but Erin cares about her.”
“Which means you want her taken care of,” I said.
He nodded.
I already held Sasha in high esteem, but it rose further. That he was looking after Adora helped, but seeing a reminder of the humanity I so often forgot was welcome too.
“I will.”
“And can you be discrete?”
“Of course,” I said, not entirely sure that was true. “But for any particular reason?”
“I doubt she would take kindly to the assistance,” he said.
“Probably not,” I responded.
If he was curious why I thought so, he didn’t ask, and I couldn’t help but think back to how much she resisted taking the ride from me.
How fierce she’d looked as she pointed her gun at me.
When I’d first seen her, I’d pegged her as soft, gentle, and while I suspected she was those things, there was steel underneath.
Stubbornness too.
“You need anything else?” I asked.
“No.”
“Then get the hell out of here,” I said, giving him a smile.
“Take care, Ghost. And try to keep Shay and Riker from killing each other.”
“A tall order,” I said.
“That it is,” he responded, laughing as he left.
I lingered once he was gone, intending to say away.
Told myself I would do so for her sake and my own.
But Sasha had asked me to look after her, and I was a man of my word.
And it was almost time for lunch.
My feet were headed to her before my mind could put up a fight.
Six
Mikhail
“You have a great day,” Adora said, smiling brightly at the couple standing in front of the register.
“You too,” the woman responded before turning back to her companion.
I stood to the side of bakery trying to be unobtrusive but knew she had seen me.
Something that was confirmed when she smiled even brighter, something that shouldn’t have been possible.
Something that definitely shouldn’t have made my heart kick.
She turned to face me, the light, the beauty radiating from her almost painful.
“Hi,” she said, her voice bubbly.
So much so that I didn’t respond immediately, couldn’t, my reaction to it, to her, too strong.
“Is something wrong?” she asked, her smile dropping ever so slightly, the change enough to shake me out of my lust-fueled stupor.
“No,” I said, realizing that she was probably concerned about Erin.
“Good. So, what brings you by?” she asked, her smile big again.
“I was hungry.”
I smiled and then quickly covered the expression, though I couldn’t swallow back the disgust with myself.
I was hungry?
Pathetic, even for me.
True, I hadn’t done this, talked to someone, given a shit about what they thought about me, let alone wanted to impress them in as long as I could remember. But fuck, I was out of practice.
“Well you’re in the right place! Is there something particular you want?”
You.
But I couldn’t say that, so instead I took one step, another, until I stood in front of the register. I shrugged.
“You’re not picky?” she asked.
“No,” I responded.
“In that case, just place yourself in my capable hands. I will prepare the lunch of your dreams,” she said.
Her eyes sparkled, her smile brighter now, and I almost groaned.
And it wasn’t intentional. I knew that she couldn’t have any idea of the effect she was having on me, but I was reminded that coming here had been a stupid fucking idea.
I nodded and reached for my wallet, hoping she wouldn’t notice the hard-on that was growing more prominent by second.
She waved her hand.
“Your money is no good here.”
“I—”
She cut me off with a shake of her head and an even brighter smile.
“Friends eat for free. It’s an unbreakable rule. Find a seat,” she said, nodding out toward the tables in the dining area.
I nodded and moved, too busy turning her words over in my head to argue with her.
She considered me a friend?
No doubt because of my relationship with Erin through Sasha, but still, the words nearly knocked the breath out of my lungs.
To imagine it…Adora being my friend.
I wanted more, so much more than I even could admit to myself, but the gift of her friendship was a treasure that seemed impossible.
“I’ll be with you in a few. You mind if I eat with you? It should be another half an hour or so before the lunch rush, and I want to grab a bite while I can,” she called as she moved around the restaurant.
“No, I wouldn’t mind,” I said, my voice low.
If she noticed something was off, she didn’t show it, and after I had settled at a table at the far end of the medium-sized place, one that allowed me to see the