“I’m okay,” I say, brushing him off me. “I just need to brush my teeth and… find pants. I’ll be quick.”
Great, not only did Nancy watch me vomit, Tucker has, too. Multiple times. The guy I like having sex with will probably never want to screw me ever again.
I brush my teeth, thankful the toothpaste doesn’t make me sick again. It almost makes me feel human again.
This doesn’t seem real, and I fight the urge to break down into tears. I can’t believe this happened. But what do I really expect? This is only temporary, right?
Maybe Tucker watching me throw up everything I’ve eaten for the past couple of days will solve my problem. No more abandonment because he’s sickened by the thought of me.
Yeah. Problem totally solved.
Chapter Thirteen
Phoebe
Tucker parks in the back, and I hurry into the store to find a man standing at the counter with his arms crossed. And he looks pissed. Beyond pissed, actually.
And oddly familiar.
This would have to happen when I’m hungover. My first ever hangover.
Sarah cries as she huddles by my desk in the back. “I’m sorry, Phoebe. I can’t find the order anywhere, but he says he called it in. And he didn’t want me to make them. He just wanted to scream at me.”
Crouching in front of her, I try to look reassuring. “It’s not your fault. Did he say what he thought he’d ordered?”
Her lip quivers and she shakes her head. “He just started screaming at me. No one’s ever done that before. Not like this. I thought he might reach across the counter and hit me.”
My eyebrows lift. “Okay, well, I’ll go—”
“Motherfucker,” Tucker growls, bumping me as he rushes into the lobby.
The jostling makes vomit rise in my throat, and I force it down as Sarah helps steady me. But now I’m worried because Tucker is not a people person. Something Scotty has said multiple times.
I have to stop him before he does something to one of my customers, but as I step out front, I know I’m too late. We rush into the lobby to find Tucker pushing the customer against the wall, his forearm pressed against the man’s throat.
But the man isn’t scared. He’s smiling.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing here?” Tucker growls.
There’s a venom to his tone that has me grabbing for Sarah’s arm. She holds me right back as we watch the terrifying scene before us.
“Nice to see you, too, big brother,” the man chokes out.
Brother? That explains why he looks familiar. He resembles Tucker.
“You know him?” I ask, stupidly.
Yep, hangovers and Phoebe do not mix.
“He doesn’t want cupcakes.”
Pushing Tucker off him, the man smiles and locks eyes with me. “He’s right. Though, I have heard they’re the best in the state.”
“Then what are you doing here?” I ask. “Why did you threaten my employee?”
His eyes move to Tucker. “Because I needed to get his attention. Nothing else was working.”
Nothing else was working? What does that mean?
