Everly
An electronic bellchimes as I enter through the opened double doors. Cinnamon and coffee assault my nose, and it smells so good I want to lick the air. A warm breeze nudges me forward and kicks the door closed behind me. Autumn in Colorado is host to some of the most beautiful weather in the world. The air is crisp, with no hint of snow just yet, only the promise of cool mornings and warm sunshine throughout the day. It’s one of the many things that makes me love where I live so much.
Brews & Books is the newest shop downtown and the only coffee shop in the area that serves more than black coffee. It’s gotten some major tourist chatter for its unique vibe. An entire location dedicated to coffee, beer, and romance books. My marketing team also swears by their pastries and their version of a black eye coffee, called a Hungry Eye, which is the typical two shots of espresso in a regular coffee, but they add something sweet with cinnamon to their version. I look around the space as I step into a line that’s about a handful of people deep. Soft jazzy piano and saxophone music is playing in the background and some laughter fills the space from the banks of seats along the front window.
I spot G in an oversized fluffy swivel chair and wave to grab her attention. She points at her drink and a giant pastry on the short table in front of her. Thank goodness she didn’t opt for avocado toast or something healthy. My hangover needs some grease and sugar. Anything that looks or presumes to be healthy has no place in my life right now. There’s something so comforting when your bestie can support your choices subconsciously and that giant pastry is doing just that.
The short line lets me take in the surroundings. What a small slice of heaven; it’s like a warm, cozy hug, and I want to snuggle up to it. All of the seating is mismatched, but it works here. Oversized and comfortable, as if the goal is for everyone to eat, read, and nap. The front walls that aren’t windows have a modern feel with beautiful black and white photography of men and women, some with just men, and two in the front with one woman and three men holding each other in various ways. It’s incredibly sexy.
There are short and tall bookcases decorating the unused space, each distinguished by romance tropes. I lean around the corner and see the back of the room lined with more lounging chairs and walls chock full of books. The hissing of the milk steamer brings my attention back to the menu boards above the counter as I step forward.
Sweet-seeming ocean-blue eyes greet me, along with an awkward stammer. “Ah, hey! Hi there. Um, what can I get started for you?”
“Hi. I think I’ll try your Hungry Eye coffee. And, I need something to eat for now, but then I’m also going to take home some Kouign-amann pastries. It looks like you have only about four left, so I’ll just take those.”
“Sure. How about the bacon and brie croissant for your right-now food?” he suggests with a full-watt smile that shows off well taken care of teeth and a very cute, dimpled chin. This kid is still in high school and is already trying to flirt his way into a sale.
“I think that sounds great”—I look at his name tag—“Benny. Are you at Strutt’s Central, or are you already out of school?”
“Central. I’m set to graduate this winter. We just moved here, so I decided I’ll start my final classes at the end of next month and then graduate in the spring with everyone else.”
He moves around the coffee bar quickly, pulling the pastries out of the cases and boxing them up for me to-go, then warms up my savory croissant and finishes up my drink.
“Well, I love the vibe already. Oh! I know your landlord too, so I’m not surprised.” I’m not sure why I offer that information, but everyone knows everyone’s business in this town, and I’ve been here long enough now to follow suit, I suppose. “Nice to meet you, Benny. And welcome to Strutt’s Peak. I’m sure I'll see you here again.”
He just nods and smiles back. I probably scared the kid with so many compliments. There’s nothing like a teenager to remind you how uncool you can be when you’re beyond a decade older than they are.
I make my way over to G, who’s twirling a piece of her long platinum blonde hair and smiling. “Seriously, how hot is that kid?” she whisper-shouts.
I place my drink and box of pastries down and wave my hand at her. “He’s in high school. That’s a decent age gap, you damn cougar.”
She shrugs. “I didn’t say I was going to take his virginity,” she says while looking at him over my shoulder.
“Okay, no way is that kid a virgin, but I wasn’t going to lure him into my tattoo shop and fuck him. I was just appreciating an insanely adorable face.”
“He’s working that charm, for sure. How cute is this place?” I sip on my drink, my eyes closing in appreciation. “Oh my gosh, yup. This is the most delicious take on a black eye coffee I think I’ve ever had.”
“I bet his dad is ridiculously hot,” G spouts from behind her oversized mug. “What? I said it, but you thought it. It’s the same thing. Okay, enough about the eye candy, and tell me what happened this morning.”
I start from when we secured the approval of the entire board of directors for our expansion plans for the family business, and then to the celebratory dinner. From there, I keep the details brief about the too much tequila with Law, then the texts, and the eventual booty call with Jin sometime later.
She’s quiet for a few seconds too long before I hear a huff. “You’ve been telling me that this ‘relationship’—she uses air quotes to prove a point—“you have with Jin is just friends sleeping together to fill a void. Is that true, or do you have feelings for the guy? I mean, he’s nice to look at…not my flute of champagne, but-”
I cut her off. “No! Not the kind of feelings you mean. I’m not in love with Jin. I’ve never been in love with him. He’s never been in love with me either. We’re honest with each other and we hook up when it’s necessary. The rest of the time, we’re friends, colleagues.”
“Whether you want to admit it or not, you are both using each other as a parachute, and I don’t understand why. You have told me,repeatedly, that you, and I quote, ‘Sometimes get bored in bed.’”
“True. But sometimes a girl just needs some, even if it’s mediocre. And I’m not the type of person to go home with people I don’t know. That leaves a lot of blank space, ya know?”
She takes a bite of her pastry while shaking her head back-and-forth at me, “Agree to disagree on that one, Ev. Buy a better vibrator and read some reverse harem or kink romance. Don’t keep calling someone to be dicked if you already know it’s not gonna do it for you.”
I laugh and take a deep breath. I know she’s right.
“Forget about Jin. Move your life forward. Have a few great orgasms with a sexy stranger. Nobody is watching. Do you, boo. But stop wasting your time with repeat placeholders. Jin is a good guy, but that good guy can’t satisfy you. And that’s just as important, if not more, than good guy status.” She laughs at her own joke. “Let me talk this out for a second…the guys you’ve gone after for as long as I’ve known you are always friends first.”
“That’s true.”
She ticks off the rest of her fingers. “They get bored, you get bored, sometimes you want more, sometimes not. Oh shit, I remember the guy from your gym who just moved without telling you. It was the greatest ghosting of all time! And you didn’t even get upset about it.” I know what she’s getting at here, but I let her continue. She’s on a roll. “Ev, my darling sister from another silver fox mister, it's time to sayit's really not you, it’s me.And mean it.”