“Don’t worry,” Nate reassured. “I’ve got this.”
“I know. I remember how hard you worked whenever I grabbed a coffee while we were in school. I know the shop is in good hands. I’ll leave you to it,” Jones said, gathering his things. “If you have any questions, Arlet here can help you out.”
Arlet, the other worker, waved at Nate from where she stood on the opposite end of the counter. She was in the process of helping a customer and had been busy with it since Nate’s arrival an hour ago, so the two hadn’t really had a chance to speak much yet. She seemed nice though.
The uniforms for Velvet Brew Café were pressed cream-colored shirts beneath a chocolate brown apron and charcoal pants. Pretty standard stuff, and all items—minus the apron, of course—that Nate had in his closet, which was great since it’d meant he hadn’t needed to waste money on new clothes.
At the center of the apron and on all of the cups was the mascot of the chain coffee shop, a jackalope with a sleepy expression in front of the orb of a sun. It was cute in that kitschy kind of way, and Nate smoothed his hands over its design on hischest. It could be worse. A job was a job, and at least at this one, he’d be able to keep busy. Plus, Jones was a good guy, and as a bonus, Nate got to help him out by becoming his employee. It was a win-win all around.
Until the door across the room rang, and Nate lifted his head and saw who was walking in.
He’d specifically agreed to work with Jones because his Velvet Brew was located the furthest from the Vail University campus. Nate had just assumed he’d be in the clear because of that, but now that he was forced to stand there as Kazimir approached the counter, he was realizing how stupid that assumption had been.
Kaz wasn’t alone either. Two members of the Retinue were with him, an odd combination to see out and about, but not unheard of.
Nate recognized them only because they were also students at Vail, though he’d never spoken to either of them.
Ledger Undergrove had a leather jacket over his school uniform and wore a couple of thick silver chains around his neck. His dark brown hair hung just past his chin, and he ran a hand through it absently as he approached the glass case in front of where Arlet stood that held the baked goods.
“Want a muffin?” he casually asked the man standing just over his shoulder.
Pavel Hart shook his head, and though Ledger had his back to him and therefore couldn’t have seen, that seemed to be enough to get his point across.
With a hum of understanding, Ledger pointed to one of the berry muffins in the middle and said to Arlet, “One. Thanks, doll.”
The two of them were brothers, though the word was Pavel had been adopted as a child by the Undergroves. It wasrare to see them separately, so whether there was a connection by blood or not between them, it was obvious they were close.
Ledger was the louder and more boisterous of the pair, while Pavel…Well. Pavel gave Nate the straight-up creeps. And this afternoon was no different.
He was staring at Nate, for one. Those dark eyes of his unblinking as he stood there, still as a statue, and just looked at him. Like he was waiting for something. He was the same height as Ledger, though a little broader in the shoulders, and dressed a lot less flashy. The single black chain he wore around his neck was the only piece of noticeable jewelry on him, and his plain black pea coat was a pretty common item amongst the rich kids who attended schools on Vitality.
Even Nate had one, a gift from his brother one birthday after Nuri had visited and noted what everyone else had been dressed in at his and Neve’s school. Nate only wore it for special occasions, though, too afraid of ruining it and having to explain to Nuri he’d wasted his money.
Kazimir tapped the glass countertop in front of Nate, jolting him out of his staring contest with Pavel, and Nate actually gulped.
“Eyes on me, Pretty Boy,” Kaz said darkly.
“How did you know I was here?” Nate asked.
Ledger snorted. “Presumptuous.”
“Arlet told me,” Kazimir confirmed before Nate could feel too embarrassed by his friend's comment. “Thanks,” he called to her.
She shrugged at Nate and mouthed the word sorry before handing over a paper bag to Ledger with a big smile. “Enjoy your muffin!”
“Thanks,” Ledger winked, “I will.”
Pavel tapped his shoulder with a single finger.
“What?” Ledger turned to him. “It’s called a break. We’re allowed to take them, and damn it, I’m hungry.”
“This is not a break,” Pavel disagreed in that cool tone of his. He tipped his head toward Kaz. “Paying your boy toy a visit in the middle of important business isn’t a break, it’s negligence.”
“He’s not my boy toy,” Kazimir replied snidely. “Nate and I are dating.”
Nate blinked at him, waiting for a punch line that didn’t come. “What—”
Kaz hushed him. “There’s no need to hide it, baby. They’ll find out eventually.”
