The guy was overdue for a shakeup.And me?I was good at making things happen.
Griff had been restless for months, forgetting how lucky he was to have crawled out of the gutter.Alright, maybe not a gutter. His early life wasn'tsobad. Not compared to mine.
Still, the guy had needed a reminder that after you make it to the top, there was no crime in enjoying it. And even if itwerea crime, call me guilty, because I enjoyed my success every day.
But Griff?From the look on his face now, you'd think someone hadalreadyspit in his coffee and licked his pastries, too.
The guy seriously needed to relax.
He was still eyeing that swinging door like he expected the barista to come out drooling into a cup with his name on it – which would've been hilarious considering we'd given no names.
With a laugh, I pointed to the coffee dispenser, just a few feet away. Next to it sat a stack of to-go cups, upside-down and presumably spit-free.
"She can't," I said. "We'd see her."
From the look on Griff's face, he wasn't so sure. If I knew my friend – and I was pretty sure I did – he was already imagining his pastries getting defiled in the back.
But me – I didn't think so.
She'd looked more worried than angry – and the muffin scene surely hadn't helped.Yeah, I'd noticed. But I'd seen no reason to point it out to Griff, who was too hungover to catch half of it.
But the way it looked, he was noticing plenty now. With bloodshot eyes, he glanced around the crowded coffee shop, as if realizing for the first time that the line was way too long for one barista to handle.
ButI'dnoticed.
I'd noticed a lot of things, none of which I'd be sharing with Griff – not in his current state.
When he finished checking out the shop, he gave me a puzzled look. "Then why'd she disappear?"
It was a good question. And like I said, I had a few answers, just none I felt like sharing.
And besides, the real question was, would she be coming back?
6
To Bluff or Bolt
Tessa
As I turned and fled the front counter, my thoughts churned like curdled cream.
I had options. Okay, nogoodoptions. But it's not like I was cornered.Not yet.
All I needed was thirty seconds to catch my breath, get a grip, and decide whether to bluff it out with Ryder Vaughn or bolt out the rear exit and catch the next ferry off the island.
I pushed through the swinging door so hard that it slammed into the wall with a bang.
Somewhere to my right, an all-too-familiar voice groaned, "Hey, not so loud!" The voice was male, younger than mine, and groggy, like I'd just interrupted a nap.
It was my boss.
Technically, his name was Ted – Ted Plimpton, to be exact. Apparently, he was named after his grandfather, but everyone called him Skip, probably because that's exactly what he liked to do with work.
I whirled toward his voice, and sure enough, spotted him relaxing near the supply shelves. He was sprawled out in his recliner – yes, an actual recliner that he'd lugged in yesterday.
Without bothering to get up, he gave me a look that suggestedIwas the one goofing off.
I gave him a look right back. "Were yousleeping?"
