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“Where are you headed?” he asked.
I pointed over his shoulder. “Spill the Beans.”
“You could spill the beans,” he quipped with an exaggerated brow waggle.
I rolled my eyes. “There are no beans to spill, but I do need some coffee. Is that where you just were?”
He shook his head. “Nope. I was at the post office. I was going into the café, but I saw you and figured we could go together.”
“Fine,” I said too sharply.
He turned, falling into step beside me. “Fine? I think that means you don’t want to have coffee with me.”
“Of course, I want to have coffee with you. We would normally get coffee together a few times a week,” I pointed out as I glanced sideways at him.
“True, but I thought we were keeping things on the down low.”
“We’re keeping PDA on the down low. It’ll be weird if we act like we wouldn’t normally act,” I ground out.
He nudged me with his elbow. “Very true.”
Kenan held the door for me when we got to the front of the café. His hand lightly rested on my back as I passed by, coaxing me forward with a subtle touch. I was sure he had touched me that way before, but just now, the touch felt intimate.
A few minutes later, we had ordered. Haven was having coffee with Rhys at a table in the corner. She waved us over, just as Rosie came in.
Between my anxiety about my lying by omission with Kenan about my IVF plans and the furtive quality of our sneaking around, I was a bundle of nerves. Rhys and Kenan chatted about something related to work. I busied myself nibbling on a scone and sipping my coffee. At one point, Haven caught my eye. She smiled at me, but I sensed she was distracted.
Kenan’s palm was still resting on my thigh, and I shifted restlessly. I didn’t think he was paying attention, but he moved his hand back and forth in a soothing caress. My heart twisted in my chest. I already cared way too much about Kenan. If anyone had asked me before this whole thing started with us, I would’ve said I loved him like a friend. He was one of the most important people in my life, the person I thought to call first about anything big or small.
Now, that sense of love was deepening and tangling within the intimacy and passion I felt with him. I took a quick swallow of coffee. The cheery bell jingled above the door, and I reflexively glanced over to see McKenna coming in. She waved over at us as her gaze arced about the space.Great, just freaking great, one more person.
With everyone we encountered, I worried about who might catch onto what had changed between Kenan and me. Only moments later, McKenna stood beside our table. It just so happened she stopped beside me. I felt her gaze dip down and land on Kenan’s palm resting on my thigh. Heat flashed into my cheeks, and I refused to look up at her, studying my coffee. I wanted to knock his hand away, but that would only draw more attention.
“Have you shown them?” McKenna asked Haven.
“Shown us what?” Kenan prompted.
Haven grinned as she slipped her phone out of her purse and tapped the screen to open it. She handed her phone to Rhys first.
“Why does he get to see first?” Kenan teased.
Rhys glanced over. “Because.”
McKenna chuckled. “Because they’re in love.” She looked around the café before her eyes came back to mine. “It’s the new design. We’re redoing all the signage for Fireweed Industries, including the winery.”
“Is that the surprise?” Rhys asked as he looked at Haven.
She waggled her brows. “Absolutely, but I didn’t want to show you until McKenna and I settled on something. What do you think?”
“I love it,” Rhys said as he handed her phone back to her.
“Of course you love it. You’re whipped,” Kenan grumbled from my side.
“Let me see.” I shifted, deftly knocking Kenan’s palm off my knee with one hand as I reached across the table with the other.
I glanced at the screen as Haven handed her phone to me. “Oh, this is perfect!” I exclaimed.
“This is just for the main business,” she said.
