A little shudder ran through Evangeline’s body. She breathed deep and pressed her fingers to her eyes for a moment before her chin went up. “No one can get glass installed that fast. It has to be special ordered and . . .”

“Evangeline.” Just her name. A reprimand. He didn’t need to say anything else. No matter what, if he said he’d take care of it, he would. She should at least know who she was dealing with. In any case, Timur would have made the order already for bulletproof glass. The workmen would show up very soon. She would lose business today, but he would find a way to make that up to her.

“You can’t take care of this for me,” she said decisively.

She hadn’t made a move to pull out of his arms yet, still so shocked he doubted she was aware that she leaned heavily into him. His leopard was happy, his body, not so much.

“It is done. Timur is already arranging it.”

“I don’ have the money,” she admitted. “The insurance has to be called, and they’ll come out and determine what they can do and—”

“It is done.” He made that decisive. “Come sit down.” He steered her toward the small table again, the one far from the mess.

She glanced at Gorya as she allowed Alonzo to seat her. He calmly finished his coffee, saluting her with the mug. “Nothing seems to throw your friend.”

“He likes to eat and drink, that one,” Alonzo agreed.

“I at least should be sweeping up the glass,” she protested.

“It will be taken care of.” He didn’t want her anywhere near the glass. If she cut herself, he’d have to give Timur a beating and Timur wasn’t all that easy to put the smackdown on.

3

EVERYTHING had changed—yet nothing had changed. Evangeline wasn’t certain exactly what to do about Alonzo. He came to the bakery on average about four days a week now. Two months had gone by since the accident with the truck. He’d had her bakery cleaned up and new glass in by ten that evening, refusing to even consider allowing her to pay him back—and then they were back to normal—except—he talked to her now. Not much, because he still seemed a man of few words, but at least he spoke to her.

Timur and Gorya, his two bodyguards, always accompanied him. They teased her a little bit, at least Gorya did. Timur was very much like Alonzo, quieter and not quick to smile. She’d never actually seen Alonzo smile and he’d been coming to her shop for a year now.