Shirtless.
His back was turned, facing the space he'd just left, as if talking to someone in the room beyond.Maisie.
Ithadto be.
Right?
The only question was, what exactly had they been doing?
In a flash, several possibilities came to mind – none of which deserved an audience. But time was running out, because Griff was already heading toward the front.
I dove toward Ryder and jostled him aside, cutting him off in mid-knock. "Hide!"
He didn't hide.
But hedidmove a single pace to his left, where he wouldn't be seen from inside the shop.
I whispered, "Don't move." I reclaimed my space at the window, peering into the shop like I had never left.
Sounding amused, Ryder asked, "How comeyou'renot hiding?"
I spoke quietly out of the corner of my mouth. "Because they already know somebody's here. Ifbothof us bolt, they'll think someone's trying to break in." Stubbornly, I kept staring into the shop, desperate to make it look like I was alone.
Ryder said, "Hey,Idon't mind taking the blame."
"It's not aboutblame," I hissed. "I don't want to embarrass her, that's all."
His tone grew teasing. "What about him? Don't you care ifhe'sembarrassed?"
Actually, this was kind of a good point, but I had no time to debate it. I whispered, "You should probably leave."
"Forget it."
"But why?"
Sounding incredulous, he said, "Because I'm not leaving you out here alone."
"But I'mnotalone. Griff's heading this way." And then, as if to prove it, I cupped my hands and hollered through the glass toward Griff. "What have you done with Maisie?"
Hearing how that sounded, I felt heat rush to my cheeks.Damn it.
It didn't help when Ryder laughed.
From the corner of my mouth, I hissed, "Be quiet! And how come you're not leaving?"
"Because I'm not gonna," he said. "But I'll make you a deal."
"What?"
"I'll keep out of sight, but if you end up alone, all bets are off."
At that point, I would've said almost anything to keep Maisie from seeing him. She and I weren't best friends, but I knew her well enough to realize she wouldn't want to flaunt her exploits if she could help it. "Fine." I glanced toward Ryder, only to see…nothing.
He was gone.
Or at least, itlookedlike he was gone. But in my heart I knew better. He was watching and listening fromsomewhere.
And me? I had plenty to see on my own.
