Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 80892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
I took a deep breath, praying for a reprieve.
I got it.
The bell over the front door sounded, announcing a new customer. I perked right up, nearly knocking my chair over in my rush to get up and out of the office. Finally, a legitimate excuse to do something on my own, somewhere besides that tiny office.
Somewhere away from Brady.
“Should I come with you and help?”
I froze at his question.
Shit.
“Um, no, that’s okay.” I smiled and hoped I looked as nonchalant as I’d managed to sound.
No matter how devastated I felt inside, I’d be damned if I let Brady see me as anything but professional.
“I’ll probably only be a minute. Most people either know exactly what they’re looking for, or they want to browse for a while before figuring things out.”
Brady didn’t seem to mind the gentle rebuff, thank goodness. “Okay, I’ll just keep looking over these reports, then.”
“Perfect. I’ll be right back.”
I waited until I was out of the office to exhale. I didn’t want to be short with Brady or rude to him. Not only was the man my new boss, but he did genuinely seem like a nice guy. A hot, nice guy. Just the kind of guy I would have been really interested in getting to know better if it had been under different circumstances.
But this hot, nice, sexy guy had just turned my whole world upside down, and I just needed to get away—at least for a few minutes.
Then I saw who had come through the door, and instantly wished I’d sent Brady out instead.
“Joanne, honey, how’s your morning going?”
I stifled a sigh and tried to muster a smile as I walked around the front counter to greet my mother.
Any other time, I’d have been more than happy to see her. While she did tend toward being a bit of a busybody, I knew she always meant well, and her visits usually included her bringing something for lunch or some candy—especially once she’d discovered Henry’s insatiable sweet tooth.
But now? Today?
Her timing was a little too uncanny.
If I had had any idea the night before about what Brady had in store for the shop, I would have been a lot less cheerful when I told my mother all about my new boss. About how mysterious and intriguing and damned good-looking he was. I should have known it would fire up her meddling instincts. Now, I was just going to have to suffer through whatever awkward moment she had planned.
I could only hope it would be over quickly… and painlessly.
“Hi, Mom. Everything is going great,” I said, hoping she wouldn’t notice the lie. Or question it. “We’re pretty busy, though, so maybe you could come back—”
My mother had already moved past me, though, her eyes sparkling with delight. “Oh, you must be Brady. Jo told me so much about you.”
I felt my stomach sink as I turned to look, and to my horror, my mom was already around the counter and pulling Brady in for a quick embrace. The fact that he towered over her by at least a foot and looked uncomfortable as hell hadn’t even slowed her down.
“Yes, ma’am. I’m Brady Davis,” he answered her, turning that familiar shade of pink that I had found so irresistible earlier that morning.
Well, it was still pretty irresistible, if I was being honest.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs.—”
“Ms. Massey,” My mom answered him, grinning up at Brady with an all-too-familiar glint in her eye. “But you can call me Tammy. I’m Jo’s mother, but you probably already figured that out. Oh, I’m so sorry about your father, dear. Henry was a wonderful man. Truly wonderful.”
Brady flinched slightly at the words, but I quelled my curiosity about that.
Instead, I tried unsuccessfully to steer my mother back around to the customer side of the counter—or better still, back toward the door. She wasn’t going to be deterred that easily, though—especially after the way I’d gushed about Brady to her the night before—and she maneuvered back around me with a practiced ease that would’ve been impressive if it hadn’t been happening to me.
“Thank you for the kind words,” Brady mumbled, half-turning back toward the office before she caught his arm.
“It’s the truth,” Tammy said warmly. “Everyone in town shares your loss and is thinking of you right now. I know that it’s probably been a whirlwind of a time for you.”
He nodded. “Yes, ma’am—um, Tammy. It’s definitely been that. Joanne has been a big help, though.”
I felt a pang of sympathy as Brady’s eyes met mine briefly. I had been so shocked and blindsided by his news that it had been easy to forget that he was doing the best he could to deal with his own grief. He really had sounded sincere about appreciating my help, though.
It felt nice.
Until I remembered what I’d been helping Brady to do: sell off everything I loved to the highest bidder. Then I started to feel a little sick again.