Mary Leigh, coping mechanisms in action! Mark that in your chart and stamp it with a smiley face.
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By the time lunchtime rolled around, Hollyn had tucked away the stressful morning into the let’s-pretend-this-never-happened file and was in the zone, crafting her next post. She was feeling pretty good, resolved even, until she went downstairs for decaf number two and froze a few feet away from the coffee bar. Jasper was behind the counter, pouring a cup for someone else, a blue apron tied around his waist.
Her stomach sank.
He wasn’t just another person renting a hot desk—someone easily avoided. He was the new Jackee. He was the new keeper of the coffee.
Jasper smiled her way and lifted a hand in greeting. So freaking friendly. So damn nerd-hot. “Hola, Ms. Busy.”
Smile back! Smile back! Smile back, she silently screamed at herself. Be a functioning human!
Instead, a grimace pulled at her face, a yank of muscles she couldn’t control. His smile fell, a startled look flashing in his eyes. Then annoyance. A little part of Hollyn died inside. She turned on her heel and walked right back the way she came.
In the stairwell, she leaned against the brick wall and closed her eyes, mortification bleeding through her and making her limbs tingle. No no no. She could feel the telltale signs, but it was too late to stop it. All systems had already been engaged.
Hello, panic, my old friend.
She mentally reset the calendar she kept in her journal where she tracked how many panic-free days she’d had in a row with the title Don’t break the chain. The chain had been broken. Again.
If her mother were here, she would be shaking her head at her with that knowing look on her face. See, honey, I told you moving to the city was a bad idea. You’re not ready for this. You may never be. That’s okay. Just come home.
As Hollyn’s heartbeat raced and sweat glazed her skin, all the things she’d pictured in that imaginary movie of herself melted into the ugly reality. There was no four-leaf clover for her. There was no meet-cute. Her awkwardness was not adorkable like a movie heroine. She was a goddamned disaster. This monster that clamped its hand around her throat and took control of her muscles was real and it was bigger, meaner, and more determined than ever.
Maybe her mother was right.
She slapped the wall with the palm of her hand and let out a sound of frustration, the noise echoing through the empty stairwell.
No.
She. Would. Not. Run. She loved working in her cozy office. She loved that she was finally earning her own money—even though there wasn’t much of it. She loved having the freedom to go out in the city at night instead of having to watch life go by through a TV screen in her small hometown. She was Miz freaking Poppy, goddammit. She was famous. You know, regionally. Microregionally. Like very micro. On the internet.
She groaned at her lame pep talk, but it at least distracted her from replaying the awkward encounter with Jasper over and over in her head. This didn’t have to be a big deal. She would not let her attraction to some cute barista derail her plan. She could deal with this.
He was just a guy. In a world full of them.
So what if this particular one thought she was rude? It’s not like she was trying to date him. She wasn’t capable of dating anyone. In fact, she never had to speak to Jasper again.
She had nothing to worry about.
Everything was cool.
Totally cool.
Ugh. Maybe she needed to find a new office.
Chapter Two
Be cool. Jasper’s caseworkers had always told him to think before he acted. They said impulsive like it was a dirty word. Like it was some disease he had contracted. Jasper can’t control himself. Jasper can’t keep his mouth shut. Jasper is just too much. He could hear them in his head now, telling him to just let things lie and pour the damn coffee. But when he smiled at the mystery woman from the second floor, and her pretty face twisted into a look full of disgust before she hurried back in the other direction, he wanted to shout out, “Hey, what’s your problem?”
What did he ever do to her besides bring her coffee this morning and not embarrass her about her porn perusing? Jasper set down the carafe he’d been holding and opened his mouth to call out to her, but she’d