Page 1 of Handcuffs & Honey

Chapter One

The moment Dominic walked through the door of the diner Julian couldn’t take his eyes off the man. It wasn’t just because Dominic was a towering figure with broad shoulders and a chiseled jawline, although that certainly didn’t hurt. No, it was something more than that. Something that Julian couldn’t quite put his finger on.

Every time Dominic came to the diner—which was every day—Julian felt a weird connection to the guy, like he’d known the sheriff his entire life, which was crazy since Julian had been in Midnight Falls for only a month and had yet to have a decent conversation with him.

“Um…hi,” Julian said as he walked over to the table where Dominic had taken a seat. “What can I get for you today?”

“Just a cup of coffee for now, Julian,” Dominic said, his voice deep and smooth.

If the guy just wanted coffee, why hadn’t he gone to Bluebird Café? Not that Julian was complaining. He’d never complain about having an opportunity to drool over the sheriff.

“Of course.” Julian poured the coffee with slightly shaky hands. He tried to keep his cool around the sheriff, but it was getting harder and harder each time Dominic came into the diner. There was just something about him that made Julian feel like he was going to explode with desire.

As he poured the coffee, Julian glanced at Dominic. Their eyes met for just a moment, and in that moment, Julian felt something shift inside him. It was like a jolt of electricity running through his veins.

“I couldn’t help but notice you seem a bit distracted,” Dominic said, his tone playful but with a hint of suggestion. “Is everything all right?”

Julian blushed furiously, but he couldn’t deny the chemistry between them. “Oh, yeah. I’m fine,” he stammered. “Just…uh…lost in thought, I guess.”

Dominic chuckled. “Well, don’t let me interrupt. What were you thinking about?”

“Nothing important.” Julian shook his head. “Just…stuff.”

Like how many flat surfaces were in the diner for Dominic to bend him over. Like how it would feel to kiss the gorgeous man. Like how it would feel to have all those muscles wrapped around him as Dominic pounded into his ass.

Julian hurried away, cursing himself for turning into a mindless boob whenever Dominic was near him.

God, shoot me now.

Julian hurried to serve the customers at the other tables, but he felt Dominic’s gaze following him everywhere. When Julian moved to Midnight Falls over a month ago, he’d been down in the dumps because of a bad breakup, but he never thought a hunk like Dominic would flirt with him.

Not in a million years.

Julian knew he wasn’t bad looking, but Dominic was at least a freaking ten, while Julian hovered around a four or five. He had no clue why the sheriff flirted with him, and damn it, that flirting always flustered him.

He sucked at flirting, sucked at casual conversations with hot men, and from what he’d seen so far of the town, tons of hot men lived here. None had paid Julian any attention, and he liked that. Julian liked fading into the background. He wasn’t one of those people who needed to be seen.

But Dominic saw him.

“Watch it!”

Julian was so lost in thought that he’d spaced out.

Oh shit! He was pouring a cup of coffee for a customer, his mind on Dominic, and the cup of hot liquid had overflowed.

“Julian!” Roman, his boss and the owner of Deep Dish, shouted for him.

This wasn’t Julian’s first mess-up. Before coming to this hidden gem of a town, he’d been a laborer in countless factories. He hadn’t known a thing about bussing tables and taking orders, but Roman had given him a chance.

The guy was probably regretting that decision.

After grabbing a rag and cleaning up the spill, Julian rushed over to the counter. The look of frustration on Roman’s face didn’t bode well for him. He really needed this job. No other place had been hiring, except for the Fearless Fox, but slinging drinks was even less appealing than waiting tables.

Not only did Julian know zilch about drinks, but his former boyfriend had also worked at a bar, had cheated relentlessly on him, and working at a place like Fearless Fox might have brought back too many painful memories.

It was just best to forget Rob existed and move on.

“Um, yeah?” Julian braced himself, expecting Roman to fire him.

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