Page 7 of The Cobbler and His Elves

I shook my head, dispelling the fantasy. “The leather?” I managed to croak out.

Jack chuckled, moving to a cabinet. He returned with a roll of supple leather, far more than mere scraps.

“This should be enough for your order,” he said, pressing it into my hands. “And then some.”

I clutched the leather to my chest, overwhelmed by their generosity. “I don’t know what to say.”

Jack’s expression turned serious. “Say you’ll be careful. This business with Thompson’s tannery... we don’t know the score yet.”

My body tensed as unease crept through me. “What do you mean?”

“Just stay out of it,” Elijah said, his voice gentle but firm. “For your own safety.”

I nodded, unsure of how to respond. As I turned to leave, Jack caught my arm.

“Milo,” he said, using my given name for the first time. “We mean it. Don’t go poking around in this. Please.”

The genuine concern in his voice shook me more than any threat could have. I mumbled a hasty goodbye and fled into the night, my mind whirling.

I crossed the street, heading to my shop. I tucked the leather under my arm and tried to ignore the taste of the Sterling brothers still on my lips. I smiled as I looked down at the leather the Sterlings had given me.

The cobbler’s elves, it seemed, had taken an unexpectedly alluring form. But whether they really intended to help or to hinder remained to be seen.

My smile faded.

Was I being a fool, blinded by a pair of handsome faces?

With a sigh, I quickened my pace.

Despite Jack’s warning, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was already in too deep to back out now.

3

Imade my usual preparations to open Hart’s Shoe Repair just as the sun started to climb above the skyline. The familiar scents of leather and polish greeted me, a welcoming balm to my frayed nerves. I’d tossed and turned all night, my dreams a confusing jumble of stolen leather and stolen kisses.

As I flipped the sign to “Open,” a flash of white caught my eye. A small envelope lay on the floor, as if it had been slipped under the door sometime during the night. My name scrawled across the front in an unfamiliar hand.

With trembling fingers, I tore it open. The message inside sent ice coursing through my veins:

I saw what you did. Your secret won’t stay hidden for long. Leave town now, or everyone will know.

The paper crumpled in my fist. The Sterling brothers.

It had to be them. Their act of generosity last night, the kisses—it was all a ploy to get me to lower my guard. And now they were trying to bully me out of town.

Fury bubbled up inside me, hot and fierce. Without a second thought, I stormed out of my shop and across the street to Sterling’s Fine Footwear. The “Closed” sign hung in the window, but I could see movement inside. I pounded on the door, heedless of the early hour.

Jack yanked the door open, his hair mussed and eyes bleary with sleep. Even in his disheveled state, he exuded a rugged allure that made my breath catch. His rumpled shirt clung to his broad chest, revealing tantalizing glimpses of tanned skin beneath. “Hart? What the hell?—”

I blinked hard, yanking my gaze away from the tempting expanse of Jack’s chest.

Elijah emerged from the back room, looking equally disheveled and alluring. “Milo?” He stifled a yawn. “What’s going on? What are you doing here?”

His questioning reminded me why I’d stormed over here at this ungodly hour, reigniting my fury. I shoved past Jack, brandishing the crumpled note. “How dare you,” I snarled. “I thought… I actually believed you wanted to help me. But this?Threateningme?”

I caught the flicker of confusion that passed between Jack and Elijah.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Jack’s voice was rough with sleep, but his eyes sharpened as they fixed on me.