She shifted, stepping back to take out money. As she moves again, she bumps into the man in front of her.
“Oh! I’m so sorry!” she said quickly, her apology genuine.
The man in front of her turned, and I could tell he was instantly interested in what he saw. I watched it happen in real time—the way he looked her up and down before deciding to make a move. He smiled, saying something I couldn’t hear, gesturing to the menu.
Ember glanced up at the board pulling the phone from her ear. “The chai,” she said, like it was no big secret. “And the croissants. They’re stupid good.” She gave him a simple nod and turned back to her phone, completely unaware of his interest.
He watched her for another second before smiling, then turned back around. When it was his turn, he did exactly what I expected, ordering his drink, along with her chai and croissant.
It took everything in me to not intervene.The lack of sleep was feeding the voices in my head, making them harder to ignore. Half of me wanted to remove her from the situation like I had last night. It would be easy to throw her over my shoulder and make her leave with me.
When Ember finally registered what he’d done, she protested of course, but it lacked her normal ferocity. If it had beenme, she would have simply walked away orhit me,but for some reason, he was able to wave her off. I continued watching until Ember caved, but that wasn’t all because then she actuallysmiledat him before ending her phone call. They talked until their drinks were ready, handing hers over like it was some type of offering. When she went to leave, he had the balls to ask for her number. For half a second, I stifled a laugh, but it faded quickly when she took out her phone.
She couldn’t be serious.
I forced myself to turn away before I did something irreversible. I left the shop without looking back, mostly because I didn’t want to see what happened next. No matter what the reasoning was, she had made the wrong choice, one that I would apparently need to watch for. The faster Knox was at his job, the better it would be for her overall. She would soon learn that I was all she needed.
From the sidewalk, I glanced back at her once through the glass. She looked content, sipping her drink as she took a bite from her croissant.
I had no control over myself, and I knew it was because of her. Taking out my phone, I sent her a text.
One word. All caps.
TWO.
12
Ember
Sitting at the little round table, it wasn't long before I popped my shoes off and pulled my legs up to sit cross-legged. My chai was almost gone, and I was already wishing I’d taken smaller sips. The drink itself had been delicious, but this one tasted especially sweet.
At first, I was going to deny the drink and the man who’d bought it for me, but then I realized how perfect an opportunity it was to think about someone other than Silas. In some twisted way, I was aware that accepting the offer and giving out my information would upset him—that was the whole reason I’d gone through with it. Plus, he had manners, striking up a conversation before hitting on me.Thatwas how women should be courted, not by being trapped in a corner, naked where others watched. Silas could probably take some notes from him.
But then again, maybe I didn’t want him too.
I picked up my phone to block the thought. I wasn’t doing this to myself again. I refused to think aboutthator the man responsible for the ache within me, especially after what he pulled with the flowers. I wasn'this, and he needed to learn some boundaries.
Apparently, that was a common theme tonight, seeing how I also had to rein Kinsley in from going full party mode. The guys were out at some practice thing, and she had scored tickets to some new bar that was close. Fortunately, I had zero interest in going and had convinced her to make drinks at home with me.
My phone buzzed in my hand, and I looked down at the text notification. Whoever that guy was worked fast, considering he walked out the door about ten minutes ago.
I raised my eyebrows at the message that had just been delivered from an unknown number. As I stared down at it, I somehow knew it wasn’t from the guy in the coffee shop.
TWO.
What?
Taking the last bite of the croissant, I looked around, like the person texting me was somewhere in the room with me.Letting my fingers glide over the screen, I settled on the most generic response I could think of and hoped that my gut was lying to me.
Wrong number.
Hitting send, I looked up from my phone to watch the people on the sidewalk pass the window. A few children skipped by that were clearly related and in the middle of some sort of tag game. A few seconds later, a teenage couple who seemed to be in the early stages of dating came into view. I watched as she made a move to hold his hand and a light shade of pink blossomed across his cheeks. I smiled at that, at the innocence of what lovecould be.
Pulling my headphones out of my bag, I pushed them into my ears and turned on my music. By the time I hit the sidewalk, I was humming along with Chokehold by Sleep Token. Each step seemed to loosen my shoulders, and soon, I was feeling pretty good. I timed my movements to fall in line with each beat, turning the walk home into a game. By the time I reached my house, I had just finished the last song on my playlist.Perfect timing. Clicking the side button, I waited for the screen to turn on so I could shut off the music.
Three messages came through during my walk, the music somehow masking the notification sounds.
I don't have the wrong number, but I had the wrong idea. Nine wasn't enough for you to learn. Because apparently you still feel the need to give out your number.
