it to me. Judge away. You think I’m weak or ridiculous. Or maybe you think I’m obsessed with you. But you know what? I don’t care. I’m just tired of fighting with you. I’d rather find an ally than an enemy.” His words came out in a rush and his ears turned a bright red color.
She pressed her lips together. If he only knew the thoughts that were racing through her head at this very moment. He wouldn’t be so embarrassed. Meeting him here could be a sign. Neither one of them chose to be at work. They’d opted to avoid one another and still ended up at the same place.
Megan snorted, causing Daniel to give her a sharp look.
“Are youlaughingat me?” he demanded. “Because I wasn’t trying to be funny.”
She shook her head. “I’m not laughing at you, I swear.”
“You clearly think something is funny. And I don’t appreciate being laughed at.” He scowled at her. “You know what? It took a lot of maturity for me to make that offer. Just because you helped me clean up my shop doesn’t mean I owe you anything. We can remain rivals for all I care.” He took a swift step back and turned to leave.
Once again, her body betrayed her and she lunged after him. Her hands wrapped around his upper arm, and she darted around him to block his way. “I swear I wasn’t laughing at you. I’m… there’s a lot going on right now and my head is a jumbled mess.”
His scowl remained but his body seemed to relax even if it was just a little. The muscles in his arms flexed briefly and she released him.
“It’s just that… I think it’s actually a good idea. You and me helping each other out. I’ve said from the start that we offer different kinds of experiences. Maybe we focus on those unique qualities and funnel our customers to the right place though advertising and more events in the park like before.” As hard as she tried to make her voice sound confident, she could still hear the tremor beneath it all.
“You’re not pulling my leg?”
Slowly, she shook her head. “I can’t promise it would last forever, but who knows? What if this is just what we need to make both of our businesses thrive?” Because that was what she needed the most. She needed her bookstore to take off. That’s all she needed.
He cocked his head and a hint of a smile graced his handsome face.
No, not handsome.
He was still a rival as far as she was concerned, no matter how cute.
She shoved her hand out to him. “How about we shake on it.”
