Page 2 of Love Undercover
Trapping her lip between her teeth, she looked up her favorite shop that adhered to her strict requirements for coffee just to be sure she’d have enough time to get there and back. It would be a close shave, but she knew exactly what she wanted. If only they had online ordering so it would be ready the second she arrived.
Keeping a wary eye out for cops, she considered the speed limit a suggestion and made it to her destination in record time. Nothing unsafe, but she’d definitely been liberal with her acceleration.
As she headed in from the parking lot, Sadie dug into her cross-body purse for her homemade lip balm, feeling the cylinder slide out of her grasp several times within the depths. She finally stopped to look inside the chaotic pit, biting a lip. Probably needed a good clean-out. But she knew herself enough to know she’d add it to a to-do list she would never check again.
“Sadie?”
Her head snapped up as if someone had yanked her hair from behind and found that her ears hadn’t deceived her. It was Greg sitting there at the wire outdoor table. One hand was resting on its surface next to a to-go cup, and she could see his leg bouncing through the holes in the iron basket weave that formed the top.
He smiled at her, but it struck her as wolfish. He could probably see all the muscles in her body seizing up. Another reason she should have grabbed her sweater. She didn’t like that he could tell she was bothered.
“Greg,” she said, forcing a smile that bordered on a grimace, trying to talk her body into relaxing, into believing that there was no reason to be tense. “How are you?”
“Well, definitely better now that I get to see a pretty face.” His grin widened.
Her chin shifted forward, eyes narrowing. He rarely doled out compliments without something else being behind them. The narcissistic jerk usually wanted something from her.
“Can I buy your coffee?” he offered, leaping to his feet so he could grab the door for her. Not a single lock of his dark-brown hair fell out of place in the process, which just felt unfair.
She tucked her tongue into her cheek as she walked past him. Letting him buy her drink wouldn’t hurt anything. Unless some sort of string was attached. She’d just order the largest size, and say no to whatever it was he wanted. She might have been too forgiving most of the time, but she did have her limit. When she hit it, there was no budging on her side.
She gave him a honeyed smile. “Sure. I’m pretty low on fuel today, so I was planning on getting a large.”
His smile tightened just a smidge. “Feel free. Want a croissant too?”
“If you insist,” she replied, even though she could tell he was being mildly sarcastic.
His smile disappeared entirely. “Of course.”
The line was short, so she ordered and stepped aside to let him pay, his lips forming a thin line as he handed over his card. It was barely ten dollars, but he obviously wasn’t happy about it. Which gave her a little thrill of pleasure. It was his own fault. He’d offered.
She moved to stand by the counter to wait for the drink instead of giving him any hope that she would sit with him outside. It was not smart to open that door.
Greg hovered awkwardly nearby, seeming to forget that he was trying to charm her for a moment. Even his annoyance with her appeared to have evaporated. Three lines formed on his forehead as he delved into some introspection, his brown gaze distant. Doubtful he was ruminating on his shortcomings and allthe ways he’d done her wrong. She certainly wasn’t going to ask what was bothering him.
He took a breath, shifting like someone had nudged him with an elbow as a reminder to be polite. “So how are things?”
She cocked a brow and couldn’t help a suspicious tone. “Fine.”
“Right. Right.” He rubbed his hands down his thighs, unusually ruffled and preoccupied. “Well.”
He moved toward her to envelop her in the most awkward hug. She stiffened as his arms went around her, his weight jostling her, and she took a step back to steady herself.
“You take care, then.” He pulled away, knocking her sideways—literally—as he rushed for the door.
Was it her imagination, or was he looking around a little too nervously? So odd.
Whatever. She’d gotten a free coffee and pastry out of it. And he hadn’t stuck around to try to weasel his way back into her life.
They called out her iced latte, and she lurched forward to snatch it from the counter, giving the barista a smile and offering her thanks before heading back out into the sunshine.
She checked her watch, the thin gold thing a relic of her grandmother’s that she needed to wind regularly to keep it working. But that was a habit she rarely forgot these days.
She released a tight breath through her teeth and speed-walked to her car, texting her bestie about the weird interaction with Greg.
In typical Fiona fashion, she jumped immediately to him having an agenda.
Sadie smirked and, with the giant iced coffee in hand, rushed into the library with only seconds to spare, her eyes scanning for Roberta’s sour face. Even though, technically, Sadie wasn’t late, in Roberta’s book, not earlywaslate.
