Chapter 2

Skye

“How do you make that again?” I pique an eyebrow at May as she gives me a look.

“The same way you made the last three, except with a shot of chocolate.”

There are way too many coffee variations, if you ask me.

Mocha.

Latte.

Skinny latte.

Americano.

Macchiato.

Cappuccino.

Shots of vanilla/hazelnut/caramel.

Short. Long. Fat. Upside down.

Jesus.

Then there’s the whole pumpkin themed drinks for fall — side-note, they’re disgusting — but maybe that’s because I’m not a coffee drinker. I prefer sweet tea in the summer, and black tea in the winter.

“Aunt May, you can’t expect me to be an expert after one try,” I grumble. Like most of the folk around here, Aunt May isn’t my real aunt. Our parents moved to Georgia years ago, and then to North Carolina where we’ve been ever since.

Travis spent his early years here, moving when he was nine and I was four. We always loved vacations out here with Grandma and Grandpa. With the Sheriff retiring, he immediately seized the chance to apply for the position. Of course, my brother is exactly what this town needs, and one thing Stoney Creek is big on is trying to get younger people moving here. I can see why.

This little country town may be small, but it certainly is thriving. There’s always something going on. The townsfolk are like family; everybody knows everyone, and I have no doubt that there are busybodies and overly helpful do-gooders offering you unsolicited advice everywhere. Like Aunt May. She really is a character; she knows everybody by name, of course, and really has a love for the community. Her heart is in the right place.

“No one’s saying you have to be an expert,” she tuts. “But there is a manual right here, next to the coffee machine.”

I roll my eyes. Aunt May seems to think that I’m here for longer than I actually am.

When Travis suggested I have a working holiday here, I thought he’d gone a little insane. Not that I don’t like Stoney Creek, but things sure have changed since I remember them. I sheepishly haven’t been back in two years, and that was to visit my grandparents. I just completed my college studies as a teacher’s aide and have finished my practical and internship after changing occupations. I thought I wanted to be a nurse, but turns out I wasn’t cut out for some of the gorier parts of the job. My idea is to take a break in Stoney Creek, and enjoy a couple months of freedom before I head home and take a placement at North Carolina Elementary School.

My brother suggested helping at the Stone’s Throw Cafe and doing something different for a few months.

Aunt May and Uncle Mike are semi-retired. Their daughter, Caroline, manages the place, with the help of the grandkids after school. Most of the food prep is done by her in the kitchen, so you don”t see her serving much.

May and Mike are always around, though, so I don’t think they can fully give it up.

“You’re not going to launch me onto unsuspecting customers right away, are you?” I ask May with a frown. I’m not sure I’m ready for that.

“Best way to learn,” Mike says behind us with a wink.

“I’m not so sure about that,” I say nervously.

The doorbell jingles as two tall, good-looking guys and a woman walk in. The taller of the two walks hand-in-hand with the attractive blonde. It’s easy to see they’re brothers, as they have similar features and the same oceanic blue eyes.

Aunt May greets them all with a smile.

“Well, if it isn’t my favorite brothers!” she chimes, adding, “Don’t tell the other two I said that.”

The brother, with a slightly deeper hue to his eyes, catches my attention. He’s dressed in a dark gray suit which, for Stony Creek, seems a little overdressed. Though, he completes the look nicely with a white-collared button down and polished shoes. The only hint he could have an adventurous side is the deep purple hue to his tie. Some say purple is a sign of sexual frustration, but he could just like the color.

“We all know you like me the most,” the taller one says, planting a kiss on Aunt May’s cheek.

My lips twitch in a smile as I listen to their banter. I’m hiding behind the coffee machine, hoping May doesn’t throw me under the bus with my shit coffee-making skills.

The woman laughs and swats the man on the arm. “Don’t start, Grayson.” She shakes her head.

“How are you, Hartley?” Aunt May asks the woman.

“I’m very well, thank you, yourself?” says Hartley.

“Can’t complain,” Aunt May goes on good-naturedly. “You know, I knew it when I saw you that day in the cafe. I said to Mike something’s going on with those two. You sure make a cute couple.”

I glance up to see the man smiling, wrapping an arm around Hartley.

“You have a sense for these things, don’t you?” He laughs. “But yes, I’m pleased to announce Hartley and I are officially an item.”

May leans on the counter, not in the least bit of a hurry to take their orders.

“Now that’s wonderful news. I hear you dealt with Grayson’s divorce nice and swiftly.” She smiles at Hartley.

“I finished what my dad started,” Hartley replies. “Unfortunately, things didn’t pan out quite as we’d planned.”

