“A cappuccino?” he said to the woman behind the espresso bar.
“And what for you, hon?” she asked me.
“I’ll have a honey latte, please.”
When Landon reached for his pocket, I squeezed his hand. “I got it.”
“Oh, thanks.” Another fetching blush turned him pink.
I liked the way he smelled, fresh and warm, when his pulse raced. I wanted to nuzzle up against him, but—well, there were humans around. And that was probably too much, too fast, right?
I’d asked Lucas if he’d given Landon my number, and he said yes, almost giddy that Landon had actually used it, but he’d warned me that Landon’s last relationship was complicated. He wouldn’t give me specifics, but he had said to take it easy, and I didn’t get the impression it was just on my account.
It would’ve been fair if it had been, really. I didn’t need to rush into anything serious while I was still figuring out how ready I was for that. I thought I was getting there, but grief was astrange beast. It reared up unexpectedly, even when you thought you’d beaten it.
When we sat at the table, Landon held his cup in both hands. “I’m surprised you didn’t get some extra double quad shot black coffee or something.”
My responding grin was toothy. “Because I seem so formidable?”
Landon shrugged, lifting his drink to his lips.
“I like milk,” I admitted.
“Milkandthe sun? You’re a walking stereotype, aren’t you?”
I bit my tongue against another silly smile. “Just appreciate the good things. And I have some harebrained notion that drinking honey in my coffee will help keep the pipes in order.”
“So you sing? I never asked what you play?”
“Guitar, mostly. Our lead singer—he, ah... he died. So I’ve, kind of, filled in the gaps? But it’s—I don’t know that I’m any good at that part. I definitely prefer an instrument between me and having to own any big emotion on stage for a crowd of people.”
Landon shuddered. “I don’t know how you do it. Sounds hair-raising.”
“It’s not so bad if you play to somebody, and Lucas comes to most of our shows. I try to just focus on him. Or just, like, one person at a time. Makes it feel less overwhelming.”
“I still think I’d run off stage screaming. You’re... kind of amazing.”
That brought me up short. “You think so?”
“Yeah,” he said, punctuated by a nod.
I stared at him, dumbstruck. I’d expected to have to make a case for myself. I didn’t have a consistent, reliable job like he did. I slept in most days. Stayed up late. Spent more than a respectable amount of time in seedy, sticky venues.
Overall, I was kind of a mess.
The fact that he didn’t see me that way made me feel like maybe it wasn’t the case at all.
“Thanks. I—honestly?” I grimaced. “I didn’t think you were interested in me. But I’m glad you asked me out.”
“I—I was never notinterested.” He caught his thumbnail on the rim of his cup and pulled it with a quiet ping, staring down into his cappuccino.
“Lucas might’ve mentioned you were working through some stuff.”
Landon flinched.
“Nothing specific,” I hastened to add. “He didn’t say much, I just got the impression there’s... something. Do you want to talk about it?”
He shrugged. “Would that be weird?”
