“What did I do wrong?” he asked as he wiped himself clean.
“The wand wasn’t deep enough. Here, watch me.” She stepped forward and he stepped behind her to peer over her shoulder. They weren’t touching but the heat of her body warmed his. He closed his eyes and inhaled. She smelled of coffee and strawberry shampoo. Mm.
“Are you watching?” she asked over the noise of the steamer.
He opened his eyes and looked at her. She had lowered the pitcher and was looking up at him over her shoulder. Irresistible. Slowly, he lowered his head towards her mouth. Her head tipped slightly as he moved closer. She nibbled her lip and leaned in. Just as their lips were about to touch, she jerked back and thrust the pitcher at him.
“Try again. Go deeper, but not too deep. Keep it tilted. You want it to roll over and over to get the best foam."
Disappointed, he did as instructed without failure. What was holding her back? They’d been out a few times. Coffee. A movie. Even out to dinner once. They’d spent a couple evenings together. He could have sworn she was into him too. What was holding her back?
She sprinkled sweetened cocoa on top using a heart template. She held it out to him. He cupped his hands around hers and lifted the mug to his mouth. Their eyes locked as he sipped the decadent drink. It was too sweet for his taste, but he kept sipping, unwilling to break the connection.
“A bit sweet. Here, you try,” he whispered and tipped the mug toward her. Would she share his mug, or would she refuse him?
She said nothing, but as she let him lift the mug to her mouth, she sipped without breaking their locked gaze. Her eyes darkened and her pupils dilated. Slowly, she backed away.
“It’s good. But it was too sweet for me. I … I think it will bepopular though.”
He didn’t say anything. He couldn’t. He was trapped in her gaze.
She closed her eyes, and the trance was broken. Disappointment wrapped around his heart. He wanted nothing more than to kiss her. To claim her.
“I guess that’s it,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
“I guess,” he agreed without wanting to.
“I need to clean up.”
“I’ll help.” They emptied the mugs and loaded the dishwasher. He learned how to clean the brewer and the steamer. When she went to dump out the cherry drink, he stopped her. “I’ll take that to go, if that’s okay?”
“But you said it was too sweet.”
He shrugged. There was no way he’d admit he wanted it because her lips had touched it. That was insane.
Chapter Ten
Drinda tromped through the lightly falling snow to the door of The Coffee Loft and unlocked the door. It was still dark outside and would be for hours. Five-fifteen was a peaceful time and she’d learned to enjoy the solitude of early morning.
She stepped into perfect warmth and immediately shed her jacket. A programmable thermostat was a true blessing. Standing on the long gray entry mat, she stomped snow off her boots and brushed it off her hair.
It had been snowing for five days straight. Wasn’t it time for spring to start popping up? Heaven knows she’d grown tired of cold damp feet and of mopping salt and slush from her floors.
Everything in the shop was just how she left it. No lights on except the emergency exit signs and one small light behind the counter. There were no tracks on the floor. Nothing was disturbed. Perfect. She flipped on the white mini lights behindthe stained-glass windows which flanked the front door. It didn’t make sense, but she wanted to let the world know she was inside and the lights were a warm welcome in the dark.
She’d spent every minute of the past four days wondering if she’d made a mistake in not accepting Ford’s kiss. He’d been in a few times since then, and it had been all she could do not to fling herself into his arms and against his lips. His pull was magnetic. They hadn’t managed to get together since that night.
Light scratching and whines came from outside. Oscar. He’d shown up the day after their near kiss. The crazy dog just wouldn’t go away. He spent every day sitting at the front of the shop trying to get in. Nobody had claimed him or answered her ads. The forecast was for minus twenty-five tonight. That wasn’t fit for man or beast. She was going to have to do something to protect the pup. The question was what?
Maybe she could bring him inside. But how? She didn’t dare violate the health regulations and she couldn’t take him home.
She shoved the question aside. She had work to do and her mind would worry out a solution to the OscarDilemma while she did it, if she kept her mind off Ford. The first order of business was to start a pot of coffee and then a batch of strawberry valentine muffins.
The smell of fresh coffee was a balm to her soul. It filled her with peace and energy. This, this one perfect moment when the aroma hit her nose, was why she worked such long hours. She wanted to share her love of coffee and baking with the world.
Scratching restarted at the back door as she pulled down ingredients. Oscar had vanished for a couple days, and she’d hoped he had gone home. But he’d returned the day before yesterday, and she’d taken to throwing him the odd scrap. It was probably why he came back and hung around. Despite the scraps, he was looking thinner.
Her chest ached. What could she do?
