Page 30 of Here and Now
I’d wait for an hour if it means I can talk to her.
“Do you want another cold brew with foam while you’re waiting?” Penelope asks.
As much as the coffee she made me wasn’t absolutely the worst thing I ever drank, I didn’t exactly acquire a taste for it. Still, I’m going to drink it.
“I’d love that,” I say and nearly whoop when she smiles.
Fuck, I’ll be drinking ten of these a day if I can make her happy like that. I’ll surely be getting a date at this rate.
Maybe I’m not such an idiot around women.
“Great! I’ll make it now.”
She turns around, grabbing the cup and doing whatever the hell the drink requires, and then faces me, handing me the coffee.
Her eyes don’t leave mine as she waits for me to take a sip.
I school my features, trying to summon up the acting class I had to take in college for an easy A, and drink.
God, it tastes like shit still, however, on my face, you’d never know.
“This is great. Thank you,” I say and Penelope smiles warmly.
Yeah, totally worth drinking the garbage.
“So, how is Kai?”
“Good, he’s in the back, just hanging out while I work.”
I nod. “He’s doing really great with skating. Not every kid can pick it up the way he is. Honestly, he’s a natural.”
Kai is already improving with skating and stick drills, far faster than I would’ve expected. Ethan and I have always played hockey, since the time my sister would allow it at least. Doug and I both grew up playing and I like being with my nephew, so it was kind of our thing. Ethan skates rings around the other kids, which I’ve had to try to tamp down a little.
However, Kai is getting really good at the basics.
“That makes me happy,” she confesses. “I always worry with him. You know, it’s hard moving to a new town, but a customer mentioned the hockey clinic and I hoped maybe he’d like it. He hated soccer.”
“Hockey is much better,” I say with a lot of bias.
She laughs softly. “Well, you are a town legend.”
“I am, huh? You’ve been asking around about me?” I lean closer, going for a cute flirty type of encounter.
“Not even a little.”
I stand up, clutching my chest. “I’m wounded.”
“Should I call Everett?”
“To finish me off?”
Penelope laughs and shakes her head. “He’s a doctor.”
“He works on cows and horses. Are you comparing me?”
She shakes her head again. “No, not even a little.”
I smile. “Good, that wouldn’t bode well for me.” I bring the coffee back to my lips and force down another sip. “Especially since we could be here, planning our date.”
