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Suddenly, he seemed nervous and twitchy, unable to sit still. He scanned the dining area and rose with such a start, I jumped.
“I’m sorry. Umm, give me a minute, and I’ll be right back. I just need…”
I didn’t get to say anything further. I couldn’t – he bolted to the office behind the counter.
What was going on?
Chapter Four
Why was it that whenever a lady cried, the men suddenly felt uncomfortable and needed to escape? All my life I’ve never understood that.
Drying my eyes, I waited over an hour for Carter to return to a visible position within his store, but despite the uptick in customers, he never appeared. I’d even inquired to Harry who said he was taking care of business and didn’t expand further. Still, it was weird, and it left a bitter taste in my mouth.
A variety of customers came in and left, although some stayed for a brief time. It was interesting to watch and study the dynamics of it all. It was the one thing I’d been good at with Baker-Bloom, seeing the big picture after breaking it down into smaller pieces.
But it was the overheard conversation that started ideas rolling. A customer pointed out how the Coffee Loft never did fun promotions like the other places in town and rarely had deals. It was too bad, she said, because this place was charming and had so much appeal, and a huge promo would be a boon for the place.
I couldn’t help but agree. The shop was steady, and not busy, but it had more downtime than up. The financials had to be enough to keep the place afloat, but what if it got a healthy boost? What if it became the spot to go when passing through?
Whenever I ventured to Banff, there was one spot I just had to stop at in Canmore. It was always factored into my schedule, as the place was bustling and the wait times just to order the fresh bagels were always twenty to thirty minutes long. The Coffee Loft could be similar. If that was what Carter wanted. Except, I didn’t see him again so I could even ask.
Tired of waiting, I stopped my endless searching of both the internet and the store and called it a day. I paid my bill, and after one final glance, I scanned the nooks and crannies for him, but like vapor, he’d disappeared. As did I.
* * *
“Oh my goodness, you went back?” Amanda asked as she sliced into her filet of salmon.
“You think that’s wrong?” I took a sip of my water.
I would’ve preferred a nice glass of chardonnay to compliment the meal, but with my lack of income padding my lacklustre bank account, I needed to cut back somewhere. As it was, my two trips to the Coffee Loft had taken a chunk of disposable income away.
Amanda sized me up with her big, brown, doe-eyed look. “On the contrary, I think it’s adorable. Did you do it out of guilt or out of something more?”
“Oh, it was guilt.”
She lifted her fork and paused before she took a bite, raising her brow just enough to let me know she knew me better and just wanted me to vocalize it.
“Fine,” I shrugged, looking over her shoulder at the busboy as he cleaned a nearby table. “It was both.”
“Ooh. I like the idea of something more. A rebound. Someone to make you find the spark in life again.”
“I have spark, Amanda.” I did. It just needed a bit of polishing.
“Of course, you do. You just keep it under lock and key and never let it out. Not even when someone begs.” She stuffed her mouth with a forkful of food.
“Not true.”
“Really?” She swallowed and chased it with a quick sip of wine. “What was the last romantic thing you and Gerry did together? What was the last thing he did for you that made the butterflies come alive?”
Gerry was the quintessential romantic, or at least he had been when we first started dating; all flowers and mini-impromptu dates. However, Amanda had a point.
“But I don’t recall ever feeling butterflies around him, he was just Gerry. A great guy. The type who gave me my space when I needed it, and was just there when I needed to share space with another person.”
“Do you hear yourself when you talk?” Her eyes widened as she set her fork to the side of her plate and leaned on her forearms.
“Of course, why?”
“Gerry wasn’t a boyfriend to you or for you. He was just there like a work friend you hang out with because you have no choice. No wonder he broke up with you.”
