Page 38 of Tides of Discovery
Jack shook his head. His familiar, modest grin appeared. “I just ran the register. Cooper did all the real work.”
“I couldn’t have managed without you.” I meant it more than he probably realized. “Seriously, Jack. You’re a lifesaver.”
Aaron clocked in, took over the register, and freed Jack from his impromptu duties. I walked Jack to the front of the shop, suddenly aware of how disheveled we both looked after hours of continuous work. Jack’s light brown hair was mussed where he’d run his hands through it, and a smudge of ink marked his cheek. I probably looked even worse.
Yet somehow, standing there in my coffee-stained apron, watching Jack roll down his sleeves, I’d never felt more drawn to him.
“Thank you,” I said quietly. “Really.”
“Anytime.” His blue eyes met mine with a warmth that made my pulse quicken. “I’m glad I could help.”
“Can I make you a fresh coffee? A sandwich?”
Jack glanced at his watch. “Better not. I’ve got a meeting in five minutes.” He hesitated, then added, “Rain check?”
“Absolutely.”
An awkward moment passed between us, neither sure how to say goodbye. Jack resolved the dilemma. He leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to my cheek. “See you later,” he said, his voice low. “Try not to work too hard.”
“No promises,” I replied, mindful of the warmth his lips had left on my skin.
With a final crooked grin, he was gone. The bell announced his departure with its cheerful jingle. I stood there for a moment and watched through the windows as he passed by. A strange mixture of emotions swirled inside me like milk steaming in a pitcher—turbulent and transforming.
What did you call it when your best friend kissed you senseless after planning an event? When he stepped behind the counter of your coffee shop without hesitation because you needed help? When the sound of him remembering howLayla took her coffee caused strange aerial maneuvers in your stomach?
What did you call it when a temporary relationship started to feel more authentic than anything you’d experienced before?
As I turned back to help Aaron with a customer order, I admitted to myself what I’d been avoiding all day: my feelings for Jack were quickly evolving into something I’d never anticipated. Something that both thrilled and terrified me.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Cooper
I glanced at the clock on my phone for the third time in five minutes. 9:17 a.m. Jack was over an hour late for his usual Saturday routine, and the wrongness of it sat heavy in my chest like day-old coffee grounds.
The table by the window—Jack’stable—remained stubbornly empty despite the steady stream of weekend customers flowing through The Coffee Cove. I watched the door between pulling shots and tracked every figure that passed by the large front windows. None of them had Jack’s easy stride or the way he always paused just inside the doorway to scan the shop until his gaze found me behind the counter.
My hands moved on autopilot, steaming milk and crafting drinks, while my mind catalogued all the reasons Jack might be running late. Oversleeping, a last-minute errand, a client’s emergency. All perfectly reasonable explanations that did nothing to ease the knot of concern tightening in my stomach.
By 10:15, I couldn’t stand it anymore. I pulled out my phone, and my thumbs hesitated over the keyboard before I typed:
Coming in today? Your usual table is getting lonely.
The reply came back faster than I’d expected.
Sick. Stomach flu.
My blood went cold. The stomach bug. The same one that had taken out Jessica and Marco earlier in the week, when Jack had stepped in to keep the shop running.
And now Jack had it.
Jack, who lived alone in his apartment. Jack, who had no family to call, had no one to check on him. Jack, who was probably curled up on the floor of his bathroom right now with no one to bring him water or make sure he didn’t get dangerously dehydrated.
The protective instinct that surged through me caught me off guard with its intensity. This wasn’t just concern—this wasneed. The need to be there, to take care of Jack, to make sure he was okay. More than that, Iwantedto do it. I wanted to be the person Jack could count on.
“Jessica,” I called out, already untying my apron. “I need you and Marco to take over. I’m leaving.”
Jessica looked up from the register, eyebrows shooting toward her hairline. “You’re what now? Cooper, you haven’t taken a sick day in the year I’ve worked here. You came in with a broken wrist.”
