Page 3 of Luke

“I was actually looking for Dex,” he grinds out through gritted teeth. “Maybe I should tell him how rude his cashier is while I’m talking to him. I am still a paying customer, after all.” He leans in a little closer, reaching out to grab my wrist as he drops his voice. “And don’t think I’ll let you get by with talking to me like that again. I was in a pretty good mood when I came in here, but you’re really pushing my buttons.”

“Keep your hands off me,” I hiss, wrenching my arm away and nearly knocking over a display of batteries in the process. “You should just go. Dex will be back in a little while, whenever he finishes helping Harold Jenkins.”

I shouldn’t have told him my boss was gone. I should have lied, should have said he was in the bathroom or on the phone orsomething. Anything would have been better than the truth—that I’m stuck here alone with my angry, asshole ex-boyfriend.

Denny grunts. “Not so brave now, are you? That’s always been your problem, Soph. You just don’t know when to shut up. And now…” He looks around, as if confirming to himself that we really are alone here together. I take another step back, but there are shelves behind me and there’s nowhere else to go. “Now I think it’s time for you to start being a little nicer to me.”

My stomach clenches as he reaches for me. “Stop it,” I try to push him away, but he easily bats my hand away. “I mean it, Denny,” I say, assessing my odds. Can I kick him in the crotch and run? Will I make it out of the store before he recovers? “Please just go away. Leave me alone. Seriously.”

He still has that smug grin on his face because he knows he has the advantage right now. And no, he isn’t going to leave me alone.

3

LUKE

I can’t stop myself from smiling as I park my car in front of Carpenter’s Hardware. I do legitimately need to pick up a couple of things, but I’m not actually trying to fool myself as to the real reason why I’m here.

Even if I don’t get a chance to talk to Sophia while she’s working, I don’t think I can make it through another full day and night without seeing her beautiful smile.

There are a couple of other cars outside, but it doesn’t seem to be too busy, which hopefully means she’ll have time to say hi. Should I bring anything in? Should I grab a cup of coffee for her from down the street? Will she be able to take a short break? Does she even like coffee?

Okay, no.

I scrub a hand down my face and get out of my car. I’m definitely over-thinking this. It’s really not that serious. Just a conversation with a sweet, kind, beautiful woman. The only woman I’ve been interested in since… well, for a long time.

So yeah, no pressure.

Still, I know I can’t force anything to happen. I wouldn’t even be here right now if I hadn’t felt a spark of chemistry between us the other day. Now I just want to see if that spark is still there, if it can possibly grow into something more. At the very least, I hope I’ve met a new friend here in Kismet Falls. I’d be lying if I said I’m not crossing my fingers for more as I walk over and open the door to the hardware store, though.

I stop just inside the door and look around. I’ve been in here a few times since moving to town, but I’ve never seen the place so quiet. There’s no sign of Sophia or Dex—there aren’t even any other customers in sight.

And then I hear her voice ring out.

“Stop it,” she calls out, her tone a mix of fear and anger. “I mean it, Denny.”

I don’t know who the hell Denny is or what’s going on, but there’s no time to figure any of it out. If Sophia needs help, that’s my first priority.

My feet instinctively start moving, carrying me through the aisles and toward the sound of her voice. When I finally find her, she’s facing off against a guy whose back is to me—the guy she called Denny, apparently. He’s close to her. Too close. Seeing him towering over her and crowding her personal space makes my fists clench as I take a step toward him.

“Pretty sure she told you to leave her alone,” I say, surprised at how calm I sound to my own ears.

He looks back at me and sneers. “Mind your own fucking business, pal. This isn’t about you.”

Okay, now he’s pissing me off.

“I care about what happens to her,” I say, walking up to him until I’m standing in his space, just like he was with Sophia. “So that does make this my business. If you want to come in here and act tough, at least pick on someone your own size.”

The fact is, he’s a couple inches shorter than I am and I probably have an extra twenty pounds of muscle on my frame. I’m not looking for a fight, but I’ll give him one if that’s what he wants. And I’ll make sure he won’t be capable of threatening anyone else for at least a week or two while he recovers from the ass-kicking I’m about to give him.

A few seconds pass as he glares at me, and I can tell he’s trying to decide how the fight will go if he throws a punch. Pretty sure we’ve both come to the conclusion that it won’t go well for him, but I’m still ready for anything and I’m not backing down. I’m going to stay right here in his face until he either makes the first move or decides to walk away.

“Go, Denny,” Sophia urges. “Do the smart, reasonable thing for once. Get out.”

If looks could kill, Sophia and I would both probably be dead right now. Denny pushes past me, then turns and shakes his head at her. “He’ll get tired of you sooner or later,” he sneered. “You’re gonna come crawling back to me when he does, but it’s gonna take a lot of begging before I’ll forgive you. Mark my words.”

I open my mouth to say something and then close it again. It just isn’t worth engaging with an asshole like that. Instead, I turn my attention back to where it should be—back to Sophia.

Even though I was curious about what had just happened, there was one question that was more important than any of the others. “Are you okay? He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

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