He peered deep into her eyes. “What’s going on?”
She shook her head, averting her gaze, obviously still unsure telling him was the right course of action.
“We could walk out of here without talking about it. Or you could use the sanctity of the supply closet to unburden yourself.”
That brought a small smile to her lips. “What happens in the supply closet stays in the supply closet?”
He spoke straight from his heart. “Absolutely. You can tell me anything.”
* * *
Jada opened her mouth to tell him it was nothing. But the look on his face stopped her. Like he cared and was ready to slay dragons for her. When was the last time anyone had looked at her like that? “Well, it’s just that I got to thinking about how the next event, my next event is starting in less than an hour, and what if it’s not successful?”
A vee appeared between his eyebrows. “The book club meeting was a success.”
Jada was already shaking her head. “That was a last-minute thing, so I didn’t have much time to let the nerves and what-ifs eat me alive. This is different. I’ve been planning this for a week.”
This was a bachelorette party/sexuality seminar for a professor from a local university, who apparently had a million friends, who were all set to descend on Sugar Blitz in thirty minutes. The professor, a frequent customer of Sugar Blitz, wanted to combine the shenanigans of a bachelorette party with a pseudo-conference designed to make sure her friends and loved ones were fully attuned to their own sexuality, and Jada had been tasked with making sure that happened.
Oh, God. Her vision dimmed for a second. She paused for a moment to suck in some oxygen. But only for a moment. She needed to get this off her chest, and he’d offered to listen, so he was going to get the full Jada experience. “What if no one has a good time? If they don’t have a good time, they’re going to tell their friends, who are going to tell their friends, and then no one will step foot in this place again, and then you will fire me and I couldn’t even complain because it would totally be my own fault.”
She was rambling. She could hear herself. But since her thoughts had started rioting ten minutes ago when she looked at the clock and decided a trip to the supply closet was desperately needed, that was okay. He wanted to know. Well, now he knew.
He cocked his head to the side, clearly waiting to see if she would catch her second wind and go again. When she remained silent, he nodded. “Jada, I’m not going to fire you.”
“You might!” Her hands twisted together.
He reached for them and squeezed. “I’m not, and the reason I know I’m not is because I haven’t done it already. I didn’t do it when you almost burned down my kitchen. I didn’t do it when you kissed me and declared that I was your boyfriend. I didn’t do it when you rented my business out as meeting space for a book club without asking me first. I didn’t do it when I got roped into posing as a cover model while a room full of boozed-up women whooped and urged me to show them how it’s done at said book club meeting.”
When he put it that way … Oh, God. Why hadn’t he fired her yet? Panic started shredding the lining of her stomach again. She shook her head. “But this time might be different!”
He squeezed her hands again. “Jada, look at me.” She looked up from where his hands, so large and scarred, cradled hers like they were precious cargo. His eyes were steady and calm and sure. “It’s not going to be different.”
She shook her head, the doubts crowding out his assurances. She’d failed before. She’d been riding the high of a successful book club meeting when she’d suggested hosting other events. When would she learn not to be so impulsive? Why would this time be any different? “How do you know?”
“Because I’ve seen all the hard work you’ve put into this. You saw a hole in the market and are looking to fill it. I’ve seen the results of your hard work—more people in the shop and more making return visits. The place looks, umm, interesting tonight though.”
Jada giggled at the discomfited look on his face. He was really cute when he was being earnest.
“Not only that, her guest list keeps growing. You’ve already told her what you have planned, which means they’re excited to come and experience it. They’re going to love being here, having our amazing cupcakes and drinks, and then they’re going to come back. We all win.”
When he put it that way … Her stomach began to settle. Just a bit. “How are you so logical?”