Shameful by May Dawson
2
Legacy
A few hours later,I inhaled a strange, artificial scent that overwhelmed the welcome bitterness of the beans. I jerked my head up from the espresso machine, but my hands kept moving, mechanically finishing the Americano.
A tall, handsome man with blond hair swept back from his high forehead let the door bang shut behind him, the bells jangling. He smiled so wide it looked like it hurt, and he crossed the café with slow, predatorial strides. I’d seen hipsters stalk some cold brew before, but this guy gave me a badvibe.
I snapped the lid on the cup I’d just finished, then set it on the counter. “There yougo!”
“Thanks, Legacy.” Cadence, a girl from my English class, took her cup and headed over to her study group.
Blondie pressed against the countertop. His gray herringbone vest, dark fedora, and walking stick were certainly a series of choices.
I smiled sunnily. “Can I helpyou?”
“I hope you can, Legacy,” hesaid.
Oh great. He’d heard myname.
My nose tickled, and I buried my face in my elbow to sneeze. Repeatedly.
Everyone loves an enthusiastically sneezing barista.
It was this guy’s fault, though. His cologne reeked like a roadkill skunk on an August afternoon.
“What do you recommend?”
I recommend you get the hell out of my face.I didn’t know why I found this guy so off-putting, but I always listened to my instincts…and they were screaming a warning.
“You can never go wrong with iced coffee,” I used my cheerful customer service voice, which had nothing to do with my actual personality. Everyone in customer service is an underpaid actor.
“Sure.” He dug out his wallet and handed over some dollars without ever breaking eye contact, staring at me like a living mannequin. His grin never faded, giving me every opportunity to appreciate his bright white veneers.
When I turned my back to him, I found myself hustling as if he might just bound over the countertop, and I needed to put some space between us. Tania was working on a catering order, smearing mayo across one slice of wheat bread after another like a dairy-product-dispensing machine.
It wasn’t as if I were alone. I scooped ice into a cup and set his iced coffee on the bar a minute later. He hadn’t taken a table and he wasn’t lurking in front of the bakery case like most people did when they waited.
Then the bells teased against each other again.
Lucas stood framed in the doorway for a moment, his long frame stretched as he held the door open. He bobbed his blond head respectfully at the two elderly women who shuffled past him, and suddenly my day was all spring sunshine again.
The strange guy had probably just gone to the bathroom, even though it felt like the brightly lit room had swallowed him. Hopefully, he’d get his drink and leave.
I took the older ladies’ order, trying not to lose my focus. The blue-eyed, spread-shouldered man with his hands in his pockets behind them tended to draw my attention.
When it was his turn, Lucas leaned on the countertop with his usual easy confidence. “Hey, Legacy.”
“Hey.” I wiped my hands on my apron. “What brings you inhere?”
“My addiction to caffeine.” Lucas tilted his head to one side, bright blue eyes intent on mine. “And my favorite waitress.”
“I’m not a waitress.”
“I was talking about Tania.”
She snorted from theback.
Lucas and I traded a glance full of shared amusement, his gaze crinkling at the corners in a way that always made my heart flip-flop. “I knew she was eavesdropping.”
“She alwaysis.”
“You get off soon, don’tyou?”
I offered him a smile sweeter than a frappucino. “I’m not telling you my schedule, stalker.”
“I’ll drive you home.” Lucas sounded so sure of himself, as if I was alreadyhis.
All the other girls in the pack—save Tania--had a crush on him. Any of them would’ve said I was lucky, but I just leaned on the counter, pretending to debate whether or not I was interested. He smirked back at me as if he alreadyknew.
“Okay,” I admitted. “I guess I’d accept aride.”
Lucas claimed everything he wanted as a statement of fact. It annoyed Tania. It intriguedme.
Maybe he was trying to claim menext.
I wouldn’t hate if hedid.