Page 28 of Savoring Addison

“Staying late because I didn’t give you enough notice isn’t.”

It had been twenty minutes, if that. “I didn’t really?—”

“No more arguing,” Luca said, the edge of a command in his voice. “I can’t handle the distraction right now. Just let Kendra do it.”

Guilt clawed at her chest, but she couldn’t do anything about it now. Silently promising to do their dishes later in the week, she finished icing the ten-layer Smith Island cake Gabriel would serve with dinner tonight. After moving it to the walk-in, she stacked her dirty dishes as neatly as she could near the industrial dishwasher, then wiped down her workspace. It would have to do.

Only one thing left before her date with the hot pink Rabbit waiting in her nightstand drawer. Slipping into the cavernous pantry, she grabbed a handful of mixed nuts and headed out the back door. Alexander might not even be finding the offerings she left every day, but she would keep doing it anyway, just in case.

The door barely swung closed behind her when she stopped in her tracks. A white vinyl post rose out of the ground, right where she always left her assortment of nuts, seeds, or dried fruit. At the top stood an elaborate wooden bird feeder with multiple levels.

Addison stared at the feeder for several seconds, her brain doing a sort of record scratch. As she watched, a female cardinal and a chickadee flitted over from the nearby hedges, grabbed some food, and flew right back into the boxwoods.

The cold finally snapped her out of her stupor. Tossing the mixed nuts onto the patio for critters to find later, she rushed back into the kitchen. “Hey, did you guys see who put that bird feeder out there?” She tried to sound vaguely curious, and not like her heart was about to burst out of her chest.

“Hmm?” Luca said, tossing something in the pan and not looking up.

Kendra glanced her way, but only long enough to shrug. “I didn’t notice it. Maybe ask Zach? He sees everything.”

The way she said it made Addison smile—like Zach was the Great and Powerful Oz. “Thanks again,” she said, tossing her apron in the hamper and heading off to find the receptionist.

Luckily, he made the task incredibly easy by being at his desk. He looked up as she crossed the lobby, gracing her with a smile that made his green eyes sparkle. Addison made up her mind then and there to put some legit effort into befriending the man. Something about him made her feel better about herself when she was around him. As if his obvious goodness somehow rubbed off on her.

“What can I do for you this fine morning?” Zach asked, putting his feet up on his desk. He wore a silver-gray suit and vest today, his bow tie gray-and-white floral on a charcoal background. The guy quite possibly held the record for the world’s largest supply of vests and bow ties, and was too adorable for words.

“Is it still morning?” she asked, leaning her elbows on the reception counter.

Zach glanced at his computer screen. “For six more minutes.” He flashed another smile. “What’s up?”

“I’m hoping you can satisfy my curiosity about something.” She pitched her voice in what she hoped was a fun, conspiratorial way.

He immediately took the bait. Dropping his feet back to the floor, he leaned toward her and fake-whispered, “Are we spying on someone? I love spying on people.”

That made her laugh. “So I’ve heard. A bird feeder mysteriously appeared outside the kitchen last night. I want to know how it got there.”

For a moment, she worried he’d lose interest. A bird feeder wasn’t nearly as exciting or salacious as what he normally saw on the security cameras. But then his eyebrows arched upward. “Where you leave the birds food every day?”

She lifted her own brows. “Wow, they weren’t kidding. You do see everything.”

With a smug smile, Zach blew air on his nails and buffed them against his chest. “Naturally.” He grabbed his mouse and got to work, the ghost of a smirk hovering around his lips. “Do you have any suspects?”

An image of Mason, stark naked and stretched out on his bed as he comforted her flashed through her mind. “I might.”

That only made him smirk harder. “Okay, keep your secrets.”

Addison knew the instant he found the answer. His whole expression changed—the sparkle gone from his eyes, his mouth a straight, emotionless line. Motioning her around the counter, he said, “We have our culprit.” Bland disinterest replaced the usual warmth in his voice.

What on earth was that about? She wished she knew Zach well enough to ask, but they’d only spoken a handful of times since the New Year’s Eve party.

Keeping her own expression neutral, she circled around to look at his screen. Her heart skipped a beat as she watched a video of Mason slamming a post hole digger repeatedly into the hard ground, his black suit rendering him half-invisible in the darkness. Zach fast forwarded several minutes to when Mason laid the tool aside in favor of the vinyl post, bird feeder already attached.

“Well.” Zach sounded almost bored now. “There you have it. Mason St. John has taken a sudden interest in birds.”

“Apparently,” Addison said, her chest unbearably tight. If she felt like being honest with herself, she knew it the second she saw the feeder out in the garden. The same way she knew Mason was responsible for the gorgeous, full-length mirror that appeared in her room while she worked Monday morning. There would be no more embarrassing frosting incidents in her future.

Her gaze stayed glued to the video until Zach closed the laptop, snapping the screen down so hard the sound made her jump. Picking up the computer, he tucked it under his arm as he stood. “I hope that was helpful. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to make some phone calls.” He walked into the little office behind the reception desk, shoving the door closed behind him without ever glancing back.

Weird as fuck? Absolutely.

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