Page 26 of Worth the Risk

“You haven’t eaten yet?”

“No. I normally just have a shake and then I don’t eat until around now.”

“In that case, a little breakfast would be great.”

He begins to move in the direction of the stove, but I yank his arm back so he doesn’t get far. “Bran flakes and raisins are fine.”

Hudson looks at me like I’m crazy. “So, no omelet? I need to make sure you have your Hudson protein intake this morning.” He winks at me, and I playfully slap his arm.

I give him serious eyes, but my smile doesn’t fade. “Let’s keep it simple, we have enough complications as it is.”

He taps his finger on my nose before he breaks free and grabs supplies. By the time we’re sitting at the dining table and pouring cereal into our bowls, I realize that I’m perfectly relaxed around Hudson, almost as if I walked into his house like I’ve been here before. I blame it on our connection, the bond that I wasn’t expecting when I walked into a bar all those weeks ago.

“You’ll love Lake Spark. There is a surprise for you.” He plays with the spoon in the bowl.

“Really?”

He flashes his eyes at me, clearly not willing to elaborate.

An obvious issue dawns on me. “Uhm, I need to ask…” I nervously pull my hair to the side over one shoulder. “I mean, won’t people notice that we’re walking around town together? Do we have to worry about, well… April finding out? The world for that matter, but I am more concerned about April.”

Hudson leans back in the chair and presses his lips together before he blows out a breath. “No. Or at least not the locals. I guess I’ll just scratch the whole kissing you senseless on Main Street idea, and I’m probably going to have to ditch holding your hand as we stock up on condoms at the store too.” I hear the humor in his tone, which I do appreciate, but I give him a look and he turns serious. “I’ll make sure we get a private table for lunch, but I can’t make promises about privacy unless we decide that we will never leave this house while you’re here, which I mean, could be a great option, but I would like to show you around.”

“That sounds reasonable.”

“Good. And don’t worry about April, she’s a big girl.”

I look at him, astonished that he’s so laid back about this. “You slept with her best friend; I’m sure she’ll look at you completely the same come Arrows family Thanksgiving,” I say sarcastically.

The corners of his mouth twist. “Lucky us, I’m not at Thanksgiving, as it’s one of the most important game weeks of the year for me. Besides, we happened, Piper, and considering we don’t regret it, then we might as well own it.” He tilts his head slightly to the side. “Now, if you decide that you want to trade down to some other guy, then yeah, it may be awkward as fuck, but we know that won’t happen.”

His cocky confidence is oddly not a deterrent.

I cross my arms over my chest. “Why are you so certain?”

Hudson stands to head back to the kitchen like he forgot something, and on his journey he stops and leans down to whisper near my ear. “Because we haven’t even started yet and already it’s promising.”

* * *

Walkingalong the main street of Lake Spark, it isn’t busy. It’s clear the flowerpots are filled with newly planted flowers, the flag flying above the hardware store is well taken care of, and there is a café that smells delicious, plus a few little stores and a barbershop. It all reminds me of a scene from a classic movie.

“This is adorable, I love this.” I admire the town as I let Hudson lead us to wherever our destination is. “It would be a perfect spot for a boutique over there.” I point to an empty shop.

“That place used to have some great tailored suits, but the owner was pushing eighty-five and wanted to retire. Haven’t heard any of the latest gossip if he’s willing to sell yet, as rumor has it that his kids are arguing over the place. Is that something you want? A boutique?”

“Eventually. For now, I have my online store and rent some space to put the orders together, but the landlord already let me know that he is most likely selling soon. My grandmother always pushes for me to go bigger, but a boutique is more my scale and pace,” I explain as we continue to walk.

“Your instinct will lead you in the best direction.”

Huh, that phrase hits me right. So simple, and I’m not sure why I haven’t heard it before.

I notice we’re stopping, and I assess the location, a candy store called Jolly Joe’s. “What’s this?” I have to laugh.

Hudson’s hand is firm on the handle of the door he is about to open. “Your surprise.”

“Really?” I’m beaming like a child because I’m curious.

We walk through the door and a little bell chimes. The store is a classic candy store, with jars and jars of different types of candy. It’s open-plan, and it seems two stores broke down the wall to become one.

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