Page 52 of You've Got Male

Jonah snorted. “So normal? He did mention that he and Camila had been talking about it a bit more. Camila also told him that your dad’s shop is in trouble.”

Evie didn’t like to talk about family business with outsiders, but she felt like she’d been alone in this battle and could use a sounding board.

“More like one bad month from going under.”

“How is that possible? Grinder is an institution in this town.”

“Between Starbucks and other cafés popping up around town and my dad not cutting spending as earnings went down, it’s a mess.”

“It was packed the other day.”

“That has more to do with ClickByte than the shop. And I’m afraid once this is all over and people lose interest that the shop will go under. That’s why I’m hoping to win this Denver’s Best contest while we have the buzz from the socials. The free advertising alone could really turn things around. We just have to stay open long enough.”

“Do you like working there?” His voice sounded sincere—not an ounce of judgment.

“You mean at the place I worked at as a teenager when I came home pregnant and single? Yeah, it’s a real party.”

“That bad?” The waitress passed by and he brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles.

For show, she told herself.

“It’s not that I hate it. I love helping my family. But I miss being my own person. When I had a career, I had something that was all mine.”

He stared at her for a long moment and something passed between them. A deep understanding that only two people who had sacrificed their needs for their loved ones could understand.

“I totally get that. I feel like I lost my identity the moment Amber was diagnosed. And it wasn’t just quitting my job, it was like saying goodbye to a part of myself. An important part.”

“Being a single parent doesn’t leave a lot of room for dreams.”

“What’s your dream, Evie?” he asked and…had he moved closer? Or had she? Either way, their thighs brushed and his free hand rested on her knee. Her bare knee. The contact was electric.

“I want to finish my degree,” she admitted. “I just don’t know how that could work. With the shop, my dad’s health, I just don’t think the timing is right. Again.” This was the third time she’d struck out.

“So you haven’t accepted?”

She shook her head. “I have to take this placement exam first. But it’s on one of our busiest days of the week and my mom will be taking my dad to dialysis.”

“I don’t know anything about making coffee, but I know how to manage people. Let me help.”

An unwanted warmth that went way beyond attraction worked its way through her chest. “You don’t have to do that. It isn’t partof our agreement.”

“It’s something I’d do for any friend.”

The word friend struck her wrong. Maybe it was the ambiance or the wine or the way his fingers were gliding over her knee, but it felt like something more complicated than friends.

“I have to think about it.” She was so used to being in control, it was the only way her life worked. She’d rather miss the exam than be let down by a man again.

“I think it’s best that we stick to the agreement,” she said.

“You help so many people. Why are you so afraid to ask for help? Or even accept it when it’s being offered?”

“Because in the past, asking for help meant disappointment when it came to the male species.”

“I’d never let you down, Evie.”

She swallowed thickly. “You don’t know that.”

“I do. And I think deep down you do, too.”

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