“Only Sadie has free rein in the café,” said Lauren. “She’s in charge. She’s also terrified of cars, so she doesn’t try to escape. The rest of the cats are through that door.” She pointed.
“Ah.”
Lauren wasn’t really sure what to say next. Evan elbowed her, though, so she said, “Did you want to see the cats, or—”
“I just need a cup of coffee for now. This place is hopping.”
“Go on,” Lauren said. “I’m not in line, and you look like you’re in a hurry.”
The man pulled a phone from his pocket and glanced at the time. “Yeah, a little.” He slid forward. “Thank you.”
“Are you new to the neighborhood?”
“Yeah. Just moved to Brooklyn a week ago, actually.”
“Welcome!”
He shot her a bashful half smile and nodded. “Thanks.”
Monique said, “Next!”
The brown-haired man nodded at Lauren and then walked to the register.
Victor, the other barista, must have noticed this guy was a little twitchy, probably with a job to get to—he was wearing a blue oxford shirt tucked into navy-blue slacks, the uniform of the Midtown office worker—so he grabbed the pot and poured a cup of coffee right away. Once the man paid, Victor handed him the cup and said, “Milk and sugar are at the end of the counter.”
“Great.” The man took his cup.
“The usual,” Lauren said to Monique now that the line had dissipated. Then she walked over to the man as he shook a sugar packet. “I’m Lauren, by the way.”
The man gave her a genuine smile this time. “Caleb. Maybe I’ll see you around, Lauren.” Sadie meowed and sat at his feet. “And you, too, Sadie.”
Handsome, and he liked the cats. No wedding ring. This had some potential.
Oh, except for the part where Lauren was not dating in order to concentrate on making a fulfilling life for herself without a man.
Caleb walked back outside.
“Girl,” said Evan. “He was totally checking you out.”
Warm excitement spread through Lauren’s chest. It had been a while since she’d met anyone who made her pulse race like this. She wondered if Caleb would come back.
“Boss, your coffee’s ready,” said Monique.
Lauren took it gratefully. “All right. Do you have to work today, Ev, or do you want to meet our newest resident? We’ve got a gorgeous new calico named Lucy.”
“I’m meeting a client at ten, so I gotta go, but you can tell me all about Miss Lucy and report back on that tall guy over drinks tonight.”
“Pop at seven?”
“Perfect.”
Monique handed Evan his coffee, which he took with a grin. He blew Lauren a kiss with his free hand and then walked out the door.
“Come on, Sadie,” said Lauren. “Let’s get to work.”
***
Caleb walked out of the Cat Café, wondering what he’d just seen. For some reason, he hadn’t expected actual cats. When his new boss had recommended it as a place to grab coffee, he’d expected beatniks or something. There was a bar on his block called the Salty Dog that contained zero dogs, after all. But, no, the Whitman Street Cat Café was a place people went to get coffee and pastries and hang out withactualcats.
