Page 32 of The Finder

Kyle turned to Emma. “He’s not a morning person,” he said with a grin and slapped Levi on the back.

Emma smiled. “Neither is Liam.”

Kyle barked out a laugh. “No, he’s definitely not.”

“But you are?” Emma asked, curious.

“I have to be. Madison hates the morning and sleeps like the dead. One of us has to be able to function in the morning,” he said with a grin. Emma could hear the affection in his voice. She wondered what it would be like to be loved so wholly by someone. She shook off those thoughts and started thinking about the day ahead of her.

“Thank you for the ride,” she said.

“Sure,” Kyle said easily, and Levi nodded.

It was quiet the rest of the way into work. When they pulled in front of Sip and Drip, Emma opened her door and slid out. Kyle came around and stood next to her. “Next time, wait for me, okay? Always want to make sure it’s safe before you climb out.” Emma just stared at him stupidly before nodding and following him into the store.They sure take their security seriously,she thought to herself.

“Good morning,” Emma called out to Helen and heard her response in the back room. “All right, well I’m going to get to work. Thanks again for the ride. Uh, will you pick me up from work or do I need to find a ride?” she asked lamely.

Kyle looked at her oddly. The door opened and Levi stepped into the shop. “We’re staying,” Kyle said and moved through the shop towards a back table. She noticed that he had a laptop bag hanging from his shoulder. Levi had the same. Emma just stared at the two of them before she made her way over to their table.

“You don’t need to stay here all day. I’m perfectly safe,” she said. “You can go back home or whatever.”

“Can’t,” Kyle said, not looking at her. He was busy getting his laptop out. “Boss’s orders.”

Emma didn’t know what to say to that, and she needed to get to work. She tried one more time. “Really, it’s not necessary. I—”

Levi looked up at her. “Boss said we stay here all day. So, we’re staying,” he said in no uncertain terms.

“Well, okay then. I’ll get you guys some coffee in a little bit.” With that, she turned away and made her way back behind the counter and into the back room to get an apron and get to work.

About two hours later, she took two black coffees and two plates of cinnamon rolls to the guys. They were both working when she approached but looked up and watched her place the rolls and the coffee on the table. They both took a deep breath, and Kyle grinned.

“Enjoy,” she said with a smile. She smiled until she got to the front of the shop. She was going to need to start a tab with what she owed Helen. She pushed that thought away.Hopefully,she was getting paid soon. Fingers crossed.

The day flew by. Emma took her break at the library. The guys insisted on going with. She tried to argue with them but found it pointless. They asked her what she usually did for lunch. Emma grinned when she remembered their look of horror when she said she didn’t usually eat lunch. They grabbed sandwiches on the way to the library and got one for Emma too. She offered to pay, but they declined.

When she finished her shift, Kyle and Levi walked her to the car. Emma climbed into the backseat with a contented smile on her face. It had been a good day. It was busier than usual and sales were up. She had sold all her cinnamon rolls and felt good about that.

They drove for a little while. Emma wasn’t really paying attention, so she was surprised when they pulled into a shopping mall. “What are we doing?” Emma asked.

“Madison is meeting us here to take you shopping,” Kyle said with a pained expression. It was clear what he thought about shopping. They pulled into a spot, and Kyle climbed out. She saw Madison climb out of the car next to them. She watched for just a moment as Kyle pulled her into his arms and kissed her. Emma looked away and gave them a moment before getting out of the car. When she stepped out, Levi stood right next to her. Apparently, he had been waiting for her.

Madison stepped out of Kyle’s arms and came towards Emma. “You ready to go crazy?” she asked with a sparkle in her eye.

“Uh, what’s going on? I thought we were going to start training,” Emma said in confusion.

“I know. We were, but plans changed. We’re going shopping instead. You need clothes. Then, we will train,” Madison said, hooking her arm through Emma’s.

“But I don’t have any money,” Emma whispered to Madison. Madison pulled something out of her pocket. She flashed a black card at Emma. Emma just looked at it. “What is that?” she asked.

“Garrett’s black card,” Madison said with a huge grin. “With an unlimited budget, so let’s go,” she said.

Emma let Madison pull her towards the entrance. Kyle and Levi followed behind them. Emma wasn’t sure what to think, but Madison was so happy and Emma didn’t want to ruin it for her.

Madison dragged her into the first store. “All right. We have an entire wardrobe to build. My thought is to start with the basics and then go from there.”

“I don’t know about this. I can’t spend Garrett’s money,” Emma said. She had no idea how she was going to get out of this. Madison didn’t listen and began looking through jeans.

“What size are you?” she asked.

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