Play With Me - Brittany Cournoyer Page 0,23

was coming back in.”

“Oh.” Did he seem disappointed by that? But as the question popped into my head, he added, “Well, now you have them.”

“I do. Thanks to you.”

I reached out to retrieve the glasses he held out to me and allowed my fingers to brush against his and linger a few seconds too long. I was testing to see if the spark was still there, or if it was something my crazy brain had conjured. But when the familiar jolt traveled through my fingers and up my arm before making my spine tingle, I knew it wasn’t my imagination. And the way his fingers twitched against mine, I knew he felt it too.

“Did your car work okay?” I asked, since I was in no hurry to leave, even if he had to get back to work.

He cleared his throat before answering, “It did. In fact, it’s running better than ever.”

“Great. Glad to hear it.”

“Well, uh, I’d better get back in there. The floors aren’t going to sweep themselves.”

I chuckled. He had no idea how endearing he was without even trying. And I needed to spend more time with him. Being around him, I’d tiptoed into the pool and had waded out waist-deep into the water. But now was the time to take the plunge.

“What are you doing when you’re done here?”

Foster seemed surprised by my question but impressed me with how quickly he recovered. “Just going home.”

“Are you in any hurry to do that?”

“Considering I don’t have an alternative, that’s all there is to do.”

“What if I gave you one?”

Foster cocked his head to the side. “What did you have in mind?”

“There’s a café down the road that’s open twenty-four hours. Why don’t we meet there when you’re finished for a cup of coffee?”

Foster’s breath hitched at my question and I saw different emotions play in his expressive eyes. And the longer we stood there while he debated how to answer me, the more uncertain I became. Maybe I’d misread the signals or misinterpreted the sparks and looks. Or maybe I’d overstepped the boundaries by asking him for coffee.

I was just about to retract my invitation when his lips curled into a shy smile.

“Sure. Coffee sounds great. I can meet you there in about twenty minutes?”

“Great,” I said, trying to keep the relief from my voice. “I’ll be waiting.”

Only then did I leave the bar, and as I walked toward my truck, I couldn’t help but raise my arm in a fist pump. I had to remind myself it was just two guys meeting over coffee, but even the smallest win could feel like your greatest victory. Now I just had to endure the next twenty minutes and hope like hell he wouldn’t stand me up.

9

Foster

“Everything okay?” Mina asked when I returned to the main area.

“Yeah, everything is fine,” I told her as I grabbed the broom to start sweeping the floor.

Mina made a noncommittal noise but turned her back on me to go do whatever it was she thought needed to be done. I attempted to put all my focus on the task I’d taken on, but I couldn’t concentrate. Not when I felt like I was about to explode.

“He asked me for coffee,” I blurted and winced at my outburst.

“Who did?” Mina asked, but the glint in her eyes told me she already knew.

“Stellan. The, uh, the sax player.”

Her perfectly sculpted eyebrow shot up. “Really? I didn’t know you two were friendly.”

“We’re not. Not really, anyway. He, um, he helped me with my car the other night.”

“What was wrong with it?” Ted, the bouncer, asked as he walked by carrying a bag of trash to take it to the dumpster.

“The starter went out. He helped me get it towed to the shop.”

“What was he doing here so late? I thought he’d left already.”

“He did, but he came back because he’d left his sunglasses behind.”

“Seems to be a reoccurring theme with him,” she quipped.

“Wait a second,” Ted said, and I noticed from his posture he was getting into overprotective mode. “You were in the parking lot, alone, with a dead car?”

I shrugged. “Yeah, but he helped me and then took me home.”

“Next time, call me. I live less than ten minutes from here. I could’ve come and helped you.”

“Um, thanks. I didn’t want to bother anyone, though.”

“It’s never a bother. I’d rather get a call at three in the morning that you’re in need of assistance than hear the next day something happened.”

I furrowed my brows. I hadn’t