Page 101 of Stepbrothers

She spun around, the deep voice shockingly familiar.

“Trig. What are you…?” He looked so out of place in the café, like a surly grizzly bear at a summer pool party.

“Doing here?” He cocked his left eyebrow. “Thought maybe we could draw a line under yesterday. Didn’t go so well, did it.”

“Er, yeah, sure.”

“Talk?”

“I’m working.” She glanced over her shoulder at Derek’s office.

“Fair enough.” He studied the chalkboard menu overhead. “I’ll take an espresso.”

Of course he drank espresso.

“Coming right up.”

“Not busy today?”

“It has been, there’s always a lull about this time.”

“You here alone?”

“No, my boss is in there.” She nodded at the office.

“Taking his break?”

She huffed and lowered her voice. “An all-day break, he doesn’t exactly allow himself to be overworked.”

“Asshole.”

She nodded. “Here you go. On the house.”

“Nah. I don’t want to get you in trouble.”

“He’s never happy with me anyway.” She paused. “Used to be nicer working here when it was the old manager, Marion, we had a laugh, made the coffee together.”

“She left?” He tapped his phone on the pay machine.

“Yeah, six months ago to set up her own coffee shop in Scotland.”

“Nice part of the world.” He took his drink. “I’ll sit over there. Wait until you’ve finished your shift, then we can talk.”

“It will be a few hours yet.”

“I’ve got nothing planned and I’m used to waiting around.”

“Suit yourself.”

She watched as he walked to a window seat, and folded himself into what suddenly seemed to be a small chair, though had always appeared normal size. He glanced at her, half-smiled, then studied his phone.

The same fizz of interest that had tickled through her body appeared again at his smile. When she’d first seen him in Romy’s she’d known she wanted a piece of his action, and he hadn’t disappointed. Damn shame things were so complicated between them now.

“Hey, Clarice, you cleaned behind the fridge yet?” Derek appeared, his shirt half untucked and a scrap of green lettuce stuck between his teeth.

“Just about to do it,” she said, quickly reaching around the refrigerator and dragging it away from the wall. It moved a few inches, creaking and groaning and scraping on the floor.

She pulled it again, putting more muscle into it. “This is heavy.”

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