Chapter 12
AVERY
“Cora, the pipes under the sink are leaking again,” I say on the phone Sunday evening.
“Have you called a plumber?” my sister asks.
I pinch the bridge of my nose with my thumb and forefinger, hoping the pressure will lessen the spread of a headache. The stress of the lower sales for the coffee shop and the dysfunctional apartment we live in is on a daily increase.
As grateful as I am for a discounted apartment, it would be nice if the problems stayed downstairs with the coffee shop and the customers. By the time night rolls around, I don’t have the energy to deal with this.
“Yeah, but they’re a few days out. Overall, I love Penrose Beach, but I don’t love how slow things are right now.”
“I get it,” Cora says. “Oh, they’re calling us to board. I’ll be home soon. Tell Lila I love her, and I have something for her.”
I try to smile, try to get excited about my sister thinking of her daughter while she’s been gone. But she’s been more mentally absent lately, and Lila can sense things are off.
“What’s wrong, Avery?” Lila asks, padding into the kitchen in her pajama pants.
“Just trying to keep the flooding under control,” I say with a quick smile. “What are you doing up so late? I thought you were asleep.”
“I couldn’t sleep. And you weren’t in your bed when I checked.”
I soften a little. “I heard the dripping and wanted to see what it was. Let’s go back to bed, okay?”
“I can’t sleep,” she says, with more volume.
Breathing out a sigh, I say, “Okay, what’s on your mind?”
“Nothing.”
Exasperated, I pinch my lips together for a couple of seconds. “There’s got to be something bugging you, or else you would be asleep at eleven o’clock on a school night.”
Lila lets out a long, shuddering breath. “I don’t want to go to school tomorrow.”
“Is it because of Joey?” I ask.
“No. I didn’t do an assignment.”
I put my hand on her upper back and nudge her toward her room. “Well, I’ll wake you up early, and you can finish it before school.”
She digs in her heels, making it harder to move her toward the bedroom door. “What about Kylie?”
“What about her?” This conversation is all over the place, and I’m scrambling to try and find the common thread that pieces them all together in her brain.
“Will we ever be friends again?”
I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut as I watch her lips try to keep still.
“You might. But not everything is certain. Have you asked anyone else to eat lunch with you? What if we invite a few people over this week for a girls’ night?”
Lila gives me a pout before saying, “What would we do? Our apartment is so boring.”
I have to take a breath before I lash out at her complaints. “We can get out the nail kit and do nails, have a movie or game night, or come up with a bunch of different ideas.”
Her hard exterior seems to melt in front of me, and I smile. A small victory for me tonight when I’m already exhausted.
“Are you going to date Max?”
I freeze, not having expected that question. “No. What makes you think that?”
“Just how you were laughing and talking with him this afternoon. I’m not sure whether to warn you away or hope that he kisses you.”
I blink several times, my brain glitching as it tries to process her words. “Um, well, I doubt kissing will be involved. He’s working on a project that involves our home, so that’s about as close as we’ll get.”
“I think he would be good for you.” She makes it sound like she’s got a talent for seeing the future.
“First you were worried he’s a serial killer, and now you want me to date him? Not that it’s going to happen, but why the change of heart?”
“You don’t look as sad when you’re talking to him.”
I raise my eyebrows. “You’ve barely seen me talk to him. Besides, taking care of you is a full-time job. Just don’t get suspended tomorrow, okay?” I say with a sly grin.
She rolls her eyes at me before heading back to her bed. I settle under the sheets in the main suite, enjoying one more night before I have to be back on the pull-out couch. Yay for being the younger sister.
I should put my phone away, but I scroll through rental listings in Penrose Beach.
Every option I find is smaller, older—or nearly double what I’m paying now.
I stare at the screen a little longer than I should.
Maybe this place isn’t perfect.
But right now…
It’s what we have.
Sure, I’m an adult, but I don’t think I want to stretch for a more expensive place—especially when I still have the loans from the coffee shop to worry about.
I wake up early, with thoughts of Max swirling in my brain.
After going over every interaction with him, trying to see how I would treat Earl, or Frank, the owner of the hardware store, I’m not sure there’s a difference in my actions, especially when Lila is around.
