Page 3 of The Cinnamon Bun Book Store

They were both squatting in the aisle now, too close for Hazel to avoid his eye. ‘It’s not mine. I mean I wasn’t reading it. I was just reshelving it.’

Noah’s smile grew. ‘It sounds good.’ He flipped to the dog-eared page. ‘I thought you weren’t reading it?’

‘I ... uh ... well...’

His gaze landed on the highlighted line. ‘Come with me, lass, if you want an adventure.’

Oh, no, that line read in Noah’s deep voice was doing things to her ... hot things. What was going on today?! Hazel shook her head.

‘I was just reshelving it,’ she repeated as she snatched it back and stood before Noah could read any more and make everything worse.

‘But someone marked it up,’ he said, standing and dwarfing her in the process. Why did he have to be so big and smell so good? He was confusing her and she didn’t like it.

‘I know.’

‘So someone just marked it up and then put it back on the shelf?’

‘Yes.’

‘Weird.’

‘I know, and they didn’t even put it back in the right spot.’ She shuffled past him, avoiding contact with his large, good-smelling body and made her way back to the relative safety of the front of the store.

Noah followed. ‘Almost like they wanted you to find it.’

Hazel stopped and spun to face him. They nearly crashed again, but Noah skidded to a stop, too. ‘Why would you say that?’

He shrugged. ‘Don’t know. Just seems like a clue or something.’

‘A clue?’ Hazel narrowed her eyes. ‘Noah, are you screwing with me?’

‘Screwing with you?’ He looked genuinely confused but Hazel wasn’t buying it.

‘Did you mess up my books as some kind of joke? You’ll have to pay for this if you did.’ She waved the book in front of him as his brows lifted higher on his head.

‘Of course I didn’t. I wouldn’t ... mess with you. And I certainly wouldn’t mess with your books.’ He made a little ‘x’ over his chest. ‘Cross my heart. Fisherman’s honor.’

It was Hazel’s turn to raise an eyebrow. ‘Fisherman’s honor? I don’t think that’s a thing.’

‘Well it is now.’

‘Hmm.’

‘I still think it might be a clue, though.’

‘Why would someone leave me a clue?’

He shrugged again but excitement lit up the light brown of his eyes. ‘For an adventure, I guess.’

An adventure.

Noah grinned and Hazel’s heart picked up speed and the book in her hands called to her and maybe it was a clue.

At the very least maybe it would make a good story.

ChapterTwo

Noah had the hots for Hazel Kelly. It surprised him almost as much as it seemed to surprise her, but he did. She wasn’t like any of the other women he’d been with. Take today, for example. With her loose button-down shirt tucked into her high waisted pants, a string of delicate gold chains around her neck, and a pair of cute little flat shoes on her feet, she looked ... well, she looked way too good for him. She looked smart and sophisticated. And don’t even get him started on that cloud of soft curls around her face, or the adorable way she pushed her glasses up her nose, like she was doing now as she stared at him like he was some kind of alien species.