Page 2 of Love Me Tender, Love Me Brew
Reba and Charlotte exchange glances. Shrugging her shoulders, Charlotte asks, “Are you sure?”
“Yep, it’s my treat. I almost forgot. Do you want whipped cream on them?”
“Definitely,” Reba acknowledges, nodding her head. “You can’t have an iced coffee without it.”
“Please.” Charlotte immediately looks away, her cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink.
Reba lowers her voice. “I’m so glad we decided to give this place a try.”
Stealing a look back at Edwin, Charlotte agrees. “Oh, me too. I have a feeling we’re going to be stopping by quite often.”
Edwin sets to work preparing both of their beverages precisely to their liking. He’s certainly fun to watch as he glides from the refrigerator to the blender then over to the sink without missing a step. When he pulls the canister of whipped topping out, giving the can a flip mid-air, Charlotte and Reba can’t stop giggling. Especially knowing his little performance is for them.
Carrying both drinks and a bottle of chocolate syrup over to the counter where the girls are standing, he adds the finishing touches. At the last second he drops a few chocolate sprinkles onto the whipped cream.
“…everybody in the whole entire shop, was dancin’ to the Coffee Loft Rock…”
He does a quick spin then pushes the peppermint mochas towards them. “Here ya go, ladies.” Wiping his hands on the towel, he bows before taking a step back. Edwin lives for these moments, seeing his customers grinning from ear to ear.
Reba peels the paper off of her straw and inserts it into the frozen concoction. She looks over at Charlotte and laughs. “What in the world are you doing?”
“I’m taking a picture of mine.” Charlotte snaps a couple of shots of her beverage with her phone before placing it into her back pocket. “It’s almost too pretty to drink.”
“Don’t mind her,” Reba tells Edwin, and slides her purse onto her shoulder. “Come on Charlotte, we’ve got tons of boxes to unpack. Our break has turned into a lot longer than we’d planned.”
“Oh yeah, I almost forgot.” Except she doesn’t budge. Her smile from moments ago slowly begins to fade.
Noticing the disappointment on her face, Edwin gives her a wink. “When you’re ready for another one, come back to see me. Peppermint mochas are my specialty.”
“We certainly will,” both girls say in unison before making their way over to the door.
Chapter
Two
Edwin does a double-take then casually strolls over to one of the benches outside of the library. Fall may be right around the corner, but it’s a perfect day for sitting outside.And,for visiting with the sweet young lady he met at work this past weekend. Lucky day, maybe?
“Excuse me, ma’am. Do you mind if I take this spot?”
Without looking up, Charlotte moves her backpack down to the ground next to her feet. “Not at all. I’m almost done, so you can have it all to yourself.”
“No need to rush off,” he says, trying his best not to snicker. Whatever she’s reading must be really important because she hasn’t taken her eyes off the pages yet!
“I have to get to class so it’s—” Charlotte sits up straight, scrambling to keep the book from sliding out of her lap. “Edwin, what a nice surprise.”
“I couldn’t resist,” he says. “I had to stop and say hi, seeing you over here sitting all by yourself.”
“Aww, that’s so sweet of you. I bought the wrong book for my psychology class, so Reba’s been letting me use hers until I can get a new one.” Charlotte holds the book up for him to see. “So much for trying to save a little money by purchasing a second-hand copy. Turns out, the edition I bought they stoppedusing it about two years ago. The book store on campus said they’d call me if a used copy came in, but I’m not holding my breath. I just can’t fathom spending two hundred dollars for a brand new one.”
“That’s too bad. I know the feeling about saving a buck. I spent so much money on books these last few years, some I hardly even used. Surely they must know college students aren’t made of money.” Edwin was lucky enough to have received a small scholarship—enough to cover his tuition—but everything else had been up to him to pay for. Hence, the reason he started working at theCoffee Loft. “Hey, let me see that book again. That’s the current one, right?”
“Yeah, this is the one,” she says, holding the book up for him to get a closer look. “You could get a pretty good work-out lifting this thing up and down a few times.”
“You know, I think I have it at home. I’m not certain, but I’m pretty sure it’s the exact same edition.”
“Could I buy it from you?” Charlotte’s eyes light up. “It would save me from having to purchase a brand new one. That is, if you’re willing to part with it.”
“How about I give it to you? I’m a music major and the chances of me ever using it again are pretty slim.”
