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Oh God, this time she’d really embarrassed herself. No wonder he pulled away, he must have seen the way she was staring at him. Gritting her teeth, Ally stood and walked around the counter, tightening her apron as she made her way to the imposing espresso machine. She felt better with a few feet between them – enough space to be able to breathe. She swallowed hard and told herself to stop being so weird. He was her boss. That was all. Maybe she should behave like an adult without embarrassing herself for once.
“Wish me luck,” she said, still not looking at him. She had a feeling she was going to need it.
* * *
Nate watched as Ally pulled the porta filter from the machine and slid it beneath the coffee dispenser the way he’d shown her. There was at least four feet between them right now, he’d made sure to hang back as far as he could, but right then it didn’t seem far enough.
He felt an overwhelming urge to touch her. He had to hold tightly to the counter to stop himself from doing it.
Christ. He blew out a mouthful of air and took a step back. Best to keep the distance between them. He was her boss, for God’s sake.
Not to mention old enough to be her father. Or a much older brother, at least. Somehow that didn’t make it feel any better.
Ally pushed the filter back into the machine and pressed the button. But instead of forcing the water through the coffee grounds, the steam pushed the filter off where Ally hadn’t fixed it on properly, and coffee grounds flew everywhere. “Oh shit.” She grabbed a wet cloth and wiped it all down, glancing over at Nate with a rueful smile.
“It’s okay,” he said, glad of the diversion. “It happens. Try again.”
This time the coffee came out when she hit the button, filling the little glass cup with dark liquid. She glanced at her watch and then at the cup before picking it up and carrying it over to him. “You have twenty seconds before it’s no good,” she told him.
He lifted it up, inspecting it. “Three layers,” he murmured. Then he brought it to his lips and drank from the cup, letting the
warm, nutty flavor envelope his tongue.
Her eyes were full of anticipation as she waited for his verdict, the same way Riley used to look when she was a kid, holding a drawing out for his inspection. “It’s good,” he told her.
“Really?” she asked. “You like it?” Her lips curled up into a huge grin, and she clapped her hands together with delight.
“Yeah. I think you’ve got the hang of espresso. Now let’s move on to the steamed milk. I’ll show you the difference between cappuccinos, lattes, and flat whites.”
“This is so much more fun than I thought it would be,” she told him, that smile still curling her full lips.
She was right. In spite of the need that was thrumming in his veins, he realized he was having more fun than he’d experienced in a long while. “I don’t get a chance to use the machines very often,” he admitted. “Normally the only equipment I spend my day on is the laptop. I’ve missed doing this.” Back when he’d had his first coffee shop, Nate had spent most of his life attached to an espresso machine, but it had been years since he’d done more than have a little play with them.
“I guess that’s what happens when you rise to the top. You stop doing the thing you actually love and get to watch all your employees do it instead.”
“Yep. You’re not wrong.” A wistful expression crossed his face.
“Maybe it’s a good thing you came to Angel Sands, then,” Ally said. “You can relax and have fun for a change.”
The corner of his lip quirked up. “Yeah, maybe.”
Ally took the cup back from him and turned around to rinse it. Nate watched as she bent over to turn on the faucet, her blonde hair flowing over her shoulders. “I met your daughter the other day,” she said, her back still to him. “She seems nice. Is she settling in okay?”
“You met Riley?” Nate blinked. For some reason her words pushed him off center. “Where?”
Ally turned back, grabbing a towel to dry off her hands. “At the beach. It was last Wednesday, I think. I was on my lunchtime run.”
Wednesday. That was the day he’d brought her home sick, and left her in her bedroom while he ran back to the coffee shop to meet with the building inspector. He frowned. “She told me she wasn’t feeling well.”
Ally grimaced. “Ouch. And I just ratted her out. So much for the sisterhood.”
Nate sighed. “Don’t worry. She’s done much worse.”
Ally wrinkled her nose. “Is it really that bad?” Her eyes were full of understanding. “If it makes you feel any better, I was a pretty painful teenager. I’m surprised my dad stuck around as long as he did. I made his life a misery.”
“You know what? That does make me feel a bit better.”
Ally raised an eyebrow. “Hopefully things will improve soon. Is she any better for her mom?”
