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CHAPTER 12
“Hey, pretty girl.”
Addisyn knew the voice—of course. It was the same one that lurked around the corners of her mind, weaving itself through her subconscious. The warm, gentle tenor she was somehow constantly expecting—or was it hoping?—to hear.
She tossed a mischievous smile over her shoulder. “Hello, sir.” She cocked her head to one side, allowing the morning sunshine to spill over her face. “You looking for a latte?”
Darius grinned, taking the easy teasing in stride. “Something much better.” He leaned lazily against the counter, watching her as she poured steamed milk into the urn.
“Something better? Only thing better than a latte is a mocha.” Something—probably the heat from the milk—was making her cheeks flush.
“Maybe.” His West Coast accent was truly adorable. “But it seems I ain’t seen mocha you lately.”
“Darius!” She couldn’t help laughing at the awkward wordplay.
“C’mon, girl, you know we need to hang out.” He stretched his forearms on the counter.
“Well, yeah, I guess so.” She accidentally clinked a glass milk jar against the side of the urn. Why was she always so clumsy around Darius?
“What time you get off work today?” He rested his chin in his palm, watching her make his coffee.
Addisyn concentrated incredibly hard on grinding the beans. “One thirty.”
“Great.” His leisurely grin sprawled across his face like a splash of sunshine. “I’ll be at your hotel door to pick you up at two thirty.”
Addisyn narrowed her eyes. “Wait, where are we going?” She slipped a cardboard sleeve on Darius’s cup and slid it across the counter to him.
“Ah, now that’s for me to know and you to find out. Just—wear warm clothes. And good shoes.”
“Good shoes?” Addisyn wrinkled her forehead.
“Well, good from a guy’s point of view. Hiking boots, or something.”
“Okay...” Addisyn would have preferred more details, but from the teasing glint in her friend’s eyes, she wasn’t going to get any. “All right.” She held up her hands in mock surrender. “I’ll see you at two thirty.”
“Good deal.” He remained standing at the counter, as though hesitant to leave. Addisyn found herself slowing down too. She paused to look at him, at the angles of his face, the way he tipped his head slightly to one side. He was so...
“Uh...” He gave a nervous chuckle. “Uh, Miss Barista, I need a lid...”
Good grief! She’d given him a Cuban in a travel cup with no lid. Addisyn could feel the pink staining her cheeks. There was that absent-mindedness around him again. She was determined not to analyze her reaction. “Sorry.” She nabbed a paper-wrapped straw from a nearby container and handed it to him, being careful not to brush his fingertips with her own.
“Thank you much. See ya.” He raised the mocha slightly as if in salute, then headed for the exit.
As the door closed behind him, Chelsea wandered up to the counter and sighed dramatically. “Good-lookin’ and sweet-talkin’. Girlfriend, you’ve got yourself one dreamboat guy.”
The comment was as irritating as a scratchy wool sweater. Addisyn gritted her teeth. “He’s not my guy!” She swiped her cleaning rag into the stack of foam cups so hard that they tumbled to the floor. Great.
Chelsea just raised her eyebrows and bent to help tidy the mess—the most recent instance of Addisyn’s fumbling whenever Darius was mentioned. “Says you.”
Five minutes later the shop was restored to order, Chelsea was happily waiting tables, and Addisyn was busy creating an iced tea for a young girl. As she clattered ice cubes into the plastic cup, she thought about Chelsea’s remarks.
Addisyn wasn’t stupid—not naïve like Avery. In fact, she flattered herself that she was fairly self-aware. And right now, her self-awareness was reminding her that no matter how attractive Darius could be at times, he wasn’t her brand of Prince Charming. His long hair and plaid flannel shirts contrasted with everything Brian represented—glittering wealth and aggressive confidence and perfect poise. A wry grin twisted the corner of her mouth, and she glanced at Chelsea, scribbling something on her notepad. Now if Brian walked into the shop and swept her off her feet, that nosy girl would have something to talk about for days.
No, she decided as she snapped a lid on the woman’s drink, making sure the string of the tea bag dangled on the outside of the cup, Darius was not her boyfriend. Nor did she feel in the least inclined to swoon over him romantically as Chelsea did. But she was still drawn to him—mostly because she genuinely enjoyed his company. She remembered the heart-pounding passion that Brian had evoked in her younger self. He’d collided with her world and shattered it all to pieces. She experienced none of those sensations with Darius. But he was funny and kind and held her soul with gentle hands. Why couldn’t that be enough?
“Excuse me, ma’am?” Addisyn glanced back toward her customer, who had apparently just tasted her tea. She took another tiny sip, and her mouth puckered almost unconsciously. “Did you—put sugar in this?”
If I don’t stop thinking about Darius,Addisyn admonished herself as she apologized to the young woman,I’m going to get myself fired!
