By the time I joined her at the ordering counter, she was already browsing the menu with a look of concentration on herface. When she saw me, she shifted on her feet and tapped a nail over the seventh item on the menu.
I looked at the woman behind the counter. “We’ll have two Hot Chocolate and Truffle Flights, please.”
She smiled. “Sure thing. Anything else?”
Rina pulled at the sleeve of my sweater, and when I looked at her, she pointed at something in the display case to her right.
I raised a brow. “Rum Cake Balls?”
She grinned and nodded excitedly.
“It’s 10:30 in the morning, Rina.”
She gave me a thumbs up, that grin of hers still in place.
“Are you trying to intoxicate me as an act of revenge?” I mused.
She wiggled her brows and lifted a shoulder.
I laughed. “Fine. You’re lucky you’re too fucking adorable for me to say no to.”
She clapped her hands, and I asked for six Rum Balls before handing my credit card over to the woman taking our order.
Rina went back to looking at the display counter, and I shook my head around a smile when she bent and almost pressed her face against it.
She was too damn cute for my smitten ass.
Our hot chocolate and cake soon came in, and as I grabbed the small box that had the rum balls in it, Rina picked up our hot chocolate cups before jerking her head towards the door.
“You don’t wanna get a table?” I asked her.
She shook her head, so I let her lead me outside the store.
We’d only just gotten out, though, when I stopped, barely avoiding crashing into Rina, who’d halted quite abruptly. “Whoa, hey. Rina, what’s wrong?”
She didn’t move, didn’t so much as shift.
I walked around her so that I could look at her. “Rina?”
She blinked and faced me, and when I saw a glimmer of pain in her expression, I cupped the side of her face and ran a thumb over her cheek. It’s a good thing I had gloves on, otherwise she would’ve easily sensed my fear through my chilly, almost clammy skin.
“What is it?” I asked.
She pointed ahead, and when I followed her direction, I saw a group of people, dressed as elves and Santa, setting up a small platform across the street from us. There were wired microphones lying on top of large speakers, with Christmas props piled next to them, and even a fully decorated Xmas tree on the right side of the wooden platform. It didn’t take a genius to realize what it is that these people were going to do.
“They’re going to sing Christmas carols,” I said to Rina.
Her chin wobbled a little as she nodded, and God, my heartachedfor her, so much so that I felt blinded by it.
“Do you wanna leave?”
She shook her head and tapped her left ear.
She wanted to listen to them.
“Okay, then. Come on, let’s grab a seat.” I walked us to a small bench next toKatherineAnne’s, and as soon as we settled down, Rina handed a cup of hot chocolate to me.
“Thanks.” I opened the cake box, and we took off our gloves as we sat there in comfortable silence, eating our cake and drinking our hot coco while watching the group as they continued to set things up.
