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“Her mom’s not around anymore.” Nate’s voice dropped low. “She died earlier this year. That’s one of the reasons we came down here. To try and make a new start.” Another one. Which right now didn’t seem to be going any better than the last.
Ally’s voice was soft. “I’m so sorry. I swear I say stuff before I think it through sometimes.” She reached out and touched the top of his hand with her own. The shock of the contact made him feel jittery. “No wonder things are so tough for you both.”
Her hand felt warm and soft against his. He swallowed hard, trying to ignore the strange electric sensation shooting up his arm. He slowly pulled his own hand away, not sure whether or not he was relieved at breaking their contact.
He cleared his throat to try and get rid of the lump that was forming there. “Okay, then,” he said, trying to keep his voice even as he reached for a stainless steel jug. “Let’s try out a latte.”
6
“Have you got everything?” Nate asked, as Riley stomped down the hallway with her bag slung over her shoulder. She gave him a look that told him all he needed to know. Yes, she had everything, and no she didn’t appreciate him asking.
He took a deep breath. “I want you to come to the coffee shop after school,” he told her.
She frowned. “Why? You know I hate it there.”
“Because I want you where I can see you. Not hanging around at the beach or wherever else you’ve been for the past few days.”
She let out a huff. It was big enough for her shoulders to drop forward until her posture resembled that of a Neanderthal. “That’s so unfair. I have an assignment to do. I’ll come home and do it.”
“You can do your assignment at the coffee shop. I’ll save you a table.”
“Is this about last week? I only went to the beach for a moment. I was sick, remember? I needed fresh air.”
“You could have gotten fresh air by sitting on the deck,” Nate pointed out.
“But it’s not salty air, is it? Salty air is what I needed. All those kings and queens of England used to head to the beach whenever they felt ill. I saw it on the history channel.”
He still hadn’t gotten used to her having an answer for everything. He remembered the days when her eyes would widen as he told her how the earth revolved around the sun, or that stars were always out but you could only see them at night. Now she was so smart – smarter than he ever was at her age – and she liked to use it against him whenever she could.
“Well I don’t see a crown on your head, so I’ll see you at the coffee shop at three.” He raised an eyebrow. “I’ll make you a hot chocolate with all the trimmings.”
And there was the eye-roll, right on time. “I hate hot chocolate. And anyway, it’s like a hundred degrees out there, who wants hot chocolate when you can barely breathe?”
Nate bit his tongue even though it had only just got up to seventy degrees. Sometimes it wasn’t worth fighting back.
“Three o’clock,” he repeated.
Another huff and she was out of the door. Nate grabbed his bag and his car keys and followed right after her, heading for his Lexus.
“Hope the opening day goes well, Dad,” he said to himself, muttering as he unlocked the car. He was talking to himself again. Great. His descent into madness was almost complete.
* * *
“Is everybody ready?” Nate asked as he walked over to the door. Ally looked over at the team she’d spent the past few days training. Jeff was standing in the doorway to the kitchen, where the ovens were on full blast. She’d been surprised to learn that all the food was made on site at Déjà Brew, rather than being delivered every morning like so many other coffee shops. But then she was beginning to see how much attention to detail Nate put into his business. His success seemed well-earned.
In the days since he’d trained her on the coffee machine, he’d been friendly but reserved, and she’d taken his lead. It was better that way. She really didn’t need to be having feelings for the man who’d taken her beloved Beach Café away. It was hard enough that she was working here for him. Better to keep as much distance between them as possible, even if it was only in her head.
“We’re ready.” Ally nodded at him. They were expecting an influx of customers as soon as he opened the door, and she had four baristas hovering by the espresso machine ready to pick up the orders.
The opening day was the talk of Angel Sands, mostly thanks to the flyers that had been delivered everywhere, promising free drinks to the first two hundred customers.
A huge line had already formed outside Déjà Brew by the time Nate pulled the door wide open. He stepped back and the first customers swarmed in, rushing across the walnut floor to be the first at the register.
“What can I get you?” Ally asked, smiling at Frank Megassey. Of course he’d be the very first customer.
“A coffee?”
“Sure. What kind? They’re all up there on the board behind me.” She turned and pointed to the huge wooden board fixed to the back wall. “Would you like a latte, a cappuccino, or maybe a macchiato? That’s got chocolate syrup in it.”
