As soon as the female employee interrupted our conversation, Sierra pulled out of the moment, lifting her head and I could swear there was recognition in her eyes.
I’d need to play this carefully, which wasn’t my style, but the prize was well worth the wait.
Tonight would change everything.
My world.
My needs.
My desires.
And her destiny.
CHAPTER6
Sierra
The few minutes Brittany had needed turned into over an hour of fighting with the cash register system, the internet outage causing me to handle every transaction the old-fashioned way. Thank God everyone had been patient while I’d wanted to pull my hair out. I’d never had a single issue, not one, and of course it would occur on the single biggest night of my illustrious and often infuriating career.
When the last customer had been checked out, I floated into the back, leaning against the wall, wiping beads of perspiration from my face with my arm. At least my besties had taken pity on me, cleaning up the huge mess Brittany and I had created. I’d pushed them out the door only twenty minutes before, but it hadn’t been before Clarice had gone looking for the sexy man to explain my departure.
He’d left, likely in disgust.
Oh, well, it wasn’t meant to be.
“You look pooped, boss,” Brittany said from the doorway.
I blew hair out of my eyes and sighed. My instinct told me I’d gone from looking harried to horrible. Meanwhile, she looked fresh as a daisy. Youth. It was wasted on the young. “You’re right. I am ready to collapse.”
“You’ll be happy with me. I totaled all the receipts so far. Everything adds up to the penny.”
Bless her soul. “You are amazing. Thank you and I couldn’t have done tonight without you.”
She shrugged, unused to getting a compliment from me. That had to change. “At least minoring in accounting has paid off.”
Laughing, I pushed myself away from the wall. “We may need to alter your job description in the future. I think you’re ready for additional responsibilities.”
“Really?” I thought the girl was going to jump out of her skin.
“Absolutely. Now, get out of here. There’s very little left to do and it can wait until the morning.” I’d grab the cash, deposit it at the bank, and handle everything else tomorrow. Maybe it was good the mystery man had already left. I wasn’t in the mood for pretending I liked romance any longer.
“You’re da bomb!” she said before untying her apron.
Did kids really say that any longer? I glanced at the time. Ten minutes to closing. Maybe I’d lock the doors a teensy bit early. I deserved it. She wasted no time gathering her things, scampering out before I had a chance to change my mind.
I grabbed my keys, heading toward the patio to lock the back door. As I turned around, I remained in shock at how much inventory had left the building. Maybe I’d snag a bottle of champagne before going home. I hadn’t felt this happy in a long time. I ran my fingers over several tables as I headed for my office, keeping a smile on my face for longer than I usually did.
Then I heard a noise.
Someone remained inside the store.
There was no reason for me to be nervous. The shop was still technically open after all. Unfortunately, my limited conversation with the mystery man had been far too similar to the one I’d had with the dark stranger. I had to remind myself that the voices were different, one with a Spanish accent, the other without, but the sixth sense I’d relied on continued to nag me.
I moved toward the sound, stopping short of one of the bookshelves. “I’m sorry. It’s almost closing time.” After chastising my ridiculous behavior, I rounded the corner.
Alessandro stood with a book in his hand, absorbed in whatever he was reading. If he sensed my presence at first, I couldn’t tell.
“Alessandro.” There was no reason for me to whisper, but I did.