Page 22 of Meet Cute Reboot

She releases the pressure on the grinder and the room goes silent. Todd and Bethany are quiet on the other side of the door, giving me the distinct sense that they’re trying to eavesdrop.

I press down on the grinder to fill the room with white noise. “I didn’t take down your site. I’m the majority investor. I wouldn’t sabotage my own investment.”

Cassie drops her arms and clutches the countertop with her right hand. “This isn’t going to work,” Cassie says. “We can’t be business partners.”

“We aren’t partners. I’m just an investor.”

Cassie’s face scrunches in disgust.

I let up on the grinder. We stare at each other in the silence, and then I press down on it again. “I decided to move back to Charleston. It had nothing to do with you. It was a business decision. You know I’ve always been committed tosmall businesses, and I thought Charleston would be the perfect southern hub.”

Cassie refolds her arms.

“I checked your Instagram account, just to see what you were up to, and you know...see if we might be able to reconnect. I noticed you weren’t wearing your wedding ring, and I called Spence to see what was up. He told me you were recently divorced, and you were starting up a business venture with Excel.”

The realization that our mutual friend Spencer had something to do with my presence in her break room, hits Cassie hard. She covers her face with her hands. I stop the coffee grinder while she regroups.

She lowers her hands and looks up at the ceiling. “Continue,” she whispers.

I slam the coffee grinder. “Todd and I were already connected through LinkedIn, so I called him up and asked him about your company. He sent me the business plan and I thought it was brilliant, so I offered to buy out one of his partner’s shares.

“And then I had Drew add me to your database because I was afraid to ask you out for coffee. And the rest is...unfolding.” I bow and tumble my hands for effect.

Cassie isn’t impressed by my theatrics. She rolls her eyes and turns to grab her hot cup of coffee. I step toward her, so close I can feel her body heat. For some reason, she doesn’t back off. I’m encouraged. And overtaken. Her perfume stirs sensations in me that I’ve worked hard to tamp down ever since we broke up.

I’m older now. Wiser.

I resist my urge to touch her elbow.

“I’m sorry, Cassie,” I whisper. “I did this all wrong. I wanted to reconnect, but I thought you’d reject me.”

Cassie’s expression turns defiant. “You were right. There’s something called boundaries, Luke, and you should learn what that means.”

I retreat a step, consider leaving, but press on the coffee grinder one last time. “I messed up. I messed up bad. I never should have hurt you like I did. If you hate me, I understand. But I still believe in your company, and I intend to stand behind it. This is business, okay? We don’t have to work together. I’m just supplying the funds.”

Cassie looks unconvinced. I don’t wait for her to change her mind. Instead, I head out of the break room and leave her to her coffee.

Cassie

With Luke safely out of sight, I spin toward the cabinets and melt onto the countertop. So many emotions. Conflicting. Jumbled. Anger mixed with excitement mixed with disgust mixed with... Desire? I thump my forehead with the heel of my palm.

First of all, Luke investing in my company, becoming amajorityinvestor—that’s just so many levels of wrong given our history. Second of all, when he stepped in close to me, when I could smell his cologne, it made me want to wander my hand along his bristled jaw. What wasthatabout? The thoughts, my desires, came out of nowhere. When I should have been seething mad at him, I wanted him to step in closer. I wanted his arms around me, his sturdy chest against my cheek, the touch of his fingers along my back.

So untimely. So uninvited.

So...inappropriate.

I amoverLuke Curtis. If I could revise the dictionary, I would add a picture next to the word “over.” It would be me leaping over Luke like a sheep jumping over a fence. I’ve jumped over him so many times, hordes of insomniacs have fallen asleep because of me. It’s a contribution to humanity that I’m particularly proud of.

Over. Over.Over. Cassie Sears is over Luke Curtis.

“Um. Cassie?”

I jump up and whirl around. “What!”

Luke’s head is peeking through the door. His expression hints at amusement.This isn’t funny.

“Todd wants some of that fresh coffee,” he says, emphasizing the word fresh.

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