I wonder how long it will be till the guys get back. The clock on the oven says it’s almost five o’clock.
I slip off the stool, the surface of the island smooth under my hands as I push away. I’m frustrated and tired and I need a break.
There’s a drive through Starbucks just down the road so I decide to distract myself by getting Freya a white chocolate mocha. It was one of the drinks we ordered when we bought half the food court at the mall. I snuck a sip and promptly regretted it, but Freya loved it and the sounds she made while drinking it have haunted my dreams.
I leave the kitchen and swipe the keys off the hook in the hall. I’m checking my phone as I open the front door and I almost walk straight into Freya.
She takes a step back, lifting the cardboard drinks tray she’s holding up in the air, so I don’t crash into it. “Woah,” she says, “don’t hurt the coffee.”
I chuckle and run my hand over my face again. “Sorry, I wasn’t expecting you back yet.”
“Where are you heading?”
I tap the coffee tray. “Great minds and all that.”
She smiles. “Well, I guess we can go back inside then.”
I hold the door open and step aside for her to pass. She peers around for a moment before heading to the kitchen. “Where are the guys?” I ask, following after her.
“They decided to go to the office to sort some stuff out. I got them to drop me off here first.” Her ginger curls swing in the air as she smirks at me over her shoulder. “Can’t have you getting too lonely now, can we?” She puts the coffees down on the island and I snag her hand, pulling her in towards me.
“Oh, yeah? You going to keep me company, Mo Leannan?”
She tilts her head to the side. “What does that mean?”
A blush heats my cheeks. I hadn’t meant to say that, not out loud. “It’s uh, what my father calls my mother. It means ‘my love’.”
Freya blinks. She goes blank for a second and I panic that I’ve made things too serious, but then she bites her bottom lip and drags me over to the island.
She picks up one of the takeaway cups and hands it to me. “Hazelnut latte for you and...” she takes out the other cup, “white chocolate mocha for me.” She takes a long sip and hums to herself.
I shake my head. “There’s something wrong with your tastebuds.”
“Maybe you should check them out.” She sticks her tongue out at me then hops up onto one of the stools.
I take the one next to her. My drink’s a little cool, like it’s been waiting around a while, but the caffeine is like water to my drought ridden brain.
“So did you get anything useful out of Kyle?” I ask, in between sips.
Freya pulls a face.
“What?”
She studies the marble specks on the island. “Nothing, it’s just, can we talk about something different for a bit?” She peeks up at me from under her eyelashes.
I frown, not used to seeing her act this demure. I catch her chin between my fingers and lift her head. “Hey, what’s the matter?”
“Nothing. I was just kind of hoping we could have some more ‘me and you’ time. Like at the mall.”
Oh. I hold back my smile. “You want to go on another date?” Something niggles at the back of my brain, but Freya bites her bottom lip again and all I can think about is doing just that myself. It takes me a moment to realize nothing is stopping me from doing what I want, and I lean in to kiss her.
At the last second, she dodges, her lips murmuring in my ear instead. “Finish your coffee, Oz. Then maybe we can go upstairs.”
She scoots back and drinks some more of her horrid concoction.
I hold her gaze, take the lid off my coffee and down it in one. Then I stand up and offer her my hand. Or that’s what I try to do. Instead, the room spins. I grab the back of the stool, but I stumble, and it topples over.
“Oz!” Freya jumps up and crouches down next to me.
