Steam rose from the cup Alice just placed on the counter after yelling out, “Marcus! Your café latte with almond milk is ready!”

She turned toward me before the customer even reached the counter to pick up his drink. She looked at me for a moment before walking over to the register to take the orders of the two customers that just came in.

I had spent the majority of the morning in a haze. It was completely unlike me to let anything affect work. I was so consumed by my thoughts that I wasn’t even obsessing over how unprofessional my behavior was. I was beyond mixed up and confused. I had never understood relationships the way most people did. Now, I found myself trying to figure out what was going on between Hunter and me. I was sure he wasn’t the kind of guy who wanted a relationship. Besides, he wasn’t the type of guy I wanted to be with anyway. So why did I have feelings for him? Why did I care so much?

Alice noticed how distracted I was. At first, she left me alone, but that didn’t last long. She kept walking past me or standing beside me and making little comments or asking questions.

“You’re not yourself today,” she said.

I just shrugged, “We all have off days.”

“What’s on your mind?”

“Nothing.”

“You’re lying.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“What is it?”

“Nothing!”

Our little exchanges only stopped when Hunter, Cal, and NotCat came into the shop. Alice looked at the time and muttered, “She’ll be here soon.” It was less than ten minutes until eleven o’clock in the morning and I knew Mrs. Christianson would be making her daily appearance.

“Why else do you think we’re here now,” Cal said flatly.

Alice smirked at his smart-ass remark. I looked at the two of them. Things were still slightly awkward between them. I wondered just how awful the sex had been or what they had said to each other. The only reason I felt awkward around Hunter was because I had no clue what was going on between us.

“So what’s the- ”Alice was just about to ask about the plan when Mrs. Christianson walked into the shop, a little earlier than usual.

“Yeah, thanks,” Cal said oddly before excusing himself.

He rushed rudely past Mrs. Christianson with NotCat concealed under his coat. She looked affronted, “No manners! Absolutely none!”

Alice jumped in right away, “How are you today, Mrs. Christianson?”

“Well, I was doing well until that ill-mannered fraud ruined my morning! The nerve of him to just walk past me like he did. Surely you saw?”

“I’m sorry,” Alice said somewhat loudly.

I wanted to tell her to stop looking out the door because she was making it obvious that something was going on. Alice quickly snapped out of it and looked at Mrs. Christianson, forcing a smile on her face.

“Do you know him?”

“Unfortunately, I do,” the woman sighed dramatically, “He does not belong here. People with no manners should be… somewhere else.”

Alice wasn’t quite sure what to say, but she had to keep the woman distracted until Cal got back and she knew they had gotten the pictures. I cleared my throat and stepped forward under the pretense of checking one of the registers. I gave Mrs. Christianson a tight-lipped smile before turning around. It was Alice’s job to keep her occupied, even if she wasn’t doing such a great job of it.

“My parents,” Alice said suddenly, “They place a lot of value on manners.”

Mrs. Christianson stared at her for a moment before responding, “They do well. That’s how it should be and it shows. You’re always so polite when I come in here.”

“Thank you,” Alice said hollowly, “They raised me to be respectful.”

I could practically hear Alice muttering, ‘Even if you don’t deserve it’. I stifled a laugh because the last thing I wanted was to draw the horrible woman’s attention.

“You’re ladylike because you come from a well-bred family,” Mrs. Christianson said, “The true townsfolk here, we all are, my dear. Those who come in with their flashy cash and think they can just settle in with their new money, they’re out of place. Those are not the types who belong in Vail, not at all. The old adage about money not buying class exists for a reason, you know.”

I gripped the towel in my hand tightly. It was ironic that Mrs. Christianson would point something like that out because that woman had no class. It didn’t matter that she came from a long line of the rich and powerful, ‘well-bred’ families—whatever that meant. She was awful. If there was one thing my mother and I would agree on, it was that.

After Mrs. Christianson ordered her usual drink, Alice mumbled something about needing to check for the soymilk. She rushed to the back and I followed, not wanting to be left alone with the wretched woman up front. Alice leaned against the refrigerator and looked at me. We didn’t say anything.

“Excuse me,” Mrs. Christianson finally called out, tired of waiting.

I wondered what was taking Cal so long, but there was no way to stall the bitchy woman any longer. So when she made her way out of the shop, Alice followed her. Even then she was trying her best to keep the woman distracted. I found it funny that Alice wanted to help and protect Cal, despite things being so awkward between them. Maybe she actually did have an interest in him.

Hunter stepped inside and told me they couldn’t find the car. It was already in the shop so the plan had fallen through.

“So,” he said with a smile, “I guess I’ll have a coffee.”

I turned to pour it, without charging him or saying a word. I wanted to talk to him, but wasn’t sure what to say. I was more nervous now than I was last night.

“For Hugh Jorgan?” I finally asked with a light laugh.

Hunter cracked a smile and shook his head, “That’d be me.”

I smiled and pushed the drink across the counter. There was no sign of Alice or the others. It was just Hunter standing in front of me, holding a hot cup of coffee.

“Yes, it would,” I told him with a wink. Hunter raised an eyebrow, “Keep it appropriate here.”

“Hey, you’re the one who started it,” he said as we both laughed.