Chapter 7
Alexis was piping frosting on cupcakes when Melissa hurried in the next morning. They typically weren’t open on weekends, but this close to a large holiday and event, they opened for limited hours while they prepared orders for the week.
“Hey, girlfriend!”
Alexis smiled. “Hey. How’d the rest of your evening go?”
“Great! I had to sleep off a horrible hangover. Thanks for letting me come in late.”
Alexis laughed. “It’s no problem.”
“Soooo.”
“Soooo what?”
Melissa put her elbows on the counter across from her and widened her eyes. “You and Lonnie seemed to hit it off. Did you hang out with him after the club?”
Alexis blushed. “No. We went our separate ways.”
“What? Why?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I just don’t want to go home with a guy on a whim. I’d like to get to know him first.”
Melissa sighed. “But he’s so hot. And famous.”
Alexis set the piping bag down. “Famous? What do you mean?”
“After that fight that broke out. Several people filmed it and posted it. It has millions of views. He’s been deemed the Chiseled Stud. Apparently he works for Chaotic Notes. Several people have found him in photos with the band. You didn’t see the video?”
Alexis paled. “No. What video?”
“I swear you live under a rock sometimes. Not having social media is a serious damper on your social life.”
Alexis rolled her eyes. “Just because I don’t scroll on the internet for hours a day doesn’t mean I don’t have a social life.”
Melissa laughed. “Whatever you need to tell yourself.”
She pulled out her phone and clicked around before handing it over to Alexis.
Alexis watched it, panning the background and not actually watching the fight.
Of course she was on camera after she almost got hit by the guy who stumbled back just before Lonnie intervened. Her face was on clear display.
“Shit,” she muttered.
“What?”
Alexis shook her head. “Nothing. Hey, I need to go make a phone call. Can you finish these cupcakes and open up the store?”
Melissa furrowed her eyebrows. “Of course. Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yep, I’m good.” Then she scurried off to the bathroom. Shakily, Alexis pulled out her phone and dialed a number she had forced herself to memorize, but hoped she’d never have to use. “Hi, my name is Samantha White. My face was just leaked in a video…”
After Alexis got off the phone, she shakily put it into her pocket before walking back out to the bakery. At this point in time, she wouldn’t be moved since they hadn’t assessed an immediate threat.
She knew going to the club was a bad idea.
The first time she allowed herself a little bit of fun, her face wound up in a viral video.
She had lived in fear for so long and was finally feeling somewhat comfortable in Cupid City, but now she was back at square one… always waiting for the shoe to drop.
The door chimed, and Alexis looked up to find Lonnie smiling at her from the other side of the counter. Melissa waved.
“Well hello, Chiseled Stud,” Melissa said.
Lonnie laughed. “Saw the video, huh?”
“Who hasn’t? Well, aside from this one back here.” Melissa tossed her thumb over her shoulder at Alexis.
Alexis couldn’t even laugh at Melissa’s joke.
It took everything in her not to burst into tears, but she tried to swallow back the emotion and the growing fear.
Even if the Marshals didn’t think she was in immediate danger, she couldn’t help all her fears from coming to the forefront of her mind.
It was as if she had been freshly deposited in Cupid City after entering the program.
She was a terrified woman once again, and she knew she’d be watching her back nonstop.
“You doing all right?” Lonnie asked.
“You don’t look so good,” Melissa said.
Alexis scrubbed her face. “I’m okay. What can we get you today, Lonnie?”
“I’ll take whatever you recommend.” Lonnie’s eyes seemed to zero in on her.
Melissa looked between them before pointing to the back. “Um, I need to go do a… a thing. Yeah, a thing. You got this, Alexis?”
But before she could respond, Melissa disappeared.
“Are you okay?” Lonnie asked again.
Alexis busied herself grabbing a cupcake for him, not making eye contact. It was against the rules of the program to tell anyone her secret, but for some reason, she trusted him. Even if she barely knew him.
Perhaps it was because the Marshal who brought her to Cupid City was friends with Cass.
And Lonnie was friends with Cass. It made her feel like she could trust him by association.
Especially since she knew Cass ran a security agency.
Plus, with Lonnie coming in daily and after spending time with him at the club, she had a bit of a friendship starting with him.
“Yes,” she said, keeping her eyes on the small box she was closing. When she reached across the counter to hand it to him, he didn’t take it. Instead, he settled his fingers under her chin and tilted her face so their eyes met.
That intimate touch normally would have her flinching. It had been a few years since she had a man touch her and even longer to have one touch her without force. But his fingers were soft and his touch gentle. It calmed her.
“I’m here if you need to talk,” he said softly. Then he pulled his hand back and took out his wallet, leaving cash on the counter. Before he walked away, he grabbed a napkin and pen off the counter, scribbling a phone number on it, along with his hotel and room number. “Day or night.”
Alexis watched him walk out the door before looking down at the napkin. She took it and tucked it into her pocket. She wasn’t sure she would ever use it, but it didn’t hurt to have it.