Declan gave me a soft smile as he held the door open and I walked in past him, and part of me was worried that by doing these things I would somehow come between him and Jake, even though that didn’t seem to be happening. I didn’t want to ruin the wonderful romance they had, but I also loved what we were all doing together.
Last night had presented me with a new idea to worry about as I fell asleep with my ass disappointingly empty. What if we were fine as a throuple, which seemed like it might be possible, and then… I was forever the secret? The one who didn’t get acknowledged at the party as part of the lovefest. I didn’t even know what was going on yet with us, and I was already torn up over them. I was jealous that even though I’d been introduced as “there with Jake” at the party last night, I wasn’t therewithJake and Declan.
There was a big difference.
How stupid was I?
Still, Declan’s smile was bright each time he caught my eye, and I walked closer to him, wishing I was free to take his hand. The urge to touch him was so strong that I brushed my fingers along the back of his hand. His smile heated a touch. What if I hurt Jake and Declan somehow, and I proved Miranda and all her accusations right?
I reached the security checkpoint with him, and he waved at a group of guys lounging on chairs nearby in front of screens with flight information mounted on the wall. The men were the size of small mountains, so I assumed they were his teammates. If I followed hockey, I probably would have been much more excited. As it was, I sort of hated them because they were part of what was taking Declan away from Jake and me. I clasped my hands together. I should have kissed him in the car because now I’d missed my chance. I breathed through my disappointment.
“Bye. Have a good trip. We’ll miss you.”
Declan turned and stared down at me. His jaw worked. He glanced at the floor. I stuffed my hands in my pockets and my stomach dropped. It had been stupid to do this. He could have kissed me goodbye at the house, but I’d made this a problem now. I ducked my head. “We’ll call, just the way you wanted. It’ll be fun. I can get you good audio at least.” I forced a smile at my own not-so-fantastic joke.
Declan reached out and clasped my arm. He surprised me as he dragged me closer, and I stumbled when he pulled me in against his hard chest. He cupped my cheek and kissed me, lips moving over mine like we might never see each other again. A thrill ran through my stomach as I danced the tip of my tongue against his and shivered in his arms.
He pulled back and leaned his forehead against mine. “You’re taking care of Jake for me, but let him take care of you, too. I don’t want anything to happen to either one of you while I’m away. You’re… you’re my guys.”
I nodded stupidly.
“Get over to Grounds and Gears. Remember? The coffee shop where I first met you?”
“Yeah.” I couldn’t think of much of anything as he slid his hand down and pulled me more firmly against himself.
“Red, the lady who owns the place, said she’ll interview you if you go over there early today. The job isn’t great, but it’s something. I called first thing this morning.”
My eyes stung as I blinked away tears. “You didn’t have to do that.”
Declan smiled, and I reached up to shove some of his blond hair off his forehead. “That’s what people do when they care about each other. I have to get going,” he said as the guys nearby shouldered their luggage and headed toward the security checkpoint. It seemed like maybe there was a special security detail just for the hockey team. It mostly consisted of one older man waving them through and asking the guys loudly about their chances of winning. “Okay. Oh, here. So you can get in the house. Jake always locks up.” Declan dragged his keys from his pocket and deftly wiggled one from the ring. He pressed another kiss to my cheek as he handed the key to me.
I felt dumbfounded as he gave me another lingering kiss, then followed his teammates. I didn’t miss that there were some speculative glances my way from everyone who knew Declan, but I just turned and got the hell out of there as fast as I could.
The drive out of the airport barely registered in my mind. I had to pull over to the side of the road to look up Grounds and Gears and get the directions on my phone, and afterward it took me forever to navigate the traffic and get back into a lane again. When I finally got into downtown New Gothenburg and found a parking spot near Grounds and Gears, I was sweating bullets, but as soon as I went in the door, a woman in a black apron zeroed in on me.
She was short, curvy, and her long, flame-red hair reached her ass. She smirked at me, and I got the feeling from her sharp-toothed smile she was not a woman to mess around with.
“I remember you,” she said and came toward me with her hand held out. She gave me a firm shake, then dragged me by the elbow, flailing, past the stainless-steel tables for the customers, and on around the counter to the work area in the back. She pointed at a mess on the counter near the massive silver espresso machine. Coffee beans had been scattered by some mishap, and there were what I figured had to be sticky splotches from syrups all over the place, including on the floor.
“You know what that is?” she asked and frowned.
“A waste of money?”
She snorted. “Best answer I’ve ever gotten that wasn’t the one I wanted.Your problem.That’s what it is. I have ordering to do. Go get an apron from the back. Emmy! Show him the ropes,” she bellowed. “And don’t call Emmy anything except their correct pronouns or you won’t be hired. They. Them. Nothing else. I don’t care if you have feelings about that. I only care that they’re comfortable while they’re working because Emmy is a whiz with the drinks. Isn’t that right, doll?” she called out to Emmy. They laughed and waved at her, then went back to talking to the customers they were waiting on out among the tables.
“But… I didn’t have an interview? I mean—”
She waved a hand at me. “Declan Greenwood called and said his boyfriend is looking for a job. I know him and Jake real well, and he associates with good people.”
“I… really? It’s that easy?” My throat felt choked. He’d called me hisboyfriend?
“No, it’s not.” She crossed her arms and tipped her chin back. “You know Declan and Jake, and I happen to like them. So I’m giving you a test drive. They aren’t getting you anything except my time. Can you stay for the next few hours?”
Glancing around I nodded, because I really had nothing else to do. “Yeah.”
“Good.”
I was tired by the time I left the coffee shop, but I’d filled out the new-hire paperwork and had a schedule in my hand, so I didn’t care.