“Shame about the fire,” Mike adds his two cents worth as he walks by. “I’m so glad you two were okay, that’s the main thing. Gabe, I heard you saved the love birds from the blaze?”

I glance up at ‘Gabe’ and listen for his reply. He’s reading something on his cell, but closes it quickly and slides it into his back pocket.

“All in a night’s work,” he says. “Glad I saw the smoke when I did.”

His eyes glance over at me briefly, and I quickly look away.

Damn. He’s cute. In a serious ‘businessman’ kind of way.I always thought men in small southern towns dressed like cowboys, but this guy could easily work in an office in New York.

“He’s very modest,” I hear Hartley say. “He and Brooklyn really did save our lives that night.”

“Good grief.” May tuts. “I still can’t believe it. I’m just glad that both of you are okay. Buildings can be replaced, people can’t.”

“We’re fine, thank God,” Grayson says. “But yes, the poor old cabin burned to the ground.”

I notice the one named Gabe is strumming his hands on the counter a little impatiently. Maybe he has somewhere to be. A few moments later, his phone rings and he excuses himself to take it outside.

“Gabe will have the usual,” Grayson says. “Two cappuccinos for me and Hart, and we’ll take two of the lemon cakes with cream.”

“Perfect, take a table,” May says. “Oh, before I forget, this is Skye. Dot and Marty’s granddaughter. Travis Hendry’s little sister.”

I wipe my hands on my apron. Of course, I’ve been introduced as Travis’s little sister for as long as I can remember.

“Oh, we heard Trav was back in town,” Grayson says, smiling at me. “Nice to finally meet you. I’m Grayson Bassett, but folks call me Gray. This is my girlfriend, Hartley.”

I smile back, shaking Gray’s outstretched hand, and then Hartley’s. “Pleased to meet you, too.” So, this is one of the famous Bassett Brothers.

“How are you finding Stoney Creek?” Hartley asks.

“Oh I love it. I’ve been coming here since I was a kid to visit my grandparents,” I say. “Though it has been a couple of years and some of the old ducks take a little getting used to.”

“Hey, I heard that!” Aunt May says, giving me a side eye.

Grayson and Hartley laugh.

“I’ll get onto those coffees.”

“Thank you.” Hartley smiles. “It was so nice to meet you.”

“You too.”

They make their way to the table and May tells me Gabriel’s coffee is a tall Cafe Latte.

Awesome. Now I get to test my not-so coffee making skills on the Bassetts. And if I mess up, I’m sure the whole of town will hear about it.

Gabe steps back in. As he passes, our eyes meet. He doesn’t offer a smile or much friendliness at all. Just a broody, annoyed look as my eyes trail down to his backside as he passes.

He might look like a serious businessman, but he’s a hot one. There’s not one hair out of place. His face sports a thin layer of stubble and I feel the urge to find out if it’s soft or bristly. So far, the men in this town are ten out of ten.

“Are you alright with the coffees?” May asks as I set out the saucers and grab the milk from the fridge.

“I’m sure I’ll be fine.” Uncertainty rings in my tone, but I mean, how hard could this be?

“Just like I showed you. The key is not to be intimidated by the machine,” May says. “It’s like a dog; it can smell fear.”

I laugh and set about making them. Measuring out the coffee as I froth the milk.

Satisfied I appear to be doing it right, May prepares the rest of their order from the display fridge across the long wooden counter.

JJ, one of the servers, comes over to pick up the order.

I don’t think I’ve done too bad a job. The milk foamed at least, and I made the top look pretty with the chocolate sprinkles. I might actually be getting the hang of it.

However, my self-triumph is short-lived when I glance over and see that Gabe guy take a sip of his coffee, then just a few seconds later he starts coughing like he’s choking mid-sip. Oh, shit.

Did I mess up?

I rack my brain to think about what I did wrong. I’m sure I did everything Aunt May told me. Running my hand through my red, wavy locks, I wish I could sink under the counter and stay there.

I’m so crap at this coffee business. I think I need to run back to childcare where I fit properly.

“I’m just going to head to the ladies.” I’m desperate to make like a tree and leave. But before I get to go, I hear someone clear their throat at the counter.

I turn and see Mr. CEO and his blue eyes looking at me.

Shit, he really is cute.

My eyebrows shoot up as I wait in anticipation for what he’s going to say. My gut twists at the thought he might yell at me.

He’s holding his cup and saucer and not looking overly impressed; his frown says it all.

“My coffee tastes weird, and it’s lukewarm.” Tilting his head, he has an equal amount of annoyance mixed with amusement in his tone. “I’m not sure there’s any coffee actually in it.”