So I focus on the leak instead. I watch a handful of videos online about how to fix it, but even attempting it would mean buying tools that cost as much as just calling a plumber.
I’ll put that on my list to do today.
I head down to the coffee shop later than usual after getting Lila off to school. I figured that with everything she was worried about last night, it would help to have me there for moral support until she left.
Thanks to Sarah, things are open and running.
To my surprise, Max is already there, sitting in a booth with a cup of coffee in front of him.
“Good morning,” he says with a smile. There’s still something a little tense about him, like his mind is somewhere else.
“Good morning. Did Sarah take care of you?” I ask, pointing to his cup.
Max smiles. “She did. Thank you. I might be addicted to whatever blend you sell.”
As much as I don’t want it to matter, the compliment lands. It gives me a small sense of purpose I didn’t realize I needed this morning.
“That’s great. You should spread the word. We can use the business,” I say quickly. “Did you find a contractor?”
“I did, actually,” Max says. “I just had to keep asking.”
“I guess I should mentally prepare myself for the power tools and hammering.”
Instead of joking, Max looks worried. “I’ll make sure they don’t work after five. It might take longer but—”
“Max,” I say, shaking my head. “It was a joke. They can work later than that. Lila and I will be fine. Cora, too, when she’s in town.”
His eyes study my face, and I squirm, unsure of what it all means. “Thank you. That will hopefully get the project done sooner.”
“I’ve been around enough building projects to know that they never go how you hope, but we can be patient.”
“I need to ask you—” he says, but he looks at me and stops talking for a moment.
“Max, are you okay? Do I need to power you off and restart you again?” I say with a small laugh.
A grin slowly spreads over his face, and he continues. “Sorry, my mind is going a million miles an hour, and if it’s possible to glitch, that’s what happened. My boss wanted me to ask you if you still have the invoices from remodeling the coffee shop.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Yeah. Richard said it was all up to me to get it ready.”
Max closes his eyes, looking like he’s in pain. I reach over and touch his shoulder. Maybe he has problems with seizures or something?
“What’s wrong?” I ask, looking into his eyes. There’s something magnetic about the pull of them, and I slowly drop my hand from his shoulder.
“Whoever handled everything got it wrong. He’d like to make it right.”
“What’s your boss’s name?” I ask, curious.
“It’s…Oliver. Oliver Turek.” He says it like he’s trying to convince himself, but maybe he’s got a lot going on, like he said.
“I thought most commercial places were the problem of the renter.”
Shaking his head, Max says, “No, it depends on the company. There are some who do that, but for the most part, a good owner should build to suit the business coming in.”
“I can find those for you.” I pull out my phone and open a blank note. “What’s an email address I can send them to?”
“It might be easier if I type it in,” he says, reaching for my phone. I hand it to him, our fingers grazing once again for a lightning shock.
“Sorry,” I say.
He laughs. “It’s okay. You are definitely full of sparks.”
I try not to focus on the gorgeous smile he gives me. I should be backpedaling when it comes to this man, but I keep finding green flags that urge me down attraction highway.
He takes my phone and taps at the screen for a few moments and then hands it back to me. The screen is showing Max Luca listed as a contact.
I raise an eyebrow and turn to look at him, waiting for his explanation.
“I wanted to get your number, but figured I’d give you mine and you could decide what to do with it. Since I didn’t ask.”
It’s difficult to hold back my smile, and I end up giving into it. “Now why would you want my number?”
He looks around the coffee shop somewhat nervously and says, “In case I need to check on a few things for the apartments. And maybe see if you’d like to go to dinner sometime.”
My heart might’ve stopped for a whole second before pumping faster to catch up. I try to play it casually, like guys ask me for my number all the time.
“That might be doable. I’ll have to wait and see how late your contractor works.” We laugh, and the bell over the door rings, bringing in Pearl, one of our next-door regulars. “I should get to work.”
I slip behind the counter and get Pearl her morning cappuccino before I grab the mop to clean up a spill I didn’t see before. My mind keeps replaying the conversation I had with Max, and I can’t stop smiling.
Why I’m so excited about it when I know he’s not here long-term is the hardest part of the whole equation.
