Chapter 9
Chapter
Nine
“So, did you message him?” Kaylee asked, sliding up next to Skylar after handing Valery a breakfast burrito. She was a regular who loved Hank’s cooking and Skylar’s macchiato to the point of obsession.
It was the quality of the food and coffee beans, which were hand-picked and mostly Australian grown.
“I’m so glad you have tomorrow off and I’ll be working with Hayden instead,” Skylar bit out playfully, cleaning the machine and sending a jet of steam out the frothing nozzle to make sure nothing was left behind to curdle.
“We both know you love it more when I work.” Kaylee folded her arms and obnoxiously chewed her gum, which helped to combat the taste of fifteen coffees – an exaggeration – the coffee-dependant adult drank every day. “Well? Is Mr Hottie nice?”
Skylar narrowed her gaze at the woman and the stain of coffee going down the front of her lavender apron. “I’m surprised you don’t know, Miss Snoops-a-lot.”
“That’s your private shit. I’m totally down to swipe for you, but your conversations are all yours. I’d rather hear the tea from your mouth than feel like I’m a third in your relationship.”
Skylar paused, surprised by her answer, and blinked like an owl disturbed from sleep. I really thought she would be reading them. It was kind of why she felt awkward about the whole thing, but knowing that did help.
“He messaged me.”
Kaylee’s jaw fell, and Skylar turned away shyly.
“Well? How’d it go?! Was he nice? Do you guys have a date planned?”
“I... didn’t respond,” she murmured.
There was nothing but silence from her friend, so she looked over her shoulder from where she was wiping down the hazelnut syrup bottle, and Kaylee’s glamorously made-up face was gobsmacked.
Her face pinched, the precursor to an oncoming whine. “What do you meeean you didn’t respond?”
Skylar shrugged. “I forgot.”
“Forgot?! You just forgot to message him? It takes two seconds!”
Kaylee chased her around the café, and even dared to go down the hall towards Hank’s domain when she went that way to escape.
“I really did forget!”
I had to clean my alchemy room of Mr Tentacles and me from the night before. Then I had to find an alternative to sage because I didn’t have any, and I needed to cleanse my house. I also tried to look into what he was, found nothing, and then passed out sitting upright in my bed.
She didn’t even get the chance to continue reading her newest book, and only just managed to eat a few donuts and chips that comprised her fancy and quick girl dinner.
It’s better than the days when I used to live off coffee and cigarettes. She’d quit the latter a few years back, but now she had some other nasty habits.
Skylar checked that Hank was fine, which meant her excuse to be down this way was gone. He was actually in the middle of eating and nearly choked at being caught red-handed consuming food from the kitchen.
Which made Skylar want to pummel him because she truly didn’t mind if her employees consumed anything she bought for The Bean Alchemist. She wanted them happy and taken care of, and even paid them much higher than the average hospitality award wage.
It was why they’d all been loyal and had stayed from the day she’d opened. That, and the fact that she worked hard every single day alongside them.
A disappointed, defeated sigh came from Kaylee, prompting Skylar to finally turn around and meet her gaze. “I shouldn’t be surprised. Just text the guy, okay? You never know what’s going to happen.”
“Fine. I’ll try.”
Kaylee rolled her eyes and walked away, and Skylar found her reflection in the glass of a picture of Edgar Allen Poe. She averted her gaze to the well-worn flooring.
I don’t want to.
In all honesty, she’d been more concerned about whether she would summon Mr Tentacles again, since he left his calling symbol on the ground of her alchemy workshop. She’d seen it again and had completely forgotten about Oliver as she’d instantly gotten so wet she thought it was pitiful.
On her list of things she’d done other than text him, she’d masturbated to electric-blue glowing tentacles, despite how tired she was.
Despite all her holes being sore, as were her thigh muscles from squatting over him.
Despite the fact that her heart felt weird about it, and that she’d wanted to tuck her toy away and just summon him instead.
It’d taken quadruple the amount of time to orgasm, and she’d nearly passed out under the covers while clawing the sheets in her efforts. Then she’d followed that up with a deep-dive into figuring out what he actually was, to no avail.
Seeing an escape from prying eyes, Skylar ducked into the walk-in storage cupboard, squatted down until her backside was resting against the backs of her calves, and groaned.
He’s totally ruined me for regular guys.
She’d literally been texted by a cutie, and she’d fantasised about a monster.
And truly, every time she saw the colour blue, her insides would quiver with want.
I want Mr Tentacles.
A scream came from the front of the café, and Skylar jumped up and bolted out of the storage room. She found Kaylee with her back slammed against the counter, looking down at the ground.
She power-walked up to the front counter, passed through the entryway to behind the serving counter and coffee machine, and halted. Two of her extremely expensive syrups had been knocked onto the ground and shattered.
“What happened?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I was serving a customer when it just smashed behind me.” Brown eyes so wide they hid her smoky-amber eyeshadow, Kaylee lifted her gaze to Skylar. “Don’t tell me we’re haunted, because I’ll literally fucking quit. I don’t want any bad juju in my life. I’ve got enough problems.”
“There’s no such thing as ghosts,” Skylar lied, rushing to find a cloth to soak up the syrup before she swept.
The knock tube that collected the used coffee grounds wobbled, like something had jumped on top of it, and Skylar steadied it before anyone could notice.
I’m totally haunted. Whatever is in my house is following me.