Page 13 of Vicious Little Darling

“It’s a valid fear,” Josh shrugs. “If I had a daughter—or even a son, I would be worried, too. My parents always just threw money at me as a way of showing they care.”

I eye him, guilt tugging at me at his mention of them.

“I’m sorry. I know I shouldn’t complain.” I say.

Josh has never had a great relationship with his parents, and he’s not wrong. They don’t ever show up for him, they just send him a check. At least minedo tryto be there for me, in all the normal ways, even though they live on the other side ofthe country. They justdon’thave the money to do it as well or completely as they’d like.

Josh and I finish our walk at the bookstore, and we stop just outside. The sun beats down on my head, warming my scalp even with the brisk wind. We linger there, like always, though for some reason, I feel uneasy today.

“I’m worried about you,” Josh lowers his voice, extending a hand and brushing my arm. “Are you feeling okay? Maybe you should ask Rich for the rest of the day off.”

I shake my head, and my stomach lurches at the thought of going back to my apartment so early. “I’m fine, really. I’m just a little stressed and tired. That’s all. Like I said, it’s time for me to take you up on your offer to work at the bar.”

Josh narrows his eyes at me but then nods. “Okay… Okay. I won’t press any further. Just promise me that you’ll tell me if you’re in any sort of predicament. You know I have room at my place.”

“Of course.” I force a smile, and then jut my thumb toward the door of the bookstore. “But I really need to get back to work.”

“Right.” Josh runs his hands over his face. “Enjoy working with Rich. You know he has a crush on you, right?”

My brows skyrocket. “That makes no sense, considering he’s trying to set me up on a blind date. Seems counterintuitive.”

Josh frowns. “I don’t know. Maybe it is. I just don’t see how the whole world isn’t in love with you.” He lets out a chuckle, and then wraps me in a side hug. “Enjoy the rest of your day, Em. Let me know if you need anything.”

“You got it.” I pat his chest, breathing in the scent of his expensive cologne before stepping away and grabbing the door. “I’ll talk to you later.”

I pull open the door, and step inside the bookstore, breathing out a sigh of relief as soon as I’m inside once again. “I’m back,” I call out as I chuck my purse behind the counter.

“Oh hey,” Rich says, appearing from one of the aisles with a box of books in his hands. “You weren’t gone as long as usual.”

“Really?” I glance down at my watch, surprised to see he’s right. “I guess they were just faster with our food today.” I take a deep breath as he steps up to the counter, and sets the box down.

“Well, I guess it’s as good a time as any to get these put out,” Rich says, not commenting any further on my lunch. He pulls out stacks of new releases. “I swear, there’s a new release every single day, it seems.” He chuckles at his own thoughts, as he continues to empty the box.

I join him, picking through the titles. “Some of these look really good.”

“Sure,” he smiles. “Lots of romance. I know that’s your thing.” Rich eyes me with a grin, and I roll my eyes in response.

“I saw you with a few of them, too, you know.”

“I have to keep up with what the clients are buying.” He shrugs, and then we both burst out laughing. I grab up a few of them and head to the shelves at the front, the ones that are visible from the street. With my back to the window, I start adjusting the titles on the white shelving that’s adorned with fake ivy.

I glance down at the copies in my hands, opting for one of the romance novels first. I set the romcom on the top shelf next to a cover with a similar vibe. As I do, a strange feeling sweeps through my body, and I start breathing faster. My hands begin shaking slightly. Great, here we go again—I swear, if I turn around and see someone watching me, I’m officially giving myself the ‘Queen of Paranoia’ crown.

What is wrong with me?I shake my head, trying to ignore it all as I grow borderline annoyed with myself. However, the moment doesn’t last.

“Fucking creep!” Rich shouts and slams down his books on the counter. He takes off running toward the front doors. A surgeof adrenaline hits and I spin around. My gaze lands on a black-haired man in a hideous skeleton mask... just as he ducks and disappears into the crowd on the street.

“What the hell is wrong with people?” Rich grunts as he steps back inside and closes the door. He looks over at me. “That guy had a lot of nerve.”

I nod, trying to keep my lunch down. “Yeah, he did.” I can’t find the words to say anything else. My head spins as I retreat from the window.Maybe it’s just a coincidence.But something inside me tells me how wrong that is, and how correct Rich is.The guy does have alotof nerve…

And it’s fucking terrifying.

Chapter Seven

JAXTON

The look on Ember’s face has my dick rock solid. She was so fucking scared of me. I love that, and I already know I’m going to come so hard when I finally have her body beneath mine. I rub my hands together as I near her apartment, hanging in the shadows as I wait. I got the code for the door the other night. Now, I just have to make sure that jumpy, nosy old lady isn’t going to fuck it up for me.

---