Page 28 of Jingle Bell Flock
“Uh-huh. Friends.” Evie didn’t look convinced. “Well, whatever you are, it’s nice to see you two hanging out again. You were practically glued at the hip back in?—”
The bell over the door chimed, cutting Evie’s words off mid-sentence.
I didn’t need to look up to know who’d walked in. My whole body knew, everything in me going still and so damn aware.
When I did look up, Jeremy was standing just inside the doorway, snowflakes melting in his dark hair, his usual scowl firmly in place as he surveyed the café. He was wearing his work coat and boots, clearly having come straight from the farm.
Then his eyes found mine.
And just like that, the scowl disappeared. His expression softened, his mouth quirking into something that wasn’t quite a smile but was close enough to make my chest tight.
“Well,” Evie murmured beside me, her voice knowing. “Just friends. Right.”
She walked away before I could respond, leaving me to watch Jeremy approach. He moved through the space with that same confident stride I remembered from high school, but it was different, too. More settled in himself. Less like he was trying to prove something.
“Hey,” he said when he reached my table.
“Hey, yourself.” I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”
“Ran out of K-Cups.” He glanced at my laptop, catching sight of the half-dozen browser tabs I had open to various social media platforms. “Working?”
“Trying to. Charlie’s evil spawn might have created a monster.”
That earned me an actual smile. “Yeah, they’re pretty proud of themselves. Maggie and Eli keep showing me the farm page’s analytics like I know what the fuck they mean.”
“Harrison!” Emmy’s voice rang out from behind the counter. “You want to try this kouign amann?”
“Oh my god, yes!” I made grabby hands. “They’re my favorite.”
“Hey, Jeremy,” Evie said, sidling up to our table. “Let me guess. Black coffee, nothing fancy?”
Jeremy’s scowl returned, but it was playful. “You say that like it’s a character flaw.”
“It is,” Evie shot back, her hand on her hip. “Live a little. Try one of our famous peppermint lattes.”
“I’ll stick with coffee that tastes like coffee, thanks,” he said,
I watched Evie pour Jeremy’s drink while Emmy plated my pastry, and something warm and content settled in my chest.
Evie went to grab the pastry and set it down on the table between Jeremy and me with a smile that was far too knowing for my comfort.
“You look different today, Jeremy,” she said, her tone coy.
Jeremy’s eyes cut to her. “Different how?”
She glanced between us, her expression shifting from mischievous to delighted. “Not just you, but him too. You’ve both got the faces of men who are all up in their feels.” She twirled her free hand in front of her face.
Jeremy’s jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
My heart kicked against my ribs. This was it—the moment where we could deflect, change the subject, and keep whatever this was between us private for a little longer.
But Jeremy didn’t deflect. He looked at me, then back at Evie. “That must be it then,” he said simply.
The café seemed to go quiet. Or maybe that was just my ears ringing so loud I couldn’t hear anything else.
“I knew it!” Evie gloated. “I saw those goat-chasing videos. Whew. You could cut the tension with a knife. How long has this been going on?”
“It’s still new,” Jeremy answered, his voice steady. “But uh … yeah. We’re together.”
