---

Lunch rush was exactly that: a rush. There were moments I almost hated it, even though it was my most profitable time, because it was practically impossible to do by myself. I got yelled at, snapped at, messes were everywhere, people didn’t pick up after themselves. I got complaints that drinks were too hot or they were too cold. The food tasted weird. I got looks regarding what I looked like from people who had never been to this café before.

The good thing about lunch rush, however, was that it went by so fast that I didn’t have to worry about everything that happened. It was all forgotten until the next day.

In fact, I didn’t even think about the man next door and the rice scattered everywhere until he casually popped in just after one, when my café was empty.

I stopped sweeping the floor and furrowed my brow. “Can I help you with something?” I asked. My words were clipped - until I realized he wasn’t alone.

A girl, no more than eight years old, stood next to him. She had pale skin and big green eyes. She didn’t look anything like Bodhi but I had seen children belong to parents without any sort of resemblance before. I felt myself soften when I watched him look at her - like she was his everything.

“Yeah,” he said. He gestured at the girl next to him. “This is tator tot, but I think her real name is...” He let his voice trail off and placed his fingers on his chin, pretending to think for a moment.

She giggled. “It’s Penelope,” she said.

“That’s a lovely name.” I didn’t know why I felt the need to intrude on what looked like an inside joke, but I did.

She looked at me and smiled. I could see how easy it was for her to win over Bodhi. I didn’t like the guy, but she was a treasure, and if she liked him...maybe he wasn’t as bad as I initially assumed.

“This is my new niece,” he said. “Her mother married my brother last night and while they’re on their honeymoon, my sister and I are in charge of this one. She said she wanted a hot chocolate and I figured this would be the best place to get one of those.”

He caught my gaze and seemed to be communicating with his eyes. I didn’t know him well enough to read him just yet, but I could see the peace offering there. I could admit that perhaps I was a bit cold with how quickly I judged him. I took my broom and walked around the counter, placing it in the back first. I washed my hands and, as I dried them off on my apron, I turned around to look at Bodhi.

“What size?” I asked him. My voice came out low, raw, thanks to how much I had used it the past few hours.

“A kid’s size is fine,” he said. He looked at Penelope. “Oh, do you mean for her? I’ll take the kid’s size, she’ll have a small. Please.”

I pressed my lips together to keep from smiling. I worked on autopilot as I maneuvered around the machinery. It took only a few minutes before I was pouring two hot chocolates.

“Whipped cream?” I asked.

“Whipped cream, she asks,” Bodhi said, shaking his head and nudging Penelope. His dark eyes sparkled with happiness. “Yes, definitely. Whipped cream. Of course whipped cream.” He watched as I added the whipped cream to the two drinks. “Would you like one?”

I glanced up, a curious expression on my face. “What do you mean?” I asked. I placed the plastic lids on both cups, smashing down the whipped cream before sliding the sleeves onto the cups.

“Can I buy you a hot chocolate so you can join us?” he asked.

He seemed sincere in his offer and yet, I could not help but bristle. Did he not realize I owned this café? That I could get my own hot chocolate without any money? I didn’t need his charity. I didn’t need his pity. My business was doing just fine and I didn’t need him to improve it.

I glanced over at the girl - Penelope. My defensive thoughts weren’t helping the situation. Just because Mark had treated me like I was an incompetent fool did not mean that Bodhi was. And Penelope seemed excited at the prospect - which was strange unto itself. She did not know me, and yet, it felt as though maybe she wanted to...

At that moment, my door popped open and the bell clattered against the door handle, alerting me to a new customer. I smiled genuinely.

“Unfortunately, not this time.” I was speaking to Penelope, the only reason why my voice was so sweet. “It would seem I have a customer.”

However, when I glanced at the person who walked through my door, my face fell. Speak of the devil, even internally, and he shall appear.

“Norah,” Mark said with his Hollywood smile and his slicked back black hair. “So, good to see you here. Some things never change.”

Already condescending and I had not even spoken yet. Typical.

“What is it you want, Mark?” I asked, placing a hand on a cocked hip. “I was just about to close up shop for an hour and take my lunch.

“Perfect,” he said, his dimples popping. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“Sorry,” I said briskly, flipping my ponytail over my shoulder. “I have plans. Now, if you’ll excuse me...”

For a fraction of a second, I saw Mark’s face drop and I saw the real person underneath, the boy who threw a tantrum when someone told him no.

“It’s important, Norah,” he insisted.

“I understand,” I said. “But I told you that if you wanted to make plans with me, you would actually have to make plans. You can’t just breeze on in and think I’m going to drop everything for you. Now, please leave. If you want to come back, plan to come back when I reopen - at two thirty.”

Mark nodded once, muttering under his breath, before spinning around and all but stomping out of the café.

I turned back to Bodhi and Penelope. “Hot chocolate, you say?” I asked.