Lisa braced the broom, fighting a smile.“Again, questionable judgment.”
Rezer chuckled then walked towards one of her shelves.“I’ll take what I can get.Even if I have to come and try not to outshine your lovely crystals while attempting to woo you.” He ran a finger over one of said crystals.
She stared.“Are you ...flirting with my merchandise?”
“If it gets your attention,” he said, “I’ll flirt with anything.”
Her cheeks warmed.“Do all dark elves have a death wish, or is it just you?”
“Mostly me.”He said, turning to fully face her.“But in my defense, your company is infinitely more interesting than the casino regulars I endured for decades.”
She paused, broom in hand.“You owned a casino, Rezer.That’s saying something.”
“True,” he conceded with a shrug.“But most gamblers only pretend to be dangerous.You?”His gaze dragged over her face.“You genuinely might stab me.”
“I wouldn’t stab you,” she said automatically.
He grinned.“But you’ve considered it.”
Lisa snorted and went back to sweeping.“Are you here to bother me or finally buy something?”
“First shop.It took me a while to decide on what I wanted.”He glanced around as if he was seriously considering his options.
“What did you decide on?”She couldn’t help her curiosity.Everything about him made her curious.It was getting damned annoying.
“One of everything,” he said so casually, as if he wasn’t offering to drop a couple thousand dollars or more.
“You’re crazy,” Lisa shook her head.
“Quite possibly,” he agreed.“But it’s your fault.You’ve driven me to this madness.”His voice dropped, the banter thinning.“I can’t stay away.I need to know you’re safe.I need to see you.”
That, yeah, that was dangerous.Because it wasn’t flirting now.It was concern, desire, and longing.All genuine, and much too tempting.
She swallowed hard.“I’m fine.”
“You keep saying that to people who know better,” he said quietly.“Syndra wouldn’t be in here all the time if you werefine.”
She froze, the broom bristles brushing the same spot on the floor.“She actually hasn’t been in a few days, so I’d say she knows that Iamactually fine.”She was.Wasn’t she?Lisa considered it.She could admit that she was lonely.Since Trik had taken over the Elfin realm and Lorsan was gone, things were calm.Her daughter and son were moving on with their new roles in their lives, now a part of the supernatural world, and it was definitely a change being an empty nester.But, still, shewasfine.
He took a step towards her, and she swore he growled.
“Rezer ...”
After a very long pause, he didn’t push.He just walked past her, plucked the broom from her hands, and began to continue what she’d paused.
“You work all day, every day,” he said.“Let me make myself occasionally useful.”
“Occasionally?”she echoed.
He didn’t look up from his task as he responded.“I refuse to set unreasonable expectations.”
She barked out a laugh.“If you wanted to impress me, you’d have walked in with a latte.”
He opened his mouth, closed it, then said, “You wound me.”
“You annoy me.”
Silence settled, comfortable for the first time all day.
