After we order our coffees, I steer us outside and around the back. There’s a park that butts up to the coffee shop, complete with a walking trail, picnic tables, and a pond filled with ducks.
We walk along the perimeter, drinking our coffees in silence until we get to the area with the picnic tables. Sierra hops up on one, and I join her, leaning against the side of it.
Her phone goes off, and she pulls it out. Whoever it is makes her sigh in frustration. She types rapidly for several seconds before she clicks her phone back off and shoves it back into her pocket.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah.” She sighs. “Work… You were right. I hate my job… Actually, I don’t hate my job. I love it. I love everything about the restaurant business: the menus, the ambiance, the guests. I just don’t love the owner. When I first started working there, her father owned the place. He was so passionate and dedicated to making sure it was run right. Then he died of a heart attack, and his daughter took it over. She knows nothing about the restaurant or hospitality industry. She makes horrible choices and refuses to listen to me. The place is going under, and it breaks my heart to see it happen. I wouldn’t be surprised if the restaurant closes by the end of this year. And then I’ll be out of a job and looking for somewhere else to work… having to start all over again.”
“What is it you want to do?”
“My dream is to own my own restaurant.”
“Have you thought about buying it from her?”
Sierra laughs humorlessly. “With what money?”
“Take out a loan.”
She takes a sip of her coffee and stares out at the pond. “My sister is hoping to get into a master’s program, and her financial aid will end. She’ll have to take out loans, so I’ll be the only one bringing in any money. Even if I could somehow get approved for a loan, now isn’t the time to be taking risks.”
Her eyes shine with unshed tears, and my heart feels as though it cracks, but I don’t say anything because I know this is hard for her. She most likely didn’t mean to let all that out, and she’s trying to wish away those tears because she thinks they make her appear weak even though she is quite the opposite.
As I suspected, a second later, she blinks several times and takes in a deep breath. “It’s for the best,” she says with false confidence. “Being a restaurant owner is a lot of responsibility, and most fail. I would probably fai—”
I turn to face her, stepping between her legs, and cover her lips with my fingers. “Do not finish that sentence. You would not fail. Maybe now isn’t the right time, but one day it will be, and you will get that loan and buy or open your own restaurant, and it will be a success because I can see your drive when you’re working and hear your passion when you talk about it. You want it, and you will stop at nothing until it’s a success.”
Sierra releases a harsh breath, and the warmth tickles my flesh. She darts her tongue out to lick her lips, and her tongue grazes the pads of my fingers. When she realizes what she’s done, her eyes go wide.
I drop my hand but remain close to her.
“Go out with me.” I cup her face in my palm. “Please.”
Chapter Three
Kolton
“Who are you all dressed up for?” Keegan jibes when I walk out of my room dressed in jeans, a white collared shirt, and a pair of brown leather Sperry boat shoes.
“Sierra agreed to go on a date with me.”
“Nice,” Keegan says, waggling his brows up and down like an immature high schooler. “Want me to make myself scarce tonight so you have the place to yourself?”
“I don’t think that’ll be necessary. She’s making me meet her at the restaurant instead of picking her up. I think it’s her way of taking things slow.” Even though I had driven us to the coffee shop and then driven her home, she insisted she meet me at the restaurant. She said if the date doesn’t go well, she doesn’t want it to be awkward. It was the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard—and I knew she was just saying it because she’s nervous—but I agreed. Honestly, I would agree to almost anything to get her to give me a chance.
My phone dings with a text, and I pull it out to see who it is. The second I see Sierra’s name, my heart drops. Fuck, she’s probably getting cold feet and is going to cancel… It took some serious convincing on my part to get her to go to dinner and even more convincing to get her to give me her number. The woman definitely isn’t making it easy on me, but I’m up for the challenge. What’s that cliché as fuck saying? Nothing worth having comes easy? She’s worth having, so if it takes some hard work, then so be it.