Chapter 7 #2
“Did you do well at the market?” Keena asked. “There were more people out this year than last year.”
“I did really well. I sold out of every Blind Date with a Book,” she laughed. She was pleased. It had been fun to hide the books and talk people into buying them without knowing what they were.
“Sold what?” Keena tilted her head to the side. She handed Brice another book.
“A Blind Date with a Book.” She quickly described what it meant. She described how she came up with the fun tags to put on the books. “On one of them, I wrote something like hot vampires, bad decisions, sexy tension. Readers grabbed all of those.”
“Vampires? Readers wanted to read about blood suckers?” Keena scowled. She looked so damn adorable. Brice coughed into her fist to hide her laugh.
“I mean, they’re just books.” She shrugged and came down the step stool. Keena picked up the empty box and began breaking it down. Brice couldn’t stop watching her.
God, the woman was downright sexy.
The way she moved through the store with her confidence. The sleeves of her shirt were pushed up to reveal her strong forearms.
Everything about Keena had Brice up in her feelings.
She was a goner.
She snatched up a stack of paperbacks that were left on the shelf. Someone must have changed their mind yesterday. She hadn’t seen them before they headed over to the market.
The bell above the front door jingled.
Alanis stepped inside carrying a large canvas tote over her shoulder. She stomped her feet to get the snow off her boots. She raised her travel mug in her hand.
“Morning.” Her cheerful greeting echoed through the shop.
“You’re early.” Brice walked over toward her with the stack of books still in her arms.
“I know.” Alanis shrugged out of her coat with a sheepish expression. “I wanted to get the cinnamon rolls started before we opened.”
She paused. Her gaze whipped over to where Keena was, then back to Brice. She inhaled slowly. Her gaze widened slightly before glancing back at Keena. She recovered quickly, but Brice didn’t know what that was about.
“Morning, Keena. Didn’t think you’d be here,” Alanis said. She motioned to the door. “I didn’t see your SUV.”
“I helped Brice get her wagon back to the shop last night. I just didn’t go back and get it,” Keena said. She picked up the boxes she’d broken down. She was oblivious to what she’d just shared. Brice’s cheeks warmed. Alanis now knew that Keena had spent the night. “Where do you want these?”
“Um, if you go through the back door in the kitchen, there’s a recycle bin out there,” Brice said. Keena nodded then headed through the kitchen doors with the boxes. The warmth that had been in her expression this morning was now gone.
Was it because Alanis was here?
Brice watched her disappear into the kitchen and took notice of the tension in her body.
“I’m going to put my stuff away and get started.” Alanis smiled and headed toward the little employee room.
Brice nodded and quickly put all of the books where they belonged. When Keena returned from the kitchen, Brice definitely saw she’d put back up her guard and had her coat on. Brice made her way to her.
“Keena?” She searched Keena’s face, but her expression was closed off.
“Yeah?” Keena wasn’t meeting her eyes. She glanced around the shop and had the look she’d had the other day when she had bolted. Alarms were now blaring inside of Brice’s head.
“Are you okay?” Brice asked.
“I’m fine.”
It was a lie. Brice didn’t need to be a shifter to pick up on it. That small lie hurt because it was obvious that something was wrong.
Had they moved too fast? Maybe inviting Keena upstairs had been a mistake. Maybe last night had only happened because emotions had been running high after the market…the fire…the music…maybe it was all too much for Keena.
She paused her train of thought.
The woman who had kissed her in the kitchen that morning had wanted to kiss her. Brice had seen the heat in her eyes.
What changed since then?
Alanis came from out of the employee lounge room. Her gaze flicked between them. Something crossed her face.
“I’ll be in the kitchen if you need me,” Alanis said.
“Thanks,” Brice said. Alanis’s gaze shifted to Keena once more before she turned and disappeared through the door to the kitchen.
“I should get going,” Keena said.
“Are you sure?” Brice asked. Her stomach dropped. There was definitely a wall that had been constructed. Keena was shutting her out.
“Yeah.” She closed her coat and stalked to the door. Brice reacted before she could even think. She followed behind her and caught Keena’s wrist.
“Keena,” she said softly. Keena froze. She looked down at Brice’s hand resting against her wrist then back at Brice. It wasn’t as if Brice could truly overpower her and make her stay.
“I’m sorry.” Brice immediately released her and stepped back.
“You have nothing to apologize for,” Keena said. Her voice was flat and emotionless. Even her eyes appeared to be blank and it downright scared Brice.
