Page 40 of Espresso Your Love
“Ryan,” she greets me with a bright smile. “You look great.”
“And you look beautiful,” I reply nervously, putting my hands in my pocket.
“Thank you. I wasn’t sure what you had planned. Is this okay?” she asks, fidgeting under my gaze.
“It’s perfect,” I assure her. “Shall we?”
“We shall,” she answers cheerfully, locking her door before looping her arm through mine as we make our way to my truck.
As we drive toward the outskirts of Meadowbrook, our conversation flows easily. I catch glimpses of her animatedly talking about the last book she read. The fading sun illuminates her golden hair, and her sweet scent of jasmine fills the cab.
“Speaking of, I got you something.” She pulls a gift wrapped in brown paper out of her purse. “It’s just a little thank you for helping me with my car.”
I pull the truck over on the side of the road. “You didn’t have to get me anything.”
“Oh, just open it!”
I unwrap the paper to reveal a cozy mystery novel and let out a soft chuckle. The dog on the cover looks like it could be Max’s twin.
“As soon as I saw it, I thought of you. I’m not sure if you like mysteries but—”
I interrupt her. “I love it. Thank you.”
“Thank you for helping me yesterday. It was sweet of you.”
“My pleasure.” I smile, my insides warm and fuzzy.
I set the book in the back seat and resume our drive.
“Where are we going?” she asks as we pass the “Welcome to Meadowbrook” sign.
“You’ll just have to wait and see,” I reply with a mischievous grin.
Cassie rolls her eyes playfully. “I should have known better than to expect a straight answer from you.” She sighs dramatically.
Reaching into the back seat, I retrieve a soft scarf and hand it to her. “Here, put this on.”
She looks at me with confusion and then wraps the scarf around her neck.
“No, over your eyes.” I chuckle.
She squints at me. “My eyes?”
“Just trust me.”
With hesitation, she puts the scarf over her eyes. She begins fidgeting with her foot, tapping against the floorboard.
In an attempt to comfort her, I set my hand on her forearm. Her foot stops immediately. I intended to reassure her, but I might have just stunned her.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“That’s okay; I just didn’tseeit coming.”
I pretend to laugh. “Ha ha. Good one.”
She giggles in her seat.
We arrive at our destination, and I put the truck in park.
