“He did what!” Krampus growls, hands clenching into fists. His body’s practically shaking.
“I guess in my contract it states he gets a percentage of what I sell each day.”
“Did you ask to see the contract?” Amber questions.
Shaking my head, I hand her a bowl and spoon, grateful for the reinforcements. “He showed it to me, but I could barely read it; the font was so small. Honestly, now that I think about it, that may be why he’s never given me my own copy.”
“That sounds illegal,” Gremlin exclaims, looking lost in the kitchen.
“Maybe. I’m kinda of new to the business world. I used to bake solely online and out of a food truck, but now I’m finally living my dream of owning a storefront bakery. It’s kinda overwhelming.”
“Just be careful, Mindy. Moseley isn’t who he says he is. He’s a very dangerous man, one you need to be careful dealing with,” Amber states, looking from me to Krampus.
Krampus nods, those deep blue eyes doing that thing where they make me feel things I shouldn’t. His concern doesn’t go unnoticed; actually, it makes me feel even more vulnerable.
“What am I missing?”
They share another look, one that isn’t exactly easy to read.
“Let’s just say, Mr. Moseley isn’t the nicest of guys. He hangs with some pretty shady people.”
“Oh, I know. I met one when I first moved here. He kept saying I was a lot older than expected… whatever that means.”
“Fuck!” Krampus growls under his breath, eyes widening when he realizes he swore. “Sorry,” he whispers, that hardened gaze softening just for me, making my heart melt like a golden brick of butter.
“It’s okay. Does that mean something too?”
Krampus leans against the counter and sighs. “We aren’t exactly sure what Moseley is involved in, to be honest. He’s been a thorn in our side since we formed our club. He’s got ties with the Raging Misfits MC, a rival club that’s recently gone underground. As far as we know, they cut ties with him, but he still has other people he’s involved with that aren’t the greatest. What they do or what they’re capable of, we aren’t quite sure.” He sighs before adding, “That’s why I came in today and the first time we bumped into each other. I was doing recon for our club, trying to see if you were attached to Mosely, or just another poor victim of his shady business practices.”
Frowning, I lean against the counter, watching as Amber carefully scrapes my burnt cookies into a trashcan nearby. “I’m only attached to him through contract, nothing else.”
He nods. “Yes, we can see that now. It’s very important that you get that contract as soon as possible, Mindy. There’s no telling what you signed. Did you read it?”
Shaking my head, my frown falls even further. “I read up to a point, but I got so excited about the screaming deal I was getting that I didn’t go any further.”
“And you said he refused to give you a copy?”
Dejectedly, I shake my head even more vigorously, staring at my feet. “He was supposed to give me it, but hasn’t.”
“First things first. You get yourself a copy of that contract,” he orders, but it doesn’t really bother me. It actually sorta turns me on.
“Yes, definitely.”
Krampus looks around the room. “I’m gonna have a friend of mine look over that contract for you.”
“Do you really think that’s necessary?”
He nods. “Yeah, I wouldn’t put it past Moseley to have something even worse than a percentage in there.”
He must notice the nervous nibble of my lip, because he gently tugs it free from my teeth, forcing me to look up at him. The second our eyes meet, my heart stutters inside my chest, running miles I can’t quite keep up with.
“What aren’t you telling me?” he asks cautiously.
I don’t shy away from his touch. I don’t even look away. I just stare into those deep blue eyes, getting lost in the protectiveness I see within them. “He just does things sometimes that make me question his motives. There was this instance right before I opened where a pie caught on fire and he suddenly appeared, even though no smoke alarm went off. He said he heard the smoke alarm.”
Krampus’ eyes look up to where my finger’s pointing at the ceiling.
“That one’s new. I practically had to beg him to install it. But yeah, somehow, he knew I burned the pie, like he was watching me or something.”
