Page 14 of Toy Shop

But at the end of the day, I’m my own person, a single woman. Being all meek and agreeable would be a fatal mistake on my part and would only serve to put me in harm’s way.

“I’m not belittling you or saying how you reacted wasn’t something this asshole had coming.” He places a comforting hand on my arm, lowering my defenses. “Your badassery should be studied and taught nationwide. However, someone, someday, might have his screws loose and wouldn’t give two shits about social media or being exposed.”

He’s right. I know he’s right. I still don’t like it. Which brings me to another conclusion. A far more depressing one.

“Am I an idiot too, Rhodes? For thinking that Chad is any different?” I munch on my bottom lip, the wind slowly taken out of my sails. “Was I so blind to overlook how he’s a subtler version of the idiots who harass us here?”

Rhodes’s head tilts. “What? Weren’t you the one who described him as the perfect gentleman? This guy,”—he tosses his thumb toward the shop’s door—“the word ‘gentleman’ isn’t in his vocabulary, that’s for sure.”

“Chad could be better at concealing it, but it’s getting clearer that his endgame is the same. If he would’ve been that perfect, he would’ve—I don’t know—asked for my number? Called the shop?”

A rope is cinching my heart, squeezing it to the point of a mild, lingering ache. Alistair stated his intentions of this being a one-time quid pro quo thing, so it’s not fair to resent him. Still, it’s becoming increasingly hard to shake the feeling we shared something.

Guess I was wrong.

“I was another PornHub fantasy reenacted, or whatever.” There’s no venom in my words. A dark, gray shade of defeat. That’s what it is.

“Maybe he’s a criminal, and this was his last day before facing incarceration?”

“Highly unlikely.” I huff a laugh. “Nothing screamed I’m free to do and be anything more than him.”

“Did you search him online?” Rhodes offers, wagging his eyebrows.

“No.” Of course I want to. “Not gonna happen.”

“Why not?”

“Do I have to remind you my self-preservation works overtime?” I swipe a finger across the middle shelf where we put the lubricants, frowning at the dust.

“Well aware.” He laughs, rubbing it off with a towel. We make a great team, another reason I love him.

I organize the sexy nurse outfits on the hanger by size, avoiding eye contact. “Can we talk about something else?”

“Fine, fine.” Rhodes waves me off.

Sounding exasperated, he turns to another aisle, arranging some products in the back, the one made of phthalate. We hide them out of our customers’ reach, putting them on display the one time a month Roger regales us with his presence.

“What about your job interview tomorrow?” Green eyes study me from across the room. “Safe topic? Yes? No? Depending on the mood?”

“Shit. I almost forgot.” I smack my forehead, my face scrunching.

Ever since the summer when I graduated from Seattle University with a BA in economics, I’ve been on the job hunt. A real job, any job, just so I could get my foot in the door. Student loans and my studio apartment aside—even though I live in an affordable low-income building—I have a dream to finance.

One day soon, I want a shop just like this one, owned and operated ethically by me. For that to happen, I need the money SunInUS offered in the classifieds for the intern job in their finance department.

“If that’s any consolation, I would’ve too after the night you had.” Rhodes reemerges out of the back aisle, giving me a sinister look.

“Not comforting at all. It’s been a week. I should’ve researched them, gone over material they might ask questions about.”

Blood drains from my face, stress gripping my gut. We have three hours left in our shift. By its end, this nervousness will be a full-blown panic attack. “There’s no way I’ll be able to be prepared for tomorrow. I might as well email them and cancel now.”

My hero sidles next to me, giving me a side hug. “Go sit by the register, girl. I got this shift.”

Grateful doesn’t begin to describe my feelings for him. “Really? You’d do that?”

“Um, duh.” He spins me, pushing me to the back of the shop. “Study hard, nail the interview, and remember me when you’re rich and open your own place.”

“Never.” We reach the counter.

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