Page 35 of Walking Red Flag

In reality, I didn’t have to work because my shop wasn’t supposed to be ready to go for at least another month.

We’d closed the old location, and the employees were now busy helping me move from one place to another. They were also helping me with inventory, and other odds and ends to make sure they got their hours until the new location was open.

If I was lucky, it’d be done in three weeks, according to the man in front of me.

The man that was seeing a little too much.

I turned my back on him and looked out the window, studying the parking lot.

It was smaller than I thought was good for a coffee shop/bakery, but you got what you got in the great, lovely DFW area.

Space was limited, and you were lucky to have parking at all sometimes.

“You want to give me some insight on what color cabinets you want?” he asked as he walked to his passenger side door and held the door open.

My heart literally melted.

Right there in a puddle in my parking lot.

I’d never had a man open the door for me, not even my brothers.

Sure, I’d witnessed them do it for their girlfriends, but never for me.

That had to be why I got into his truck.

At least, that was what I was telling myself.

Stop dating guys that look like they’d steal the copper out of your IUD.

—Life Lesson

CUTTER

She was a skittish little thing.

Though, my instincts were roaring at me to tell her what I’d heard her friend say about her, I decided that, maybe, I’d not butt into her life.

At least, not until I decided how to handle what I’d heard.

Maybe I’d just stay out of it.

I mean, the woman was nothing to me.

She was just a client.

I didn’t need to add her problems on top of my own.

Then again, I’d just invited her on a motorcycle ride to the fuckin’ prison that my brother was currently serving his sentence at. If I didn’t want to be involved with her problems, maybe I shouldn’t involve her in mine.

Though, she didn’t know that was where we were going.

I wasn’t super inclined to tell her, either.

I probably should.

But I wasn’t.

I don’t know if I was testing her or what, but if she wanted to have her mind off of her own problems, getting them onto mine seemed a good way to do it.

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