“Good.” So was I. Even more so now. “It was a good shift, then?”
“Yes. All but the first floor is done.”
“Riley still sneaking inchandelier time?”
He nodded. “It’s only half an hour after each shift, but chandeliers trump coffee. Her words, of course.”
Of course. “You know Jasper has been sneaking Riley flat whites on his breaks?”
“I’ve seen him a few times. I’m—” He mouthed, “Oh.” And then clamped his lips together.
What was that about? “You’re what?”
He lowered his gaze to the table and shook his head.
“What? You didn’t catch them necking in the elevator, did you?” Like they hadn’t done that. Well, not while on shift.
Another head shake.
I sighed. “Would you rather talk about it later?”
“No… Yes… I…” He took a breath. “She said there was something different about me a few weeks ago. And I… we…”
Ah. I got what he meant now. “We’re not hiding.” I pointed at the counter. “They all know. You can tell her.”
I tried not to dwell on the growing urge to introduce him to my family. It was useless denying we fit well together, but he was still going home after the ball. And he was a prince, for beans’ sake.
“I didn’t want to… but now I feel I’ve left it too long. I don’t want her thinking I didn’t want her to know.”
Only my nosy baristas watching us stopped me from reaching across the table, though I didn’t know if I wanted to hug or throttle him. It was a good thing I’d been deciphering my kids’ rambling for years, as it now helped me understand what he meant.
“She might tease you. Might even scream, so be prepared. But she’ll understand.” Maybe that would light a fire under her and Jasper’s asses, too. “But it’s okay to keep it to yourself.”
“Thank you. For understanding.”
“No problem.” I rose. “I’d better get back to work.”
Adri let go of the socket. “I think I’m going to draw for a while.”
I so wanted to kiss him. “See you after my shift.” I forced myself to turn and walked back to the counter, ignoring the sniggering behind the counter.
The morning wasn’t particularly busy, but it wasn’t until Mateo came in that I realized I hadn’t seen Adri leave. I spotted him through the window, sitting near the fountain.
After the handover chat with Mateo, I crossed the plaza. He was so busy drawing, he didn’t seem to notice I paused and took my fill of him. It was good to see him more relaxed and in his element. He’d taken my comment that Layla might want a drawing of the fountain seriously and had started on a series. Even one without a bird in it, though I did prefer the ones with birds. I’d have loved to hang one at the café.
I sat on the nearest bench, unwilling to disturb Adri. When the kids returned this weekend, we wouldn’t see half as much of each other as we did now. Not at my place, and not entire afternoons like this. While I couldn’t wait to have everyone home again, I’d miss being able to spend those afternoons with Adri. Even if it was for the best, with him leaving after the ball.
Quinn’s ringtone jolted me out of my thoughts. Adri, too, it seemed.
“Hi. Have you been staring at me long?”
“Not long enough.” I fished my phone out of my pocket and answered it.
Quinn’s smiling face appeared on my screen, with the others behind them. “Hi Pop.”
“Hey, kiddo. How was the Aviation Museum?”
“It was cool. Especially the flight simulators and the cockpits. And we’ve been to the Maryland Science Center. Julian will tell you more about that.” They held a hand over their ear. “Can’t wait to sleep in my bedroom again. Charlie sings in her sleep.”
