I smiled at that. So cute. The CEO of a major dating app having an inspiration binder. I half expected unicorns or a small Cupid depiction on the outside, though I wondered if he saved that for his phone background.
By the time Gavin started back my way, I was a different person. The room was ready for the meeting, all except for the snacks and the presentation screen, and I inhaled deeply as I took in the beginnings of a new long-term project. I loved this part—all the excitement and possibilities before the wanting to scream and pull my hair out when something eventually goes wrong.
I had just finished setting up the presentation screen when Gavin appeared at the door holding two coffees and a plate of Danish breads. I wondered if the people in the break room had just piled things on once they found out he was bringing them to my office. Everyone knew I could wipe away a plate of danishes like no other.
My heart ached when he smiled my way, butterflies rising in my stomach. I cursed my body for betraying me. I wanted to smile and relax, banter with him as I knew we would. Nevertheless, the words he’d said Friday night continued to wound me, and I tried my hardest to continue acting annoyed.
“Double-shot blonde roast with cinnamon and oat milk foam, a slight drizzle of caramel on the top,” he said.
“Stalker,” I said as I took the cup. “How did you know my coffee order?“
“As much as I’d like to say it was intuition, I actually ran into your assistant in the break room,” he admitted. “She also told me I should take these in here.” He set the plate of pastries on the table. “She was on her way out to grab more snacks for the meeting.”
“She’s amazing,” I said before taking a sip. The warmth pooled in my chest, and I closed my eyes to inhale the cinnamon and coffee smell. So good. I wanted to bathe in that smell.
Gavin was watching me when I opened my eyes, still staring at me with such amusement and delight lighting up his face.
“What’s your coffee order?” I asked.
“Why do you want to know?” he asked.
“You can tell a lot about a person from a coffee order,” I replied.
“Can you?” One of his hands shoved in his pocket, the other hugging that coffee to him as he started walking around the table. “Black, triple shot with raw sugar,” he answered.
I raised a brow. “You’re telling me the Valentine’s Day god takes his coffee black?” I asked.
Gavin grabbed his chest, feigning hurt. “You wound me, sweet girl,” he said, drawing closer. “The Valentine’s Day god?”
“I’m sorry, did that hurt your precious ego?”
“A bit, yeah,” he said, and the sound of his laugh made my heart tumble. “That’s grounds for punishment.”
“Oh? Actual punishment or your brand?” I asked without thinking.
“Definitely my brand,” he said. “I don’t think you had enough last time. I let you off easy.”
“I don’t think anything about that night was necessarily easy,” I said. “I’d say we both worked pretty hard.”
Gavin’s laugh quieted to a chuckle as he paused before me. He looked like he might touch my face, but instead he picked off a long hair from my shirt, his hand then coming to rest on the chair next to mine. “I can think of one part that was easy,” he said, his voice softer.
“Which part?”
“This part,” he said. “Us. The back and forth. I’d forgotten just how easy it was.”
I swallowed, staring up at him. It was true. Still, it was hard to think of a moment that night that hadn’t been.
“I’m still mad at you,” I said, hugging my coffee to my lips.
“For the other night?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said. “Who says things like that to someone they haven’t seen in years?”
“I do,” he replied, a sudden sternness in his gaze.
“Why?”
“Because you ran after me.”
