Chapter 1 – Jesse
What in the world was he doing here? I didn’t want to believe that he was still down there, but I heard the door open downstairs and I knew that Melissa was now inside. I just hoped that she didn’t let that man in. With the way she was acting about him the day before, I doubted that she would leave him out in the cold. It didn’t matter that it was already 55 degrees.
“Jesse?”
I could hear Melissa while I was searching for something to wear. I don’t know why I was so worried about it, I never was before, but I knew deep down that it was because of the man who was waiting for his coffee. He was persistent, I would give him that, but I didn’t like the way my hands were shaking as I was trying to button up the blouse that I’d chosen.
When I saw Melissa, I smiled at her, but there was something in her eyes that told me that she had let him in. He was no doubt waiting for me downstairs.
“You’ll never guess who’s down there right now, waiting for you.”
“It’s that guy from yesterday.”
She pouted, upset that she didn’t get to surprise me. “How did you know?”
“I went downstairs because I thought it was you knocking. I was in a towel, so good times.”
I could tell she liked the idea of it all, but I can’t say I was too happy to see the glee on her face. Why was that so funny to her? I was embarrassed enough that I didn’t even want to go downstairs. I wanted to tell her to just take care of him so I wouldn’t have to see the look in his blue eyes. I just couldn’t do it.
“Okay, well, since you’re the one who let him in, you go take care of him while I get ready for the day.” I didn’t look at her, sure she would see right through me and I would be even more embarrassed. I knew that there was going to be some backlash, but I would rather get ribbed by my friend than deal with that man again. There was something about him that put me on edge, so serving him was the very last thing that I wanted to do.
But Melissa shook her head and told me that she wasn’t going to. “He’s here for you, Jesse, so why don’t you just go down there and see what he wants. A man who’d let you yell at him like that and still come back, that kind of guy is a keeper.”
I rolled my eyes and tried my best not to make too many sounds in the back of my throat. I knew that she wasn’t going to help me, so I finished getting dressed before I went downstairs to the bistro. The man who’d given me trouble before was looking at the menu. I asked him what he wanted.
“Well, I know that I want some coffee, but I’m feeling pretty hungry too. What would you suggest?”
I suggested an omelet. It was quick and would have him out of there sooner rather than later. It also gave me the chance to run away into the kitchen where I wouldn’t have to see him while I was making it.
“Sounds good. Whatever you think I’ll like, I’m sure I will.”
I wanted to ask him why he was being so easygoing today. Yesterday he was ready to cut twenty people in a line and now he was acting like he had nothing to worry about, like he could just go with anything. I didn’t trust such a change in a person, but there was really nothing that I could do. I moved to the back of the bistro to the kitchen. Breathing a sigh of relief to be away from him, I tried to figure out what it was about the man that made me feel so jittery inside. I was sure that it was the way he looked at me.
When I heard the door behind me open, I jumped to see him standing there.
“You’re not allowed back here, sir.”
“My name is Scott.”
“Well, Scott, you aren’t allowed back here. I’ll have it out to you in a minute.”
He kind of shrugged and moved closer to me. His easygoingness apparently wasn’t going to go that far. “I wanted to talk to you, and I can’t when you’re back here. What’s your name? Usually when someone gives you their name, it’s customary to return the gesture.”
“Jesse, and most of the time the customers stay up front, so I don’t think that this is customary, sir.”
“It’s Scott, remember.”
“Scott, why don’t you just give me a few minutes and I’ll have it out to you.”
I knew that he wasn’t going to budge, but I felt like he should know that I didn’t want him there.
“I’m going to stay, if that’s okay with you. I want to see what you’re doing back here. I’ve never been very good at cooking.”
“So what are you good at?”
The words were out of my mouth before I could really think about it. I shouldn’t have said it; it left me up for ridicule, and the look on his face told me that he’d taken it the wrong way.
“Well, there are many things I’m good at. You should give me a chance to show you sometime. I’m sure that I could get a smile on your face.”
Turning away, I hid the reaction that he wanted. My face was hot, and I was still thinking about the blue eyes that had seen me first thing this morning. He had seen too much of me, and for some reason my body was being ridiculous around him.
Cracking the eggs, I started the oil and tried my best not to look at him. I couldn’t help but wonder why in the world I was letting him stand there watching me in my kitchen. I should have told him to leave. That’s what I would have told anyone else. It was reinforcing his belief that he didn’t have to play by the rules.
“So how long have you worked here?”
I shrugged and told him I’d been here since it opened. I didn’t say anything about who I’d opened it with or why he wasn’t there any longer. I didn’t want to talk about it, and I certainly didn’t want to blab on to a guy like Scott. He didn’t care. I wasn’t sure what he was there for, but I knew that it didn’t have anything to do with wanting to hear my little sob story.
I put the omelet into a to-go box. I wanted him to get the hint that he shouldn’t eat it on one of the few small round tables in the front. He needed to leave before my body became anymore retarded than it was acting right then.
“This smells wonderful.”
Taking his money, I told him to have a good day. I tried not to make eye contact, knowing that my eyes would give away what I was feeling. When Scott left, I felt relief wash over me and I was finally able to breathe. I hoped that he’d gotten whatever he’d come in for, because I didn’t know if I wanted to deal with another run-in with him.