Katie rushed in shortly after. “Hey, sorry I’m late. My appointment ran over.”
Molly smiled at her. “It’s alright.”
“Everything go okay?”
“Perfectly great,” Molly said. She popped the lid on his cup and slid it across the counter with a straw. He swiped his credit card and paid for his drink before slipping a dollar into the tip jar.
“Hey, Gavin,” Katie said. “Molly get you all taken care of?”
He took a sip of his drink and smiled. “Perfect as always. See you tomorrow.”
Molly blushed as he walked away.
Katie smiled and raised her eyebrows. “So… he’s cute.”
Molly giggled. “Yes, he is.”
Katie continued to stare at her with a smile on her face.
“You were just encouraging me to date your brother,” she said softly. Her eyes darted toward the bookstore section where Eli was stocking inventory.
“Fake date him. And you don’t want to.”
“It’s not that I don’t want to. I’m just worried it’ll make things complicated.”
Katie waved a hand in the air. “I know. I get it.”
Another customer came into the shop and approached the counter, so Katie stepped over. “Hi, how can I help you?”
While Katie was with the customer, Molly looked back toward Eli. He was no longer at the shelf she had seen him at before. She craned her neck to see him, but he was nowhere in sight.
But Lauren was. She walked through the shop, looking down every aisle like a predator stalking its prey. Molly’s eyes flicked to the office door, which had just opened as Eli stepped out. He had no idea what was about to happen.
Before she could stop herself, Molly rushed out from behind the counter and over to Eli, immediately slipping her arms around him. She rested her chin on his chest and stared up into his surprised eyes.
“She’s here,” Molly whispered.
Eli noticed Lauren as soon as Molly said it, so his arms immediately wrapped around her and he smiled down at her. “Thank you. I owe you one.”
Molly’s stomach did a somersault. “Anytime.”
Lauren approached them. “So I see you two are together.”
Molly released Eli and stepped to the side to face Lauren, keeping her arm wrapped around his waist. “Yeah, it’s hard to be professional in the workplace sometimes. I had to come give my man a hug.”
Eli gave her waist a squeeze. “Is there anything I can help you find, Lauren?”
Lauren looked him up and down and ran her tongue over her teeth suggestively. “Not at this time.”
Then she walked out of the store.
Molly stared after her, stunned. “That was…”
“Awkward?” Eli asked.
Molly only nodded. Her arm was still wrapped around his waist, and his was still around hers. She cleared her throat and stepped away from him. “I should get back to it.”
Eli’s eyes looked past her to the cafe before looking back at her. “Yeah. Thanks again.”
