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Noah chuckled. Claire opened her door, and Biscuit ran into her apartment. He immediately found a toy that apparently was left in her living room. Noah walked into the apartment behind Claire.

“Since when are Biscuit’s toys in your apartment?” he asked her.

“Since you keep bringing him here.”

“You could’ve returned it.”

“He deserves to have a toy when he comes over.”

Noah smiled. “You like my dog.”

Claire looked away. “I’m going to get a coffee,” she announced. “Are you coming?”

“Let me grab my wallet.”

“No, I’ve got it. Seriously, Noah, you do so much for me.”

Noah didn’t seem like the type to let a woman pay for anything. He looked like allowing her to pay was causing him genuine physical pain, but apparently even he knew when not to argue with her. Instead, he simply said, “Okay.”

They walked out the door and downstairs to the coffee shop. Claire ordered her iced vanilla latte with oat milk, and before Noah could tell the barista his order, Claire ordered him a hot latte. No flavor, because apparently adding a flavor would threaten his masculinity.

He looked at her in surprise. “You know my order.”

“You aren’t the only one who notices things.” Claire handed the woman her card.

Noah grimaced. “It’s physically hurting me to let you pay for this.”

A few moments later, they were sitting down across from each other with their coffees. A teenage girl at the table next to them turned toward them. “You guys are such a cute couple!”

“We’re not together,” they responded in sync.

The girl smiled and apologized. Claire and Noah laughed. “Claire, you’re rubbing off on me. I should’ve told you that you need to eat dinner. Instead, here we are, drinking coffee at seven o’clock.”

“I intend to eat dinner. Coffee is my appetizer,” she informed him.

He shook his head, but he was smiling at her over the rim of his cup. Claire took another sip of her latte and tried not to think about how natural sitting in the lobby drinking coffee with him felt.

Somehow, Noah had stopped interrupting her routine. He had become part of it.

CHAPTER 8

The Shrimp Tacos

Noah had mentioned in passing he would be working late because he had a deadline. He also seemed really tired.

That is why Claire was going to make him dinner. He made her dinner all the time, it was time she returned the favor.

She was attempting to make blackened shrimp tacos.

Keyword: attempting.

Claire was many things and a chef was not one of them. It didn’t always go well when she tried to cook.

But she hadn’t set her kitchen on fire yet.

The recipe called for a pinch of salt, which Claire found deeply unhelpful. A pinch was not a measurement. It was culinary recklessness.

She measured out an eighth of a teaspoon instead.