Chapter 17 Freddie #2
I man the counter while Shaun is held hostage talking to Lara and Bigvig.
He’s clearly uncomfortable, one hand shaking behind his back as he fends off what I’m sure are more stupid questions about matcha.
Lara, to my surprise, looks a little awkward too.
As she bloody well should! Dangling her new boyfriend in front of her ex in a place he can’t leave is prime dickhead behaviour and I hope she feels like a colossal twat for coming in here.
As I make a takeaway tea order for a smartly dressed man, I find myself glaring daggers at her.
Then I remember I’m not supposed to know who she is and force my attention back to the tea.
As I put the lid on the cup, Bigvig’s booming laugh fills the café. “Babe, you didn’t tell me he was so funny!”
Lara smiles tightly, her eyes on the floor.
I place the customer’s tea on the counter.
“Here you go,” I say, trying to eavesdrop as I ring up the order on the till. “That’ll be two fifty—”
“No way!” Bigvig booms. “You actually bake it all yourself?”
The customer throws an irritated glance in Bigvig’s direction as he taps his card on the machine. As I tell the customer to have a nice day, I look over just in time to see Bigvig poke Shaun in the belly.
“Just don’t eat it all yourself, hey big guy?”
My blood boils. I want to leap over the counter and punch Bigvig in his stupid, godlike face. Admittedly, the guy is twice my size and could fold me like a warm Curly Wurly, but that split-second of justice would feel so damn good. How fucking dare he?
“Yeah,” says Shaun, his voice small. The back of his neck has gone bright red. “Anyway, I’d better get back to work. Washing up’s not going to do itself.”
I steal a glance at the empty sink. Bigvig stands up and holds out his hand. “So good to meet you, man! Cute place.”
Shaun’s shoulders tense. Bigvig’s taller, but not by much, and judging by the look on the guy’s face, he’s used to having more of a height advantage over guys he’s trying to intimidate.
After a moment’s hesitation, Shaun takes his hand and they shake. Cords of muscle ripple in the two men’s forearms, leaving no doubt they’re trying to crush each other’s hands to a pulp. Neither of them so much as wince. My chest fills with pride for Shaun.
“Can I get you two anything else?” Shaun asks once they finally stop shaking.
“Just the check,” says Bigvig, pulling out his wallet.
Shaun nods and makes a beeline for the till. I start tapping in their order but Shaun gently ushers me out of the way.
“Thanks Freddie, I’ve got this. Would you mind clearing their table for me?”
There’s the faintest tremble in his voice. All attraction aside, I want more than anything to give Shaun a hug. Instead, I give him what I hope is an encouraging smile as I grab a rag and an empty tray.
Lara’s on her feet when I approach, finishing the last dregs of her coffee.
“Thanks for everything!” she says, placing her empty cup down with a clink. Behind her Shaun’s pressing buttons on the till while Bigvig taps his card impatiently on the countertop. Wanker.
“So how’s working here?” Lara asks as I start loading their dirty crockery onto the tray. “Shauny said you’re brand new!”
“Yeah, it’s great,” I say. “Shaun’s great too. Best boss I’ve ever had.”
Technically the only boss I’ve ever had, but Lara doesn’t need to know that.
She lowers her voice so only I can hear. “Sorry if it was a little awkward before. I dunno if you realise but Shaun and I actually used to date.”
I gasp. “No way!”
“Yeah! It wasn’t the nicest breakup. I didn’t actually want to come in here today, but we were passing and Viggo wanted…” She trails off, losing her words. Luckily, I’m here to help.
“To meet your ex-partner?” I say.
Lara blinks, her smile faltering for a second.
“Hey babe! Quick picture?” Bigvig calls as the card machine prints his receipt.
“Sure!” Lara snaps out of it and starts digging in her coat pocket. “Can you take a picture of us please, Frankie?”
Ugh.
“Sure,” I sigh, fighting a strong urge to throw a canister of skooshy cream at her head, if only to knock some sense into her. Can’t she see she’s dating a jerk?
“You’re a doll,” Lara passes me the sparkliest phone I’ve ever seen. “So silly, but the two of us actually have a bit of a following and we like to keep them updated. We’re going skiing!”
“Awesome,” I say in a monotone.
Bigvig comes over and manoeuvres Lara so they’re standing against the counter, putting Shaun in full view behind them. Clearly a stalemate isn’t enough for this guy, he wants to humiliate Shaun even further by featuring him as a background extra in his romantic photo. I’m so over this prick.
I hold up the phone as Lara and Bigvig pose like the bimbos they are.
“Gorgeous,” I say as I flip to the front-view camera and take a selfie. “One more?”
