Who's the Daddy (Crescent Cove 3)

I climbed on the rich toffee-colored stool. “Are we talking one to ten?”

She shrugged. “That works.”

“Probably a three. I’m naturally a little high-strung.”

“That doesn’t shock me, Red.” She dumped beans into a grinder and started fiddling with the pots lined up in front of her. ?

?I make a proprietary blend, but have to wait for all my product to get here. I’m missing a truck. It’s somewhere in Rochester.”

“Oh, then it’s coming today?”

“It better.”

I frowned. “It’s Sunday.”

She grunted as she locked a large handled cup into place. “I’m aware.” The machine hummed to life. Instead of the super loud hiss I was used to, the machine seemed to hum and vibrate.

When the espresso was extracted, my mouth literally watered. I couldn’t remember the last time that had happened with anything other than the chocolate fountain at my cousin Zelda’s wedding. The espresso was sharp and heavy, and almost warmed the air with the flavor and scent.

Macy steamed some milk and fiddled with something else then poured the chocolate and little metal cup of espresso together into a mug. Next came the milk with a flourish of foam. A pretty leaf appeared with a deft flick of her wrist before she pushed the mug in front of me.

“It’s not overly hot. I don’t like to scald my milk or the customers.”

I looked down at the huge mug. It wasn’t that deep, but nearly the size of a bowl. I cupped my hands around it and groaned. “That smells amazing.”

“It tastes even better.”

“I believe you.” I took a sip and literally groaned. Pretty much as I had when Dare had done that thing with his tongue.

Macy used a rag to wipe down the spigot used to steam the milk. “I know my espresso is amazing, but not usually that good.”

“What?” I swallowed another sip. “Oh, it really is. I’ll need one of these every morning of my life.”

Macy laughed. “Coffee doesn’t make me blush.”

“Oh.” My flush deepened. That explained why I felt as if my temperature had risen a bazillion degrees. “Not sure anything has made me groan like that beyond one thing.” I cleared my throat. “That’s all.”

“Well, I do call it the Chocolate Orgasm, so that’s fitting.”

The foam went down wrong and I coughed.

Macy smirked. “We like crazy names. Welcome to Brewed Awakening, Kels.”

“What a great name.”

“I thought so. The sign is coming this week.”

“When do you open?”

“Halloween. My favorite holiday.”

“That’s awesome. We needed a decent coffee shop. You can get a good cup at the diner, but it’s nothing fancy. Probably why I preferred Diet Coke.”

“Blaspheme.”

I laughed.

“Hey buddy, you mind not blocking my freaking bay?” Angry male reporting for duty.