“Don’t leave.”
Keena closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them, they were full of conflict.
“I have to go.” She opened the door and stepped outside. Brice followed behind her. She didn’t care that she didn’t have a coat on, she barely felt the December air. Keena began heading back toward the town square.
“What did I do?” Brice called out.
Keena stopped walking. Brice wasn’t even sure she’d get an answer.
“You didn’t do anything,” Keena replied.
“Then help me understand how we went from enjoying breakfast to this?” Brice wrapped her arms around herself. A slight breeze blew and disturbed the soft snow that surrounded them.
Keena turned and stared at her. There was a tortured look on her face. She shook her head and sighed.
“You’re perfect, Brice. It’s not you. It’s me,” Keena said.
Oh, great. That was not the excuse Brice had thought Keena would ever use. As if realizing what she’d said, Keena grimaced. She reached up and ran a hand along her face.
“I thought we had something,” Brice said.
“You deserve someone who can meet you where you are,” Keena said.
“But I want you.”
There. She’d put it out there with those four little words. Keena looked away from her and Brice’s heart sank. She had to bite her lips to keep her eyes from filling with tears.
“You shouldn’t,” Keena said.
“Why not?”
“Because I already found my mate.”
The blood drained from Brice’s face. Everything in her went still. She could barely breathe. She had to fight to drag air into her lungs.
“You…”
Brice felt as if someone had struck her across the stomach with a bat. Her thoughts began racing.
Last night.
The kisses.
This morning.
Breakfast.
The way Keena had looked at her.
Confusion clouded her judgment. A sound escaped her. She didn’t know what it was. She swallowed several times trying to get her throat to work.
“Brice.” Keena stepped toward her but then stopped herself.
“I didn’t know,” Brice whispered. Her voice cracked. Tears blurred her vision. She blinked back the tears and felt one slip down along her face.
Keena’s entire expression was one of guilt. She looked away for a moment before turning back to Brice.
“I never meant—
“No.” Brice pressed her fingers to her lips as she backed away from Keena. She couldn’t even speak. Had she helped someone betray the person they loved? The possibility made her stomach turn. Keena looked downright miserable.
“I’ve got to go,” Keena said. She turned and walked away from Brice. She didn’t look back. Brice didn’t move until Keena turned the corner toward the town square. She reached up and wiped away the now flowing tears. She drew in a shaky breath and turned blindly back toward her bookstore.
She entered the building and barely felt anything. The door closed behind her and she stood in place. Part of her wanted to race after Keena and demand answers. The other half—she just wanted to lock herself away and never show her face again.
“Brice?” A concerned voice broke the silence. Brice blinked and had forgotten her employee was there.
“I…” She tried to speak but nothing came out.
“What happened?” Alanis crossed the room without hesitation. Concern was etched on her face. She reached out to Brice and rested her hands on her shoulders. “What is it?”
“I didn’t know,” Brice admitted. She reached up and wiped her face with the back of her hands.
“Didn’t know what?” Alanis asked.
“I didn’t know Keena was mated.” Brice’s voice broke. She sniffed and scrubbed her face again. The damn tears kept flowing.
“Oh.” Alanis froze in place. Understanding dawned on her face. She gave Brice’s shoulders a squeeze.
“I swear I didn’t know.” Brice’s words came out rushed. “I would’ve never…I would never be a part of hurting someone like that. I didn’t mean to—”
“Brice. Take a deep breath.” Alanis’s expression softened. “Keena’s mate died five years ago.”
“What?” Brice blinked. She couldn’t have heard Alanis correctly. Alanis released her and stepped back.
“Keena didn’t tell you?” she asked.
“No.”
Alanis pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. A sad smile appeared on her lips as she met Brice’s wide eyed stare.
“This isn’t my story to tell, but yes, Keena’s mate, Lizzie, died.”
Brice’s heart twisted inside of her chest. Suddenly she understood the sadness she’d seen in Keena’s eyes, the hesitation, the apology after kissing her. She covered her face with her hands.
“Oh, Keena,” she whispered. She lowered her hands and looked toward the front windows of the store. The snow was starting to fall again. Somewhere out there Keena was hurting and Brice’s chest ached for her.
“I need to find her,” she whispered.
If there was one thing she knew, someone who was hurting shouldn’t be alone, they should be surrounded by those that love them.
And Brice Andrews knew without a doubt that she was in love with Keena Bolden.