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Nora smiled. “This is Ronnie. He wanted to compliment the chef.”

“The food was excellent,” I said. “I wanted to hear from the horse’s mouth what made it so good.”

She blinked. Then a smile slowly appeared on her face. She glowed with a beauty I couldn’t describe. It was like the smile was the secret ingredient, but I could feel my fingers tingle at her mesmerizing beauty. “Thank you. Well, I’m the horse. But if I tell you the secret, I might have to call the FBI on you afterward.”

Nora laughed, and I couldn’t help smiling. I looked at Sofia for a moment. She was tired. I could see it in the slight heaviness around her eyes, but there was something effortless about her. She didn’t seem interested in impressing me. She was simply standing there, talking about food as though that was the only thing that mattered.

“I’ll leave you two alone.” Nora disappeared toward the front of the café.

“What I actually liked about the food was the balance. None of the ingredients were too much. It’s genius. My palate went to heaven and back.”

Her eyebrows lifted slightly. “That’s a good answer. But is this your usual way of getting free dessert? If it is, it won’t work on me.”

I laughed this time. Beauty, skill, and a killer sense of humour. Pretty impressive.

She glanced toward the kitchen again. “I should probably get back before someone burns my kitchen down. Nice chit-chatting with you.”

There was something about the way she said it that made me want to hear her say something else. I looked at her more closely. Her eyes were dark, almost black, and they held my attention in a way I couldn’t explain. They were expressive without being overly so. When she smiled, they softened. When she listened, they seemed to focus completely on whoever was speaking.

I’d noticed women before. I’d been attracted to women before. This was different, there was something strangely familiar and thrilling about her. I’d barely known Sofia for a few minutes, and already I was looking for reasons to keep her here. She seemed to notice me studying her.

“What?”

“You don’t seem impressed by me.”

She snorted, raising a brow. “Should I be?”

There was no arrogance in it. She simply seemed comfortable enough not to perform for me. That was rare. Most people pretended around me. Some became nervous, and even Nora had been. Others became overly friendly. A few became interested for reasons they didn’t bother hiding.

Sofia hadn’t done any of those things. She didn’t know who I was, and I found that strangely appealing. She glanced toward the kitchen again.

“Not to sound cocky, but it’s unusual.”

“Well, you do sound cocky,” she said, folding her arms across her chest. She gave me a bold once-over, clearly checking me out, before pursing her lips. “Then again, I guess it’s understandable. You have…an interesting face.”

I was amused. “Interesting?”

She shrugged. “That’s the best I can do. I’m not gonna ask you to unzip your pants just cause you’re good-looking.”

I chuckled, suddenly not in the mood to leave this café anytime soon. “Sophie, was it?”

“Sofia.” She smiled, biting her bottom lip for a split second. Then she sighed. “Look, I really have to go. But thank you for the compliment. You know, about the food.”

“You’re welcome, Sofia.”

She turned, looked back at me once more, and then she was gone. I remained at the table. I should have left. Instead, I stayed. I watched the kitchen door more often than I intended to, catching glimpses of Sofia whenever she came through with another order. She moved quickly, speaking to the staff, checking plates, and returning to the kitchen without ever seeming to lose control of the room.

There was something about her. I couldn’t put a name to it. By the time the café began to quiet down, I’d been sitting there far longer than I’d planned to. Sofia eventually came back into the dining area with a tray. She placed it on another table and spoke briefly to the couple sitting there before looking in my direction.

Our eyes met, and she smiled. It was small, almost fleeting, but I felt something. I’d come to Nora’s Café because I wanted to disappear for an evening. Instead, I’d found a woman I couldn’t stop watching.

When she finally approached my table again, she checked her watch. “You’re still here,” she said.

“So are you.”

She laughed softly. “Obviously. I work here.”

I stood and slipped my coat over my shoulders. There were very few things I did without knowing exactly why I was doing them, but this was one of them. Most times I thought things through, but not this moment. The words jumped out of my mouth before I could think about them.