Page 6 of Doll Face

The rest of the evening ran pretty smoothly. By the time the arcade closed at 11:00, the yawns were hitting her hard.

“Maybe if I get to bed by midnight, I can get a good four and a half hours of sleep,” she said.

Tommy shook his head. “You’re running yourself into the ground.”

She shrugged. “I catch up with sleep on the weekends.”

“Not the same, and you know it.”

“Yeah, but I need to work. Medicine isn’t cheap when you have a high deductible.”

“That fucking sucks.”

The guard stepped out and kept watch until she hopped on the bus. She waved at him, and he gave her an acknowledging nod before closing the arcade’s door and bolting it shut.

Chapter Three

Matteo pulled his car up in front of the coffee shop and immediately saw Macy through the store’s window. She waited on a customer, a megawatt smile gracing her lips. He hopped out of his car and hurried to the front door. The little bell dinged as he entered.

“Welcome, I’ll be right with y—” She looked up, and smiled at him. “You.”

Something beautiful and warm filled his heart. It should’ve scared the shit out of him, but instead, it gave him warm comfort. It was a feeling he wanted more of, especially from Macy. Her blue eyes sparkled. Her long hair piled up on her head, showing off her delicate neck. He had the strongest desire to suck on that soft skin and leave his mark behind. Possessiveness gripped him, and he wondered if he was losing his damn mind. He’d just met this girl the day before, and knew nothing about her.

He made a mental note to do a background check.

The woman in front of him finally finished her order and he stepped up to the counter.

“Hi,” she said, a bit breathlessly.

“Hi,” he replied back.

“Salted caramel latte and a black coffee?”

“It’s just me today,” he said. “Just a black coffee.”

She nodded and turned to the large coffee machine, glancing over her shoulder. “What would bears be without bees?”

He shook his head. “What?”

“Ears.”

Laughter spilled out of his mouth, surprising him. He honestly couldn’t remember the last time he laughed so hard. Or maybe, he never did. Wasn’t like he had a lot of things to enjoy and be happy with in his life.

Macy placed a cup of coffee in a to-go cup in front of him. “Here you go.”

“Thank you,” he murmured. He pulled out his wallet and placed a hundred-dollar bill on the counter. “The rest is for you.”

“I can’t accept that,” she said softly.

He frowned, confusion filling him.

“I, ah, am uncomfortable with you leaving a big tip like that,” she admitted.

“I can afford it,” he assured her.

“I gathered that,” she said dryly. “But you don’t need to. Money is nice, don’t get me wrong, but I’d rather just have your laughter.”

Matteo didn’t know what to say to that. He’d never encountered a woman who didn’t want money or presents. How did he react to her statement? “All right. I suppose I can respect that. I may not like it, but I get it.”

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