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I can’t wait for the day when she’s saying my name for another reason, preferably from beneath me in my bed.
Me: Princess…
Keaton: omg what do you want?
You, I think before responding.
Me: Feel like coming over?
Nothing… and I don’t know if she’s busy thinking up an excuse, or if her mind went where mine has been all day and she’s now in a full-on panic. So, I add,
Me: Wanna come help me practice again before I leave tomorrow?
Her answer comes almost instantly, and I smile from ear to ear.
Keaton: Yes!
Chapter 22
This was quickly turning into the morning from hell.
To start things off, I had to open again for the third time this week, and I don’t get along with the pre-dawn hours so well. Then, because I’m driving Bodhi’s car, I left my key ring at home, completely forgetting the fact the store key was on there with my house key. So, I got to wait for Teagan to show up and let me in. She was only ten minutes late, but I guess she’d been having issues with her boyfriend, Louis, and him being pissed about how much she worked or something and attempting to hold her hostage in her own apartment. Talk about crazy.
Once we got in and got everything ready to open, Sander shows up for his morning coffee. I almost ran into the back and let Teagan deal with him. I told her she should let him know about her boyfriend, but she swore she had everything under control, and then San was standing at the counter, and I couldn’t escape.
“Hey there, Beautiful,” he said, that rough texture heavy in his voice. An obvious indicator that he hasn’t done much talking yet this morning.
I smile, being as polite as I can muster at six-thirty in the morning and get him his order as quickly as I can. We don’t have any other customers at that moment, so when he asks if I’ll walk him out, Teagan is quick to offer to cover the counter for a few minutes.
Sander’s partner, Beau Larson, is behind the wheel of their cruiser this morning, and I politely wave as we approach.
“Well, I guess I better let you get back in there,” he says after leaning inside the car and handing Beau their drinks.
“Yeah, I have a ton of muffins to get started,” I say, hooking a thumb over my shoulder toward the building.
“All right, well,” He reaches out and tugs me into one of his tight two-arm hugs and I struggle to figure out what to do with my hands anymore. I settle for patting him lightly on the back. “Maybe I’ll see you again tonight?” he asks.
“I don’t know, maybe,” I say, releasing him and taking a step back, putting a little distance between us. “I’ve been working a lot of mornings and I’m thinking I may just go home and crash.”
I can tell the second I say it that Sander’s mood completely deflates, though he’s always had a really great poker face and does a good job of hiding it.
“Okay, well, have a good shift,” he says before getting into the cruiser and closing the door. I wave to him and Beau as they pull away, then slink back inside.
From that point on, the morning is just off. One customer lets her toddler gnaw on a few sugar packets while they sit at one of the dine-in tables, and the little guy chews right through them. Then, he proceeds to shake them wildly over his head, laughing at how fun the sugar snow is.
Once they leave, I wipe down and sweep the entire section of tables, ridding them of the sticky sand-like substance, I go into the back to check on the muffins. It’s at the smell of something burning that I realize I forgot to set a timer. Both trays of muffins are cooked to a dark shade of brown, and I know that I won’t be able to pass them off as edible.
It isn’t until after my morning break that things start to look up.
We just hit our mid-morning lull when my phone chimes from beneath the counter. I groan quietly, so as not to call too much attention to myself, and pull my phone out, fully prepared for a just checking in text from Sander but am surprised when Bodhi’s name appears on the screen.
My heart stutters in my chest as I open the message.
Bodhi: Hey, it’s Bodhi. What are you doing today?
After several more texts than necessary — and him calling me Princess twice — I finally figure out what he wants.
Wanna come help me practice again before I leave tomorrow?
