"So?"
"So people walk by here all the time. And the strip isn't that long, which means they pass the same place over and over." I almost rolled my eyes. "You know, thesamepeople."
"Yeah? And sometimes they don't belong."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Call it a hunch."
"Orparanoia," I said. "And why didn't you mention these 'suspicious' guys earlier?"
"Because I only saw them the one day."
Skeptical or not, I was still curious. "Whichday?"
"My first on the job."
"See?" I smiled. "They're probably long gone."
He looked unconvinced. "We'll see."
"And," I persisted, "you still should've mentioned it."
"Maybe. But I didn't want you to worry if it was nothing. I know you've got a lot on your plate." His voice softened. "Just be careful, alright?"
Whether he was being paranoid or protective, that last part made my heart go just a little gooey. It was unusual and maddening and – heaven help me – kind of sweet.
But if he cared so much, why did he clam up whenever I tried to make friendly conversation? I'd been trying to nottake it personally, hoping it was a simple clash of small-town friendliness versus big-city armor.
But that was onlyonetheory. My other theory was that he clammed up because I tended to ramble when I was nervous. And honestly? Griff made me nervous all the time – not because I was scared of him, but because he was getting under my skin in ways I didn't dare contemplate.
About the two guys he'd mentioned, I wasn't worried. Sure, there was the matter of the fallen bikes, but the longer I thought about it, the more I figured that was Trevor's doing for his own secret reason.
Maybe I'd worked him too hard.
Maybe he thought it was funny.
Or maybe it had been an honest accident, and he'd been in too big of a hurry to clean it up.Hey, it happens to the best of us, right?
As far as the two strangers, it sounded like Griff was grasping at straws. He wasn't local.Iwas. And I'd worked at the shop for long enough to know that the island drew all kinds of characters with all kinds of walking habits.
But I didn't want to argue – not this morning when I had a surprise. I summoned up a smile. "Forget the door." I pointed toward the two containers of baked goods sitting right there on the table. "Look."
He looked where I pointed but said nothing.
I rushed to fill in the silence. "Oneof those is a delivery from the bakery – something from your friend – Ryder, I think?"
Griff let out a scoff. "Oh, yeah? I can't wait to see what's in there." He said it like the box was radioactive and maybe ticking, too.
Moving on, I put some extra pep into my voice. "But theotherone,thathas homemade cookies – chocolate chip."
He didn't exactly jump for joy. "Yeah?"
"I bet they're still warm if you want to try one."
He eyed the container but made no move. "Nah, I'm good. But thanks."
I frowned. "Youdolike chocolate chips, right? I mean, if you don't, that's okay. I know how you feel about cranberries, so…" I let the sentence trail off, hoping he would fill in the gap.
