Out of the corner of my eye, I catch a flash of blond hair. Felix is crossing the room with a tray. Our eyes meet and he gives me a little wave before heading to a table and clearing the dishes. I like the view as he leans across to pick up a milkshake glass, the apron he wears framing his pert ass. His jeans mold to his body, showing off a gorgeous bubble-butt. I flush and stare down at my notepad, suddenly self-conscious.
Jesus!I need to pull myself together.
Still, I can’t help tracking him around the coffee shop as he clears empty mugs and wipes down tables. He’s at ease with the regulars, stopping to chat, eyes crinkling as he laughs. It’s clear he loves his job and that the locals love him.
As he heads back to the counter, he glances my way. I offer a small smile, then pretend to be engrossed in my notes. My sandwich sits half-eaten thanks to the butterflies in my stomach. The physical reaction surprises me—I haven’t felt anything like this for… for I don’t know how long. I doodle in the margins of my notebook as I try to analyze what the hell is happening to me. I haven’t come to any conclusions when footsteps approach and Felix is by my table, juice and a slice of pie in hand.
“Mind if I join you?” he asks.
I automatically gesture to the empty seat across from me. “Please.”
He places the pie in front of me, then settles in, sitting back and sipping his juice.
I glance from the pie to Felix. “For me?”
“It didn’t look as if you were enjoying the sandwich. I thought this might be more tempting.” He takes another sip of juice, lips pursed around the straw. My thoughts take a dive into the gutter, imagining those lips doing obscene things. He’s temptation personified.
I swallow heavily. “Thanks.” A small dimple flashes as he smiles.“I… um… have you worked here long?”
“Actually, no,” he replies. “Just a few weeks. A friend asked me to manage the place while he was away for a few months, but to be honest, it’s been a refreshing change.”
“Yeah? What is it you usually do?”
“The last couple of years, I’ve been an executive assistant to a department head at a menswear retail chain.” He must sense my surprise and chuckles. He hooks a thumb under the leather strap of his apron and gives it a tug. “Not exactly high fashion, is it?”
“So why the change?” I ask, then realize I’m being nosy. “Just ignore me. You don’t have to answer that.”
He waves a hand. “It’s cool. I had a messy breakup. I made the mistake of dating someone I worked with. Unfortunately, he fucked his way up the corporate ladder, starting with my boss.”
“Jesus!”
Felix raises a brow. “Sorry, that was probably TMI.”
It sounds like he was well and truly fucked over, and I’m surprised he’s so upbeat about it, but I’m also a little pleased at the use of pronouns. “That’s messed up,” I say, offering a sympathetic smile.
“You can say that again. But onward and upward. I’m better off without that kind of shit in my life.” He sits up straighter. “You know, the most surprising thing about it all is how much I’m enjoying being back in Collier’s Creek and working here at CC’s. How are you liking our little town so far?”
“More than I thought I would.”
Felix laughs. “If you thought you wouldn’t like it, why on earth did you come?”
I look at him and wonder how much to share. I came here for anonymity, amongst other things. However, I find myself opening up. “I wanted to escape the city. I was looking for someplace secluded with limited distractions.”
“And how’s that working out for you?” he asks, twirling his straw in his now-empty glass, a flirtatious twinkle in his eye.
I wonder if he’s asking what I think he’s asking. I clear my throat. “At least the cabin’s fairly remote,” I say.
His lip twitches as he holds back a smile. “And why Collier’s Creek?”
“Ahh.” I chuckle. “There wasn’t much thought involved. Ten minutes on the internet was all it took. I looked for somewhere far enough away that I wouldn’t be easily tempted to drive home to Seattle. Plus, Collier’s Creek sounded idyllic. I imagined a picturesque town with a river and mountains in the distance—blue skies and trees as far as the eye can see. So far, it’s delivered on that promise.”
“It is like a postcard,” Felix agrees. “I grew up here and it was exciting to escape small town life, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to appreciate the lifestyle more. Like I said, it’s good to be back. It’s home, you know?”
I chuckle at his reference to getting older. He must be all of twenty-three or twenty-four. “Were you away long?”
“A few years. I’m twenty-four,” he says, answering my unasked question. “What about you? Are you planning to head back home to Seattle soon?”
Surprisingly, I’m oddly disturbed by the thought of leaving. I feel as if I’m just getting my footing and I’m not ready to resume my old life, rattling around a house that’s way too big for one person. I shake my head. “No plans yet.”
