Page 14 of Apparently, I’m Torture

“Okay, got it. And Karim went home already?”

Karim was who Tristan had hired to replace Lilly. The kid was nice enough, even if he was a bit skittish. I couldn’t wait for him to be here when Nikki came around. I could only imagine what his reaction would be when Tristan’s wife, the take-no-shit criminal defense lawyer, noticed him.

Tristan nodded. “I couldn’t keep him waiting anymore.”

As I turned to look back at the door, a few customers milled in with weary, late-afternoon workday stress weighing down their shoulders.

I tilted my chin toward them and said, “It’s just a handful. You and Uncle Henry should take a break; we can look after them.”

He opened his mouth to say something, looked at Uncle Henry, then changed his mind. They both nodded and went to the backroom with grumbles that sounded a lot like thanks.

Before the first customer ambled to our counter, I asked Lilly, “Done being mad at me?” over my shoulder.

She hmphed and moved into my line of sight. “I never said I was mad at you, I’m just frustrated. I don’t get why it was such a big deal for you to go on a date with Stacey. She’s the president of my sorority. You couldn’t do me a solid?”

I shook my head and clamped my jaw tight. This again. “Lil, I’d do almost anything for you, you know that. But I’m not a man-whore and you’re not my pimp, okay? I don’t want to date Stacey.”

The customers reached the counter, and I was behind our machine. Lilly took orders and passed me receipts between handing food and pastries over the glass divider.

“Okay… you’re right. I’m sorry I’ve been pushing so hard. I just really thought it’d work, you know? She’s exactly your type. I thought you guys would hit it off.”

My type. Oh, the damn irony.

When I first met Lilly, I would’ve given my left arm for a date with Stacey. She had the height and body tone of a runway model, with cheekbones so sharp she could’ve cut me with them. But she wasn’t what I was into anymore. No other woman was.

My body only responded to Lilly. Even now, the closer she got, the more my muscles tightened. I wasn’t used to wanting something this badly, and it was unbearable.

Every day, Lilly worked next to me, her body inches from mine as we made coffee together. She was right there, right there; something I could see, smell, hear. And I couldn’t touch her. I couldn’t taste her. I couldn’t have her.

It was killing me.

“I don’t know what to tell you,” I muttered. “She isn’t my type anymore.”

“Really?” She let out a short burst of laughter as she pulled a warm muffin from the microwave and mumbled, “I don’t believe it.”

After bagging and handing over the baked good, she folded her arms and leaned her hip on the counter. I could feel her stare on the side of my face. She might as well have been poking me.

“What?”

“What kind of girl is your type then?” she asked, a playful smile spreading across her lips.

I tried to play off her question with a shrug.

“I don’t really know right now. I’m focused on graduating, you know? Maybe you should give the meddling a break and focus on that too.”

Her eyes widened and she dropped her hands to the side, groaning.

“What? What did I say?”

Tristan shuffled out of the backroom and asked, “What’s going on?” as he scanned his shop for anything out of place.

“Nothing,” Lilly answered. “I just remembered Mia’s assignment. I promised I’d help her research this weekend.”

I tried not to roll my eyes. “Lil, forget about Mia.”

“I have to help these other Kappas with their psych presentation on Monday–”

“You’ve got an exam to focus on,” I said, sweeping my glance over her.