Page 34 of Hunter

He gave me a look that told me how foolish my question was. Then he pulled a multitool from his back pocket like he’d been waiting for an excuse to use it. “I can handle a loose bolt.”

Marcy ducked back into the walk-in, smirking to herself, and I bit my lip.

“Well, I mean…if you’re going to start fixing things around here,” I murmured, trying to sound casual even as I felt my cheeks heating again, “I should probably get you a tool belt. You can wear it without a shirt.”

Wesley’s head tilted, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

I held up my hands quickly. “Actually, no. Scratch that. Too many people come through this bakery, and no one needs to see that but me.”

His eyes darkened as he straightened to his full height, the multitool clicking shut in his palm. “That right?”

I nodded fast, trying not to squirm under the heat in his gaze. “Definitely.”

He stepped closer and murmured, “You want me shirtless in a tool belt, you’ll get it. But only for you, sunshine.”

I could’ve melted into a puddle on the floor right then and there. Instead, I managed to squeak, “Good. Great. Love that plan.”

His smirk went full-blown as he stepped around me, brushing a kiss to the top of my head as though he hadn’t just made my panties spontaneously combust.

I was still trying to cool off from the mental image of Wesley in nothing but jeans and a tool belt when my phone buzzed in the pocket of my apron. I pulled it out and smiled at the screen.

“It’s my parents,” I told him.

His brows lifted just slightly. “You gonna answer?”

I hesitated for a second, suddenly shy. “They’re video calling. If I’m not driving, they like to see my face when they talk since they’re going to be gone for so long.”

“Can’t fault them for that. Go ahead and answer.”

I tapped to accept, and my parents’ faces filled the screen—Dad in a ball cap and hoodie, Mom with windblown hair and a huge smile.

“There she is!” Mom beamed. “Hi, honey!”

“Hey,” I said, suddenly feeling sixteen again instead of nineteen.

“Sorry to bother you at work, but at least we caught you before the bakery opens.” Her eyes narrowed as she leaned toward the camera. “Wait a second…why do you look like you’ve just been necking with someone?”

“Mom!”

“Just saying,” she laughed. “You’ve got that look that I’ve seen on my own face after your dad has given me a big smooch.”

I shook my head. “Did you really have to go there?”

Dad’s gaze darted over my shoulder, and he cleared his throat pointedly. “Who are you?”

“Hunter,” Wesley replied before I could answer.

I startled slightly but didn’t pull the phone away as he moved to stand next to me.

My mom blinked. “Oh, my. You’re very…tall.”

Wesley’s mouth twitched. “Yes, ma’am.”

Dad gave a slow nod, his voice calm but firm. “So how exactly do you know our daughter?”

Wesley didn’t miss a beat. “I met her a few days ago. She started working at the bakery in our territory. Someone left her a threatening note. I handled it.”

“You handled it,” Dad repeated, not quite a question.

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