Unlike the empty container of ice cream, he was now in
front of her.
And she hid. She hid behind the post right next to the counter, praying that her coffee would come up soon and she could beat a hasty retreat, because she couldn't even fathom the idea of having to face him, speak to him, any-thing. He had seen her naked. More than that, he had pinned her against the wall and licked her... Down there.
And that had seemed perfectly reasonable at the time.
So many things seemed perfectly reasonable when you were turned on. At least, she had discovered that. Because she had done a whole lot of things with him that had seemed absolutely and completely fine. In the moment. Aroused beneath his touch spreading her legs and begging for more seemed as unremarkable as ordering a coffee.
But when fully clothed and not ready to beg for his touch, it seemed... A little extra.
And he'd seen that. He couldn't unsee it. She was sure that he couldn't, because she couldn't unsee him. She mentally undressed him. With every peek that she sneaked past the pillar, she saw his skin. Not the black T-shirt he was wearing. Not the black jeans. She cast a beseeching glance behind the counter, which did no good. She could hear him ordering. And she looked around again to see those masculine hands set on the countertop as he leaned in. There was a different girl at the register, with swinging butterfly earrings that looked young and silly, and no ring on her finger.
She looked up at him and grinned.
Mallory felt churned up inside.
He chuckled, and she felt it down between her thighs.
Was he flirting with Madame Butterfly Earrings?
She darted back behind the pole again. It didn't mat-ter. He could flirt with whoever he wanted. He wasn't her boyfriend— he was her fantasy. Her dirty secret. Yes. And dirty secrets could only be dirty if they were secret. And they can only be secret if they were secret. And she needed to get out of here right now.
She was dying. Of horror.
Finally, after what seemed an eternity, her drink passed across the counter just as he finished making his order. He started to come toward her, and she ducked around the other side of the post, holding her coffee. Then around to the other side. Her heart was thundering fast, and she could swear that she felt him. His presence. And she did a side step toward the front door, letting it swing shut behind her, her heart lodged firmly in her throat. She started down the sidewalk, trying to move as quickly as her legs could carry her, when she nearly ran into her sister-in-law.
"Mallory?"
"Oh," Mallory said.
"Mallory, what are you doing here?"
Mallory scrunched her nose and tried to smile, but she had a feeling she'd only just achieved a grimace. "Surprise?" Iris shook her head. "It's crazy, but Rose told me that she thought she saw you the other night in the Gold Valley Sa-loon, and I told her that was impossible because you were in California."
"I was," Mallory said quickly. "In California. I'm here.
Today." She was a liar. But hey, she was fiercely guarding her fantasy. Her fantasy that was currently right on her heels.
And what small-town hell was this?
"I just... I was coming to talk to you and Griffin today.
I... Have made some changes. And I... Need to talk to you about them." She finished extremely lamely.
"Oh," she said.