“Yes, ma’am.”
We walked into the bustling bookstore, and I smiled at the twinkle in Kaia’s eyes. She loved the bookstore and I was so damn proud of her. I never grew bored of seeing her at work, which was why I was there so much instead of working from home.
Before we got our drinks, Drea came up to greet us, signing while speaking. “Hey, lovely ladies! How’s it going today?”
I smiled and waved. “It’s good. Just getting this one out of the house. We came for Rylee’s famous hot chocolate.”
She grinned. “It is delicious. Oh, Kaia, the construction team is here, if you want to go back and talk to them? See what’s going on?”
Kaia looked at me and back to Drea. “Oh. That’s okay. Maybe another time.”
I tapped her shoulder and frowned. “Kai, go ahead. I’ll be fine. I’ll browse the store or something. This is important.” I pushed her away and toward the back without another word. Drea chuckled and I wondered why Kaia scowled at her. I ignored it and made my way around the store. I already knew every book they had, but I still liked to look at them.
I found a book that I’d read on my e-reader, but I wanted the physical trophy for my shelves, so I headed to the counter where Drea was checking out a customer.
She smiled at me when I walked up. “Is this all?” she asked.
I nodded, about to thank her, when I looked behind her.
Kaia came out of her office with someone from the construction company, by the looks of her outfit. She wore gray carpenter pants and a tight white T-shirt with the sleeves rolled up twice and tan work boots. She didn’t wear a vest, so I assumed she was only visiting.
They were smiling and laughing, and I wondered if she knew her. I’d never seen her before, and Kaia had never mentioned someone who looked like that.
Short dark hair, tattoos, and the most toned arms I’d ever seen. Thoughts of Kaia being lifted by those arms and pinned against a wall flooded my mind, and I jumped when Drea nudged my shoulder. I rubbed the sweat from my hands and turned to face her.
“You all right?”
I nodded and turned to face Kaia and the stranger. I tried to put ona polite smile, but with the way Kaia stared at me, I feared I looked constipated. What was wrong with me? So what if that was her type? Good for her. It wasn’t any of my business.
“Daisy, this is Veronica. She’s the head of the construction team Drea hired for my office. She was just showing me what they’ve done so far.” She turned to Veronica, who waved.
I was surprised when she started signing back. “It’s nice to meet you, Daisy. You can call me Vera. No one calls me Veronica except my abuela when I’m in trouble.” She smiled, and I was taken aback. She was more polite than her appearance made her out to be, and I kind of felt like an ass. I just hoped she treated Kaia well.
“My little cousin is deaf, so I’ve picked up the very basics. I’m a really great speller. I’ve got to head out, but it was so nice to meet you, Daisy. You ladies enjoy your date. Kaia told me you’re going to a farmers market. That sounds like fun.” She said something to Drea, who followed her to the back.
I turned to Kaia, who had dropped her smile. “I didn’t tell her it was a date. Let me go back and correct her.”
She turned around, but I stopped her. “No worries. It is kind of a date. A best friend date.”
I couldn’t read her expression. She was smiling, but it looked like the effort took every muscle in her face, and the look in her eyes was almost sad. “Yeah, totally.”
“Speaking of date, you two looked real chummy.” I wiggled my eyebrows.
“Who, Vera? Uh, not really. I’ve only met her a few times. Don’t give me that look. She’s not my type.”
The knot in my stomach loosened slightly, but I played it off as if I wasn’t relieved to find out Vera wasn’t her type. It shouldn’t have mattered to me anyway.
“What? Not your type? So your type isn’t a hot woman who looks like she could give you an orgasm with just a twitch of her arm muscle?”
She shook her head. Other than the slight blush across her cheeks, she didn’t seem fazed by my observation. “No, it’s not. She’s hot, that’s for sure. But I like my women… softer. She seems a little intimidating. Like a more butch version of Drea.”
I laughed. “Yeah, I can’t argue with that. Shall we get out of here and head to the market? We don’t have to stay long.”
She nodded. “Of course. I’m in no rush. You got me out, and now that I’m away from the house, I’m going along for the ride.” She linked her arm in mine, and we headed out the door.
The farmers market was unsurprisingly busy. I was thankful we were able to leave our car at the bookstore and didn’t have to worry about finding parking. Duke didn’t complain about the extra walking, either.
“What’s the first stop? Do you have anything specific you need, or are we just perusing?” Kaia asked once we stopped to give Duke some water.
