Setting a timer, I made myself read three chapters before ordering another latte.
While I waited, I slipped into the bathroom and splashed my face with water.
“You’re going to be okay and you’re going to pass the test whenever you take it,” I said to myself. “You got this, Andrea. You got this.”
“Do you?” A familiar deep voice startled me from behind, and I saw Mr. Cross in the mirror’s reflection.
With a smirk on his lips, he stared at me in a perfectly pressed white dress shirt and soft gray tie.
My heart immediately skipped a beat, and an unwanted but all-too-familiar tension closed in around us.
“How long were you planning to keep me waiting on you at the office?” he asked.
I spun around, struggling to find the words to say.
How did you even know I was here?
I stared at him as he rubbed his thumb against his key fob, as he managed to make this space look far too small for both of us.
“This is the women’s restroom,” was all I could manage. “The one you’re looking for is behind you.”
“I’m in the right place.” He didn’t move. “This is the parlor room that’s attached to the restrooms via the hallway to my left, Miss Stone. I believe that’s another thing that makes our cafes special, correct?”
“I’m not sure how many times I have to tell you that I’m off on Sundays, but?—”
“Who was that guy who kissed you earlier?” he interrupted.
“What?” My breath caught. “Why do you know about that?”
“I don’t, but if he was important enough for you to ignore me all day, I deserve the details,” he said. “Is the relationship something or nothing?”
“You’re not privy to my personal life, Mr. Cross.”
“You’re not supposed to have enough free time for a personal life at all.”
“Did you hear the words you just said?”
“Loud and clear.” He slid his keys into his pocket. “I saw he gave you his number.”
“So you’re stalking me?”
“I was worried about you,” he said. “You weren’t answering and you weren’t at home… Then I remembered you saying this location was your favorite.”
“I’ve never told you that.”
“I asked around.”
“No, you didn’t.” I swallowed. “I’ve never told anyone.”
“So I sent every cafe manager in a ninety-mile radius your picture and asked if you were there.” He smirked. “Same thing.”
“It’s really not…”
“Back to the topic at hand,” he said. “Are you planning to call that guy?”
“Maybe.”
“It’s a yes-or-no question.”
