Page 62 of New Growth
His lips twitched. “I’ve been good.”
I arched a brow. “Staring at my ass isn’t good.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “You know what? You’re right. I’m sorry, Ellie.”
I tilted my head. “You’re not forgiven.”
“When will I be?” he smirked.
“I don’t know yet.”
Elliot leaned forward, resting his elbows on the counter. “Well, you gotta decide between now and tomorrow.” His gaze flicked to the clock. “Or else it’s gonna be an awkward morning.”
Danger.
Thenewbaristastoodat the edge of our table, her notepad trembling slightly in her grip.
She was young. El thought she was probably still in college, and judging by the way her eyes darted between us and the counter, she was still getting the hang of things.
“So, two mocha lattes. One with almond milk, one with oat milk,” she repeated, her voice shaky.
I could practically hear Lizzie barking at her from behind the counter. This was only her second day, and Lizzie already had her taking orders at tables.
“Yes, thank you,” El and I said in unison.
“Okay… be ready soon.”
She turned quickly and scurried back toward the counter, nearly colliding with a server carrying a tray of their delicious croissants.
El smirked, shaking his head. “Lizzie is torturing the poor girl.”
I shrugged. “She’s gotta learn somehow.”
He sighed. “I guess you’re right.”
“I usually am.”
He scoffed. “Anyway. Now that we’re friends, I wanna plan something for us to do together.”
I arched a brow and teased. “Who said we wereofficiallyfriends?”
Elliot gave me a knowing look. “You did. It’s been a week, and you’re still here. That pretty much solidifies things.”
Damn it.He was right.
Every day this week, we met for coffee, and honestly, it became the highlight of my day. The conversations were easy because he was a great listener. He even gave me some mature business advice, for which I was very grateful. I kept my personal life under wraps, though, deciding it was best to store the details of my messy breakup to myself. As far as he knew, I didn’t have a sister, and I was never engaged. Which, at this point in our building friendship, was for the best.
However, I did learn that he had two brothers, one older and one younger, who both lived with his Dad back in New Orleans.
I tilted my head, playfully. “Eh, you still have until the end of this coffee date to mess things up.”
He laughed, a deep, easy sound that made my chest warm. “True. But until then, besides working, what do you like to do for fun?”
I leaned in slightly, lowering my voice as if sharing a secret. “Friends usually know these things about each other.”
He mirrored my movement, matching my tone. “Well, maybe if you talked about something other than the salon, I’d know more aboutyou.”
I scrunched my nose up and leaned back. “Fair enough.”
