“I was going to take the books”— I tossed her a cheeky grin—“since we all know how well you do math…”
Nothing. No reaction. She kept her focus on me, waiting.
“Allison knows the vendors and former employees better than we do, so she can figure out who we should hire back and what we need to do to resume our existing contracts.”
Brenna scanned the list. “Which leaves… what? Cleaning?” She shrugged, then took out wireless earbuds and placed one in each ear, twisting a bit to find a comfortable position. “Fine by me. Allison, can you point me to the cleaning supplies?”
My phone buzzed with a message.
Leo
Miss your flight??
I sighed audibly.
He didn’t know my exact plans, but he’d expected my trip to Middlebury to be short. I wasn’t ready to explain. It would mean too many questions I didn’t want to answer. I also didn’t want Leo to fly here to help. He needed to focus on preparing for the season, not the drama in my life.
Nathan
I need to be here longer than I thought.
Mind sending some clothes?
My phone rang immediately, and I let out a groan. Brenna stared curiously as she and Allison emerged from the back. I answered, moving outside as quickly as possible, away from them. “Couldn’t do this by text?” I said instead of hello.
“You take too long to text,” Leo replied. The sound of silverware clanging against a plate echoed in the background.Ten a.m. The time he usually got out of bed. In the offseason, he picked up a job as a bartender around the corner from our place, so he often didn’t get home until late. “I figured I would have follow-up questions. You’re fucking her, right? That’s why you’re staying?”
Of course he’d think that.“Not even close.”
“But you’re working on it?”
“For fuck’s sake,” I grunted, then glanced around to make sure no one heard my outburst. The activity outside the café had calmed down after rush hour, so no one was close by. I lowered my voice anyway. “I told you I would keep my distance.”
Not that I have, but it wasn’t in my control. Mostly.
“Come on, man. That’s bullshit and you know it.” He released one of the haughty all-knowing laughs women loved from him. “You’re hung up on her. After you told me about her, everything made sense. You’re not like me. Youwantcommitment, but you never seem to find it. Wonder why.”
“Are you forgetting that I saw her get proposed to?”
He made a disbelieving sound,pshh.“Does she seem over you?”
I watched Brenna spray tables and chairs. Her caramel blond ponytail swayed as she gracefully wiped away cleanser with a microfiber cloth. Her jean shorts were molded to her ass and covered half her thighs, and when she leaned over like that…fuck. My attraction to her was out of my control. It wasn’t anything deeper than a chemical reaction. And unlike Leo, who succumbed to every impulse, I wouldn’t let it run my decisions.
“Yes,” I said. “She’s engaged to another man.”
“Say she wasn’t—”
I rolled my eyes even though he couldn’t see me. “She is.”
“And you were both single. What does her behavior toward you suggest?”
Such a dangerous question to consider. I thought back to when we saw each other in the gym—the way she’d stumbled at the sight of me, the way she momentarily leaned into my touch when I caught her, the way she raked her eyes over my body when she was back on stable footing.
This attraction wasn’t one-sided. Her eyes had greedily fixated on my bare chest this morning, even while we were in a disagreement. But it only meant we were human. It didn’t change the fact that she was going to marry someone else.
“That she’s not happy to be here either. She avoids me. Her words are clipped, her tone exasperated.”
“So she still cares,” Leo said, satisfied.
