I let out a long breath. I thought for sure we were about to have a problem because if he warned me away from her, I was going to have to tell him no. “I promise. I’ll keep her safe, and I won’t hurt her.”
I shake his hand that he’s holding out and then walk past him. He stops me as I get to the door. “Thanks, Riggs. I appreciate you doing this for me.”
I nod. “Be safe on your mission. You know how shit gets fucked up if you’re not focused. Keep yourself alive. I don’t want to tell your sister you’re dead.”
He smirks. At least he gets my humor. “You got it.”
I walk out with a whole new purpose. I resist taking my phone out and looking at Jenna’s picture again. I have to talk to Nash and then I have a plane to catch. I’ll have six hours in the air to come up with a plan on how to make her mine.
3
Jenna
It’s a new day. That’s what I keep telling myself, anyway.
I did what I promised him. I signed up with Seeking Curves yesterday afternoon. They had an option to do it all online, and it was very convenient. All in all, it took me thirty minutes to complete, but they asked everything. I mean everything. Some of the questions are still making me blush. Oh well, my part is done. I did what I said I’d do; the rest is up to the company. It won’t bother me if they don’t call me back.
I’ve been anxious ever since yesterday when I got off the phone with my brother. I am every time I know he’s on a mission, but even more this time. I don’t know if it’s because I know he’s worried about me when he should be focused on the job or what, but I’m concerned.
The morning rush at least helped me get my mind off things, but now that it’s over, I’m back to worrying.
“I’ve never seen him before.”
I look over at Madison, who is wiping the front counter off. She gestures with her head to a man in the corner. He’s watching us, and when Madison and I both look at him, he bows his head and starts typing on his laptop. “Me either.”
I keep watching him. There’s something about him that intrigues me, but it could just be the fact that he’s handsome. His hair is brown with gold highlights. Natural looking. He doesn’t look like the type of guy to get highlights in his hair anyway. He’s obviously tall, and the way his long-sleeved Henley fits across his chest and arms, he’s built. He grabs his cup of coffee, and when he raises it to his lips, his eyes meet mine.
I swallow... hard. I don’t want to look away.
“Uh, dibs. I saw him first,” Madison says jokingly.
I pull my gaze away from him and back at Madison. My face is hot because I got caught drooling over the stranger. I definitely am not in a position to start dating. Not until I get this thing with Paul handled. I wouldn’t have signed up with Seeking Curves if I hadn’t promised my brother. “Sure,” I mutter. Even the words don’t taste right. I get a sick feeling in my stomach about it even.
I work the rest of the morning and into the lunch rush, keeping an eye on the man. He’s working, obviously. Sometimes he’s trained on what he’s doing, completely focused, and it seems a bomb wouldn’t get his attention. Other times, he’s sipping from his Honeypot glass.
With my back to the counter, I’m making a special Honeybee latte with milk, cinnamon, honey, turmeric and vanilla when Madison stops next to me. “Forget it.”
I finish stirring the concoction and turn back to the counter, handing the frothy drink over. “Forget what?”
Madison has no filter and doesn’t seem to care that people are standing around. “You’re up. The stranger wanted nothing I was offering.”
I roll my eyes. “Quit calling him a stranger like there’s something forbidden about him being here or something. We’re in Los Angeles. We’re not going to know everyone that walks in the door.” I give her the side eye as I hand the change over to the last customer in line. As soon as he walks away, I can’t help but give Madison a hard time. “And what exactly are you offering him? Because I’ll have you know I run an upstanding business here. We don’t offer s-e-x.”
She snorts and starts laughing. Which wouldn’t be that big of a deal if she didn’t have a laugh like a cute hyena and then hollers out, “Sex.”
I shrink away from the counter and look. Sure enough, the sexy stranger is looking our way. I pull Madison behind the tall part of the booth. “Are you kidding me? Did you have to scream s-e-x for the whole shop to hear?”