My beta fish, Stuart, swims up to the glass as I step into the kitchen, fixing me with what I choose to interpret as a judgmental look.
“Hey,” I tell him, dropping my keys on the counter. “Don’t start.”
He doesn’t move. Just stares.
I glance back toward the door, then shake my head a little. “Walking Glynys’s dog for her…” I murmur. “Maybe we misjudged our brooding neighbor, Stuart.”
A meow sounds from across the room—sharp, demanding, right on cue.
“Relax, if you keep that up, I’ll have him walking you next.” I pause, then add under my breath, “A girl can wish.”
The thought lingers longer than it should. He said maybe three sentences to me. That’s it.
It was one elevator ride. One moment that should not matter as much as it does.
But it does. Because I don’t just have a crush. I have a problem.
And his name is Nathan.
Chapter 2
Ella
Every morning, I walk the same route to the bakery. Down the block, past the corner florist that never opens on time, and then by the little bus stop across from the pier. I always slow down there, not for the bus, but for the view. The water is calm this time of day, and the boards along the pier are still empty before the tourists arrive. When the fair rolls into town once a year, the whole place lights up. From my spot on the sidewalk, I can see the Ferris wheel rising behind the trees, and for a second, I always feel stupidly lucky thatCup & Cakesits tucked right across from all of it. It’s become part of my routine to take that tiny pause before starting my day, a quiet moment to breathe before the ovens and chaos kick in.
"Ella!" Ashton waves wildly from behind the counter as I stumble into the bakery, still half-asleep.
I need at least six shots of espresso. As luck would have it, I didnotget the life-changing sleep I promised myself last night.
Instead, I slept badly. The kind of sleep where your brain stitches together anxiety and nonsense and calls it a story.
Nathan was in one of them. So was my beta fish. So was Anna Kendrick drinking a martini, for reasons I don’t quite understand.
I woke up more tired than when I went to bed.
It was...like my brain was trying to make sense of the last twenty-four hours and failing miserably. At least give me Anna’s martini in the nightmare. It’s only fair if it’s my brain.
He technically did speak to me.
To tell me I had flour on my face.
I should count that as a win…right? I shake my head. Honestly, I’m surprised I didn’t have a full-blown nervous breakdown in that elevator.
“Helloooo?” Ashton waves a hand in front of my face. “Your mouth has been open for the past minute, and you’ve been staring at the bumblebee cookie in a way I’m not entirely sure I’m comfortable with.”
I snap out of it. “Sorry, weird night, slightly terrifying and embarrassing.” I give her a look. “The elevator got stuck.”
She pales and covers her face, then pulls her hands down with a wince. “Noooooo.”
I grab one of the sample chocolate chip cookies from the front counter and take a bite. “6B AKA Nathan Reignwas in the elevator with me.”
“Ohhh, 6B has a name. I take it back. Yessss…so how was it… did you finally talk…make it to second base?”
“He asked me if I like horses.”
Ashton shoots me a look. “Kind of a lame opener if I’m being honest.”
I shoot her a look back.
