As the morning progressed Manny arrived for his shift and there was a steady flow of customers to keep them both busy. But not even her work could distract her from the glaring fact that she was going to be thirty-three in a few months, and she was still a virgin.
How had that happened?
And, more importantly, what was she going to do about it?
* * *
The bell dingedover the door as Josh stepped inside of Brewed Awakenings. This was his favorite part of the day. The twelve steps that it took to get to the counter that Audrey stood behind. He loved watching the smile spread wider on her beautiful face with each step he took closing the distance between them. Her smile still had the same effect on him that it had the first time he’d seen it. It was a balm to his soul, it soothed him.
This morning Audrey’s long dark locks were pulled up in a ponytail. As much as Josh loved her hair when it was down, he had to admit he was partial to when she wore it up. It showcased the smooth, slope of her neck. Every time they hugged; he was tempted to press a kiss to the soft skin just below her ear. He’d wanted so badly to run his fingers along the gentle curve of the back of her neck. There’d been so many times, so many moments when he’d almost crossed a line with Audrey. So far, he’d been able to resist the temptation, but he could feel his resolve slipping with each interaction that they shared.
“Morning,” she chirped brightly.
“Morning” He grinned.
“Two chocolate croissants and a tall black coffee?” she asked tilting her head adorably to the side.
His order never changed. He always got a chocolate croissant for himself and one for Nonna and a tall black coffee for himself. He nodded.
“It’ll be a minute for the croissants. I have a batch in the oven.” She motioned over her shoulder toward the back wall where the industrial oven was located.
“Sounds good.”
Josh stepped to the side as she turned and headed the direction of the oven when out of the corner of his eye, he saw Manny walking toward him. It was hard to miss the guy. He was a retired professional sumo wrestler who stood six foot two and weighed three hundred pounds plus. When Manny started working at the coffee shop, Josh had to admit it had seemed like an odd pairing, but it only took one visit in the shop to see Manny’s passion for java. The man lived and breathed coffee beans.
As a native of Hope Falls, it fascinated Josh how people like Manny ended up in the small town. He was of Samoan descent and had been born and raised in Hawaii, which was arguably one of the most beautiful places in the world to live. He’d spent over a decade and a half traveling to countless countries competing in sumo and for some reason he’d chosen to settle in Hope Falls.
Josh knew that a lot of people thought the town was magic. Audrey’s sister even liked to say that there was something called the ‘Hope Falls Effect.’ Josh had never known exactly what she was talking about when she said it, but he knew he sure as hell had never experienced it.
“Nice shirt,” Josh commented on the floral button up shirt with the Brewed Awakenings logo on the right chest pocket Manny was wearing.
“Oh, you like?” Manny looked down. “It’s new, it’s an Aloha shirt.”
“Looks good.”
Josh loved that Audrey and Viv let their employees express themselves by choosing their own uniforms as long as they put the Brewed Awakenings logo on it. Their other part-time employee Carly, who had a more punk rock style, had put the logo on shirts with mesh arms and faux leather jackets.
“Hey brudda, you have to try this.” Manny handed him an espresso glass filled about halfway to the top. “I just brewed it with beans I got in this morning from Zimbabwe.”
Manny was a master mixologist, except he didn’t specialize in alcohol, he dealt in coffee beans. He was always so excited to share his creations with Josh. And while Josh appreciated the enthusiasm and his passion for his craft, Manny’s talent was wasted on him. He was not what you would call a coffee connoisseur. Josh wished that he had a more discerning palette, unfortunately he didn’t.
Josh brought the glass to his mouth and was about to throw it back when Manny stopped him.
“No, brudda, you gotta smell it first.” He mimed bringing the glass up to his nose and inhaling.
Josh mirrored Manny’s gesture and then drank the java in one gulp.
“Mmm.” Josh grinned as he set the glass down. “That’s good.”
Manny’s expression was expectant. “Do you taste the notes of berry and hazelnut?”
Nope. He just tasted sweet coffee.
Josh nodded. “Yeah, man. Really good.”
Manny smiled widely, clearly proud of his creation.
“Ahh, brudda.” Manny gripped Josh’s shoulder, easily able to reach him across the counter. “You make my day.”