“A caramel…” He turned back to Olivia.
“Macchiato,” she repeated helpfully.
“Yes.” He smiled at the woman. “One of those please.”
They waited patiently while the barista prepared the drinks. Olivia watched as Theo took out a bill and handed it to her, kindly telling her to keep the change. The woman’s eyes widened and after checking he was sure, gave a flustered thank you.
Sipping her latte, Olivia wandered outside, closely followed by Theo. She placed Beau back down on the ground as Theo took a sip of his coffee and almost purred.
“What?” She smiled as he stared down at his cup.
“Perhaps I should get another one to take home?”
Olivia laughed and slipped her arm through his. “I think one is quite enough for now.”
Tugging him gently away from the shop, she glanced at him after a moment. “You know you gave the woman in there a fifty for two coffees?”
He shrugged. “Her husband has just lost his job. Things are tough for them at the moment.”
Olivia stopped dead in her tracks and turned to look at him. “How do you know that?”
“I see things, you know that.”
She studied him slowly.
“Did you have had a dream about her?”
“No.” He shook his head. “Sometimes I see things, but other times, it’s like the information is there in my head, waiting.”
“That’s how you knew things were tough for her and her husband?”
He nodded.
“It was very generous,” she murmured, and stretched up on her toes impulsively pressing her lips to his.
Beau went nuts and started barking, running in circles around them and jumping up, trying to get in on their embrace. Laughing again, Olivia handed Theo her latte and bent down to untangle Beau’s leash from their legs. When she looked up, Theo was taking a sneaky sip of her coffee.
“What?” he said innocently. “I just wanted to try a little.”
“Hand it over.” She shook her head. “Or I won’t have any left.”
He dropped his arm around her shoulders as they headed back to her car. Draining the rest of his macchiato, he dropped the cup in the trash and scooped Beau up.
Olivia moved round the car to the driver’s side, but as she went to open it, she frowned. The door was unlocked. She could’ve sworn she saw Theo lock it. She shrugged to herself. Maybe he just didn’t do it properly.
Opening the door, she went to climb in, but noticed a book on her seat. Reaching in with trembling hands, she turned it over to look at it. It had been her favorite as a child; her father used to read it to her almost every night. The feeling of being watched once again prickled between her shoulder blades, and she turned around.
Vaguely aware of the door clicking closed behind her, her eyes swept across the road to the opposite sidewalk to where a familiar man stood watching her calmly.
Her heart gave a solid thump in her chest, and her eyes suddenly filled with tears. A maelstrom of emotions crashed through her, from hate and anger, through confusion, to longing and love.
Her father watched her with unreadable eyes. She didn’t know what she’d expected; she’d spent the last two decades hating him for what he’d done. In her mind, he was cold and cruel and twisted, but standing there in the middle of the street, the years fell away, and he was the man she had loved. She took a step toward him and flinched at a sudden horn blaring, followed by a loud screech of tires.
Theo grabbed her and yanked her back, she stumbled losing her balance. Falling heavily against him, Theo helped to steady her but Olivia barely paid him any attention. Her frantic gaze scanned the sidewalk, but her father was gone. Her heart pounding wildly while Theo checked her for injuries.
“Olivia?” He shook her to get her attention. “Are you hurt?”
“No,” she breathed out heavily. “I’m okay.”
