“Apparently, that’s Jace Steele. Knox’s friend. Human foghorn. Possibly possessed.”
Dee snorts. “He makes Maya look subtle.”
“Don’t let her hear you say that,” I murmur with a half-smile. “I’m pretty sure she’s got eyes in the walls.”
Dee nudges me gently. “You okay?”
I hesitate. “I don’t know. I’m tired. And I feel like everyone suddenly has a front row seat to my personal life, and I didn’t even get to write the damn script.”
She studies me for a beat, her dark eyes soft. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not really,” I admit. “But I do need coffee. A lot of it.”
“Well, then,” she says, looping her arm through mine. “Let’s go get caffeinated.”
We walk down Main Street in companionable silence, the kind I’ve always appreciated with Dee. She doesn’t push, doesn’t fill every pause. Justis. And right now, that’s what I need. We turn the corner and head toward the restaurant.
I know we could get coffee elsewhere, but I just wantmydrink.
As soon as we step inside, I spot Nova behind the counter, adjusting a flower arrangement like it personally offended her. Her hair’s up in a loose knot, her sleeves rolled to the elbows, a pencil tucked behind one ear.
She looks up when she sees us, and, someone help me, the shift in her expression is immediate.
Dee stiffens beside me.
Nova’s whole face lights up.
“Oh hey,” she says casually, like her voice didn’t just go all soft and smoky. “Didn’t know you were stopping by.”
Dee clears her throat. “Uh, yeah. I’m getting coffee with Josie before she starts work.”
Nova gestures toward the bar area. “I just made a fresh pot of the hazelnut blend you like.”
Dee blinks. “You remembered that?”
When did they evendiscussthat?
Have I been so wrapped up in my own messy story that I haven’t seen something unraveling under my very nose?
I dart my eyes between the pair of them.
Nova shrugs, but she’s smiling now,reallysmiling, like her insides just cracked open. “Of course.”
I step toward the counter to give them space, under the guise of looking for Knox.
Not that I even know what I’d say if I found him. But some reckless part of me keeps hoping he’ll look at me the way Nova just looked at Dee. Like there’s no one else. Like maybe there’s still a real chance, and this isn’t just casual hook-ups between us.
Dee, who always plays it cool. Nova, who’s the definition of composed. And yet, thevibebetween them could melt the ice off Mount Rainier. It’s subtle, but it’s there. The quiet little lean of Dee’s shoulders. The way Nova tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, and won’t stop glancing up.
I grab two mugs off the counter and pour myself coffee just to have something to do with my hands.
From the kitchen, I can hear Knox’s voice and the low rumble of Jace making some kind of scene. Again.
I take a sip, trying to focus. But my chest still aches with this stupid, quiet want. I miss talking to Knox. I miss the way we felt. Easy, hot, magnetic. I miss the way he looked at me like I was worth every complication. And even now, when I know I should keep space between us, every cell in my body still leans toward him.
It doesn’t help that the room is full of flirting. They’re standing a little closer now. Nova’s laughing at something Dee said, her hand brushing lightly against Dee’s wrist as she passes her a napkin.
Yep.
