Mind blank.
What did he just ask me?
“Um. Sorry. Mom brain,” I said, tittering awkwardly and fumbling over my words. “What did you just ask?”
“What would you like to drink?” he repeated slowly, eyes narrowing.
“Oh. Duh.”Of course, you idiot. He wants your order.“This is my first time here.”
“I know,” he said, lifting the menu a bit higher until I took it in my hands.
I wasn’t sure whether I should thank Hazel or chastise her when I saw her again for landing me in a neighborhood full of attractive yet unattainable men. It was like the worst version of window shopping.
Especially troublesome for a witch like me.
“What do you recommend?” I asked, overwhelmed, glancing back and forth between the selections and the specials written on the chalkboard attached to the truck’s side.
“Hmm…” He thumbed over his stubble and looked as if he were sizing me up.“Do you like chocolate?”
“I do.” The intensity of his gaze drew hot streaks across my skin, making my dusty gift crackle and fizzle beneath it.
Needy bitch.
“How about our midnight mocha? It has a splash of locally sourced raspberry syrup.”
“Sounds perfect.”
“Name for your order?”
“Midnight,” I said instinctively, thinking about the coffee I’d soon be inhaling.
His brows furrowed. “It’ll be ready in just a few, Midnight, if you don’t mind waiting over there,” he said, no humor in his tone, then gestured to the side of the truck where a handful of neighbors stood.
“Oakley. I meant—my name is Oakley.” Apparently remembering my own name wasn’t even possible anymore. The corner of his mouth peeled up a smidge, but he said nothing else as I paid for my drink. Then I moved off to the side with Jade and Ivy. Aspen started to get restless, so I took him out of the stroller and bounced with him, my quads raging at me.
“Ivy!” the brewista called out from the truck, and she headed over to grab her coffee. I kept an extra eye on her stroller where her daughter, Parker, slept soundly. There was just something so comforting about watching the rise and fall of the chest of a sleeping witchling. I nuzzled my nose into Aspen’s hair, inhaling his perfect smell.
“Mmm… Leave it to Luna’s to always have the best brews,” Ivy said, taking a sip from her cup before placing it in her stroller. “Just another reason why we are the best neighborhood.”
“I’m sure they are the reason the houses sell like hotcakes,” I teased.
Ivy laughed alongside me. “We were so excited to find a house here. Had to get a plot with the great location and school system for the kids. We have three.”
“It’s absolutely beautiful. I understand why the area is so sought after,” I said, scanning the rows of black houses with their telltale doors and gilded numbers. “Have you lived here since the neighborhood opened up?”
“Yes. My husband, Bear, and I bought the house when it was just a slab of concrete. We live next door at 11.”
“Jacob and I also moved in when the neighborhood was being built. There have been a handful of folks to come and go since then but a fair amount of the neighbors have been here from the beginning,” Jade added. “We’re just across the way at 12.”
“That’s amazing. I’m hoping we will be around for a while. I’m excited for Aspen to attend the schools here.”
“Yes. Gardner Elementary is incredible. They even have a pre-K program that your little guy can go to when he turns four,” Ivy said, smiling and tickling Aspen’s tiny wrist.
“Midnight!”
I internally face-palmed myself on my way over to the truck’s window to grab my mocha.
“Enjoy,” the brewista said, the side of his lips curving up in a sensual half smile.
