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Chapter Four
Another week,another to-do list. I was back at the café tweaking a draft of an article when I happened to look up and see who was next in line to order.
“Iced dirty marshmallow chai with three shots of espresso, please,” Esme said. Tabitha was running things while Blue was on their break. Sonny puttered around clearing up the dishes with earbuds blasting something extremely loud.
It was weird seeing Esme outside of the restaurant context. Sure, I did see her other places, but not very often. I got the feeling she worked a lot of hours.
“Sure thing, hon,” Tabitha said, snapping her fingers at Sonny to wipe down a table in the back.
Esme leaned against the counter. “Oh, and one of the cherry turnovers, if you have any left.”
I watched her over the top of my laptop. Her gauzy sundress swirled when the door opened and someone new walked in. Not something she’d wear at the bar, that was for sure. It was her signature black, though. The only other color I’d seen her in was dark purple.
So entranced with watching Esme wait for her order, I didn’t see when a group of tourists piled in behind her, claiming every single available table. Tabitha handed Esme her drink and turnover and suddenly there was only one seat left: At my table. I forced my face into something that I hoped looked like deep concentration as I stared at my laptop screen.
“Hey, is this seat taken?” she asked. I looked up and stopped breathing for a second. Wow. She wore dark makeup around her eyes, but it totally worked on her. I would look like a weird goth clown. She looked like a fallen angel. Ready to sin.
“No, yes, I mean, sure,” I said, which didn’t really answer her question. Instead I just pushed the chair out with my foot. That was a clear enough signal.
“Thanks, Paige,” she said. I knew who she was. She knew who I was. Still, hearing my name come from her mouth was both startling and… kind of hot.
“You’re welcome,” I said. This was the second time she’d surprised me, and I wasn’t dressed that cute today either. Unless you counted a tank top that referenced one of my favorite TV shows and my favorite baggy linen pants so I didn’t sweat too much. The café didn’t have air conditioning, so the only moving air was from fans and sometimes opening the front and back doors.
I’d picked out the outfit that I’d planned to wear to the bar when I put my seduction plan in action: A white silk top that made my chest look amazing, and a black skirt that somehow made my legs look longer than they were. Esme would have been swept off her feet by my effortless coolness. That had been the plan, but alas, the plan was in the trash now. Could I get a do-over?
Esme looked down at her turnover and then up at me. “Are you working? I don’t want to distract you.” Her very presence was distracting. There was no working with her sitting there, so close that our feet kept bumping into each other every time I fidgeted because she made me so nervous.
“I mean, sort of. Not really. I was just about to take a break,” I lied.
Esme broke off a corner of her turnover and popped it in her mouth. Her lipstick today was so red that I couldn’t stop looking at her mouth and that pop of color.
She smiled. “Look, I wanted to apologize for the whole Wyatt drink thing.” I was wondering when that was going to come up.
“It’s fine,” I said, even though it wasn’t fine.
“No, it was an asshole thing to do and he made me participate. I hope you liked the drink at least?”
I nodded, hopefully not too enthusiastically. “Yeah, it was amazing. I’d never had one before.”
She tore off another bite of turnover. “I’ll make you one, anytime.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“Want some?” she said, after a few moments of silence as I stared at her and tried to figure out what to say.
“Yeah, sure.” I would have taken a piece of gum she’d pulled off the underside of the table. Our fingers brushed as she handed me a bit of the flaky turnover. Crumbs dusted my laptop, but that was why I had a cover on my keyboard.
“You off work today?” I asked, after devouring the bite and wiping my mouth and hoping I’d caught all the crumbs.
Esme sighed and sat back in her chair. “Yeah, I took a mental health day. We all need those, you know?”
I was familiar with the concept, but I rarely gave myself days off. Breaks, yes. But entire days? I needed to learn her ways.
The sound in the café grew louder as more and more people walked in.
“What the hell is going on?” I asked, looking around at the crowd. You could barely move now, there were so many people standing around.
“It’s the Summer Daze Sale,” she said. Right. I’d forgotten about that. Several of the local businesses got together for a mid-summer push, which meant lots of discounts and activities in town, and tons of tourists wandering about and being generally annoying.
