Asking For It - Allyson Lindt Page 0,1

chairs next to me. “Help yourself.”

Fred nodded at my book. “It must be a good book.”

“It’s one of my favorite series.” It was the new issue of Spring Popcorn. The artwork was Japanese inspired, but the artist was local. The two main characters were male best friends who refused to admit they were in love. She had a stunning grasp of the male form, and the way she alluded to their will-we-won’t-we physical relationship was almost hotter than seeing it in vivid detail.

Almost. My imagination was happy to fill in the blanks. The same way it was doing right now with Fred and Barney. Hell, they could be the stars of the comic. Or my life. I didn’t have any issue slotting them into a fantasy or two, where I was the middle in a Bedrock sandwich.

“No spoilers. I’m two books behind,” Barney said.

He was reading this? “Then you probably don’t want to know that Haru turns into a dragon halfway through this one, to save everyone from the Nazi invasion.” I kept my tone serious. The series was strictly contemporary, with no magic, so I half-hoped he’d know I was teasing.

His grin was worth the joke. “I’d better catch up, then. Especially if there’s a little bit of dragon-on-best-friend action.”

“That’s a disturbing image.” Disturbingly intriguing.

Barney winked. “But you’re totally trying to figure out the logistics anyway.”

“Busted.” I was enjoying this more than I’d expected.

Fred nudged his friend. “We’ll let you get back to it. Thanks for letting us intrude.”

I’d read a while longer, and if they got too loud I’d go. Right. Like I could focus with two mister hotties sitting right here.

They kept their voices low enough that I had to strain to hear them, even though they were only a few feet away. Sounded like they were from out of town, but loving the city, and hoping to see more of it while they were here.

I wasn’t reading anything, despite trying my best to look like I was. I tried to block them out and pretend they weren’t impacting my universe with their manga-come-to-life looks and politely low conversation. It didn’t matter how hard I stared at the page in front of me, I wasn’t processing any of the words.

A tickle bubbled in my throat, and I reached for my coffee. When my fingers collided with the cup instead of grasping it, my gut sank. I’d missed.

Iced coffee splashed everywhere. Down my shirt. Over my slacks. On their shoes.

“I’m so sorry.” All my composure vanished, and I fumbled for napkins to mop the table.

Fred plucked my purse from the floor before the creeping puddle reached it, and my panic surged harder until he set the bag on my now-empty seat.

“Excuse me,” Barney hollered at a nearby employee, cranking my humiliation higher. “Can we get a mop over here?” He left, and returned a moment later with a stack of napkins. He handed me several. “Take care of yourself. We’ve got this.”

“Thank you,” I mumbled, and started patting coffee from my once-white top. The liquid suctioned my clothes to me, clinging to my boobs, every fat roll. The sooner I got out of here, the sooner I could tumble backwards into humiliation. Until then, I was going to be collected.

I looked up to find Barney staring at me.

“Enjoying the show?” I hid a wince at the aggravation that slid into my voice.

He looked up, meeting my gaze unflinchingly. “Quite a bit.” There was a sincerity and heat in his reply that scorched my already hot skin.

“Sorry about him.” Fred elbowed Barney. “His filters don’t always work right.”

Barney didn’t look fazed. “She asked, I gave her an honest answer.”

“While she’s all sticky and covered in coffee.” Fred started undoing the buttons on his shirt. “Take this.”

I held up a hand to stop him. Not that I would have minded the show. “I’m okay, really.” I didn’t look cute in a guy’s shirt, the way some girls did. It would probably fit, but I wouldn’t drown adorably in it. “Besides, we can’t both be showing off our assets. People will get the wrong idea about this place.”

“Do they have coffee shops like that? They should,” Barney said.

If they were going to pretend this was no big deal, I could summon some phony self-assurance. Sex, fake confidence, and self-effacing humor had been my shield most of my life. “The kind where they spill your coffee on you instead of letting you drink it?

Barney looked me over again. Every time he did