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I’d barely slept last night. The mixture of humiliation and being back in my dead dad’s dusty old trailer wasn’t exactly the best recipe for slumber.
Now, on my way to meet Cole and his dad, Patrick, about the bar renovations, my stomach churned. What would my strategy be? Pretend yesterday never happened and pray he'd do the same.
I needed iced coffee, stat. And while I vowed never to mention Nakedgate to Cole, I felt sure Lily would enjoy the second-hand embarrassment. I couldn't deny her that. Pushing open the door to Happy Ever Affogato, I grinned at the surprise and delight in Lily's eyes.
"Elara! Is this some kind of trick?" Lily greeted me with a warm hug as I stepped in. "You're actually here?"
I took in her tall, willowy figure and the red hair that framed her freckled face and thick-rimmed glasses. It was so good to see her. "I told you I was coming back to town."
"Yeah, but it's not the first time you've said that. Didn’t want to get my hopes up!"
That was fair. Work and my reluctance to leave NYC had always interfered with my plans to visit. I guess I had always worried that if I allowed myself to spend time in the town, with people from my past, I'd be failing on my mission to find myself.
"Well, this time I'm back for a while."
She looked behind me curiously. “Where’s Anthony?”
“He was a bit tired after our morning walk, so I left him at the trailer to have a nap.”
Lily pouted. “I wanted to give him a cuddle. But I guess you’ll do. Come here, girl!” She opened her arms wide and hugged me. Not just any hug, either. A great big Lily hug, full of warmth and goodness.
When Dad died, Lily was the first person I called. She was there when I needed to cry, and later, she was there when I needed help planning my next steps. Lily knew what had happened with my job and had listened to me explain my plan for selling Dad's old bar, at length, multiple times. She was patient, kind, and pretty as a doll. "It's good to see you, Lily."
"You too." She smiled at me. “You look slightly better than you did at the funeral . . . You sleeping better?”
I grimaced. “Kinda.”
She nodded. "I have just the thing for that. Now, let me guess—iced coffee with caramel and whip?"
"Mind reader."
As Lily made coffee, I looked around the store. I wasn't as into romance novels as Lily, but I enjoyed the occasional light-hearted love story as much as the next girl.
"This place is amazing, Lil!” I said, genuinely impressed. The layout of the store was mostly minimalist, with white walls and shelves and the occasional houseplant, but there were little touches of pure Lily here and there: jewel-studded signs explaining romance genres, and cute little porcelain dogs with speech bubbles coming out of their mouths giving book recommendations.
“Thanks!” said Lily. “I’ve been desperate for you to see it!”
A table of mysteriously wrapped novels caught my eye. "Ohhh, what's this?" In front of each book was a little card that had a few words written on it, describing the story. I picked one of the cards and read it out loud. "Two polar opposites collide in a small town in the deep south. Expect a runaway bride, a secret niece, and a giant inflatable flamingo that’s used in a very creative way.” I turned to Lily. “Okay, this sounds right up my alley."
"Ah, that's the surprise table," Lily said, handing me my drink. "People always say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, so I wrapped some of mine up in brown paper!"
"I love surprises," I say, “but I also love hot guys on the cover. It’s kinda win-win however you do it. I bet selling romance books is easy!” I took a sip of the coffee. It was smooth, brown-sugar sweet, and creamy as a cloud. “Oh my god, I missed your coffees, Lily.”
Lily smiled. “Yeah, I heard it was impossible to get a good coffee in New York City.”
“It’s impossible to get one made with love by my best friend.”
Lily nodded. “That’s so true.” She leaned forward. “So, what’s new, El? I know the coffee’s not great in the big city, but what about the guys?”
I felt my cheeks redden. "Can you keep a secret, Lils?"
"I can. But often I don't."
I batted her shoulder. "Well, I'd love it if you could keep this one for me."
She mimed zipping her mouth shut.
"Okay. Well, turns out Cole McCoy is going to be helping me with the refurbishment."
