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“That guy’s a duster!” Axel cried loudly. “He never leaves the bench!”
“Yeah, well he asked me out the last time you guys played him,” I explained.
“Probably from the bench,” Zane grumbled. He grunted and rolled his eyes. “Look, if you’re going to date a hockey player at least date a successful one. Not some guy who only comes over the boards once or twice a—”
He stopped mid-sentence in a wince of pain. I knew immediately that Tyler had come to my rescue, kicking him under the table.
I cast my gaze down for a moment, trying to remember what Garth actually looked like. Were they right? Had I taken the date just because he asked me, without even knowing whether or not I even liked him?
When I glanced up again, Tyler’s eyes locked on mine. All three of my friends knew my love life had been full of land mines, but Tyler knew more than the others that casual dating just wasn’t my thing. Half the time I was uncharacteristically and almost painfully shy, and the other half I just couldn’t shut myself the hell up. No matter who it was that took me out, most of my dates ended in disaster. I really seemed to suck at it.
“Look, Garth’s okay from what I understand,” Tyler spoke up. “So go out and have fun. You have our blessing.”
His brotherly speech elicited an awkward laugh from me. “Uh… thanks.”
“Yeah, what Tyler said,” Axel finally nodded. He grinned and toasted me with his beer. “Stick to the basics and you’ll do just fine.”
I raised my own glass in salute, and the others joined in. Across the table however, Zane’s smirk was wider than ever.
“Whatever you do, just don’t let him go to the bathroom,” he winked.
~ 4 ~
ARIANA
Working at the coffee shop was one of those jobs you took to pay your bills for a while, as you searched for your true career. You never really expected to stick around very long. It was a mere pit stop in the race of life.
That’s what I told myself four years ago, anyway.
In reality though, being a barista at Java Queen wasn’t a bad gig. The hours were good, the pay was adequate, and the tips could be outstanding at times. The place was clean, the work was honest, and it smelled heavenly every single time I walked through the door and tied on my apron.
On top of all that, I was entitled to all the free coffee I could drink… which as a consummate coffee drinker, saved me a small fortune by itself. They even threw in some pastries, too. I also got to practice my coffee art, which admittedly was pretty impressive. Instagram and TikTok accounts included.
No, the place was generally alright, even on the bad days. And today, I was in a really good mood. A spectacular mood, actually. The kind of mood that nobody could mess with, except for—
“Ummm… Ariana is it?”
The way he said my name was uncomfortable enough, but the man’s eyes still lingered on my name tag. As if he needed to explain how he knew my name.
“Yes?”
“There’s something wrong with my latte.”
‘Franklin’ — or at least that was the name I’d scrawled across his cup fifteen minutes ago — had been sitting in the corner, watching videos on his laptop. I knew he was watching videos because he didn’t have the common courtesy to use earbuds or headphones. Right now, he was holding the lid to his coffee in one hand, while tilting the beverage my way.
“What’s wrong with it?”
“It’s… well… something’s just not right,” he said, struggling to summon some frustration. “It’s not as creamy as it usually is.”
I nodded apologetically. “Yeah, sorry about that. The milk foamer’s been acting up all week.”
“Oh.”
“We’ve been trying to lock down the problem, but sometimes it works and sometimes it—”
“Don’t you think I should get another one?”
My mouth went instantly tight. Under any other circumstance, I would’ve poured him a new one right away. But it was the snotty, snobbishly effete way in which he asked the question that sent my hackles up. Not to mention how casually and unapologetically he’d interrupted me.
