Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Sophia

" H ead in the game, Sophia," I tell myself when I'm distracted by the sight of the man before I even enter Coffee Loft. My mind has spent too much time the past three days returning to the memory of him. The way his jeans hug his legs. The way a simple t-shirt shows off his toned upper body. Don't even get me started on those eyes of his. And I don't even know the guy's last name.

I square my shoulders, suck in a deep breath of the cool morning air coming off the river, and pull the door open.

"Welcome back." His voice is as rich and deep as the aroma of coffee, sugar, and cinnamon swirling around us.

"I couldn't stay away for long." I smile, feeling decidedly like a teenager with a crush. Hopefully, with at least a hint of more confidence.

"I'm not surprised." He grins and my heartbeat ratchets up another notch. "Spiced vanilla latte?"

"Make it Lofty," I say, secretly pleased.

"Coming right up. Anything else for you this morning?" he asks as I hand him my credit card.

I glance across the pastries on display. "I'll take one of those cinnamon rolls, please."

"Good choice." His eyes sparkle, drawing me in. They are a deeper blue than I remember, with tiny flecks of gold reflecting the light from the ceiling fixture above. It reminds me a little of my favorite van Gogh painting.

Our fingers touch when he hands me the sticky pastry on a plate. My heart skips a beat and I bite my lip to keep from saying something I'll regret immediately. "Thanks," I mumble instead and turn to head to the table I sat at yesterday.

Unfortunately, it's occupied by a couple who look only a few sips into a lengthy coffee date. At least I hope so for his sake. He looks smitten with the petite blonde across from him.

"There's an open seat over here."

I follow the barista's outstretched hand to the bar beside the counter and the open stool. "Thanks. I'm Sophia, by the way."

He returns my card. "I'm Jake."

"Nice to meet you, Jake."

"Likewise." His head turns when a group of women enters the shop. "Grab a seat. I'll bring your Lofty Latte out as soon as it's ready."

I place the plate that holds my cinnamon roll on the counter and hop onto the tall barstool he'd pointed out. My computer bag is securely stashed below my feet, and I look around. It's not a bad spot. From my current vantage point, I can see most of the coffee shop, including a full view of the Wishing Wall that grabbed my attention during my previous visit.

I'm full of questions by the time he shows up with my drink. "Mind if I ask you some questions about this?" I point to the wall.

"Not at all. Fire away." He leans against the counter.

"This was your idea?"

He nods. "I've been toying around with it for a while. When I moved here and saw that blank space on the back wall, I thought the time was right."

"Can you tell me more about how you came up with it?" I reach down for my bag and dig around for a pen and notebook.

"Why?" Jake asks, his eyes narrowing when I get ready to take notes.

"I work for WILM. We'd love to do a story about your wall."

Jake pushes himself off, and the friendly smile is gone in a flash. "I don't think so."

I close my notebook and follow him to the counter. "Why not? It's a great idea."

He shakes his head and looks around, undoubtedly hoping for a customer to walk up with a complicated coffee order.

Lucky for me, the morning rush is over and only a few patrons remain inside Coffee Loft. I hold up my hands. "I'm not looking for anything sensational. This will be a human interest piece, showing the good work you're doing here," I say. "For the local community."

His features soften ever so slightly. "I don't know."

"It would be good for business," I add, giving him my most winning smile.

"What's good for business?" a man dressed in a button-down shirt and khaki pants asks, walking out of a small office in the back.

"A feature about Jake's Wishing Wall at WILM," I say, holding out my hand at the man I'm guessing is either the owner or manager of this establishment. "Sophia Martinez."

He takes it and shakes it. "Matthew Dolton."

Matthew loves it when I run through the basics of my idea. He got a call from my boss yesterday and is completely on board. Jake stays quiet, his lips pressed tightly together.

"It could help with fulfilling the wishes." I stare at him, willing him to see the good that can come from this.

"How?" He crosses his arms across his broad chest.

"Go grab a card. The next wish you want to work on fulfilling," I say, my voice soft enough so it doesn't carry through the noisy place.

Despite this, he looks first over my shoulder, then his before walking up to the Wishing Wall. He returns a moment later with a card in his hand.

"Interesting choice." I read over the wish. "I can work with this."

"Can you?" His eyebrow raises in a move that's becoming oddly familiar.

"Of course I can. Watch and be amazed." I turn to walk back to my spot, pulling my phone from my back pocket, ready to get to work.

A large hand grips my shoulder. "Wait."

"For what?" I hear the challenge in my voice.

"You really think you can help make this wish come true?" he asks, handing me the index card.

"I do." My eyes fly over the information for a second time, ideas racing through my mind. "We can give them a day they will never forget and document the process for posterity."

"What about them?" Jake points to the card that holds the wish of a father and daughter for a special day out together. "Wouldn't having a camera crew follow them ruin the whole thing?"

"Not if we do it right," I say. "And we will. I promise we won't get in the way. And it could do a lot of good."

Jake doesn't look convinced.

"It could encourage more people to post wishes, and I promise it'll open doors to help make them come true."

His features soften ever so slightly.

"And I promise we won't go ahead with this until we talk to the dad. If he doesn't think it's a good idea, we won't film." I take a step closer. "And I'll help you give them the best day of their lives, no matter what he decides."

"Sure about that?" His eyebrow raises again.

"Pinky promise." I hold out my hand and watch his lips twitch up into a grin.

He links his pinky with mine. "I'll take you up on that."

"Great. I better get to work then."

By the time I walk out of Coffee Loft and back to my car, I have pages full of notes and several irons in the fire to give one little girl a day she won't soon forget.

"I hope you have an update for me," my boss says when I call him. "When do I have my Wishing Wall story?"

"With a little luck, by the end of the week." I catch him up on everything that's happened, including my promise to Jake.

"The father better come through then," he grumbles. "And you watch yourself. From where I'm sitting, you sound smitten with this Jake guy."

He isn't wrong, and I can't wait to see more of my favorite barista over the coming days.