Page 41 of East

She frowns. “To tell you the truth, I’m kind of hungry. All I’ve had today is a half-eaten protein bar I found at the bottom of my purse. I was…late coming into work today.”

My heart sinks. She was late because she was with Wick, I bet.

Fuck. Is this all going to be a waste of time?

No.

Coffee with a gorgeous, intelligent lady like Thea is never a waste of time.

“That’s fine. We can get some sandwiches. Do you have any recs since you come here often?”

She nods. “The caprese sandwich is divine.”

“Caprese? Like mozzarella, tomato, and basil?”

“Yep. But I add bacon to it.”

“That sounds more like it.” I laugh as I turn to the barista. “Two caprese sandwiches, bacon added. Extra for mine.” I look back to Thea. “Anything to drink?”

“Just a medium iced coffee. Black.”

I turn back to the girl at the register. “Same for me this time.”

“All right, sir. So that’s two caprese sandwiches with bacon and two medium iced coffees. Cash or card?”

“Card.” I pull my credit card back out of my wallet and tap it on the screen.

“Great. That’ll be just a few minutes.”

I gesture toward the tables. “Shall we sit?”

Thea nods. “There’s a cozy couch in the corner.”

I look over. I must have missed it when I first came in here.

It isn’t a couch. It’s a loveseat.

Nice. She wants to cozy up to me.

If she did get with Wick, she’s not looking for seconds.

We sit down and another employee—male with dark hair, tattoos, and black jeans—drops off our orders.

Thea watches him walk off and unwraps her sandwich, taking a quick bite. After she swallows, she turns to me. “I don’t know if you saw me leave last night…”

I did. But I don’t want her to think I’m obsessed.

“I didn’t. But I saw you sitting alone at the bar at East. Did your date not show?”

She looks down. “No. He didn’t. Asshole.”

“I’m sorry. What a dick.”

“No kidding. After I got all dolled up.” She looks at her sandwich and then back to me. “But… I mean, anyway… After he didn’t show up, one of your bartenders swung by to…keep me company. He bought me a drink.”

“Uh-huh,” I say as flatly as I can.

“Well…. That is to say…” She sighs. “If you happened to see me leave with him, I just want you to know I didn’t do anything with him. I’m not… I’m not that kind of girl.”