Chapter 76
Mel stared out at the coffee shop’s door. Rhys hadn’t come in yet. Maybe he was still wrapped up in Alfie, like he’d been when they left Rhys’s apartment this morning.
It had been really freaking sweet, and Mel had wanted to stay and wallow in it. Even if it ended up giving them a cavity.
“Your mind doesn’t seem to be here today.”
Mel glanced over at Frank, who frowned at them. “Is something wrong?” they asked. “I haven’t messed up any orders, have I?”
They’d opened this morning and had been working right through the day. They hadn’t taken a break yet, even though they expected their mom to call and have them come pick up the twins, no matter what she’d said the night before.
“That’s not the problem,” Frank said. “You’ve been smiling.”
“Why is that a problem? I thought we were supposed to greet the customers with some cheer.”
They glanced out at the coffee shop, not too crowded at the moment, and no one lined up wanting to order drinks. Not unusual, with it nearing lunch time.
“Smiling for customer service is one thing,” Frank said, jerking them out of their thoughts. “This dreamy look on your face is something else. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it, even when you’ve dated before.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Frank.” Mel reached for a rag to wipe the counter, that probably didn’t have crumbs on it. Nearly dropped it when Rhys stepped through the door, pushing his sunglasses to the top of his head.
Frank chuckled, taking the rag from them. “Go take your break, Mel. Enjoy your time with that fine-looking young man.”
Mel cast him a look. “You’re old enough to be his father.”
“Don’t remind me,” Frank said. “I can still appreciate a nice specimen.” He let out a low whistle. “Two of them, in fact.”
Mel elbowed him, but he laughed and shoved them toward the end of the counter. “Go. Take your break. Enjoy yourself. You deserve it.”
“I’ll make their drinks first.”
“I can make a couple drinks. Get outta here.”
Mel started to make Rhys’s drink despite Frank’s blustering. “The other one will be a medium Venezuelan. No extra shots. I don’t think he even put any sugar in it,” Mel said in a staged whisper and caught the brief roll of Alfie’s eyes before he flashed a smile at them.
Rhys leaned on the counter, eyeing Mel. “Is that the Fruity Blast?”
“Oh, I’ll give you a fruity blast, boy,” Frank murmured. “Although I know that isn’t something I have on my menu.”
Rhys’s eyes flicked to Frank then back to Mel and a grin stretched across his face. “If my arms weren’t full, I’d definitely take you on.”
Frank let out a deep laugh. “Oh, you are perfect. Go get them out of their head. Or maybe you’re the one who put them there.”
Rhys glanced at Mel again, looking unsure now. It still took them by surprise not to be faced with that cocky mask. Although they really hadn’t known each other that long. How long had it been since the first time he’d walked through the door? A month maybe. They were already falling deep for him.
They weren’t sure that was a good idea.
“No one put me anywhere, Frank. You’re full of it.” They finished making Rhys’s drink and pushed it over to him. “I’ll be right out,” they said then headed into the staff room.
They glanced at their phone and saw one missed call. From Denny. Shit. What if… No, that wasn’t Mel’s responsibility. Their mother made that clear the night before.
They still listened to the message. “Mom is the worst,” Denny said without any greeting. “She keeps yelling at us about every little thing. Sonia’s been crying in her room pretty much all morning. I don’t know what to do, Mel. Why can’t you come to get us?”
Mel rubbed their face then dialed their sibling’s phone. Their mother answered. “Your sister has lost her phone privileges for the day. At least. You should not be enabling her, Mel.”
Who knew returning a call was enabling? “This is their summer vacation, Mom. They should be able to enjoy it.”
“Not when Sonia starts out her day by screaming at me.”
“What did you say to her?”
“How did this become my fault? I am simply trying to raise some decent girls.”
“Except Denny is not a girl. They have told you that, and you refuse to see them.” Or Sonia. Mel wasn’t getting into that now. Their mother had always seen Sonia’s sensitivity as something needing to be fixed.
“I have things handled here, Melanie. I don’t need your help, such as it was in the first place.”
“That’s not fair.” Their mother had already ended the call. Mel slipped their phone into their pocket. They would have to figure out what to do about that later. Right now, they were letting their break pass. They didn’t know how long Rhys and Alfie would be able to stay.
They worked up a smile as they headed out into the dining area and over to the table where the two men sat. They didn’t miss the furrow between Rhys’s brows. “Is everything all right?” He reached out for their hand.
“Why wouldn’t it be?” Only because their mother thought the time they’d spent taking care of their siblings meant nothing. They had to find a way to fix it so their siblings didn’t pay the price, work to do at the center, and a new relationship to try to keep going.
They felt like at least one of those things would blow up in their face if they made even one wrong step.