Chapter Two #2
She firmly pushed the strange, tingling sensation to the back of her mind, but she couldn’t help but glance back at Toby as he nursed his coffee in the corner.
He wasn’t watching the door, or the crowd.
Every time she looked at him, he was watching her, and he had that same intense expression on his face.
But far from making her feel threatened or afraid, it made her want things she had no business wanting.
Not from someone like him who, she suspected, was wrapped up in something shady with her idiot of a brother.
Toby had been sitting at the corner table for nearly an hour, his eyes meeting Harper’s whenever she glanced his way. His presence filled the shop with a curious energy that Harper couldn’t ignore. When he stood and approached the counter again, her heartbeat involuntarily quickened.
“Another coffee, please,” Toby requested, his voice calm and seemingly innocent. He offered her a small, disarming smile.
Harper eyed him skeptically, pouring the coffee but not letting her guard down just yet. “You know, if you’re hoping my brother will walk through that door, you’re going to be disappointed,” she said, sliding the cup across the counter to him.
“I assure you, I’m just enjoying the coffee and the atmosphere,” Toby replied, his gaze holding hers a moment longer than necessary. “It’s a nice place you’ve got here.”
After he’d paid, he returned to his table with a new cup in hand, leaving Harper pondering his words. His demeanor was gentle, not at all what she expected from someone entangled with her brother’s usual antics.
When he came up a third time, this time for a turkey panini, Harper’s resolve had softened slightly.
“Coming right up,” she said, catching herself before a smile could break through her professional facade. As she prepared his order, she couldn't help but steal glances at him. There was something undeniably captivating about him.
“Seems like you’re settling in for the day,” Harper remarked as she handed him the sandwich.
“Looks like it,” Toby agreed, his smile reaching his eyes this time. “I guess I’m just not ready to face the rest of the day yet.”
Their eyes met, and a spark of something undefined flickered between them. Harper felt a warmth spread through her, surprising and not entirely unwelcome.
On his fourth trip to the counter, Harper found herself genuinely smiling as he approached. “Let me guess, another coffee?” she asked, her tone lighter, teasing.
“You know, I think I might have a caffeine addiction,” he joked. He leaned on the counter which closed the distance between them enough to make her heart race.
“Is that so?” Harper played along, pouring his coffee with a deliberate slowness. “Or maybe there’s another reason you keep coming up here?”
Toby looked into her eyes, his gaze intense yet gentle. “Maybe I’m just enjoying the view,” he said softly, his voice carrying a weight that hinted at more than just the decor.
Harper’s cheeks warmed, and she laughed softly, the sound more melodic than she intended. “Flattery will get you everywhere,” she quipped, pushing the coffee toward him.
Toby picked up the cup, his fingers brushing against hers again, sending shivers that now seemed so familiar to her, running up her arm.
“Good to know,” he said, a playful hint in his voice.
She laughed again, and Toby beamed at her.
“So, what time do you finish tonight?” he asked.
“We close at six,” she informed him, holding her breath as she waited for his next words. Did he intend to ask her out?
Toby nodded. “That’s good to know too.” He nodded to his drink. “Thanks for the coffee.”
As he returned to his seat, she couldn’t help the sting of disappointment.
Which was ridiculous, she reminded herself.
She didn’t even know the man so she probably wouldn’t have said yes, anyway.
At least that’s what she told herself as she watched him go back to his seat, her heart racing a bit faster than usual.
The longer she spent around him, the more an undeniable attraction seemed to grow between them.
Despite Harper’s initial reservations toward him, Toby was proving hard to ignore, and part of her didn’t want to even try.
However, Harper was fully aware that she still needed to be careful.
It was possible that Toby was just a very good actor who was playing a role and playing her, and if that turned out to be the case, she didn’t want to let her guard down completely around him. Not yet.
The day was winding down and the rush of customers had thinned when Toby stood and made his way to the counter once more.
Harper noticed immediately, her pulse quickening slightly as he approached.
She braced herself for another coffee order, but instead, Toby rested his hands on the counter and met her gaze with a soft smile.
“You know, I think I've had enough coffee for one day,” he said, his voice carrying a hint of reluctance.
“Oh?” Harper tried to keep her tone neutral, masking her disappointment. “Leaving so soon?”
Toby chuckled. He’d spent over half the day there, after all. “Yeah, I need to head out,” he replied, but he lingered at the counter, not moving to leave just yet. “I’m in Fort Worth for another couple of days. I’ll definitely stop by tomorrow, if that’s okay with you.”
Harper’s heart skipped a beat, and she couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face. “Only if you promise to actually buy something other than plain black coffee,” she teased, leaning slightly forward. “I’ve got a huge menu you know, and everything is great.”
“It is?” Toby played along, his eyes twinkling with amusement. “Then I’ll let you order for me tomorrow, but it had better not disappoint now that you’ve talked it up so much.”
Harper chuckled. “It won’t disappoint, I can assure you.”
“You know, maybe there was another reason I kept coming back,” Toby said, his words sounding more like a confession than a statement, as he reached for her hand. Harper, puzzled but intrigued, allowed him to take it.
Before she could question his actions, Toby lifted her hand and pressed a soft kiss to the back of it, his eyes locked onto hers. The gesture was bold, yet tender, sending a rush of warmth through her body and a zing that shot to places she shouldn’t have been thinking about in a public place.
“Until tomorrow, then,” he said, his voice low and somewhat husky.
Harper was left momentarily breathless, her hand tingling where his lips had touched. “Tomorrow,” she managed to say. I’ll look forward to it.
As Toby turned and walked out of the coffee shop, Harper watched him go, the image of his departing figure etched in her mind.
She touched the back of her hand, the warmth of his kiss still lingering.
Despite the whirlwind of emotions, she was genuinely looking forward to seeing him again.
The day had taken an unexpected turn, leaving her with a tingle of excitement she hadn’t felt in a long time.
The rest of her afternoon passed in a bit of a haze, her thoughts often drifting back to Toby and what the next day might bring.
She was still daydreaming about him after she’d said goodbye to her last customer and locked the door.
She went through her usual clean up routine on auto pilot and when she was done, she switched off all the lights, flipped the sign on the door then headed out for the short walk down the street to where she’d left her car.
As she clicked open the lock, a weird prickling sensation raised the hairs on the back of her neck and she spun around, convinced there was someone behind her, watching her.
But she scanned both sides of the street and there was no one there.
She must have imagined it. Shaking off her unease, Harper got in, put the car in drive, then headed home, letting her mind wander once again.
But instead of thoughts of what she would cook herself for dinner or what she would watch on television that night, she was anticipating seeing Toby again and wondering if he would finally ask her on a date.