She took a cloth and wiped down the bar. “They stole from you?”
His muscles tightened. He still hated thinking about the way they’d abused his trust. “Yeah. They hadn’t been working here for long. I had a bad feeling when I hired them, but I ignored it because Barry and I really needed the help. Then money started going missing from the till, and a few weeks later, they were caught red-handed.”
She cringed. “I’m sorry.”
“It was my fault for not listening to my gut.”
A small smile curved her lips, and for a moment he stopped what he was doing and just stared like a starstruck moron.Fuck. She was gorgeous anytime, but when she smiled…the woman could bring the toughest man to his knees.
“What does your gut tell you about me?” she asked.
“That you’re trustworthy. That you’re a hard worker.” And that she needed help. Not that he’d be saying the last part out loud.
“You’re right. I would never steal from you, Cody.” She turned and moved back to the floor to retrieve more glasses. Still, he struggled to take his eyes off her.
He was screwed.
When all the tables were clear and the bar clean, he grabbed a can of cat food from beneath the bar. “Ready to meet Tommy?”
Excitement lit her eyes. “The alley cat? Sure. I love cats. They’re probably second on my list, after cupcakes.”
“You like cupcakes?”
“I would sell my right kidney for a good one, most days.”
He laughed. “My sister’s the same. Told me once that if she died before me, it was my job to make sure she was buried with all her favorites.”
Harper laughed and the sound was lyrical. “I think I’d like your sister.”
They headed toward the back door. “Have you ever had a cat?” he asked.
“No, I didn’t want to get one until I bought a place, in case I had to move in a hurry.” The second the words were out, she cringed, like she hadn’t meant to say the last part.
Interesting. So she’d known she might need to run from something. “Is that what happened last night? You had to leave in a hurry?”
She gave a small nod.
What was this woman hiding? Or better question…what was she running from? She’d done a good job of covering the bruising on her eye with makeup tonight. If he hadn’t seen it last night, he might not have known it was there.
“Come on.” He pushed outside into the alley and, sure enough, Tommy was waiting for him. “Hey there, Tom Tom, you ready for dinner?”
The black cat purred, rubbing against his legs as Cody crouched and emptied the food into a bowl. “Tommy, this is my new bartender, Harper. If you’re nice to her, she might just feed you too.”
Harper knelt down beside him. “Hey there, honey.”
The softness in her voice had his chest clenching. She reached out and scratched Tommy’s head as he ate. Immediately, he purred again, pushing his head into her hand.
“He likes you,” Cody said quietly.
She looked up and grinned. It was wide and uninhibited. “I like him too.”
She was so close he could smell the floral fragrance scenting the air around her. See the specks of hazel in her brown eyes despite the darkness. Even though he barely knew the woman, he itched to lean forward. See if she tasted as sweet as she smelled.
Then her gaze shifted over his shoulder—and she gasped.
He shot to his feet and glanced down the alley, but there was nothing there. He turned back to Harper, who was also standing. “Did you see something?”
“I saw…” She stopped and frowned, then shook her head. “Nothing. It was a shadow, probably another cat or wild animal. Sorry. I guess I’m a bit jumpy.”
