Page 25 of An Alpha's Romance

CHAPTER 14

CONNER

If Keisha thought that Conner was just going to stand by while she handled a break-in on her own, she was sadly mistaken. There was no way in hell he was going to sit around and let his woman handle something like that by herself.

They hadn’t had the talk about their relationship status, and just because they had slept together didn’t mean they were exclusive. However, Conner wanted all those things with Keisha. He wanted to be in a relationship with her. He wanted to be exclusive, and he wanted to be the one she called when she needed support. He was determined to make all of those things a reality.

Conner’s long legs ate up the distance to his truck. As soon as he pulled out of his garage, he was blocked by Carson’s SUV. Conner was in such a hurry he thought about just ramming the damn thing and driving away.

“Yo, dude move your shit. I gotta go!” Conner yelled out the window of his pickup.

“Man, damn. What crawled up your butt? I was jus?” Carson didn’t get to finish his statement because Conner cut him off.

“I don’t have time, Carson. Keisha’s bakery was broken into. I need to get to her. She needs me.” Conner hoped that was a true statement. Their phone conversation was odd, and it had never been that tense between them before. But he’d be damned if he let that stop him from going to be by her side in her time of need.

“Oh hell! Let me park, and I’ll go with you.”

“Okay, but hurry the hell up,” Conner yelled at his cousin.

Carson was barely in the passenger side before Conner peeled out of the driveway.

The drive to Keisha’s bakery was fast, and Conner was surprised that he didn’t get a speeding ticket. When he pulled up and saw the damage, anger swelled in his chest and he knew his face was beet red.

“Damn! Who in the hell did this?” Carson questioned as he hopped out of the truck.

Conner was trying to reign in his temper. The damage looked extensive, there was broken glass all over the sidewalk, and both the large window and the front door were covered in large black tarps.

Conner took a deep breath and got out of his truck. The only thing he could think about was getting to Keisha and making sure she was alright. She was such a hard working woman, and she put her heart and soul into Hot Stuff. For somebody to try and destroy that, it royally pissed him off.

Both Conner and Carson entered the bakery with caution. Once they were inside, the damage was even more heartbreaking. Whoever did this was angry. It looked like a tornado had come through and destroyed everything that wasn’t bolted to the floor.

“Gentlemen, you can’t be in here.” A short woman with a red afro stopped sweeping to address them.

“Oh, it’s okay, Sabrina. This is Carson and Conner.” Another woman came from behind the counter. She had long, curly hair and milk chocolate skin. “They are Bell and Keisha’s….” Her words trailed off, and she did a little shimmy with a cheeky smile on her pretty face.

Conner looked at Carson and shook his head with a smile. Apparently, all the women at Hot Stuff did the same little shimmy dance.

“I’m Tracy, by the way.” She held out her hand and they took turns shaking it. “Keisha, Bell, and April are in the back. I’ll let Keisha know you’re here.”

“Great. Thanks,” Conner responded.

Although the place was in shambles, it looked like everything that was broken could be easily replaced. Conner wanted to run to wherever Keisha was so that he could see her beautiful face and kiss the sadness he’d heard in her voice on the phone away.

Just when he started to pick up a broom and start sweeping, Keisha, Bell and April came from the back. His heart lurched when he was finally able to lay eyes on her. Her shoulder length hair was in a messy bun, and the big brown eyes that he was so fond of were red and swollen.

Conner couldn’t have stopped himself from rushing toward her if he wanted to. Before he knew it, she was in his arms and crying into his chest.

“It’s okay, baby. I’m here,” he soothingly whispered as he held her tight and kissed the top of her head.

****

Conner could’ve held Keisha in his arms forever. He hated the tears that fell so easily from her eyes, but he was glad to be there to support her. However, Keisha was a strong woman, so he wasn’t surprised when she took a deep calming breath, and looked up at him with a face full of determination.

“Thanks,” Keisha smiled sadly, “but what are you doing here?”

The question threw Conner off a little bit, but she’d been through a lot, so he wouldn’t read too much into it.

“I came because it’s the middle of the night, and somebody broke into your business.” Conner wiped away a stray tear, and leaned down to kiss her luscious lips. “I came to make sure you were alright.”