Some of the guys were cheating on their wives with a few of the neighbors. She’d seen it all. She didn’t fit in, would never be part of their little crowd, and something told her, neither did her neighbor. He was like her in a way.
Riley had looked death in the face, had seen pure evil up close, but there was something else about her neighbor. She didn’t know what it was, but she couldn’t stop obsessing over him. He made her curious, and for her, that in itself was a very dangerous thing.
What secrets was her neighbor hiding?
She didn’t for a second believe that he was just some ordinary 9 to 5. Dangerous men like the ones at the gym didn’t back away because of one look from a guy.
He’d given that away about himself, and it had only added to his intrigue.
The following day, as she was putting the finishing touches on the birthday cake that was due to be picked up by three, she still hadn’t fathomed what the deal was with him. She didn’t have the time to be staring into space, wondering about one guy, and yet that was exactly what she was doing.
Come on, Riley, get a damn grip.
Once the cake was packaged and in the cooler to make sure the buttercream frosting didn’t melt, she served out a couple of cookies, and made up some sandwiches for her regular customers. And then froze. Her neighbor was right outside of her shop, and he was talking with another man. She didn’t recognize the guy, but the frown on her neighbor’s face gave him an even more menacing look. He shook his head and told the guy that he shouldn’t be there.
Had she seen right? Had he call the guy “boss”?
Was this one of those BDSM things?
Had she misread her mystery man entirely?
This was going to drive her crazy for, like, ever. She hated having one of these curious minds that demanded to know answers. Unless she was sure the answers were on the opposite side of the page, she never did a crossword puzzle. She liked answers to all of her questions, and if she didn’t get them, it tended to ruin her entire day. She was that weird.
Suddenly, hot neighbor looked up, and saw her staring. This time, though, she raised a brow.
She watched as he said goodbye to the guy, and then moved toward her shop. Once he walked in the door, the delicious scent of his musky cologne wafted around her.
“Are you following me again?” he asked.
“I work here.” She stared at him. “Why are you following me?”
“I’m not. That’s your deal, remember?”
She smiled. Was he flirting with her? “I didn’t leave my shop. I’m right here, and I’ve got nothing to hide.”
“You’re saying that I do?”
This was strange. “Of course not. Can I get you anything?” she asked.
He glanced down at the small display case she’d filled that morning with buns, cakes, and cookies, tapping his fingers on the glass. “You like to bake?” he asked.
Was he trying to make small talk? She had no clue. Everything about him was an enigma.
“Yeah, I do.” After all she’d been through, she found baking relaxed her, and it gave her a purpose. There was something about creating a cake from scratch and turning it into something beautiful, that was what she loved more than anything else. It was her dream that her bakery be a little bigger, but right now she’d take whatever she could get. “What about you? What do you do?” she asked. If he asked her a question, she should be allowed the same rights.
“I handle several investments. I work from home.”
His answer was vague, but she was shocked he gave her an answer at all. She glanced out of the window, and just couldn’t help herself. “Are you gay?” She felt her cheeks heat since he looked a little taken aback. “It’s not a problem or anything. I just … you were very close to that guy out there, and you were calling him boss. That’s fine.” She couldn’t help but rem
ember how scared those men were of him. Stop rambling!
“How did you know his name was Boss?” he asked, tilting his head to the side.
She had this uncanny way of reading lips. It had aided her when she was a street kid. “I saw you say his name. It’s not that hard.”
He did that frowning thing. “You can tell conversations from reading someone’s lips?”
Okay, he was starting to take a really big interest in that, and she no longer felt comfortable with this. “I better get to work. Do you want anything?”