Page 9 of The Baby Dragon Cafe
Guilt riddled through her at exactlyhowmuch he was paying her, but he must have been desperate, something she didn’t understand at all. He was a Sterling, from an ancient Drakkon family. His ancestors had been riding dragons since dragons were first domesticated. Why would he needherhelp?
Her gaze strayed to where Sparky was still asleep in his little bed, and warmth spread through her at the sight, silencing the questions in her head.
She wanted a dragon of her own just as badly as she needed the money. And though Sparky wasn’t hers, and never would be, this was perhaps as close as she could get.
“Is it there?” Aiden asked. Saphira blinked, shifting herfocus back to him. He was looking at her closely, and her heart hammered at having been caught with her thoughts wandering.
“Y-Yes, thank you,” Saphira said, putting her phone aside and giving him a bright smile. He nodded.
“Alright, then, I’ll get going,” he said. Turning on his heels, he headed for the door. She felt as if she was missing something. Alarm ran through her at the sight of his retreating back.
“Wait!” She chased after him. “What do you mean?”
He was already at the door by then, his long legs moving quite fast.
“You received the money, yes?” he asked bluntly.
“Yes, I got it, but I don’t—”
“You’re going to train Sparky, correct? That was the agreement?”
She blinked, confused. Her eyes flitted to where Sparky was asleep, then back to Aiden, who was fidgeting. Had she offended him? He looked uncomfortable.
He stared at her awkwardly, and she felt awkward in turn.
“You mean train him right now?” she asked, astounded. Saphira blinked. “But I have to work!”
“Oh.” His cheeks turned pink. For a moment, it looked as if he was silently admonishing himself. A wave of discomfort passed through her; she had felt so in sync with him earlier, but now they seemed at cross-purposes, and she didn’t enjoy the feeling at all.
“Yes.” Saphira nibbled on her lower lip. “I guess we should probably figure out the logistics of how this will all work?” she said, trying to regain their previous ease. He nodded. “Cool. But first, coffee.”
She headed back into the cafe, going straight to the bar.After a beat, Aiden followed her. Saphira pulled cold brew out of the fridge. She preferred lattes, but had been making do with other drinks while the espresso machine was down. Her menu also had fusion drinks, such as chai lattes and falooda shakes and rooh-afza refreshers.
Aiden arrived at the bar, and she gestured for him to sit down. He sat on one of the stools, and finally, they were at eye level. Saphira took the moment to get a better look at his face. He had long eyelashes framing bottomless black eyes that she wanted to dive into. The rest of his face was crafted with harsh lines, as if he had been carved from stone, but there was a softness around his mouth as he watched her pour coffee.
“What would you like?” she asked.
“I’m good, thank you,” he responded, watching with alarm as she pumped an obscene amount of vanilla syrup into her cold brew.
“I’m making you something either way so might as well tell me,” she said, pouring oat milk into her coffee, then mixing. When it was the right color, she took a sip. The caffeine hit was immediate, and she savored the sweet and bitter taste in her mouth, humming to herself.
“I don’t like coffee,” he said, sounding fully and absolutely serious.
Saphira gasped, a bit dramatically, but he had said something quite horrifying. She clutched her heart as if she had been shot.
“No!” she cried. “I’m so sorry, but it’s over, I can’t work with you, how do you not like coffee?! I don’t trust people who don’t like coffee. Like, what are you trying to prove? Also, why deprive yourself of the deliciousness? It makes no sense!”
“I’m sorry, that was a joke.” His lips twitched, and he cleared his throat. “Clearly one you took personally.”
Oh, he was a joker! Saphira felt tickled by that, even if she hadn’t picked up on the joke when he’d made it.
“Phew.” She caught her breath. “What a relief. Okay, back to our original arrangement.”
Aiden smiled then, which felt like a personal victory to her. She hadn’t seen him smile before, and it was a small smile, but even so. He had a lovely smile.
He thought about it for a moment, then said, “I can have whatever you’re having, just with a lot less sugar. I don’t know much about coffee.”
“Do not even worry! For I am an expert.” Saphira made his drink with only a reasonable amount of vanilla syrup, then finished it off with cold foam. She powdered cinnamon over a stencil of a heart, then passed it to him.
