“So…” I started after a moment. “I won’t let you set me up, but you think I’ll pay someone to go on a date with me?”
“Why not? It’s sadaqah. It’s for a good cause.”
“Oh, me getting laid is sadaqah now?”
Alina chuckled, but Zainab rolled her eyes.
“No, silly. But the auction is to help Duke’s Sanctuary. You don’t have to bid on anyone. You can just donate, but where’s the fun in that?”
“Exactly. Plus who would turn down a date with a hunky fireman?”
I mean, where was the lie, but still…
“If I agree to this, will you stop trying… whatever this is?”
“Trying to get you laid?” Alina asked. “Sure.”
I groaned.
“Fine. I’ll go. Now leave me alone. Go annoy someone else.”
Missy meowed in my arms, and I looked down at the little boy and scratched his forehead.
“Well, aren’t you kind? In that case, I’m taking my girlfriend and going for lunch,” Zainab said, and I shooed her away.
Once they were gone, I rang up the older lady with her selection of spicy queer romances, then sat back down on my chair and stroked the little ginger cat as he purred up a storm in my arms.
“Do you think they’ll forget about the auction by next week?”
Missy yawned, and I smiled.
“Yeah, let’s hope so,” I said. “As if I’ll pay to go on a date with a fireman.”
In that moment, the bell above the door jingled, and I held my breath as the most stunning man I’d ever seen walked in.
5.Cole
Our first stop, as promised, was Bubble Bubble, Hwan’s bubble tea shop, and Enzo’s part-time gig.
The exuberant owner with the colorful hair was a staple of this town by this point, akin to a landmark or a tourist attraction. I guessed it was a Mayberry Holm thing; having store owners with too much personality like Lilian and Hwan.
“Well, hello there! Welcome, welcome. Long time no see,” Hwan said, extending both arms and aiming for both Ella, who was hooked around my neck, and me.
His hair was parted in the middle and sparkled. One side was pine green while the other was a fiery red. I hugged him back and passed Ella to him, who wasted no time to touch his hair and try to play with it.
“To what do we owe this pleasure, boss?” Hwan asked.
I groaned.
“Hwan, it’s been at least a year since you stopped working at the Grill. When will you stop calling me boss?”
Hwan stared at me. Just when I thought he’d been offended, he smirked, and in a low purr, said, “Okay, boss. Iwillstop, boss.”
I rolled my eyes and looked at Hwan’s boyfriend, who was standing behind the counter, chatting with Enzo.
“And what would you like?” Parker asked me.
“Not tea, that’s for sure,” I said.
