Page 18 of Strong Coffee

“Spicy as fuck,” I murmured.

A cheeky grin spread on his face. “Oh, you haven’t seen anything yet. We may have fucked twice but that was only in my office, and it was fast as hell because I didn’t have a lot of time. But once I get you home tonight…all bets are fucking off.”

A shiver trembled through me. “I can’t wait.”

TEN

Camden

I liked him. Alot. It was different with Brady than it had been with Beverly. And it wasn’t because he was a guy either. With my ex-wife, it was comfortable. We never fought but we hardly ever had sex as well.

It was more like I had a roommate instead of a wife. But it surprisingly worked well for us.

Brady and I walked hand in hand to Coffee Beans & Love. When I had my business meetings with Rhett, we always met at his bar. I had driven past Coffee Beans & Love but never actually went inside.

“If you don’t want to introduce me to your friends just yet, I completely understand.”

“Why wouldn’t I want to?” Brady asked, his eyes flicking myway.

“Because we only just started seeing each other and who knows where this is going.” I shrugged because I really had no idea what I was saying.

“And here I thought you had everything figured out,” he teased, giving me a wink.

I chuckled, gently nudging him in the shoulder. “If I had everything figured out, I never would have married a woman, but Beverly was good for me and they say everything happens for a reason, so…” I shrugged again.

“I get it.” Brady looked straight ahead, his jaw suddenly clenching.

I followed his line of sight, seeing Coffee Beans & Love in the near distance.

“I’ve never brought a guy here,” he mumbled.

I grabbed hold of his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I got you, Brady.” And I did. No matter what happened, I had his back. I also didn’t give a shit if Brady’s friends approved of us. As long as Brady was happy, that was what mattered to me most.

ELEVEN

Brady

I wasn’t sure whyI was so damn worried about what the guys would think of Cam. It wasn’t like I had ever been worried what they thought of any of the previous guys I had slept with. Noah had told me time and time again that he wished I stopped sleeping with Shane because he didn’t want me to get hurt. That had been the only opinion he ever had on the matter. Presley kept his thoughts to himself, but he scowled every time Shane said something about us or even when he saw us snuggling up close on the couch at home.

Camden tried distracting me by talking about his business but I couldn’t focus, so I wasn’t exactly sure what all he hadbeen saying.

When we reached the front doors to Coffee Beans & Love, I took a deep breath and let go of Cam’s hand so he could enter before me. I had considered this place home more than the apartment I actually lived in. But having Cam there, about to meet my friends and some of the staff who worked for us, set my nerves on edge.

I followed him into my café. It sat between a laundromat and a variety store. Before we renovated it and took up more space after our business grew, the café was actually attached to a massage parlor. Word had it that they didn’t do just massages. Cops got wind and shut the place down. So, it was a win for us.

As I stepped over the threshold, the sound of deep bass pumped into my ears. The band wasn’t playing. So something happened or they were late. We were still trying to figure out the logistics of having a café and then turning it into a type of after-hours bar with music and alcohol, all the while still having that familiar warmth our customers enjoyed and looked forward to whenever they stepped through the door.

“Hey.” Cam came up to my side. “You good?”

“Yeah. Just wondering where the band is.” As soon as the words left my lips, a loud crash sounded from the kitchen. “Shit. I’ll be back.” I rushed to the back of the café, wondering what the hell was going on. Before I could round the corner to see what all the commotion was about, I heard Presley and Noah talking.

“I told you not to mess with it.” Presley’s voice was filled with annoyance.

“I didn’t do anything.”

“Shane is going to be pissed. We can’t afford a new one.”

“Damn right I’m pissed.”

---