9. J-O-B
Chapter 9
J-O-B
Bonnie
“This is what you sent out?”
I don’t like the way Rafe asks that question, but I like even less that I tentatively answer, “Yes.”
He flicks his finger across the tablet. His eyes narrow, staring at one page of my portfolio before swiping to the next. My breath catches when he does that nervous thing where he subconsciously runs a thumb over the thick ring on his index finger. I swallow down my own nerves and opt for glancing outside the coffee shop’s window instead.
It’s officially summer in Never Harbor. It’s the kind of day where ice cream trucks awake from their winter coma and teens bicycle down Main in sundresses and shorts during their lunch period, only weeks away from graduating. I remember how freeing that felt. There was an optimistic, unknown future ahead of me.
Now I’m wearing a collared silk top and linen pants. I’m not a child. I’m a professional woman on her first day at an internship—definitely not a girl still harboring a crush.
Not me.
Rafe is my boss now—my mentor—and the first step to learning is by showing him my art portfolio during our lunch break. We placed a flat plastic clock on Ink I’m simply entranced by the one guy who doesn’t follow the rules.
I know that’s a lie.
Rafe pockets his tattooed fingers into dark jeans. I remember how that same ink looked pressed against my collarbone. He may be my boss, but, damn it, I will crush on this man until my emotions inevitably crush me as well.
The table vibrates, jolting me from my thoughts. I pick up my phone, but the screen is blank. Rafe’s phone, case-less yet pristine—what psychopath doesn’t use a case?—is lit up with the name MOM .
And he’s a man who loves his mom? Unfair.
The table buzzes again, but this time, it’s my phone.
Milo: Where are you? I dropped by with lunch, but you and Lu weren’t there.
I swallow and shakily text back, straightening my spine with forced confidence before hitting Send.
Bonnie: Can’t. I’m working.
Milo: Pardon?
Bonnie: I have a job. J-O-B, my dude.
Milo: That’s great! Did I miss the family celebration?
Bonnie: Nobody knows yet.
There’s a beat where he’s typing. He stops, then starts again.
Milo: Why?
Bonnie: I wanted to make sure I didn’t fumble it first.
Yes and no. But mostly because I know my family too well. At minimum, I know Milo too well. He’s perceptive. I think he’d know I basically begged Rafe for a job. He can sense that kind of desperate energy. But I can’t keep it from my family forever.
Milo: You could never fumble it.
Bonnie: It’s whatever. It doesn’t matter if I can or can’t. I’m telling Ma tonight.
Milo: Where is it? Boston?
Bonnie: Ink & Tide.
Milo: It’s in town? Is that what you were discussing last week?
Bonnie: Nosy.
Milo: I’m not nosy. I’m caring.
No, he’s nosy.
Milo: If it’s in town, Ma already knows. You know that.
I shift in my seat, placing my phone back face down on the table.
I haven’t done anything wrong, so why do I feel guilty?
“Bonnie!”
I jump at the sound of Bobbi Starkey’s voice. The owner of Peg Leg Press stands with her hands on her hips and a beaming smile on her face. It’s always her inviting smile, complete with the gap between her white teeth and kind lines creasing beside her eyes.
“I didn’t know you were still in town. I heard you were going to the city for the summer.”
“Just town rumors,” I say, smiling back. My body is tense enough that there’s no way my grin looks natural. “I’m staying at Jasper’s old cottage with Lu.”
Her face falls. “Oh … your mom had mentioned?—”
“I’m actually interning in town,” I interrupt. It’s rude, but today seems to be a day where I’m a brat , and I’m coming to terms with it.
God forbid someone else in this town spreads more gossip about my mistakes, no matter how true it might be.
Her eyebrows rise. “Oh, really? That’s wonderful. With who?”
“Me,” Rafe says. He appears beside her, holding a bag with the Peg Leg Press logo stamped on the outside.
The corner of Rafe’s mouth is tipped up. It’s the infinitesimal line beside his lips, indicating a smile. He only does that when he’s around certain people—sweet Bobbi Starkey being one of them. It’s hard to dislike the woman who makes coffee served in heaven.
“Oh, that’s wonderful!” Bobbi nearly yells.
I peer around the seating area, where a few eyes land on us. She playfully nudges Rafe’s side, pulling him into a laughing side hug. He’s taller than her, so it’s more at his ribs. Rafe wraps an arm around Bobbi’s shoulders.
Bobbi is my mom’s best friend, and they share all the good traits. Bobbi is a hard worker, generous with her love, and accepting of even the most closed-off people in town. She and her husband, Charles, make it a hobby to bug my brother Jasper when he’s at his grumpiest. I’m not surprised she’s the only person who can look semi-natural while hugging Rafe.
Milo was right. Ma will know where I’m working before my feet hit the sidewalk.
“Don’t work her too hard, boy!” Bobbi teases.
My eyes shoot to Rafe’s. His avert their gaze when I do. Bobbi squeezes Rafe’s shoulder again in glee, none the wiser.
“Take care of our sweet Davies girl!” she coos.
Bobbi only has good intentions, but I’m more than just Never Harbor’s little girl. If they knew about what happened at Night Crawl, this town would think again on whether to call me sweet .
“I’ll try my best to be a good influence,” Rafe responds.
“Oh, I know you will.” Bobbi pats his shoulder. “You’re a good man, Rafe.”
“Thanks, Bobbi. We should get going, eh, Bon?”
“Right,” I answer.
She manages one final hug before letting him go. “Stop by anytime!”
“Sure thing.” Rafe nods his chin toward the door. It’s direct, but not commanding. A request from a boss to his employee, but an insistent one nevertheless.
I wonder if he’s embarrassed of me.
I swallow, quickly gather my phone, hand him his, and duck under his arm as he holds the door open for me.
Rafe lights a cigarette on the walk back, and his hand shakes the whole way.