Tastes weird? Huh?

My eyes widen. “I’m so sorry.” I rush over to take it away, embarrassed but also annoyed because I followed the stupid instructions. “Though, I don’t see how it could be lukewarm, I had the thermostat…”

“Trust me, it is.” He presses his lips together.

My neck strains as I look up at him, his towering stature impossible to ignore. He’s definitely over six feet.

I’m a little stubborn when I want to be. “Like I said, I’m sorry. I’m not sure how that happened.” Maybe it’s you being an asshat.

“Taste it if you like?” He tilts his head to the cup.

“Um, that’s fine, I believe you.” Crap. “I can remake it if you like?” What is wrong with me? Of course he wants another one. A hot one, preferably.

I don”t want Aunt May to fire me on my first day, even though I”m just helping out. I still want to do well. She seems to be too caught up laughing with Grayson and Hartley at their table. Hmm. Their coffee seems to be okay.

“Is this your first day on the job?” He quirks a brow.

Great. So I am that transparent.

I take a deep breath. “You can tell?”

“Kinda.”

I straighten my spine, trying not to be affected by him. Not only is he gorgeous, but he smells fucking fantastic. Citrus with a splash of amber or cardamom. It’s so damn sexy that I try not to swoon. And I never swoon over men. I’m a fairly confident person with a bubbly personality, but Gabe Bassett makes me stop in my tracks.

Yes, I know who he is even if I was too young to remember him. Gabriel.

Travis has talked about him over the years.

Why does he make me feel so nervous?

He studies me for a moment, unsure — I think — what to make of me. “I’ll bring it over when it’s ready.” I try to keep my smile plastered on my face. These people live here and I don’t want to piss them off.

I have no choice but to remake the coffee and do the walk of shame over to the table, all without Aunt May seeing. The tension is real as I quickly hide the evidence; tipping the coffee down the sink and running the offending cup to the main dishwasher inside.

I start over again. Doubling the coffee. Reading the recipe and taking my time. Probably too much time. When I glance over toward the Bassett brothers’ table, Gabriel is watching me. He has an amused, smug expression on his face. One I’d like to wipe off if I could help it. I don”t understand why his coffee was bad but the others were fine.

Not one to argue, I go through the steps and ignore him. Then I calculate my timing as Aunt May trots off out back to deal with some dirty dishes. I make my mad dash, careful not to spill any, as I high-tail across the cafe.

“Sorry about that,” I say again, swallowing my pride. I set the coffee down in front of him. “I hope this one is at least hot and tastes like coffee.”

“I can’t believe you sent your coffee back,” Grayson mutters, giving me an apologetic smile.

“It’s totally fine.” I wave a hand at him like it’s nothing. “I’ll wait, just to make sure it’s okay this time round.”

I don’t mean to linger, but I need to know if I’ve messed this one up as well.

He pours not one, but two giant heaps of sugar into the cup. Wow, that’s a lot of sugar.

I keep my trap closed. It’s not up to me to remind this complete stranger about the dangers of diabetes.

He dips the spoon into the glass mug and stirs it around. I have to say; I think I made it look pretty with the swirly design I made that looks like a leaf.

A few moments later, I’m in agony as he lifts the mug to his perfect lips to take a sip. I have to squeeze my thighs together because all I can think about — especially when his tongue darts out to mop up some foam from his lip — is how good that mouth and tongue would feel running all over my body…

“He’s a tad dramatic,” Hartley whispers to me.

I give her a small smile. “Not at all. I’d hate to think I was running the Stone’s Throw name into the ground on my first day.”

She gives me a sympathetic smile.

My eyes dart back to Gabriel’s. His brow furrows. Uh, oh. Don’t tell me I screwed up again?

“Perfect,” he says.

I let out a long breath, as if I had just released the weight of the world from my shoulders.

“Really?” I blurt.

“You scorched the milk a little, but other than that, it’s pretty good.”

Pretty good?

Scorched the milk?

“You said you wanted it hot, no?”

Hartley almost spits her coffee across the table as Grayson hands her a napkin, chuckling to himself.

Gabriel’s eyes narrow.

I don’t have time to argue about him being an absolute asshat, because May walks back out and sees me over at the table.

I smile sweetly. “Enjoy. You might want to blow on it first, just so you don’t burn your tongue.”

I take off, ignoring the laughter from the other two as I join May back at the counter.

“Everything okay?” she asks.

I give her a bright smile. “Everything’s peachy. I think I’m really getting the hang of this now.”

What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her, right?