Page 43 of Blush Crush

It’s adorable. And it’s not stopping me.

Before she can pull away, I gently prop her foot onto my thigh and slide the first sock over her toes.

Her mouth pops open, clearly too stunned to do anything except stare down at me like I’ve lost my mind.

I can see why she’d think that. I’m not some guy with a secret foot fetish. Everyone’s got their thing—that just isn’t mine. Pretty sure the only time I’ve ever intentionally touched a woman’s foot before this was hooking her ankle over my shoulder in bed.

But Ariana standing there shivering with ice-cold feet on tile floors isn’t something I’m going to allow on my watch.

Her feet are small and delicate. Her toenails painted a bright, cheerful shade of pink.

I pull the second sock on before she can recover enough to argue.

“There,” I say before standing up quickly and putting distance between us. Because suddenly the air between us is a little too thick to breathe through.

I went months without seeing her. Months convincing myself that was the smart move.

Now she’s sitting here in my hoodie, wearing socks with my last name on them, looking at me like she can’t believe I’m here.

If the flooding hadn’t happened, I’m not sure when I would’ve stepped back into this coffee shop again.

And the more I stand here looking at her, the more I’m realizing quitting her cold turkey might’ve been the dumbest decision I’ve ever made.

CHAPTER 12

Ariana

LIKE NO TIME

It’s a little unnerving having Cole here after not seeing him for so long—like no time and far too much time have passed all at once.

He’s still on his phone when I tie my apron and slip back behind the counter, but he glances up when I pass, and the hard expression that was etched on his face loosens.

“You look better.” He pulls the phone from his ear, eyes sweeping over me.

“Amazing what a shower can do.” I’d called Lina during the morning rush and asked if she could come in early so I could run home. Thankfully she said yes, sparing me from spending the rest of the day smelling like whatever came out of that pipe.

I keep myself occupied by restocking the pastry case, mostly to have something to do with my hands. “You didn’t have to stay.”

“I know.” He sets his phone face down on the table. “I wanted to make sure the mitigation company actually showed up.”

I glance at him. “Did they?”

“They’re downstairs now. One of the older pipes must’ve frozen with the cold snap and given out. I’ll need to get someoneout to assess the damage before we know what we’re dealing with, but it shouldn’t affect the shop. I’ll make sure of it.”

When I called him this morning, it was pure panic—I didn’t think beyond getting someone on the phone. I definitely didn’t expect him to show up himself, let alone still be here hours later. I’m not sure why that surprises me as much as it does. “Thank you. Really. I mean it.”

He holds my gaze for a beat, a sudden intensity on his face that morphs into a contrite frown. “Don’t thank me, doll. It’s my building.”

“Still,” I press, trying to draw out the Cole I know and not this serious man who hasn’t cracked a smile once.

He nods once, retreating to his corner table and picking his phone back up. I return behind the counter, trying to stay busy. For a while the shop hums along around us like nothing is different and nothing is strange and the last few months didn’t happen the way they did.

It almost feels normal if I don’t think about it too deeply.

The afternoon rush filters in steadily—the usual faces, the usual orders. I move through it on autopilot, pulling shots and steaming milk, calling out names. Cole stays at the back corner table, alternating between his phone and his laptop, and I’m aware of him in the peripheral way I’m always aware of him when he’s near, like a frequency I’ve never quite managed to tune out.

I’m so absorbed in making the most recent order that I almost miss Sadie’s quiet voice.