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EMILE
“All right, you lovebirds.”
Emile heard Laura before he saw her, which was often the case with Kate’s best friend.
“Hey, Laura.” Kate smiled as Laura came in for a hug.
Kate looked positively radiant tonight. Emile had spent a lot of time at fancy functions and around people with a lot of money, who dressed in gowns and jewels or had expensive blow-drys and the latest designer fashion. But Kate, sitting on a stool at the Cactus after a long shift at the cafe, her hair still in a messy ponytail on top of her head, just in jeans and a T-shirt, a beer in her hand, was more beautiful than anyone he’d ever seen.
“I’ve barely seen you for weeks, girl!” Laura protested, giving Emile a mock glare. “You’ve been keeping her from me.”
“I would never. I know where her heart truly lies.” Emile couldn’t help his own smile. The two of them had been wrapped up in each other ever since their hiking date. If he thought they’d barely left the apartment before, it was nothing compared to now. They raced up the stairs at the end of their shift, and he thought they’d probably had sex on every surface available by this point.
It wasn’t just the sex, though, incredible as it was. They also stayed up all night talking. Watching more of the movies that Emile had missed out on. Kate had taught him to cook a few more dishes; it turned out that he was actually quite good at baking, although cracking eggs was still a bit of a hit-and-miss activity. They’d relaxed their rules at the cafe, too, which meant he could steal a kiss or give Kate’s backside an affectionate slap throughout the day, rather than just pretending that he didn’t want to have his hands on her constantly.
Once the initial teasing and I-told-you-so’s had calmed down, the people of Miller Springs had just accepted the relationship as part of the fabric of their life, like it had been inevitable. Maybe it had been. There was certainly something about his relationship with Kate that felt a little like fate. Of all the cafes in all the world, he’d walked into hers.
“I’m sorry, Laura. I’ve just been busy.”
“I’ll bet you have,” Laura shot back, giving Emile a wink that made him laugh.
“Not like that,” Kate protested.
“Hey!” Emile interjected.
“Okay, notjustlike that.”
“Thank you. I don’t want the people of this town questioning my prowess.”
He drank the last dregs of his own beer, disguising a grin as Kate rolled her eyes at him.
“I’ve been working on plans for the community hub, too.”
Over the past few weeks, Emile had encouraged Kate to talk more about her plans for a community hub at the cafe. It was a great idea and he knew the people of Miller Springs would be behind it. He was secretly hoping that if Kate talked about it enough, someone would surprise them with the solution on how to make it happen, but even if that didn’t happen, he watched her confidence grow as more and more people learned about the idea and gave their support.
“Well, I miss you,” Laura said. “Can I join you for a drink now?”
Emile was about to agree when Kate checked her watch, giving a little grimace.
“We should really get back. We’ve got to open the cafe in the morning.”
“Hey, you stay with Laura,” Emile said. “I can handle the cafe.”
Kate’s face lit up with another beaming smile. “Really?”
“Of course. I know the drill now. You can trust me.”
He loved that he could say that and believe it to be true. She could trust him. He did know what to do. It was a liberating feeling, to know that you were competent enough to be able to help someone else. He’d never really had that before. He’d only ever been a nuisance in Charcieux.
“Okay. Thank you.”
He stood up from the stool and bent down to kiss her, feeling her melt against him. He regretted his choice slightly, as he said his goodbyes and walked away; it would have definitely been a good end of the evening to have her naked underneath him instead. But when he looked back and saw her chatting animatedly with Laura, he felt a swell of pride that he’d been able to give her this time with her friend. She had given him so much over the past few months, it was nice to be able to give her something back.
When he unlocked the apartment, the door snagged on something as he pushed it open. Bending down, he picked up an envelope and his heart immediately started racing. This wasn’t regular mail. No, the paper was thick and clearly expensive, the address inked in beautiful cursive letters and the envelope covered in stamps. He knew what this was. It was the letter he’d been waiting for.
His hand was shaking as he opened the envelope, peeling away the wax seal at the back with the royal crest that he was so familiar with. It had adorned his crib as a child, for God’s sake. Did he really want to open this? Did he want to know what was inside?
He paused, trying to steady his nerves. The apartment was dark but it was peaceful and comfortable. Familiar, now. More of a home than the palace had ever been.
