When I strolled into the coffee shop the next morning, the smell of coffee beans greeted me.
Bethany stood behind the counter, hat-free. She looked at me, then the clock. Light barely tinged the horizon outside. Despite the wide-open door, I suspected she hadn’t thought a customer would stroll in at 5:30 a.m.
“You’re . . . up early,” she said.
No yoga pants today. A navy summer dress rippled in an early breeze, waving around her curved hips. Her hair billowed around her shoulders when she moved, falling to the middle of her arm. She seemed to be counting something behind the register. Bright-red lipstick outlined a pair of lips I couldn’t look away from.
“My team is on the East Coast,” I said, forcibly shifting my attention. Team being the new virtual assistant who would help me get this business running. While he worked on the setup there, I’d figure everything out here. “We’ll be getting started with meetings soon. Mind if I—”
I motioned toward the hole of an office I’d have to fold myself into.
She shrugged. “Go ahead. Do you want something to drink?”
“Black, two creams, no sugar.” Halfway to the room, I stopped and looked back. “How are you today, by the way?”
The question hung in the air between us, along with my acute curiosity as to why she looked so surprised that I’d asked. The awkward stillness lasted for a breath before she swallowed and said, “Ah, fine. Thanks.”
“Good.”
“You?”
“Good. Slept on the deck last night. There’s nothing quite like a mountain night in the summer.”
She softened into a half-smile. “As long as it’s warm, I would agree.”
My gaze roved the counters behind her, then I made a sound in the back of my throat. The machines were old and not much to brag about. Maintenance must be tricky and cost a lot. She could highly benefit from an investment into better machines, but she’d be hard to convince of that.
With one last nod, I disappeared into her office and shut the door. She hadn’t been kidding. There wasn’t even room to slide the chair back, so my knees butted up against the . . . desk—more like a wooden board cut to fit the width of the space, then supported and nailed into place by other boards.
She’d cleared it off, though, leaving just enough room for my laptop and a few papers.
I had a feeling she’d be worth it.