“Shut the fuck up, Stephanie.”

Okay, maybe I should speak to him.

I couldn’t help but chuckle when he flipped Stephanie off before stomping off and made a mental note to get to know the guy better.

“You didn’t answer my question.” Stephanie narrowed her eyes and eyed me expectantly. “What are your intentions with Rocky?”

I let my head fall back and groaned. “I’m not here to ruin her life if that’s what you’re getting at. I’m sure she’s told you that we haven’t even really spoken since I arrived.”

Something I really regret now that Ethan is in the picture.

“Oh, I know,” she replied smugly. “But my question is why you are avoiding her. I mean, it’s pretty obvious why you’re here to begin with.”

“My mother?” I snapped sharply.

At least she had the decency to cringe. “Oh yeah, I’m sorry about that. I hope she gets better.”

“I bet,” I replied glumly.

She fidgeted for a moment, but her awkwardness didn’t stay. Placing both hands on her hips, she clucked, “But I’m not talking about your infamous return to Bethel Falls.”

“Then what are you talking about?”

She threw her hands up in exasperation. “The fact that you’re working at Rossi’s Novelties, of all places. What else would I be talking about?”

Suddenly feeling cornered, I tried to change the subject. “So, what have you been up to all these years? Your brains get you into a good job?”

“Nope, you’re not getting out of this one. We’re going to stay here and talk about the fact that you’re back to sweep Rocky off her feet, but you’re too chicken to act upon it. That’s why you’re hiding out in here all day and that’s why you’re too scared to talk to her.”

The blood drained from my face. Was I really that obvious? “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Mmhmm,” she muttered. “Keep telling yourself that, sweetie.”

Rolling my eyes, I decided to switch gears. “Guess some people never outgrow their annoying quirks.”

Slowly, Steph’s eyes narrowed. “You better be talking about yourself, boy. Some of us—and I mean me—have grown into fully functioning adults.”

“Then why are you here acting like Rocky’s bodyguard all over again or at the very least, her meddlesome mother? If you haven’t noticed, she’s a fully functioning adult as well. Do you think she’d like the fact that you’re here interrogating me again?”

Stephanie’s eye twitched. “I just care about her, that’s all.”

“And I don’t?”

“Judging by your aloofness, I can say no, you don’t.” Her lips tightened and her jaw clenched. “Did you not stop to think that she could have been hurt when you suddenly stopped answering her calls? Stopped texting her? Didn’t visit? Dude, she lov—err…she cared…um…well, you get the point. And do you know who was there to pick up all the pieces?”

“Let me guess…”

“Me! And whatever you’re planning to do, stop. I don’t want to clean up your mess again…unless of course you’re here for some good…you know what I’m saying?”

Sighing, I rubbed at my eyebrows in thought. There was no way I’d tell Stephanie what was going on in my mind. For one, I wasn’t comfortable enough to divulge the info. Secondly, if I was going to confess my transgressions to anyone, it would be to Rocky. Glancing up with hesitation, I replied quietly, “Let’s just say I was worried she was mad at me so I was feeling things out a bit. Like you said, I know I hurt her. Can’t expect to jump back into a friendship head first, right?”

It wasn’t a total lie; it just wasn’t the whole truth either.

“Right.” She pursed her lips and shrugged. “Why did I even think you’d be honest with me? You never were.”

“That’s not true,” I argued.

“Just forget about it.” To my surprise, her facial features relaxed. “Either way, it’s great to see you again. I hate to admit it, but I missed you.”

I couldn’t help but soften. “I missed you too.”

Steph glanced down at her digital watch and grimaced. “Looks like I have to run. Work’s a calling.”

“Here, let me walk you out,” I offered. “It’s the least I could do.”

“After I ‘interrogated’ you?” she teased.

Laughing, I wiped my dingy hands against my work apron and motioned toward the door. “For visiting me. If I were being honest—”

“You never are,” she interjected mischievously.

Ignoring her, I pressed on. “I would have kept to myself for a bit. It was nice you took the time to seek me out.”

When we reached the double doors leading to the main sales floor, she arched an eyebrow. “I’m actually surprised they hired you without a background check. How do any of us know whether or not you’ve turned into a serial killer and you were really in hiding all this time?”

“Oh no! You found me out! Now it’s time to kill!” I exclaimed with mock anger. Relaxing my face, I added, “That’s an interesting story line to add to your weird fanfiction anthologies. Do you still write gnome erotica?”

Stephanie rolled her eyes. “It was elf romance, and no, I don’t. I’ve graduated to werewolf/human trysts.”

“Nice. I always wondered what wolf tits looked like.”

We pushed through the huge doors and burst into laughter.

“You are so full of it!” she exclaimed.

“You were always a smartass!”

“Having a good time?” Rocky’s voice interrupted. Her tone was almost sharp enough to cut a diamond.

Stephanie’s face folded guilty. “Oh you know. Just catching up.”

“I bet.”

Well, I wasn’t about to stick around at the risk of pissing Rocky off even more. Lord knows how much she probably already hated me. I cleared my throat and eyed the stockroom, looking to make an escape. “I guess I’ll be heading back to work. Nice seeing you again, Steph.”

“Yeah, nice seeing you.”

I walked away, ignoring the fact that I could hear both girls murmuring behind my back. It was obvious they were chatting about me, but no way in hell I wanted to hear those catty remarks. I pushed my way back into the Dungeon and caught Maurice staring at me curiously.

“What?”

“Nothing.” He shrugged. “Just wanted to give you some advice about Rocky.” Noticing the suspicious look on my face, he added, “You and Steph talk kind of loud. Bro code, dude. I won’t tell my cousin anything.”

Relenting, I slumped forward and rubbed my temples. “Okay, fine. Whatcha got?”

“If you want to get back on her good side, you just need an opportunity to remind her that you’re company worth keeping.” He picked up a huge box and heaved it onto his shoulder, eyeing me warily. “From what I’ve heard, you really haven’t done much to prove yourself to her.”

“Prove myself…in what way?”

“Just don’t be a jerk. Don’t hurt her again.” Without warning, he chucked the box across the room as if it weighed nothing. There really wasn’t a reason for him to do so, so I assumed it was a brotherly warning for me to watch my back. Throwing me a side glance, he repeated, “You just need one opportunity.”

***

Well, that opportunity presented itself in the form of three sick employees and a longer than usual line out front. I mean, you could almost hear the desperation in Rocky’s tone as she practically begged for help over the store intercom system. Though I knew I had more than enough experience from my years working at Tyler’s Tavern to help her out, I decided to keep my mouth shut. I didn’t want to risk pissing Mr. Rossi off and ruining what little progress I’d made so far. So, imagine my surprise when he approached me.

“Um, Jesse?” Mr. Rossi shifted uncomfortably, as if the very act of asking me a favor hurt him deeply.

“Yes, sir?” I asked cautiously.

“Has Rocky taught you how to handle the registers, yet?”

When would she have had the time, given that I’m always back here?

I shook my head. “No, sir.”

“Rats—”

“But I’ve handled it before in my old job at Charleston,” I explained quickly.

Mr. Rossi tried hard to hide his surprise, but he failed miserably. His upper lip twitched as he fought back a smile. “Oh? So you can handle the old computer we have in front?”