shook her head. The long dark ponytail swished over her shoulder. “I have to be back up here in a few hours anyway, so no point in wasting gas.”
Jax shifted the SUV into park. “I came to take a better look at the door. See how the guy might’ve got in.”
Marissa glanced between him and the door then back again. “Oh, sure.” She let the door swing shut. “Knock yourself out.”
Jax unclipped the flashlight from his belt and examined the door. He’d caught a glance of it as it swung shut. It was an ancient push handle exit, one small lock and a plain handle. He squatted. “How long has this hole been here?” He ran his finger over a small drilled hole just under the handle.
Marissa squinted and leaned over his shoulder. Her dark brown ponytail brushed the edge of his shoulder, she was so close. “No idea.” she said. “Why?”
Jax scanned the area around the door and found an umbrella skeleton. “Is the door locked right now?”
“Yeah.” Her warm breath feathered over his cheeks. He had to fight to keep his attitude professional. Having her lean over him like this was damn distracting. Not to mention her smell—all sweet and sugary.
She reached out and traced her finger over the hole. “It stays locked. Automatic. When it closes.” After a moment her eyes rounded and she stood away from him. “The hole means something?”
He nodded, then picked up the umbrella skeleton and shoved it through the hole. He gave it a little wiggle, then pulled. The door opened enough for him to get a hold of the edge and open it. The broken umbrella was open and pushed down the bar.
Marissa fisted her hands at her sides and let loose a low growl. “I’ll be damned.” She rubbed a hand over her crooked ponytail. Little strands of hair, loose from the band, stuck out every which way. “Wonder how much that’s going to cost me to repair or replace?”
Jax held the edge of the door until she came over and set her foot alongside the bottom, then he walked the umbrella over to the dumpster and dropped it inside. “On the upshot, if the kid had wanted to rob you, you’d be cleaned out by now. Ten times over, probably.”
“That makes me feel so much better.” She hugged her arms over her chest.
He tried not to look at the way her breasts mounded over her forearms. She’d already caught him all but leering at her once. No matter how hot she was, the woman was a citizen who’d called him for help. And at three in the morning, out behind a bakery was the last place he should let his mind run wild. His eyes strayed downward again. She had magnificent breasts.
She fidgeted, drawing his attention back up to her face. “Thanks again for coming out. ‘Night. Or morning or whatever.”
“I’d get that fixed as soon as you can. You going to be okay here by yourself?” He didn’t want to make it seem like he was making light of the burglary, but it wasn’t every day that someone broke into a shop to do their homework.
“Yeah. Enjoy the cupcakes.” She motioned to his vehicle. “Congratulations on the new job, Jax.” She walked back into the bakery and let the door shut behind her.
Jax tried the handle just to make sure it was truly locked. It didn’t budge. Why would a teen break in to simply eat and do homework? Trouble at home? Or could it be something more? A kid with no place to go. He hadn’t heard of there being any homeless kids in town. When he got back to the station, he’d ask around and see if any reports had been filed. Later.
Unlike Marissa, though, he needed to get some sleep. In his bed. He was getting too old to pull all-nighters.
Inside the SUV, he called the dispatcher.
“Ada, Sweets by Marissa is all clear. I’m headed home.”
“10-4, Chief.”
He clipped the mic back into place and drove slowly down the alley behind the bakery, keeping an eye out for the intruder. While he did believe Marissa Llewellyn, he hadn’t seen anyone in the shop but her when she came to the door thanks to the painted advertising on the front windows. But he wouldn’t be doing his job if he didn’t at least look for anyone hanging around and at three in the morning; folks didn’t just walk around Oak Hollow unless they were up to no good.
Jax snatched up the mic again. “Ada?”
“Yes, Chief?”
“Have one of the officers patrol Flower Tree first thing in the morning just to make sure all’s well.”
“Will do.”
It took less than ten minutes to get from the bakery to the house he’d bought—as far away from his mother’s estate as possible, even though it didn’t take long to get from any one place to another in Oak Hollow. Despite having a population of just over ten thousand, the town was laid out in a close community. A far cry from close to a million in Austin.
Jax was dog tired as he crossed through the kitchen to set down the cupcakes Marissa gave him, but the tantalizing smell made him hold off on bedtime just yet. He popped open the box and planned to sample only one treat. A few minutes later, he’d eaten two of them and was eyeing a third, but the twenty-hour day was creeping up on him. He shut the box to save the rest for breakfast.
A few hours of sleep and Jax would be good. He didn’t even bother to undress, just laid on top of the comforter his sister had given him when he moved in. As soon as he woke, he was going to head back to Flower Tree, look around a little more and check in on Marissa. Maybe buy a few more of those cupcakes. He’d seen strawberry ones in the case. It would give him another excuse to see her again—unofficially.
Chapter Two
“That’s your fourth cup.” Kya set a batch of red velvet cupcakes into the display.
Marissa’s hands shook slightly from the caffeine. “It’s the only thing keeping me awake.”
“Go home.”
“Soon.” She’d gotten a little sleep after Jax Carlisle left. But not nearly enough. Inappropriate, yet delicious thoughts about the new chief of police had plagued her sleep. Just after daybreak, she’d given up and started baking.
When Kya had come in around noon, Marissa hurried home and got a couple more hours of sleep. She’d finally banished her wayward thoughts of Jax but she couldn’t stop thinking about the boy. Who snuck into a business to do homework? And like Jax said, the boy could have robbed her several times, but he hadn’t.
When she woke, she headed back to the shop just before the high school let out. Several kids usually came in and she wanted to try and spot the one from earlier that morning. Plus she had to meet her oldest brother. She’d called Duff to come look at the door and see if he could fix it. He’d promised to be by after he got off work.
Twenty minutes later, several girls came in giggling and whispering. Marissa recognized one of them from down the street. She was about to wave her over when a lanky frame across the street caught her eye. “It’s him.” She bolted from her perch behind the counter and raced out the front door, flour on her face and apron. “Hey. You!”
The teen turned.
