Page 20 of Outside The Wire

I was ready to move on.

And I knew Holly Lane was going to change my life.

5

HOLLY

I walkedup the steps to Holly Lane Boutique, whistling cheerily and grinning from ear to ear. Noelle sat in the rocking chair like she did every morning, holding two cups of steaming hot cocoa. She had a key to get in, but she liked to wait for me.

“What are you so happy about this morning?” she asked suspiciously.

“Nothing,” I said, unable to stop myself from giggling.

She got up from the rocker and marched over to me as I opened the door, and followed me inside. “I know that look. You’re excited about something. Something, as in a man. Who did you meet?”

“I didn’t meet anyone.”

“Yes, you did.”

“Nope.” Technically, I wasn’t lying. I met Asher at the home store two weeks ago.

“All you did was grab food at Whataburger last night. There’s no way you could have met the love of your life there. Unless…”

I plopped my purse down on the counter and spun around to face her with a huge grin on my face. “Unless what?”

“You’ve already met him,” she said, narrowing her eyes at me. “This was the guy from the parking lot. The one you dinged with your shopping cart.”

“I didn’t ding him. I dinged his truck.”

“And you fell on your ass. You saw him!” she shouted, shoving me back a step.

I stumbled into the counter, nearly dropping my cocoa. “Geez, you don’t have to be so rough.”

“Why would you hold out on me like that?”

“I’m not holding out. It literally just happened last night.”

“At Whataburger? Who goes to a fast food restaurant and meets the love of their life?”

I rolled my eyes at her dramatics and got to work opening the shop. It was a little chilly inside this morning, so I checked the thermostat, then started opening the blinds.

“I didn’t meet the love of my life. He was behind me in line.”

“Did he follow you there?”

“Through the city? Are you crazy?”

“He could have!” she demanded, following me around the store, room by room. “Maybe he found out that you own the store and wanted to stalk you.”

“I highly doubt that.”

“Oh, I suppose he’s too good to be a stalker.”

“He is,” I said, completely certain of that.

She blocked me from exiting the room, narrowing her eyes at me. “Give me one good reason why.”

“Because when we left, he asked me not to park so far from the building and to park under a street lamp. He was looking out for me.”

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