Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Tonya was in a huff.
The nerve of that guy! Who the hell did he think he was?
Sure, she’d been lying. But that didn’t give him the right to call her out on it like that. Not right there in front of her friends. Not ever. He wasn’t her Daddy. It wasn’t as if they had a relationship or something. They didn’t even know each other.
If she were being honest, though, she’d have to admit she had mixed emotions about it all.
On one hand, it had been humiliating. She’d wanted to cry. But she was more angry than sad.
On the other hand, well… it had felt good to be held accountable for her lies. But why? Shouldn’t she be livid?
She was angry. But livid was different. Right? She should have been so mad she couldn’t see straight! Yet something kept drawing her back toward him…
It took her a few minutes to recover, but eventually she wandered into the house where most of the Littles were decorating sugar cookies.
Squeezable packs of red, green, and white frosting were scattered on the large kitchen island for the taking.
People stood around the granite with cookies on plates, making their best festive designs.
Tonya wasn’t sure how the two women she’d been with would react when she approached, so she picked a spot a ways down from them, instead standing beside Iris and her friends.
And closer to him.
Damn, he was hot.
But he’s kind of a jerk. Think about what he did to you out there.
Iris was reaching for a bag of green icing when Tonya acted on impulse, grabbing it first and then flashing the other woman a smug smirk.
“Okay. I guess you wanted it,” Iris grumbled.
Tonya looked to see if she’d caught the attention of Kendrick.
Nope. He was still looking down at the cookie he was decorating.
Hmm. Tonya would just have to try harder.
A few moments passed. Iris had used the red and white icing, along with some sprinkles, to decorate her giant cookie.
“Hey, that looks great!” Cami told her.
Tonya sighed loudly. Some of the Littles looked at her.
“Sorry,” she said exaggeratedly. “I guess it’s fine. For an amateur.” She shrugged. “I just interned at The Gilded Crumb. I know a thing or two about decorating.”
This did the trick. Kendrick finally looked up from his decorating and said, “The Gilded Crumb?”
“Yep.”
“That high-end bakery that all the rich people and celebrities use for their wedding cakes and stuff?”
“Of course. Do you know another Gilded Crumb?” she asked haughtily.
“Nope. But I know the one and only well. Did you train under Carey or Bridgett?”
Oh crap! How did this guy know so much? She’d give him Musso and Frank’s and Dan Tana’s. They were easy catches. A simple Google search confirming their hours would have kept her out of trouble earlier. That was squarely on her.
But how did he freaking know people at The Gilded Crumb? What the heck?
Which way should she answer here? One was probably just as good as another. Maybe she should even take a big swing and act like she knew just as much or more than he did.
Then another thought hit her.
What if he didn’t know anything about the bakery? Perhaps this was just a trap.
That’s it! she decided. He was trying to catch me in a lie. Well, two could play that little game…
“I didn’t know a Bridgett or Carey there. But I trained under Elliott Rose.” The name was completely made up, but she was gambling that he wouldn’t know that.
He nodded with a smile, seeming to accept her response. “I’ve never met Elliott.”
It was left at that and the group went back to decorating holiday cookies while Bing Crosby sang White Christmas over the speakers Auntie Athena had placed on the table in the nearby breakfast nook.
And no one pressed Tonya on her bold claim about working at the Gilded Crumb.
A crisis had been averted.
For now…
Tonya was getting ready to leave the nursery when Kendrick approached her just before she reached the front door.
“You did good on that cookie. It was cute.”
The compliment caught her by surprise. She smiled and puffed her chest out proudly. “Thanks. Like I said, I have experience in that field.”
The strong man simply stood there smirking.
After an uncomfortable moment, Tonya shifted on her feet and said, “What?”
His gaze bore into her for another few tense seconds before he replied.
“Carey is my cousin. Bridgett is her wife. I’m at the bakery quite a bit.
” He laughed slightly. “You had a hundred percent chance of getting that one right. You really could have said either one of them. Of course, I would have followed up with them to double check. But…” He shrugged and left it at that.
Now, Tonya tried to look as stern as he did, matching that accusatory look in his eyes. “Why do you have it out for me? Like, seriously—do you have some weird obsession? Because it’s coming off as creepy.”
He threw his head back and laughed before answering.
“Don’t flatter yourself. I’m not obsessed with you.
But you’re on my radar and not in a good way.
I don’t like how snotty you are to the other girls.
” A serious look settled in his eyes. “Iris and Annika, particularly, haven’t had an easy go of it.
Money was a scarce resource. They don’t need some rich girl rubbing their noses in it. ”
For a moment, guilt stabbed at Tonya’s insides. But she shook it off just as quickly as it had come.
“I’m sorry they’re poor. But that’s not my problem,” she said, turning to walk out the door.
She opened it and then stopped, tossing a smug look over her shoulder.
“If they’re whining about me, it’s because they’re jealous.
But I won’t apologize for being rich while they’ve been… you know… all gross and poor.”
The tension was thick. She could feel a literal heat rising off the big man’s body as he stopped closer and towered over her.
“You’re lucky I used to be a cop. I’m smart enough to know I can’t just take hold of your little elbow, march you to that couch in there, and drop your panties around your ankle while I redden your bottom.
But if you keep pushing me, well… I might not give a damn what the law says.
You, girlie, need a good spanking. And I’m seriously considering giving it to you. ”
Tonya froze in panic.
She didn’t know what scared her more: the thought of going over his knee. Or the idea of never going.
Either way, she was too stunned to respond.
She hurried out the door and down the steps, rushing away from Auntie Athena’s West Hollywood Nursery.
And the drop-dead sexy man who stood just inside the building, wanting to spank her bottom.