The morning moves slowly, and about thirty minutes later, I’m surprised to see Max still here, this time with a woman sitting across from him.
I tap Sarah on the shoulder. “Who’s that with Max?”
She grins. “I knew you liked him. Look at that blush on your cheeks. We need to get you and him together.”
“He put his number into my phone but told me I could text him if I wanted him to have my number.”
Sarah pretends to faint. “Um, you should go propose to that man right now. Talk about consideration and not just assuming. Mmm-hmmm,” she says, making me laugh.
I wave a hand at her. “Let’s not make it weird, okay. It was just a little thing, and we’re not going to analyze it.”
Sarah points at me. “You’ve already done that, I can tell.”
I blow out a breath, trying to regain my composure. “Will you stop? I don’t need to worry about being watched all the time for stuff like this.”
Sarah glances over again. “Looks like Talia Bernsen. I think she refinishes furniture or something.”
I frown. That’s…not helpful.
Then again, maybe they’re on a date. No, he wouldn’t be asking for my number right before having a coffee date. Curt would, but I don’t see Max trying something like that.
Curiosity nudges at me.
I grab a coffee pot and make my way out to the tables, starting with the booths nearby. I refill Earl’s cup before walking toward Max’s table.
“Refill?” I ask, holding up the nearly empty pot.
Max slides his cup toward me with a small smile. I turn to the woman. “Can I get you anything?”
She lifts her hands. “No thanks. I’m good.”
“No problem.” I walk away, then turn back. “I’m Avery, by the way. I’m still getting to know everyone around here.”
The woman eyes my outstretched hand like it might bite her.
“Talia.”
I drop my hand. “Nice to meet you. I’ll let you get back to your…meeting.”
Smooth, Avery.
“Not a date,” Talia says quickly.
I lift my hands. “Got it.”
“It’s a business meeting,” Max adds calmly. “Talia’s going to work on the flats. Well, for the company I work for.”
An unexpected flicker of relief runs through me. “That’s great. And if you have time—or the know-how—I’ve got a leaky pipe that probably needs attention.”
Max’s expression shifts. “I can look at that, if you’d like.”
Both Talia and I stare at him.
“You know plumbing?” she asks.
“I know enough. My grandfather did a lot of building when I was younger. I can handle basics—not a full project.”
“I’d appreciate that,” I say. “Maybe just…not the same approach as whoever installed it.”
“That would be Rusty,” Talia mutters, shaking her head.
“And I’m the one living with it,” I add, brushing a strand of hair out of my face.
“Do you have time for me to check it now?” Max asks.
“Sarah can cover for a few minutes.”
I hang up my apron, and we head out to the back door that leads up to the second floor.
As we climb, Talia lets out a quiet groan. “He didn’t even do the stairs right?”
I assume she means Rusty. I’ve tried not to complain—having a place to live matters—but these stairs are a hazard. I feel off-balance with every step.
We reach my apartment, and I open the door, gesturing toward the sink.
Max crouches down and looks underneath, making an inaudible sound I can’t quite read.
Good? Bad? Probably bad.
“Okay,” he says after a moment. “I’ll need to grab a few things from the store. Let me walk Talia through the project first, then I’ll come back and fix this. Does that work?”
I shrug. “Yeah. I mean…if you don’t mind. You should take a break from working.”
He huffs out a quiet laugh. “I’m not very good at relaxing. And my boss likes things tied up nicely, so when I told him the state of this place, he wanted to get things updated and soon.”
“Fair enough. Let me know if you need anything. I’ve got to head back downstairs.”
I give them both a small wave and return to the shop, the leak still sitting in the back of my mind.
“Where’d you go?” Sarah asks, pulling out one earbud when she sees me.
“So much for watching the floor,” I mutter, then say, “I showed someone my leaking sink.”
She raises her eyebrows. “Oh? And how did that go?”
I frown. “It’s still leaking.”
She grins like she knows something I don’t.
“I’m going to do inventory,” I say, grabbing a clipboard. “No earbuds while I’m gone, please.”
She gives me a sheepish look. “Yes, boss.”
If I can finish this before Lila gets out of school and without thinking about Max a hundred times, I’ll count it as an accomplishment.