Page 60 of Leah

Work was slow, and I was in a fog.

Lunch time should have relieved me, but I wound up in the backroom, trudging around in circles. I felt directionless, my thoughts picking apart yesterday morning and the night before that. I couldn’t switch off, so I meandered around, searching for tasks to complete.

I was being a busy body on purpose. I needed to be distracted, and suddenly, I wished I was working at the bar again. That hustle and bustle had been good when I needed it.

I could faintly hear Gary’s voice in the background, and I knew he was talking to a customer. We’d barely spoken today, which was good. I felt snarky, my patience gone, my mood dry.

I stood still, waiting for him to call me out because he was always a lazy dick when he was with a customer. He didn’t know this place like I did—I stocked the shelves, and if this person was looking for something, Gary would be handing me to them in, oh, 3, 2, 1—

“Leah!”

I rolled my eyes, feeling my lips quirk up.

“LEAAHHH!”

I made him sweat and checked the time on my phone before tucking it back into my pocket. Then I hurried out of the backroom, ready for another distraction. My arms were crossed, my Joker smile was twitching at my lips as I saw him standing at the counter, his back turned to me, facing—

I stopped mid-step and stared bug-eyed at Carter.

What?

He looked over Gary’s shoulder, his gaze meeting mine, and he mischievously smiled at me. Gary sensed my presence and turned around, his sweaty face looking flushed for once.

“There you are,” he said gruffly. “Grab your things and get out. You have the rest of the day off.”

I blinked at him in surprise. “What?”

“Get out,” he repeated.

“I can’t—”

“You’ll be paid just the same. Treat it like a holiday but leave it out of the books.”

Without another word, Gary walked past me for smoke number thirty-six. Leaving me alone with Carter, who looked like he was proud of himself with that cheeky smile of his.

“Surprised?” he said.

“What are you doing here?” I asked him quietly.

“Seeing you.”

I took a moment to respond, my thoughts criss-crossing in a mad rush. “I…I thought you had to be gone yesterday.”

Carter’s stare didn’t leave mine as he spoke softly, “I extended our leave.”

My lips parted. “You…could do that?”

He shrugged. “I just did.”

Silence filled the space between us as I took him in. Wearing another pair of jeans and a top that accentuated his sexy figure—

And I looked like a dump truck on fire.

“You weren’t supposed to leave the house,” I said just then, running a conscious hand over my hair, smoothening it out because, yeah, I was unprepared for this.

“It’s not an issue if they don’t know about it,” he replied, chuckling at my bewildered face. “By the time everyone realizes, it’ll be too late. It’s important we’re one step ahead of them. Grab your things and we’ll make our getaway.”

“But…” I glanced over my shoulder in case Gary was still kicking around. “How did you manage this?”

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