Page 27 of Hate You Later
You recognized him from The Onion, though, right? Did you apologize for running into him? Get his number?
Of course he was that guy. Had to be.
Nope. Man drama is the last thing I need right now.
Georgia, are you crazy? He’s 1000 percent your type. I couldn’t have ordered a more Viking-like man for you if he came from a catalog.
What kind of coffee did he get?I ask.
Suddenly, I’m dying to know what our resident coffee witch prescribed for Ragnar.
Hold on. Give me five. I’m coming over,Kenna responds.
Before Kenna has a chance to get over here, Xander jogs into the shop with Cookie. Her bright-pink tongue is hanging out, and she is panting hard. After slurping up a bunch of water, she makes a beeline for her dog bed behind the counter and collapses.
“Looks like you two had fun at the dog park?”
“I ran into a few of my customers and got roped into a discussion about the ethics of pet hair dye,” Xander says.
That explains why he was gone so long. Xander could give a Ted talk about pink poodles.
I bend over and give Cookie a pat. “Thanks for taking her. I know it’s your day off. She gets so bored cooped up here sometimes.”
“No worries. I love going to the dog park.” Xander grins.
Suddenly, the bells shake so hard they clatter, and Kenna bursts in, holding a cup of coffee like it is the holy grail. She holds it out to me. “You have to taste this.”
“What is it?” I ask.
“Just taste first, then I’ll tell you.”
I sniff the coffee. It smells delicious, actually. Smooth and roasty, but not overwhelming.
“Are you sure you want caffeine this late in the day?” Xander raises his eyebrows.
“Shut up, Grandpa.” I roll my eyes and take a sip. Oh, that is good. Even better than the usual Kenna stuff.
“What is that? What did you do to that coffee?”
“Right?” she says. “I think I’m calling it Ragnar’s Gift.”
I stop inhaling the brew. “Wait, what? Why Ragnar? What does he have to do with this?”
“Seriously? I cannot keep up with you two.” Xander holds up his hands in protest. “Who is Ragnar, and what does he have to do with coffee now?”
“Ragnar is a character from Norse legend,” I tell Xander. “Just try the coffee.” I pass the cup.
“Mm-hmm … you’re not sick or anything.” He looks dubiously at me.
I roll my eyes again and shake my head. “No, and I didn’t backwash either.”
“Fine.” He sniffs and takes a cautious sip. “Ooh. That IS really good.”
“You are not going to believe what’s in it,” Kenna says, looking smugly from Xander to me and back.
“Uh-oh.” Xander pushes the cup back at me. “Do I actually want to know?”
“Eggs!” Kenna laughs.
