The soft chime of the doorbell still lingered in my ears, a sound I'd heard a hundred times before but never quite like this. He hadn't said goodbye. He hadn't tried to make an impression with an overblown exit or a grand gesture. He'd just... left.
I folded the scarf back onto the counter, my hands moving on autopilot, but my mind was elsewhere. I had felt his gaze on me, intense, measured-and I hadn't been sure if I was meant to be intrigued or repelled by it. There had been something in his eyes, a challenge wrapped in mystery, and I wasn't the kind of woman who entertained things that came wrapped up in packages like that. At least, I never had been before.
But then he had said it, hadn't he? "I think you're going to be exactly what I'm looking for."
The words echoed in my head, like a note that wouldn't stop ringing, and for a second, I wondered if I had misinterpreted the whole exchange. If perhaps I had been too guarded, too aloof.
But no. I wasn't about to make myself into a conquest.
Still, the challenge in his voice had stirred something inside me-a curiosity, maybe. Or maybe it was just that he had expected me to react a certain way, and I hadn't. That was enough to make me wonder.
I walked over to the small desk in the back of the store, reaching for my notebook and pen. I couldn't get caught up in the thought of him again-not now, not when there were so many things to do, so many distractions waiting for me in the silence of the boutique.
But as I sat down, I felt it-the faintest pulse of something, a thread between us, still hanging in the air. I didn't know why he'd left without a word. I didn't know what he wanted, or if he had even figured it out himself. But I couldn't deny the pull I felt, the draw to whatever game he was playing.
The phone on the counter buzzed, breaking the quiet. I froze, staring at the screen as an unknown number flashed across it. For a moment, I hesitated, wondering if it was just a wrong number, if it was nothing. But something in me told me that wasn't the case.
I picked it up, my fingers trembling ever so slightly.
"*I'm sure you have questions. I can help with that.*"
I read the words once, then twice.
A strange feeling settled in my chest, a quiet thrill I hadn't expected. He had left, but he wasn't gone. And somehow, I knew this wasn't over.
The message had been from him. There was no doubt about it. His words were too familiar, too deliberate to be anyone else's.
I took a breath, forcing my hand to steady as I typed out a simple reply: "*What do you want?*"
And I waited.
Author's note:
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Little Flame
Romance*MATURE CONTENT* 18+ She's the most beautiful woman the mafia has ever laid eyes on-an ethereal presence with sharp features and a grace that silences every room she enters. Her eyes are captivating, full of mystery and a quiet strength that no one...
