Page 40 of East

Fucking Micaela. All this “you’ll meet the right man someday, work-life balance” bullshit.

Of course, behind her fake encouragement, a tiny grain of truth grates at me.

Why haven’t I met someone yet?

By all metrics, I’m a freaking catch.

But I got stood up last night, and the only guy who showed me any interest was a creep wrapped in a shroud of darkness.

Not entirely true.

Aus was interested. And he seemed like a genuinely good guy.

Too bad I’ll never see him again.

Ugh. I wish I hadn’t been so dumb and gone home with Wick. Even if I did muster up the courage to return to the Jade Sanctum, I’m sure Aus saw me go home with him. He’ll want nothing to do with me. Bro code and all.

“Thea?”

A husky, masculine voice is calling from behind me. One that’s slightly familiar.

I turn around to see who’s calling me.

And I drop my jaw.

16

AUS

I’ve threaded this needle beautifully.

I have my half-eaten blackberry scone in a to-go bag in my right hand and my Golden Latte cup in my left. Thea won’t think I’m insane. She’ll think I’m that charming guy she met last night who just happened to grab a coffee as she left work.

Her jaw is dropped.

I tap on my chest with the scone hand. “Aus Waverly. We met last night.”

She blinks a few times. “Yes, of course. How could I forget?” She swallows. “What are you doing here?”

I point back to the Golden Cap. “I was trying out a new coffee place. One of the waitresses at Jade recommended it to me. I didn’t realize it was this close to the news studio.”

She furrows her brow. “Yeah. I go there all the time. Golden Cap. Did you try the turmeric latte?”

“That’s what I’ve got right here.” I raise the cup and take a step forward. “It’s actually better than I expected. I like trying new things.”

She offers a small smile. “Me too.”

I take another step toward her. “If you’re done with your broadcast for the day, I’d love to buy you one. We didn’t get a chance to finish our conversation last night.”

She scrunches her forehead, as if she’s not completely buying my explanation, but then her muscles relax. “I’d love to, Aus. Lead the way.”

I offer her my arm and escort her back to the Golden Cap. The pink-haired girl widens her eyes as we walk inside. “Back for more?”

I nod. “The first Golden Latte was pretty good. Figured I’d see what else you have on your menu.”

Pink-hair girl grins. “Of course, sir. What can I get you for round two?”

I turn to Thea. “What would you like? It’s on me.”