Page 11 of Stirring Attraction (Second Shot 2)
“Or just move on. I can’t stay here forever.”
“Josh might follow you. I don’t know him well, seeing as he went to school in Independence Falls. But we have some mutual friends. I’ve never seen him smitten or in a long-term relationship. It’s been a while since he started baking for you, hasn’t it?”
Caroline nodded. “I first ran into Josh over a year ago. He’ll probably come to his senses soon and move on. He’ll start baking for someone else. So I should enjoy mine while I can.”
Caroline reached into the dish and withdrew a forkful of berries covered in crust. But before she raised the utensil to her lips, she glanced at the door.
Lily understood the instinct to search for threats, to anticipate, and to wait for the attack. It had only been five weeks, but she couldn’t remember what it felt like to walk through the day without fear hovering close behind.
“Something happened to you,” Lily said, no longer teasing.
“Yes.” Then Caroline ate the piece of pie, chewing slowly before returning her fork to the dish. “I think that’s why Noah and Josie asked you to cover for April while she’s on vacation. They thought I might be able to help you. I know what it’s like to feel hunted. To be convinced someone is after you.” Caroline glanced up and met her gaze. “And to be wrong.”
“I’m not—”
“I’m not saying you are,” Caroline cut in. “Maybe the attack was intentional. Maybe the police are wrong.”
“They are.” Lily picked up her glass and swirled the red liquid.
“It doesn’t change the fact that you look at the door, waiting for someone to burst in—”
The unmistakable sound of a key in the lock silenced the conversation. Lily froze, her eyes focused on the door. It had to be Noah, didn’t it? He was coming to check on the bar. Or maybe it was Josie. But why would they leave the baby in the middle of the night?
Her grip tightened on her wine glass, preparing to hurl it across the room at the man who might have stolen a key, waiting for his chance to find her and hurt her . . .
The door swung open and a large figure filled the doorway. The light from the parking lot made it difficult to identify his features. But she knew him. She’d know him anywhere.
“Now?” she cried as fury rose up partly driven by the pinot noir. But after all this time, how could Dominic Fairmore walk in holding a freaking key in the middle of the night?
Beside her, the dishwasher moved as if Lily’s one-word cry had been a directive. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Caroline reach for the pie dish. And then it was hurling through the empty bar. The pie collided with the target, covering Lily’s ex with a mixture of berries, sugar, and homemade crust. The tin dish dropped to the floor.
“What the hell?” the man roared, whipping the pie from his face.
A year ago, Lily would have laughed at the sight of Dominic covered in dessert. She would have smiled and offered to help clean him up. She would have been happy he’d returned home. And she would have set aside all of the lingering heartache from their last and supposedly final breakup.
But too much time had slipped past. Too much had changed. And for him to show up now? In the middle of the night when her fear rose to fever pitch? For him to waltz in here without even knocking?
She felt Caroline’s hand close around her arm and pull as if trying to drag her away. Lily grabbed her wine glass and hurled it at the door. She missed and the glass fell to the ground three feet in front of her and sha
ttered.
“Turn around and leave, Dominic,” she snapped as she allowed Caroline to pull her behind the bar, into relative safety. Only she’d never be safe from the man she’d loved for so long, because he didn’t aim for her face or her arms.
He went for the heart.
“You had your chance to come back,” she added as Caroline released her.
“Lily, please calm down,” Dominic called.
From their position behind the bar, she heard the door close. Caroline glanced at her. “You know him.”
She nodded. Caroline pushed off the ground without a word. And Lily followed her, turning to face the former love of her life, who had stepped just inside the door.
“Ryan dragged me back,” he said. “At Noah and Josie’s request. How do you think I got the key? Or does your friend here throw food at everyone who walks into the bar?”
“It was the only thing I had,” Caroline said simply. “Noah locked up my gun.”
“Remind me to thank Noah in the morning,” Dominic said dryly.
