Page 24 of Dare To Kiss You
Just because I can see myself falling for him hard and fast doesn’t mean he feels the same way.
“Yup, totally just winter break. Can’t wait to sleep in, maybe read a book that isn’t for school, you know?”
Does my voice sound too cheery? Ugh. I don’t know. Mila still has her eagle eyes on me. The damn woman is a super sleuth. But I’m saved from further interrogation by someone calling her name from the bakery side of the building.
Just as she walks away, the door opens and my cousin walks in, giving me a wave.
“Hey, Leo, you just missed Serena.” I put a coffee cup on the counter in front of him and fill it with the last of the pot.
“I saw her on my way in.” The content expression on his face makes my heart pang. In the year and a half since Leo and his daughter moved to Dogwood Cove, I’ve never seen two people more in love. They found each other after almost two decades apart, and their second chance at love has been the start of forever together.
I want that someday.
“That’s good. How’s work? Everything going okay? Any big crime sprees?” Here’s hoping Leo isn’t as good of a detective as he probably should be, or he’ll see right through my not-so-subtle question. I’ve never bothered to ask him about work before, that’s for sure. And the only reason I am now is because I’m desperate for any hint of how Hunter’s doing today.
But he doesn’t question me; instead, Leo’s brows draw together. “No crime sprees. Everything’s fine.”
“That didn’t sound convincing.”
“You’re too observant sometimes. Maybe you should forget the nurse practitioner gig and become a cop.” He says it lightly, teasing, but then Leo falls silent and takes a sip of his coffee, studying me. “You know some of the guys from the station pretty well, don’t you?”
I grab a cloth and start wiping at an imaginary spot on the counter, resolutely avoiding his eyes. “I mean, yeah, I guess so.”
“Well, if you ever get a chance to find out why one of them decided not to put his name in for the next round of promotions, that would be a good thing. Because I must admit, I was disappointed I didn’t see a certain name on the list.”
I stare at him. “Hunter?” I blurt out, not thinking about the fact I just obliterated any chance of Leo not figuring out I’m involved with him somehow.
“I can’t tell you that, Kat. But if the hunch I’ve had about you two for quite a while now is correct, maybe you can get through to him. He needs to stop holding himself back.”
Leo stands up casually, as if he hasn’t just dropped a couple of bombs in my lap. “I gotta get back to work. Think about what I said, Kat.” He raps the counter, staring straight in my eyes. “And what I didn’t say.” He walks out with a backward wave, leaving me lost in thought.
Then, before I can dwell anymore on what Leo just told me, the door opens again, and my mom comes in with the rest of The Walkie Talkies. I give them a wave before starting to fill enough cups of coffee for all of them.
Carrying over the tray, I set it down and smile hello to the other women seated around the table. Sometimes Hattie Henderson joins them, but not today. Today it’s just Mom, Lily’s mother Barbara, and Sandra, whose husband Turner owns the hardware store. Just as Sandra’s asking me about how I think my exams went, Hunter himself walks in with a couple other cops. Immediately my eyes fall on him, and I mumble some sort of reply to Sandra and walk back to the counter to fill more coffee cups. I can already feel a stupidly large smile stretch across my face just from seeing him. But when I approach, Hunter doesn’t even look at me as he turns and drops into a chair, deep in conversation with his coworkers.
Weird.
Making my way over to the table, I greet the other officers first, taking their orders with a smile. When I get to Hunter, I try to act casual as I shift my body toward him, letting my hip brush against his side.
“What can I get you, Hunter?” My voice is a little more flirty than usual, but that’s okay, right? We can flirt now, can’t we? I mean, the man had his tongue down my throat last night.
Except Hunter doesn’t react like it’s okay.
No. He actually shiftsawayfrom me and doesn’t even look up when he answers. “Coffee and a breakfast sandwich. Thanks, Kat.”
I stand there frozen, my mouth open for a second or two before snapping myself out of it. “Right. Got it.”
Keep it together. Just keep it together.I chant to myself, blinking away the confusion and hurt that’s building, thanks to how he just responded to me. Dropping the order off, I mumble to one of my coworkers I just need a minute. Then I hustle back to the staff room which is, thankfully, empty.
I close the door and sink down onto one of the chairs. What the actual heck just happened? Did he really just give me the cold shoulder? All my fears come rushing up to meet me as I try to take in a full breath.
But then the door to the staff room flies open and Hunter drops down to his knees in front of me, his hands coming to the arms of the chair.
“Kitty Kat, I’m so sorry. Fuck. I didn’t know how to act or what to do, and we haven’t told anyone, and I was a total shithead to you, and I’m so sorry.” He drops his head to look at the floor.
When he looks back up, the guilt I see etched on his face destroys me. This vulnerable side he showed briefly last night is making me realize the happy-go-lucky man everyone else sees, that I used to see, might be covering something else up.
“What was that out there?”
