Page 46 of A Love Like Pumpkin Spice
“I have no idea who you’re talking about.” Now it’s my turn to cross my arms in front of my chest.
“I know she’s here!” he shouts, angrily pacing my reception area.
I lift an eyebrow and do a slow, deliberate sweep of the room, as if I might discover her hiding behind a potted plant.
“I don’t see her,” I say, deadpan.
Jensen’s growl becomes louder, his entire body tense, and he’s completely fixated on the guy, carefully tracking every move. He can’t move his pinky without Jensen noticing at this point.
“And if you do see her,” I add sweetly, “I’d strongly recommend a trip to the ER. Or maybe rehab. Or possibly an exorcism.” I stare at him with fake, exaggerated worry. “Do you need me to call nine-one-one?”
“You think you’re funny, don’t you?” he sneers, walking right up to me and I shake my head.
“I know I am. However, Ithinkyou’re rude and can’t take a hint.” I shrug and nod toward my dog. Apparently, he hasn’t seen or heard Jensen yet, because he startles and takes a cautious step back.
“Now, as you can see—” I lift my bag higher and wriggle it a bit. “I was about to leave.” He still doesn’t make any attempts to turn around and walk out the door. “Meaning, you need to leave too.”
His eyes jump from Jensen to me, his face turning red and his fingers flexing into fists before opening again. This guy wants trouble, but he’ll have to find it somewhere else. Whatever his agenda is, I’m not playing along. I have better things to do than placate an ego.
“Fuck,” he mutters and suddenly turns around, pulling the door open with a force that makes me fear for its hinges, and storms out.
“Well, well, well,” I mumble, quickly rounding the counter and locking the door, taking a deep breath to calm down and be a good example for Jensen. “Calm down, Jensen. That fucker is gone.”
But Jensen is still fixated on him, tracking his every step until he finally gets into a black Mercedes and drives out of sight. Even when he’s gone, Jensen remains tense, and I swear the look he’s giving me is his version of“Why didn’t you let me bite that asshat’s neck?”
“Trust me, I have no idea either. He certainly deserves it,” I mumble and give him a reassuring pet once he’s calmed down a bit. With a sigh, I check the time again. Twenty minutes after I initially wanted to leave. I’m officially late.
“I mean, maybe I'm lucky and the only one on the road,” I tell Jensen whose only reaction is a big yawn.
Chapter 17
Henry
“Thisis your incognito getup?” I ask Nic amusedly when she slides into my booth at Caleb’s. She’s hiding her hair under a knitted wool hat and her eyes behind sunglasses that cover more than half her face. I fight the urge to pull them off her nose, really wanting to see her face.
“Yep.” She lets out a deep sigh and dejectedly leans her head against my shoulder, her hand searching for mine under the table.
“You two are adorable,” Kieran teases from the opposite side of the booth and makes a kissy mouth at us. “You are, Wayward Hollow’s new dream couple. It was about time you two got your shit together.”
“New?” Lauren turns and glances at Kieran, curiosity written all over her face. “Who was the old one?”
“One hundred percent the Thomsons,” he answers immediately with a convinced nod. “I mean thirty years of marriage? That’s dream couple material.”
“We have been together for all of three minutes,” I joke, glancing at Nic and giving her hand a gentle squeeze. Her mouth is set in a straight line, and I catch her eyes behind those dark glasses darting around nervously. “I don’t think that qualifies us yet.” In an attempt to help her relax, I lift my arm and she immediately scoots toward me, a heavy sigh falling from her lips when I pull her closer.
“God, you two are sweeter than this damned syrup,” Lauren jokes and demonstratively puts the already half-empty bottle on the table.
“One of these days Caleb will kick you out and never let you back in,” Kieran jokes, but Lauren only sticks out her tongue at him.
“Never. I’m his best customer at this point.” She shoots him a triumphant grin.
“Very tempting thought, though.” As always, Caleb appears next to us out of thin air. His arms are full of mugs and saucers, our coffee’s expertly stacked along his forearms without any of us having ordered from him or Shawna.
“See? Nic and I are already regulars—he knows our orders!” Lauren jokes and happily accepts her mug with an overly sweet smile and a “Thank you!”
“You’re not welcome,” he tells her gruffly then his eyes dart over the rest of us. “You three are.” He glances back at Lauren. “Don’t bring that shit in here again.” But it’s missing his usual bite. He’s probably given up the fight already.
And then he turns around and wanders back to his place behind the counter, wiping some imaginary stains off glasses.
