James laughs. “Here, you need to eat. I’m sure you worked up quite the appetite after last night.”
He isn’t wrong.
He sets a coffee cup and an almond croissant in front of me before taking a sip from his own. I wrap my hands around the cup so its warmth seeps into my fingers. I inhale deeply, breathing in the heavenly scent of freshly brewed coffee—it might just be the best smell in the world.
As I look down, my eyes catch the familiar stamp on the cup, one I hadn’t noticed when he first arrived. A flurry whirls in my chest—he went to the Daily Grind.
I know it’s just a simple coffee and croissant, but it’s so incredibly thoughtful.
He remembered my order.
My gaze catches on his. “A cappuccino and almond croissant?”
He looks at me nervously. “They’re your favourites, right?”
“Yes, thank you,” I confirm, beaming from ear to ear.
“You’re welcome,” he says, his eyes warm.
He pulls out a stool and settles beside me, resting his hand on my thigh. He gives it a gentle squeeze and rubs back and forth over the fabric of my joggers. We sip our coffees and munch on our croissants in comfortable silence. The flaky pastry melts in my mouth, and I can’t help but moan at the rich, decadent flavour.
“That good, eh?” he asks, cocking an eyebrow.
“It’s orgasmic, thank you,” I say around a mouthful.
“You’re welcome.” He chuckles, taking a generous bite. His eyebrows furrow before his head swivels in my direction. “Wow, this is incredible.”
“I know. If it weren’t for the risk of a heart attack, I’d live off these.”
“Well, we definitely can’t have that,” he says, pulling my stool closer to his. “Not after last night. I’m far from finished with you yet.”
“No,” I agree. “That would be positively awful.”
“Positively.”
I smile. We continue to eat, and sneak I glance at him out of the corner of my eye, noticing that he’s watching me. Last night was incredible, but as I sit here and melt under his gaze, I can’t help but wonder where we go from here.
We’ve crossed the line—we’ve slept together.
I slept with my ex-fiancé’s brother.
This is real.
It happened.
But now what?
How do we navigate this?
Was it just a one-time thing?
There’s a look on his face I can’t quite decipher.
“What?” I ask, bringing my hand up to check if there’s any icing sugar or coffee around my mouth.
“Nothing,” he says, reaching up to push my hair over my shoulder. His hand hovers, and he slowly runs his knuckles along my collarbone. “You’re just beautiful.”
I look down, feeling my cheeks redden. “I look a mess.” I laugh, my fingers fidgeting incessantly.
