Page 6 of Hunter

She glanced at me again, and her body practically vibrated with bouncy, nervous energy. Almost as though she couldn’t stand still but wasn’t sure if she should run either.

And that blush…it was killing me. She was a shy, sweet thing—practically made of sunshine.

She was also young. Too damn young.Fuck.

I caught the slight twitch in her fingers when she brushed flour off her hands—and I nearly smiled at the tell. She was nervous, but when I looked closer, she didn’t seem scared.

Big fucking difference.

Then her gaze darted behind me, and a shadow passed over her face. When I glanced back, the room was mostly clear, so all she was looking at was the door. Her eyes darted to the side door, as if she needed to know where the exits were. It was quick and subtle, but I hadn’t missed a single thing about her since the moment I saw her and instinct crawled up my spine.

She was scared. Not of me, though. Not even today, not here—but at some point. Something had scarred her. And the fucking thought of it made my vision go a little red at the edges.

Some people might have missed the signs—but as I watched her and saw the way her breath sped up when too many people crowded the counter, how her gaze snagged on the closed kitchen door behind her, just for a second.

I rarely missed shit. I was quiet, observant, and had an unusual ability to read people. It was why Fox sent me to the bakery.

And it hadn’t escaped my scrutiny that she hated feeling trapped.

Noted, sunshine.

Finally, the customer in front of me moved out of the way, and I stepped up to the counter. I was close enough to fill my lungs with her delicious aroma but not to touch her, and it drove me crazy.

“Hello, sunshine,” I said, my voice low and rumbly. My lips curled up when I saw her tiny shiver and the pink blooming on her cheeks again.

She was affected by me. Good.

“Um. Hi. What can I get for you?”

Now, that was a loaded question if ever I heard one. What could she get for me?

Get on her knees.

Get naked.

Get bent over the nearest table.

Get fucked.

But rather than say what I was thinking and scare her off, I took a deep breath and focused on her soft voice and sweet smile.

“What’s your name?” I asked as I swiped a couple of fingers over her cheek to brush away the residual flour. She shivered again, and I had to bite back a groan.

“Sadie Morgan.”

“Beautiful,” I murmured.

A muffled chuckle came from beside me, and I glanced over to see Viper watching me with amusement. I scowled, my eyes promising death and dismemberment if he said one fucking word.

He grinned and turned to Sadie. “Hi, Sadie. I’m Viper. How about a black coffee and one of those croissants? To go.”

“Um, sure,” she replied, stealing another glance at me before she turned to get Viper’s order. There had been a glimmer of disappointment in her sky-blue orbs, and I was very tempted to reassure her that I wasn’t going anywhere.

“You know we can’t stay,” Viper muttered, somehow reading my thoughts. As though I didn’t fucking know that.

“Two days,” I grunted.

A lot could happen in that time. What if some asshole decided he wanted her, and I wasn't around to officially stake my claim?

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