“So, how’s it going?” Kat O’Shea pushed up her glasses and offered a shy yet friendly smile as she approached the small bar.

I liked Kat. She had come in several times over the course of the past couple weeks. Usually, we would chat for a bit, then she would curl up on one of the comfy chairs with a big book and a cup of coffee while Nick did his thing.

Nick, apparently, was an author. According to Kat, he wrote both military suspense and steamy romance. The military suspense, I understood. But the romance? I never would have guessed just from talking to him. He seemed like a quiet, stoic kind of guy. Kind of like Vinnie.

Did Vinnie harbor a secret side, too, I wondered. I knew the kind of passion he inspired in me with those kisses he liked to lay on me. And when he pulled me into his lap and I felt those powerful legs beneath mine, when I ran my hands over those muscled, broad shoulders, well, it gave a girl thoughts.

Except, I wasn’t sure Vinnie was having those same kinds of thoughts. Well, no, that wasn’t exactly true. I had felt the hard proof of those similar thoughts on more than one occasion, but Vinnie always stopped things before they went too far, which was starting to make me wonder why he was applying the brakes.

“Haven?”

Hearing my name snapped me out of my Vinnie-centric thoughts. What had Kat asked me? Oh, right. She had asked how things were going.

“It’s going great,” I answered honestly. “I love it here. It’s such a different atmosphere than what I’m used to. Everyone has been so nice.” Readers and book lovers were passionate about their coffees, teas, and cocoas. I had quickly learned the personal preferences of the regulars, which they seemed to appreciate. Kat, for example, liked a mild blend with sweet cream and sugar, while Nick preferred a strong, dark roast with a hint of cinnamon. Mr. C was pure high-octane espresso with a shot of anise, all the way.

I enjoyed the job while I could, forcing myself to remember that it was only a temporary position until Mrs. C’s sister recovered. I tried not to think about that too much. I would miss the place and the people here when I was no longer needed.

At least I wouldn’t be strapped financially. The manager at the grocery store where I worked mornings now said I could extend my hours, and the manager of the corporate café, Francis’s boss, had called and wanted to talk about me going back to work there. Apparently, they had received a lot of complaints since I’d left. If I was careful with my pennies, I might even have enough to pick up a night class or two. I needed only nine more credits to complete my Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a specialization in Small Business Marketing.

“Nick said you turned down a waitressing position at Mama C’s.”

“I did,” I confirmed. “Joel’s working there now, and I think it’s good for him to have his own space, you know? He doesn’t need to feel like I’m looking over his shoulder all the time. Plus, it might be kind of weird.”

“Because you’re dating Vinnie?”

“Yeah. I mean, if things don’t work out ...”

“... it would make working at his family’s restaurant awkward,” she finished thoughtfully.

“Exactly.” I was glad she got it. Then again, she was in a similar boat and understood how intimidating it was to be on the fringes of such a tight, close-knit family such as the Cerasinos. That was probably one of the reasons she and I had hit it off so well from the beginning.

Having another woman to talk to again was nice. That was one of the things I had liked and missed most about Lindelman’s. Wanda was a nut, but one I enjoyed being around. She was working in a swanky, upscale place now, and trading “touching base” texts just wasn’t the same as enjoying her goofiness in person. Sadly, our friendship had been one more of circumstance than anything, and those circumstances had changed.

Kat stirred her coffee and took a sip, closing her eyes as she savored the special blonde blend I had made for her. “Ah, perfect as usual. You have a gift, Haven. So ... totally none of my business, and you can tell me to butt out if you want, but I have to ask. What makes you think things might not work out between you and Vinnie? Nick says he’s completely smitten.”

I smiled at that. Only Kat would use the word smitten.

“I don’t know. It’s nothing really. I’m probably just overthinking it.”

She chewed on that for a few minutes before saying, “Let me guess. Everything seems to be going along great, but Vinnie’s holding back and you’re wondering if he’s having second thoughts.”

Kat had nailed it in one. “Yes! How did you know?”

“Because Nick was exactly the same way. Every time things started getting a little hot and heavy, he’d back off. At first, I was thrilled that he respected me enough not to push or try to move too fast, but after a while, I got tired of going to bed alone, all hot and bothered.”

I gaped at her. She really did get it.

“I know, right?” She smirked. “I wouldn’t have believed I’d feel like that either, but Nick just does it for me, if you know what I mean. And as for the gentlemanly restraint? I think it’s the way they were brought up. They’ve been taught from an early age to treat their women right.”

“So, what did you do?” I couldn’t help asking.

“I made the first move. I pretty much just told him flat-out I wanted to spend the night with him. That broke the seal, so to speak.” She looked over at Nick. As if sensing her gaze, he looked up from his laptop at that moment and gave her a sexy half-smile, hot enough to set some of those books around him aflame. Kat then stood up and grabbed her coffee and Nick’s. “Let’s just say, neither one of us is going to bed unsatisfied these days.”

Kat’s words of wisdom rattled around in my head for the rest of the afternoon. It sounded easy enough when she said it, but when I thought about taking the initiative like she had, my courage fizzled. As gentlemanly as Vinnie was, he was still alpha all the way. That was one of the things I lo—liked about him. I was so used to having to take care of myself that it was nice to exhale and let someone else hold the reins for a while. Then again, maybe he got tired of that, too. Maybe he would appreciate it if someone else took the lead now and then.

Gah! I wished I could just crawl into that man’s mind, read his thoughts, and then know what to do.

We were getting along great, and Vinnie was darn near perfect. On those evenings Vinnie had off, we did fun and romantic things. For example, we’d tried an escape room, which was a fun and new experience for me. Vinnie had heard of one with an old-time whodunit gangster theme that was right up our respective alleys. We had also driven out to a local winery and had a picnic by a scenic lake. Other times, we just stayed in and enjoyed a simple meal and some couch cuddles, but nothing more. On the days he was working, he would often come into the bookstore and hang out for an hour or two, kind of like he had at the diner. He was much more relaxed here, though. It was nice. Really nice.

I didn’t want to screw that up.

And, of course I had to think about Joel, too. Sure, he was practically an adult, but I wanted to set a good example.

Joel is seventeen, almost eighteen, a little voice whispered in my ear. Perfectly capable of taking care of himself for a few hours. And he’s used to spending the night in the apartment alone since you used to work night shifts.

Well, there was that.

A plan began to form in my mind. The question was: would I have the courage to go through with it?