“Oh, geez.” Grandpa rolled his eyes until they landed on me. “His car is in the alley. I’ve already heard from the grocery store people that it was there all night. Don’t bother denying it. Everyone in town already knows.”
The blood started rushing through my ears as I tried to wrap my brain around what he was saying. “But ... .” On wooden legs, I moved to the back door and looked out. Sure enough, Hunter’s cruiser was parked exactly where he’d left it. I’d completely forgotten about it.
“The Sysco deliveryman is coming in twenty minutes,” Grandpa noted. “He needs to park there. If Hunter is planning on sneaking out via the back steps, you might ask him to get a move on.”
My mouth was unnaturally dry. “I ... nothing happened.” I blurted it out before thinking. “He was just helping me with something.”
“I know exactly what he was helping you with.” Grandpa didn’t boast even a hint of a smile. “Did he at least break up with his girlfriend?”
“Nothing happened,” I repeated, panic starting to creep in. “You can’t tell anyone about this.”
“No? I thought nothing happened. If it’s so innocent, why are you so worked up?”
“Because it’s not fair to Hunter.” I didn’t care about my reputation. His was a different story. “If people in this town start talking ... .” I trailed off, horrified at the prospect.
“Don’t worry about it, Stormy,” Hunter announced, appearing in the opening that led to the stairs. He was focused on Grandpa, not me. “People in this town have been talking about me my entire life. After what went down with my father, this is minor.”
Grandpa pursed his lips. “The girlfriend is no more, right? That will make this easier.”
Hunter hesitated. “Nothing happened last night. Stormy called because someone was trying to get into her apartment. Don’t give her a hard time about it.”
“That’s not what I asked.” Grandpa shifted his eyes to me. “What does he mean? Why would someone try to get into your apartment?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. It happened late and I panicked. That’s why I called Hunter.”
“But ... that makes no sense.”
“It does if you consider the fact that a body was found in the alley right under her apartment a few days ago,” Hunter challenged. “Speaking of that, you and I are going to have a talk. You can keep hiding all you want, but it’s going to happen.”
Grandpa straightened. “I don’t hide.”
“Whatever.” Hunter flicked his eyes to me. “I’m going to get the things I need to upgrade your security system from the hardware store. I need the keys so I can get in and out without interrupting your shift.”
I nodded and reached into my apron, handing over the keys without a word.
“How are you going to upgrade the security up there?” Grandpa challenged. “There are only two ways to get in.”
“And I’m upgrading both of them.” Hunter was firm. “I might change the back locks on this restaurant, too, so be prepared for that.”
Grandpa opened his mouth, I’m sure to argue, but then snapped it shut. “Make sure she’s safe,” he said finally.
“That’s the plan. As for the other thing ... don’t worry about it. I’ll handle Monica.”
“She’s an unpleasant girl, son, but I don’t want my granddaughter earning a reputation that isn’t warranted. It’s not fair.”
“I don’t care about my reputation,” I argued.
“Shush, you.” Grandpa wagged a finger. “This is a small town. You need to handle your business.”
“I’m going to handle my business,” Hunter reassured him. “You need to make yourself available for questions later. I’m going to be ticked if I have to hunt you down this afternoon.”
“I haven’t been hiding,” Grandpa protested.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Hunter shook his head. “Just be available. I’m sick of your crap ... and I am going out of my way to keep your granddaughter safe. You owe me.”
Grandpa was resigned. “Let’s not pretend that you’re doing this for me. You’re doing it for her ... and yourself.”
Hunter remained silent.
“I’ll be around if you need to talk later,” Grandpa relented. “You have to wait until I’m done on the grill. We’ll be slammed through the breakfast rush.”
THE MORNING SHIFT SEEMED TO DRAG on forever. And ever, and ever and ever.
Grandpa watched me like a hawk, perhaps thinking I was going to run upstairs to hang out with Hunter the second he turned his back.
For his part, Hunter walked in and out through the back door, ignoring everyone but David, who dropped in from the gas station to see what the fuss was about. Hunter moved his car to one of the employee parking spots and set about his tasks.
Occasionally he met my gaze when I was placing orders or picking up plates, but he only offered an encouraging smile. We didn’t talk, and eventually I managed to push him out of my mind when he set up shop in my apartment. Every once in a while I heard hammering upstairs, but he didn’t come back down and I lost myself in my work.
After a few hours, I managed to convince myself — mostly — that the only people who knew Hunter had spent the night were Grandpa and the grocery store manager. That notion went straight out the window when the door flew open shortly after ten and Monica stormed in. The look on her face told me that the gossip train in Shadow Hills was still chugging along.
“You.” Her eyes were narrow slits of hate.
I swallowed hard, glancing around to see if anybody was watching. Every set of eyes in the restaurant had turned in our direction. There was so little to do in town that meal theater was a regular occurrence, and it was obvious everyone in the cafe section was ready for some entertainment.
“Hey, Monica.” I tried not to focus on her eyebrows. They’d clearly been drawn on with pencil ... and unevenly at that. I reminded myself that she had every right to be angry. From her perspective, her boyfriend had spent the night with another woman. She couldn’t possibly be aware of the circumstances surrounding the act itself, so she’d filled in the gaps herself. “You look nice today.”
Her expression darkened. “Do you think that’s going to work on me?” She stalked over to the coffee counter, her hands clenched into fists at her sides.
“Maybe we should take this outside?” I suggested, hating the eyes I felt watching us. “It might be better if we keep this private.”
“Better for whom?” Monica’s tone was icy. “Do you think they don’t already know? Are you really that stupid? Or don’t you care? I’m guessing it’s that you don’t care.”
I pressed my tongue to the top of my mouth and remained focused on the coffee pot. “Nothing happened.”
“Oh, don’t even.” I had no doubt that if Monica thought she could get away with it she would launch herself over the counter and start beating me over the head with the coffee pot.
I found the strength to raise my chin and meet her gaze head on. “There was an incident last night and Hunter came to help. Someone tried to break into my apartment. That’s all it was.”