Page 6 of Safe Place

I nod. “Yeah. I want to be knowledgeable. Be able to protect myself.” I pause, realizing how that sounds. “I mean—protect people. Like, people who might need protecting. From the law. Or…with it. I don’t know if that makes sense.”

I must sound like an idiot.

“I’m sure you’ll make a great…protector,” Micah says with a low chuckle. It’s quiet but not mocking. Somehow, it puts me at ease. A little.

“Guess it fits,” he adds. “You’ve probably rescued a hundred half-asleep students with coffee already. How long have you worked at Boston Brews?”

“Since freshman year, so last fall,” I say. “They even offered me an assistant manager position last week, but I turned it down. Too many hours, too much responsibility.”

“Wow. And you never noticed me? I’m a regular customer there.”

I give a small shrug. “It gets busy. A lot of faces come through.”

“Yeah, but how many devastatingly handsome faces?”

I bite back a smile. “Plenty. But devastatingly handsome and modest? Zero.”

He laughs, low and easy.

I glance back at the window, my cheeks warm. Smooth, Sophie. Real smooth.

MICAH

We pull up to the student center, and Sophie unclips her seatbelt with that same quiet carefulness she’s had all day.

“Thank you so much for the ride, Micah. I really appreciate it,” she says, her voice soft but genuine. “I owe you one. I’ll see you in class Wednesday.”

She flashes a small smile before stepping out and closing the door gently behind her. I watch her walk up the steps and disappear through the glass doors.

But something about her lingers. It’s not just how tired she looked, though that alone would’ve gotten to me. There’s something else. The faint rose and honey scent she left behind still hangs in the car, reminding me she was just here. Maybe it’s because I’ve never met anyone who works two jobs. Or maybe I’m just caught on how different her life is from mine. She didn’t even seem to realize I live at The Haven at Vale because my name is Micah Vale. It’s kind of funny, actually—kind of cute—that she didn’t catch it.

I glance at the clock on the dashboard. Her interview probably won’t take more than thirty minutes, right?

Maybe she lives near the cafe. Which means she could live near me. And she’s planning to walk in a sweatshirt, under the sun, after working a full shift and interviewing for another job?

I tap my hands against the steering wheel, debating. I should head back up. Get some reading done. Check in with Grant. Hell, Hailey’s probably already texting again. I make a mental note to end things with her.

But I don’t move. I haven’t even looked at my phone since I stepped into the cafe to get Sophie.

Instead, I shift the car into park and lean back in the seat. I can't remember the last time my day didn't go exactly according to my calendar. And I’m not complaining.

I should leave. I don’t wait around for anyone. I don’t rearrange my day for someone I met in the morning.

This is stupid.

And I’m the idiot, still not moving.

I don’t know why I’m doing this. Maybe it’s the way she looked earlier—like she couldn’t get a word out. Or the way she said she liked walking, like it wasn’t a lie I could hear from a mile away.

Whatever it is, I stay and I wait.

Some time passes. I’m zoning out, watching people come and go on the sidewalk while my brain replays the dozen unfinished projects my dad dumped on me this morning. Then a familiar name lights up my screen.

Hailey

Everything okay? Why are you ignoring me?

Micah.