I couldn’t admit that I was eager to see the guy I was crushing on and arriving early—even though he wouldn’t be there—made absolutely zero sense. But I was antsy.
The Special Blend window was painted with a charming scene of falling leaves in classic autumn colors. The scent of freshly brewed coffee wafted out as a customer left.
“Hey.” Mickey’s greeting was smooth as butter.
I hadn’t noticed him approaching from the other direction and couldn’t help my wide smile at seeing him. “Here early to grab a seat before the late morning rush?”
Mickey’s smile widened. “Something like that. How about you? Taking some time to pick out a new book before our meeting?”
It took great effort to stop thinking about how good he looked with the dark-gray beanie complementing his blue-gray eyes and reply to him with something other than, “You look really cute.”
“Something like that.” My smile grew even wider.
“Hey, guys! Welcome in,” Caspian called while pulling an espresso shot.
We moved to the long counter on our left and waited for Caspian to finish making the drink.
“Americano with room?” Caspian asked Mickey, who nodded. Then Caspian turned his attention to me. “Is today an iced coffee, a cappuccino with extra chocolate, or an Americano with room day?”
My eyebrows rose. “You remembered my drinks?”
Caspian smiled easily. “Of course. You’re becoming a regular.”
“Thanks. I’m in a cappuccino mood today.” I’d gone to the same coffee shop near my office in Boston daily for six months, ordered from the same barista ninety percent of the time, and they still hadn’t remembered my order.
We had our drinks within a few minutes, and I followed Mickey to a table in the back of the coffee shop-slash-bookstore. Only one other table had people sitting at it and they didn’t pay any attention to us.
“I picked up a new book yesterday and stayed up until one finishing it.” I shook my head. “When will I learn to quit starting new books after eight at night? I always think I can read a reasonable chunk before bed and then put it away, but have I ever successfully done that? Absolutely not.”
Mickey relaxed into my seat. “That’s the most relatable thing I’ve heard in months. What book was it? I’m about to finish the series I’m working on.”
“It’s book one inThe Briefcase Chronicles.”
“I loved that one! I’m a sucker for time travel in fantasy books. What did you think about that twist at the end?”
“Didn’t expect itat all.”
For the next several minutes, we dissected the book in all the detail I’d been craving to go into with someone all day. I didn’t know anyone who read the same books as me. Sage read thrillers and the business bros I’d worked with hadn’t been fiction readers, at least as far as I knew.
“That plot was similar to one we had in a Dungeons and Dragons campaign a couple of years back. It was so fun.”
“You play D&D?” Watching Mickey get animated and eager about something was quite possibly the most adorable thing ever. I couldn’t help but feel like he was showing me a side of him that not everyone got access to. It meant a lot that he felt comfortable with me.
A blush crept up Mickey’s cheeks. “Yeah. Dorky, I know.”
“I think it’s cool. I’ve always been curious about it, but never knew anyone who played, so I didn’t get into it.” The only people I’d spent substantial time with for years were ones who got paychecks from the same place as me. Not exactly a group I could ask about starting a D&D game.
I bit back a laugh at how high Mickey’s eyebrows rose.
“Really?”
“I’m nerdier than you think I am.”
He tilted his head. “But you were so popular.”
“Can’t popular kids be nerds?”
Mickey arched one eyebrow.
