Page 18 of Tricking an Introvert

And deodorant, what about deodorant?

“Tessa? Sorry, did I do something?” she heard through the door. “I apologize, I shouldn’t have barged in.”

Tessa groaned, opening the door again. “You didn’t do anything. I’m just weird. Come on in.”

She stepped aside to let him in.

“Is that The Princess Bride?” he asked, walking through the hallway and zeroing in on her living room with a huge smile on his face. “One of the best movies ever made.”

Was he even allowed to say that? That wasn’t fair. There should be a law against hotties being that perfect.

“I love that part.” On the screen, Westley and Inigo Montoya were crossing swords. He glanced back at her. “I really am sorry. I tried to call first, then when you didn’t answer, I figured I’d come by to see if you were home. I was walking from Hudson Square and passed in front of your house.”

“Who walks in New York City?” she questioned, grumbling for the sake of grumbling.

Cole shrugged. “People who can’t find a better excuse? I was in the neighborhood sounds like a could-be psycho stalker. Nevertheless, it’s actually true. Michael lives in Tribeca, not far from Hudson Square. I was fifteen minutes away and I kept thinking, what sort of coffee did you make last weekend?”

Tessa blinked in confusion. “Coffee?” she repeated.

Cole nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, it was pretty great, actually.”

In her opinion, that was a weirder excuse for a visit than I was in the neighborhood.

“It’s an Italian import, pretty standard. Still, my setup is good. I grind my own beans and never make too much at a time so they stay fresh. The machine is probably one of the fanciest things in this apartment. Come on through.”

Tessa paused the movie and moved on to the open-concept kitchen to show him her professional setup, better than most coffee shops. He watched with interest, taking note of the brands.

“See? Simple.”

It wasn’t, compared to the machines where they just had to press one button and wait one minute. The difference in the result made the effort worth it.

“That’s great, thanks. And sorry again for coming unannounced.”

“Any time,” she said, smiling.

It didn’t even feel forced. Somehow, spending ten minutes chatting about coffee had done wonders to get her out of her weird headspace.

Except now she was thinking about the dog, and feeling down all over again.

“Are you okay?” Cole asked, catching the change in her expression the moment it happened.

Oh God. Her throat tightened, her eyes watered. Tessa could feel it bubbling up. She was minutes, if not seconds, from exploding in tears.

Then the doorbell rang again.

She rushed away, screaming, “Pizza!” like a lunatic. “That’s my pizza.”

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