Page 49 of Mistletoe Kisses

His own smile grew as he looked back at me and held eye contact. He studied my face, and I let him see my happiness. “For a week, yes. We figured we would rather stay on vacation longer than stay with his brother.”

“Loving this idea. Where are you staying?”

Arlo hooked his teeth over the lip I wanted to nibble. “The B&B is full, but I’m sure there’s a place in McMinnville I can find. I’m not sure yet.” His shoulders were tense, and I wanted to ease that stress from him.

“No pressure, but this is a genuine invitation. You’re welcome to stay with me as long as you’re here. Absolutely no expectations. I have a twin-sized air mattress if you’d prefer your own space. You might have to put up with the occasional guitar playing though.”

Arlo’s eyes grew wide. “You’d let me stay with you?”

“Of course. I want to spend more time with you, but if this idea freaks you out, no harm, no foul.”

He stared at the bar and smiled to himself, then brought his face up again. “I want that. I feel comfortable around you. Less anxious. Still anxious, but more of a six than a ten.”

“I’ll take that as a win.”

Arlo laughed. “You should.”

“I’ll grab my key for you so you can take your stuff over. You’re welcome to hang out here too. There’s a killer bananas foster waffle on the brunch menu today.”

“Ooh, yes please.”

“You got it. One waffle and an oat milk latte with a dash of cinnamon.”

“You remembered my coffee order?”

It stuck out to me since I didn’t have the supplies to make it for him this morning when I’d asked what he usually ordered while I’d made him breakfast. “Gotta impress you somehow. I’ll come check on you in a bit.”

“Take your time. I don’t want to bother you at work.”

“Honey, you’re never a bother.”

I practically bounced to the kitchen to put in the order and floated to check on my tables. A couple of locals commented on my mood uptick.

In between customers, I kept going back to check on Arlo. I made sure not to abandon my customers, but it wasn’t the peak of professionalism to spend lots of time with him. I couldn’t help it. I was too damn happy, and I deserved an hour of being slightly less attentive.

The more quick conversations I had with Arlo while he ate brunch, the more excited I became about him staying with me. We barely knew each other. The idea was wild. But I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been as excited about something, and my gut told me to spend as much time with him as possible while I had the chance, in case the opportunity never came again. It was peak living in the moment.

“Any ideas of what you want to do this week?” I asked when I brought him another coffee.

“I might go back to the coast. I could go there every day and it wouldn’t be enough. Maybe visit the Tillamook Cheese Factory or go to Portland? I don’t know though. It’s overwhelming to pick a part of the city to go see. What do you have going on this week?”

“I’m having lunch with Reed tomorrow. We’ve never done that before, but he asked me.” Maybe it was his way of making an effort with Warren’s family, but he didn’t need to. Reed was already part of our family. I loved the guy like a brother.

“That’s great. I think I’ll go back to the bookstore tomorrow to find out if I can help more there.” Arlo stared down at his coffee mug. “I think the store is struggling.”

I sighed. “I got that impression too. It’s admirable that you’re doing what you can to help them.”

Arlo shrugged. “It’s helping me get to know Ron better.”

“That’s wonderful, Arlo. I’m happy for you.”

The doors opened and a group of four walked in. I signaled that I’d be right over, then grabbed Arlo’s empty plate. “Brunch is my treat. Use my key for today, and I’ll text you when I’m heading home. If you’re not there, I can meet you somewhere or hang at Warren’s until you’re home.” That word set off an unexpected pang in my chest. “We can get a copy made for you tomorrow when the hardware store opens.”

I pulled the key from my pocket and handed it to him. He looked at it like it was a rare gem.

“See you later, babe.”

Chapter21

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