They work their way through a repertoire of poses while I fill Lara’s phone with forty-three pictures of my face. In the meantime, Shaun retreats into the kitchen and out of sight.
“Wow! Stunning,” I say as I close the photo app and hand Lara’s phone back to her.
“Oh, stop it,” says Lara, beaming. “You’re good-looking yourself, Frankie. Have you considered modelling?”
Bigvig puts his arm around Lara’s shoulder and plants an “I want to go now” kiss atop her head.
“Not my thing,” I say. “I prefer the stage.”
“Oh? You’re an actor?”
“Singer.”
Lara sucks her teeth. “Aww. Seriously though, you should think about the modelling thing. I know an agent or two who love the alternative look you’ve got going on. So late-noughties! Hit me up on Insta if you change your mind. My handle’s—”
“Larabanana?”
Fuck.
I say it without thinking. Both of their eyebrows lift an inch.
“How did you know?” Lara asks as Bigvig’s eyes narrow with suspicion.
“There were loads of notifications popping up when I was taking your picture,” I say, amazed at the completely plausible bullshit tumbling out of my mouth. “You must be pretty popular!”
Lara blushes. Contrary to popular belief, flattery won’t get you everywhere, but with up-and-coming influencers, it’ll get you pretty far.
“Oh duh, of course! Silly me.”
Bigvig’s practically pulling her out the door now. “Come on, babe. I wanna hit that fresh powder before the crowds show up.”
He clearly hasn’t read the Rough Guide. This is Scotland. Snow on the mountains we might have, but fresh powder? It’s far too fucking damp. Twat.
“Nice to meet you, Frankie.” Lara leans around me and calls, “Bye Shauny!”
Shaun emerges from the back. “Goodbye Lara.”
Lara takes her boyfriend’s hand and the two of them swan out of the café, leaving Shaun and I alone in silence. A few moments pass before I ask if he’s alright.
“I’m fine. Thanks.” He clears his throat and gives me a gentle smile. “As I’m sure you’ve guessed, I wasn’t expecting those particular visitors.”
“No? You hid it really well.” I give him a wink, earning a small chuckle. I’m about to ask if he needs anything when a yawn the size of the Grand Canyon racks my body, and I cover my mouth to stop the whole town getting sucked in. “Sorry. I’ll wake up soon, I promise.”
Shaun studies me, curiously. “Freddie, can I ask you a blunt question?”
I blink. “Sure.”
Oh shit. Is this it? Is this the moment Shaun confesses he likes me? Maybe having his ex swing by was just the catalyst he needed to finally make a move. Thank you, Lara, you tactless wingwoman, you!
Shaun produces the cup of coffee I left in the kitchen, still nearly full to the brim. Undrunk. “Do you drink coffee, Freddie?”
Oh shit. Busted. I really need to learn to dispose of my evidence better. I wince and suck my teeth. No point in lying; he was going to work it out eventually and my stunned silence is answer enough.
“No, I don't. Sorry. I guess when I applied, you assumed liking coffee was a given?” Shaun makes an affirming little shrug. I shift my weight from one foot to the other. “Yeah… Look, I know it’s one of those things you grow to like but, well, I guess I never grew to like it.”
“I see.” Shaun looks deep in thought. Then, he snaps his fingers like a professor who’s just cracked a tricky formula.
From a drawer under the till, he pulls out a plastic folder containing the shift rota.
He studies the rows and columns for a moment before breaking out in a big dopey grin.
“Right. Next Monday, Anna’s on all day. I’d like to take you into Glasgow for a little research trip, if that’s alright with you? My treat.”
“What kind of research?” I ask, like it matters.
“Fun research, don’t worry.” He shows me the rota. “You’re down to work a short shift in the afternoon. What if I pick you up at seven? I’ll have you back in good time, I promise. Unless you have plans, of course?”
I feel myself grinning like a fool.
“No plans at all. Sounds rad.” It can't just be me feeling the heat in the air. Urge to flirt rising. Can't… hold… back! "Although I've got to say, it kinda sounds like you're asking me out."
"Funny how things can be misconstrued, isn't it?" Shaun flashes me that perfect smile and I fight the urge to swoon.
The fact he didn't shut me down this time doesn't escape me.
"Only kidding," I say. "For real though, I'd love to go on a research trip with you."
“Excellent. That's that then.” He starts rearranging the syrup bottles so all the spouts are facing the same way. “Oh, the till balance might be a little up tonight, by the way.”
“How come?” I ask, but Shaun doesn’t answer.
Poking out of the till drawer like a curly paper tongue is a card receipt, undoubtedly from Bigvig’s transaction. I tug the receipt out to take a peek and my mouth twists into an involuntary smirk.
Shaun charged him triple.