Page 7 of Allured By Her

“Go. Away,” she said again, and I headed back behind the counter.

“Well?” Lark asked.

“She’s just going through something. Asked me to leave her alone.” I shrugged and went back to work, but the nagging feeling in the back of my mind wouldn’t go away.

* * *

Tenley didn’t reappear for ten more minutes, and when she came out, she was completely wrecked as she shuffled back to her table and sat down.

On an impulse, I made a cup of warm honey chamomile tea and tentatively took it over to her table.

“You should, um, hydrate?” I said and it sounded like a question as I set the cup down on the table and pushed it toward her.

“What?” she said, looking up at me. I couldn’t help the little rush of satisfaction as I saw that she wasn’t a pretty crier. Tenley truly looked awful, but my pleasure at her misfortune was short-lived.

“I just brought you some tea,” I said, pointing to the cup. “And now I’ll go back to work.” I started inching away from the table, but she shook her head and set her jaw.

“No, sit,” she said.

“Huh?” I said.

“Sit down,” she said, pointing to the empty chair that didn’t have her bag on it.

“Okay?” I said, pulling the chair out. I shot a quick glance at Lark and she gave me a questioning look. I quickly shrugged one shoulder at her and sat down. No idea why I was doing this with Tenley.

A few seconds of awkward silence passed as I wondered how long I had to sit here before I could bolt.

“Shane broke up with me,” she said, her voice thick.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” I said.

“Are you?” she asked, her voice sharp.

I opened my mouth to answer and then shut it again.

“That’s what I thought,” Tenley said, sighing and picking up the tea. “I know you don’t like me, and you definitely don’t like him. You’re not exactly subtle about it.”

“I’m sorry,” I said.

“No, you’re not,” she said. “It’s fine. I don’t care.” She waved one hand.

“I should get back to work,” I said, getting ready to run. Tenley stared out the window.

“I have to get him back,” she said softly to herself.

“Well, good luck with that,” I said, starting to stand, but one of her hands reached out to stop me.

“Wait. Just hold on a second.”

I stopped and sat down again.

“What?” I asked, starting to get fed up.

Tenley licked her lips and I saw a gleam in her eyes that made my stomach drop.

“Shane gets really jealous, you know,” she said.

“Uh, no, I didn’t, but it’s not a surprise,” I said. I’d seen the way he’d acted in high school.

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