Page 13 of Perfect Blend

“I can’t believe Stephanie put that in there.” His mouth shifted into a small smile.

“At least there’s not a photo of you with blackberry pie all over your face. It’s like they set up that Spirit Week pie-eating contest solely to capture blackmail photos.”

Dave’s eyes widened for a moment before he tilted his head back and laughed. I loved watching his stress fall away. The deep laugh lines at the corners of his eyes were sexy as hell. Everything about Dave was. When we’d had dinner after I’d arrived in town the other day, I’d brushed aside my attraction to him as me being horny, being caught up in having an in-person conversation with an attractive adult, and Dave being new and shiny. On day two, I’d figured it was because we got along, and I was confusing friendship with attraction. On day three, I’d stopped making excuses. I really liked him.

“I forgot about that. So embarrassing for you.” His eyes twinkled.

“Ready to close for the parade? I finished everything,” Izzy said.

Dave looked down at his smartwatch and then around at the coffee shop. It had cleared out in the minutes we’d been talking. The wooden sign on the entrance had even been switched to closed. “I need to close out the register.”

“Already done.” They glanced briefly in my direction as their mouth twitched.

“You’ve finished it all?” Dave looked around again. “Damn. Sorry, Izzy.”

“Don’t worry about it. Good to see you…chatting.”

I barely bit back a laugh. Izzy was not subtle.

The skin above Dave’s beard line pinkened. “Thank you. Yeah, let’s go.”

I packed up my stuff while Dave and Izzy put chairs on the tables.

“Any chance I could leave my laptop bag here and grab it after the events? If that’s too much of a pain in the ass for you, no worries.” I hoped to angle for more alone time with him. And if he knew he had to let me back in to get my stuff, he might hang out with me after the parade.

His eyes twinkled. “Good idea. Let’s lock it in my office.”

After Dave locked the door, he turned to me and shoved his keys into his pockets. His jeans were tighter than the pairs I’d seen him in yesterday and the day before. They did wonders for his ass and long, lean, muscular legs. Legs I would love to have wrapped around me some time. Damn. Dave had kicked my libido into overdrive.

“You sure you’re not tired of me yet?” His expression held some hesitation, but I saw the hopefulness there, likely mirroring my own.

“Never.” The word fell out of my mouth too easily. Dave was as comfortable to be around as I remembered from high school. After I moved away, I regretted not getting to know him better while I’d had the chance. I remembered being glad when I saw Dave’s Facebook friend request years ago, but now I wished I’d spent more time over the years actually interacting with him.

Once we’d reconnected last month, I gravitated toward him. By the time I’d shown up in town, I’d felt like Dave and I were friends. Certainly closer than we’d ever been in school.

I hoped that level of comfort would benefit the article. The Dahlia Springs story would be so good that my boss would have no choice but to give me the promotion.

“Stick with me, kid, and you’ll do just fine,” Dave said like a newspaper editor from a noir film.

I followed him as he wove through the surprisingly large crowd packed onto the sidewalks of the inviting downtown. A significant number of people rocked colorful outfits. There were sequins, glittered body parts, and neon mesh as far as the eye could see.

“It’s going to be hard to interview people when it’s this packed.” I bobbed and weaved to avoid mowing down a toddler giggling over a bottle of bubbles. “Maybe we can find a place to watch, then I’ll talk to people after.”

He grinned at me over his shoulder. “I’ve got the perfect spot. Do you mind ladders?”

“No?”

He laughed. “Convincing. Don’t worry. It’s stable.” He turned down a narrow alley, going around to the back of a seemingly empty building. From the windows, it appeared to be one story with tall ceilings. Almost warehouse-like.

I followed Dave and his dimples like a cat on the trail of catnip. Dave hoisted himself up a fire ladder and deftly climbed to the top. His pert ass flexed with each step he ascended. I sucked in a deep breath and climbed. Heights weren’t my fave, but I wasn’t about to wimp out in front of him.

“You sure we’re okay to be up here?”

He shrugged. “It’s fine. What are they gonna do? Throw us in jail?”

“Probably. Unless you own the building.”

He laughed. “The cops love my coffee too much to pinch me for something this minor. If I throw in some muffins, I’m sure I could keep you out too.” The teasing twinkle in his eyes enchanted me. High School Dave hadn’t been quite so comfortable in his skin. I loved the change.

---