He groaned. “Yes.”
She grinned and hustled around the counter to hug him one-armed. “I’m glad you came back.”
“Boston was grim,” he admitted. “The apartment was cold. And my plants judged me.”
“Plants always judge,” she said. “How was it being there?”
He thought of the empty couch, the too-quiet kitchen. The teenage sketchbook and the ghost of a boy he used to watch from afar.
“Empty,” he said finally.
Her expression softened. “Then I’mreallyglad you came back.”
He shrugged, trying to make it light. “I was promised carbs in exchange for labor. I’m easy.”
She shoved a croissant at him. “Here. Payment in advance.”
He took a bite, savoring the taste of butter, its texture flaky as sin. “God, I missed this.”
“You were gone for, like, seven hours.”
“Time is a construct,” he said. “Pastry is eternal.”
She snorted. “You’re such a weirdo.”
Then it was nose to the grindstone time.
They moved around each other easily as evening crept in. Aileen took orders and charmed customers while Eli filled bags, faked smiles, and tried to ignore questions from customers who clearly knew him but who he couldn’t recall. After the rush died down, she leaned on the counter and gave him a sideways look.
“So,” she said. “Did you think about him?”
He blinked. “Who?”
She gave him a flat stare. “The man. The flannel. The clipboard. The emotional incident at Home Depot.”
Eli’s ears heated. “Noah.”
Her eyes twinkled. “Ah, so youdoremember his name.”
“Stop being delighted,” he grumbled.
“Never.” She smirked. “Well? Did you?”
He thought of the sketchbook. Of realizing he’d drawn Noah at fifteen without knowing his name. Of the weird destiny-like twist that had dropped them back into the same orbit.
“Maybe,” he said.
Aileen’s grin morphed into something real. “He’s always seemed nice to me.”
“He is,” Eli said, before he could stop himself.
She raised her eyebrows. “That sounded very un-casual.”
“He’s just… familiar,” Eli said, hedging.
“In the ‘I’ve seen you around town’ way or the ‘I doodled your face in my high school notebooks’ way?” she teased.
Eli almost choked. “You know nothing.”
