I grinned. “I wanted to see if we could meet up later. I go on shift at three. Thought I’d stop by the shop once I head out for a bit.”
Curiosity backlit Wolfe’s emerald-green eyes. “What about?”
Giving a brief shake of my head, I said, “Can’t talk about it here.”
I actually did have something I wanted to talk to Wolfe about. It concerned the woman I'd imagined walking naked across my bedroom toward me, in fact. Nevertheless, my interest in her wasn’t limited to getting her naked and beneath me. That was something entirely separate. What I wanted to talk to Wolfe about was more along the lines of Amy Smith’s history and her need to keep a safe distance between herself and everyone around her.
The truth was, I was concerned for her well-being. I'd become rather adept at reading people. More importantly, helping people. If I was right, Amy Smith was in desperate need of some help. Maybe a friend or two.
However, I wasn’t about to tell Wolfe that I was looking into Amy Smith’s history. Not here, anyway.
“You gonna be around?”
A short nod was Wolfe’s answer as he pulled out two twenties and tossed them on the table alongside the other one lying there. “See you around, Sheriff.”
Leaning back in my chair, I watched Wolfe saunter out of the building. I didn’t take my eyes off the man until he’d climbed into his big black Silverado, either.
One of these days…
Chapter Three
Amy
I had absolutely no idea why I came here in the first place. The second Lynx had made the job offer, I'd been suspicious.
That didn’t mean I wasn’t interested, just that I knew I needed to be cautious. Staying off the radar was important, and I'd be better off working at the diner and at Reagan’s, even if I wasn’t getting paid nearly enough. Being so visible wasn’t exactly the best way to hide out, but so far, it seemed to be working. People saw me, which made them believe they knew me, which, in turn, caused some of the curiosity to die down. Oh, sure, they were still asking questions, but people didn’t seem to mind when I brushed them off with a smile. At least I didn’t think they minded.
Unfortunately, the lure of more money was more than I could refuse. The house had drained every penny I had. The money I'd received when my parents died had been left alone in an account for the past nine years, drawing a little bit of interest. It had been a whole lot more than I'd ever anticipated; still, I hadn’t expected it to go far. Fortunately for me, the houses were relatively cheap out in this part of the country. After buying my used Nissan, a few pairs of clothes, and the house, I had no choice but to work in order to eat. Sadly, one job didn’t cut it, though, so I was wearing myself thin at the bar and at the diner.
So, I'd spent the majority of my morning thinking about it, tossing around the idea of being an office manager. How hard could that be?
No, I didn’t have any experience, but I hadn’t had any experience waitressing when I applied for those jobs, either. I was confident that it was something I could learn over time.
“You gonna come in?”
I spun on my boot heel at the deep, rumbling voice. I found Wolfe leaning one shoulder against the doorjamb, his grin wide, straight white teeth flashing. He’d obviously been watching me pace the parking lot.
“I’m thinking about it,” I admitted, a small smile tilting my lips.
I wasn’t quite sure what it was about Wolfe, but I found myself relatively comfortable in his presence. He definitely was the type of guy you didn’t want to mess with, but I didn’t feel threatened by him. Perhaps it was his laid-back nature, or the protective gleam in his pretty green eyes. Whatever it was, I found I didn’t fear him. Not physically anyway, even though by anyone’s standards, he was the kind of man you would walk away from, not toward, if you encountered him in a dark alley. His sheer size alone overwhelmed everyone and everything else around.
Word around town was the Caines were a bunch of badasses. From what I could tell, people didn’t mess with them unless they were drunk or stupid. I'd witnessed some of both working at Reagan’s.
Wolfe gave me a quick nod. “Well, when you’re ready…”
I watched as he disappeared back inside, his butt looking damn fine in those jeans.
Damn it.
I wasn’t supposed to look at his butt.
Taking a deep breath, I debated on whether I should hop back in my car and go home or suck it up and go inside. Since my car didn’t have any air conditioning and it was at least a hundred degrees in the shade, I figured the interior of the big warehouse was probably significantly cooler than the parking lot.
I hoped.
“How hard could it be?” I mumbled to myself as I made the trek to the door.
When I stepped inside, I was instantly assaulted by the sweet smell of sawdust. Not surprising, considering it was everywhere.
