He leaned over the counter, a smile on his face that almost looked predatory. “Darlin’, if I wanted a sandwich tomorrow, I would have come in tomorrow.”
“I’d like you to leave.”
He pulled back as if surprised by her words. “But I only just got here.”
“Now.”
Jace stepped off the skywalk.The last person had just left the walk, and he was running late to meet Elle at the café before her finish time. It wasn’t an official thing, just something he’d started doing because he couldn’t get enough of her. He wanted to be with her every second he could. They’d slipped into this easy routine lately, and he fucking loved it.
The only problem was, he was having a damn hard time keeping his hands off her. Every night, they’d sit together at her place or his, watch some shitty movie, and all he wanted to do was touch her. Kiss her. And yeah, sometimes he’d slip an arm around her shoulders, but so far that was it. He didn’t want to cross that line again. He wantedherto initiate it. He wanted toknow that she wanted him,needed him, as much as he needed her.
He was walking toward the café when his phone rang. His lips stretched into a smile when he saw Elle’s name on the screen.
Looked like she was thinking about him too.
He pressed the phone to his ear. “I know I’m late. Almost there.”
A muffled noise sounded, then a voice. Aman’svoice.
“I was in the mountains and heard people talking about the café.”
Jace stopped. Who the fuck was that?
He glanced at his cell again to make sure it was Elle’s name he’d seen on the screen, before putting it back to his ear.
“Any chance you could make me something?”
Then he heard her voice. “I’m sorry. I’ve packed everything up.”
She sounded shaky…scared…and it made dread twist in his gut.
Fuck.
Jace dropped the phone to his side and started running. Pumping his arms and his legs, letting the wind slap him in the face. He’d always thought the café was close to the skywalk, but right now, it felt too damn far.
He forced his body to move faster, ignoring the branches slapping his arms and the loose dirt sinking under his feet. When he hit the deck of the café, his steps were loud, but he didn’t care. He pushed inside, and the air hissed from his teeth at what he saw.
Elle, looking so uneasy her face was white, inching back as the asshole started to round the counter.
The guy glanced up at him, eyes narrowing.
Jace was across the room in a second.
“What the fuck—”
The asshole’s words were cut off when Jace grabbed him by the shirt and threw him against the wall. “Who are you?”
“Get your fucking hands off me!”
“Like hell I will. This is the second time you’ve scared my woman, and I want to know what the fuck you’re doing hanging around her.Who are you?”
The slow smile that spread across the guy’s face had fury burning in Jace’s blood. “I’m no one. Just a guy visiting your small town, looking for a sandwich.”
Yeah right. “She told you she was closed, so what the fuck are you still doing here? Or better question, why are you stepping behind the counter?”
He lifted his hands. “I’m not here for trouble, bro. I’m just hungry.”
“Bullshit.” His muscles ached to swing. Throw a fist into the asshole’s face. Maybe Elle saw it, because her soft voice sounded.
