Page 6 of My Small Town Silver Fox Billionaire

“Um, you took your card out a bit early.”

“Oh. I thought these machines were supposed to be fast.”

What the heck is that supposed to mean? Before I can respond, she shoves it in there again. It beeps once, then twice, approving the transaction.

“You can take it out now.”

“Oh, so now I can,” she mutters belligerently.

“It’s not a big deal. Anyway, here’s your receipt.”

I hand it to her, and she snatches it out of my hand without a second thought.

“Thanks,” I mutter.

The woman walks away, her black high heels clicking ominously until she gets to the waiting area. I smile, but inside, I want to scream.

I swear, it’s like all of the rude customers decided to crawl out from under the woodwork to drive me crazy this week. I watch Bianca finish with the drink and leave it on the counter.

The woman snatches it like she did with the receipt and storms off. As the door closes, I roll my eyes.

“What a lovely person,” I say nearly under my breath.

“You’re telling me. Well, hopefully, that’s the last of the upset people today.”

I can only hope. At least I had a couple of days at the sanctuary. I got to brush the horses and to help one of the senior dogs who needs lots of help go for a walk, which was super fun. Just thinking about my work there makes me smile. It’s not really work at all. It’s a calling.

A good half-hour goes by with nary a mean customer in sight, and Bianca and I both enjoy the few that come in and have nice conversations with us. Makes me almost forget the woman in the clicking heels. I giggle to myself as I honor her with that tag!

Checking my phone from under the counter, I see a text from Katie, my best friend, flash across the screen.

Are you coming home later?

Katie and I live together. She’s convinced that I live at the animal sanctuary and that the apartment is a front. I wish, but it’s not true.

I text her a quick “yes” before setting my phone back under the counter. The door rings again as another customer walks in.

I look up, and my green eyes meet a set of crystal blues, which gaze directly at me. It’s like he sees right through me, staring into my soul.

Bianca turns, her mouth agape.

“Oh.”

She dodges into the back room as the figure approaches the counter, and I process who this is.

It’s the rude customer from the other day. The hot one, who got onto me for making his drink wrong. He approaches the counter, focusing on me intently.

“Hello there, what can I get you?” I ask, grinning. The best way to handle a mean customer is to put a smile on my face.

His hands fumble for his wallet, and he takes it out. There’s that platinum card again. I spot at least three of them in his wallet.

How rich is this guy?

He holds his wallet in his hands as he looks up at the suggestions, taking them all in. I bite my lip, unsure if he wants me to help or not.

“Do you need me to—”

“Give me a second,” he mutters, looking over the options once again before turning to me. The suspense almost kills me.

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