“Jakob,” she replied, proud that her voice didn’t shake. Or didn’t shake much.
The barista cleared her throat. “Next?”
Mallory blinked as the line moved. She stepped forward too quickly, misjudged the distance, and nearly collided with Jakob as he shifted at the same time.
He reached out and steadied her. “Just like old times.”
Her brain refused to cooperate as they stood inches apart.
Too close. Her arm brushed his hand.
The contact was brief and barely there, but it might as well have been lightning.
Her breath caught sharply and her pulse skidded into overdrive. Jakob’s fingers flexed before he released her and dropped his arms to his sides.
“I…I’m sorry,” she said far too fast.
Jakob’s gaze dropped to where their hands had touched, then lifted back to her face. His eyes were darker than she remembered. Or maybe she’d just learned how much meaning they could hold.
“You don’t need to apologize,” he said. His voice was calm, but something strained beneath it. “I should have moved.”
You shouldn’t be here, her mind screamed.I shouldn’t be here.
She focused on her order to the barista and grabbed her coffee when it was handed to her. She clung to the heat of the cup like an anchor. Normal. Be normal.
“So,” she said and gestured to the cup he had picked up. “You… come here often?”
The words were ridiculous the second they left her mouth.
Jakob’s mouth twitched, almost a smile. Almost. “Only when I need caffeine strong enough to keep me functional.”
That small familiarity cracked something open inside her.
Of course he still drank it black. Of course he still stood like he was guarding the entire room without trying.
“I didn’t know you stayed here,” she added, because silence felt dangerous.
“I don’t,” he said. Then, after a pause, “Usually.”
He hadn’t expected to be here either. That this, whatever it was, hadn’t been planned because he knew she had come back. Her chest tightened. She searched his face for answers she was terrified to ask for.
“How long are you in Onyxheim this time?” Jakob asked.
There it was. The question that mattered.
Mallory hesitated just long enough to give herself away. “A few weeks. Research.”
His brows drew together slightly. “Research.”
“Medicinal botany,” she clarified too quickly. She was on full defense. “For school. My term paper.”
She waited for skepticism. For judgment. For him to see through the excuse the way her parents had.
Instead, Jakob nodded slowly. “That sounds like you. You were excited about your courses.”
Something warm and painful unfurled in her chest.
“And you?” she asked. “Still… doing whatever it is you do?”
