Page 54 of Company Ink

"Blueberry if they have it; otherwise, anything is fine!"

"I'll see what I can do," I say and then head to the cafe.

I'm hoping that they sell sandwiches not just pastries, because I spent all of yesterday tasting wedding cake samples with Monique and Matt. Matt's best man was supposed to be there as well but couldn't make it, good riddance I say, more cake for us.

As I turn the corner and the cafe comes into sight, I suck my teeth in disappointment; they only have baked goods. I grab two blueberry muffins and plop an herbal tea bag into a cup of hot water, before making my way to the checkout counter.

"That'll be $9.79, please," the cashier informs me with a slight smile. I hold out my phone and attempt to pay with ApplePay. "Sorry, we don't have tap, ma'am."

I let out an embarrassed giggle. "Right." I rummage through my bag looking for my credit card. A muscular bare arm extends in front of me, a crisp twenty-dollar bill pinched between two fingers.

"On me," a familiar voice says. Turning around my eyebrows knit together. What in the—

"Blake?" I do a double take, raking my eyes down the length of his body, making sure I'm not seeing things. "What're you doing here?" I pause, looking down at his legs. "You're wearingjeans."

"It's the weekend, Cassandra," Blake laughs, holding his to-go cup of coffee up in the air. "Plus, this coffee, please," he says to the cashier who takes his money. "Keep the change."

"Thank you," I mutter, grabbing my muffins and tea and walking to the side of the kiosk, still puzzled.

"You just look so—casual," I note, examining his outfit; black Levi jeans, Vans, and a denim button up with the sleeves rolled up to three-quarters.

Blake perks up an eyebrow. "Contrary to popular belief, I don't live in my suit."

I shake my head, snorting. "I would've bet money that yousleepin it."

"Sorry to disappoint you but I do own regular clothes." He takes a sip of his coffee, nodding towards my hands. "Two muffins? Someone's hungry."

"One of them is for the receptionist," I explain. "I should go give it to him. He looked like he was going to pass out."

"I'll walk with you," Blake says, gesturing for me to go first.

"You never answered my question. What're you doing here?" I ask as we begin walking back to the waiting area at the front desk.

"My father is in the stroke rehabilitation program here," Blake explains quietly. "My brother usually brings him, but my nephew's summer recital was this afternoon so he couldn't make it."

"Stroke rehab? I thought your dad had a heart attack," I muse out loud, my conversation with Kitty and David replaying in my head.

"No, it was a stroke," Blake says, taking a sip of coffee. "Who told you it was a heart attack?"

I bite my lip, not wanting to get Kitty or David in trouble. "I just heard it around the office."

"Rumors," Blake hums, his eyes leaden and unimpressed. "I should've known. We never disclosed why my father stepped down, so I guess people are making assumptions."

We stop at the front desk and I hand the muffin to the receptionist. "Thank you! You're a Godsend," he says.

I smile. "No worries." Turning back to Blake, I point to two chairs around an empty table. "Wanna sit?"

"Sure." Blake nods and we sit down. "So, what bringsyouhere? Is everything okay?"

"With me? Yeah, I'm fine," I mutter, picking at my muffin. "My cousin Ness is a TBI patient here."

"TBI?" Blake asks knowingly, his sympathetic eyes meeting mine. "Traumatic Brain Injury?"

I take a deep breath. "Yeah, she was in an accident three years ago and suffered from a subdural hematoma. Her fine motor and speech skills were affected."

"Similar to my father." Blake nods in understanding. "Is she doing better? Your cousin?"

"I think so... Her doctor's say that her condition is permanent, but she's much stronger and more articulate now than she was a year or two ago, so I don't know. All we can do is hope for the best."

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