She avoided his gaze and rose from the chair to walk toward him with her empty cup. “Too much caffeine trying to recover from the late night. And I keep forgetting you can walk through the opening in the wall now and sneak up on me.”
They were connecting the bakery and Lift Your Spirit to share café tables as well as cross-promote to customers. Until the glass doors were installed between the two shops, all Asher had to do was slip around the plastic sheeting over the huge-ass hole in the wall.
He shrugged and grinned as he glanced behind her. “You cleaned the desk again. What are you looking for this time?”
“Nothing, smartass. I am turning a corner and keeping up with things.”
“Yeah, right,” he scoffed.
She brushed past him. “I am.” From this moment forward. “What’s up, anyway? How’s everything going next door?”
“Good. Mae’s crew is packing up for the day, and Honor and I are heading out, too. We’re going to grab drinks at Nick’s and thought we’d see if you wanted to meet us for dinner after you close. Mae and Ian are coming, too.”
Roxanna glanced toward the front of her shop, half-expecting Loyal to walk in at any moment. She should go. It would serve him right if she wasn’t here when he showed up—then he’d know she was serious that nothing more could happen between them. But part of her didn’t want to be serious. Part of her wanted him to play with all her numbers tonight. Again and again.
Her cheeks burned hot at the wanton thought. “Thanks, but I have a lot to get done here.”
Asher joined her over by the tidy register counter and crossed his arms. “Like what?”
“I’m switching out some inventory,” she said vaguely.
“You did that yesterday.”
“I have more to do.” She had a few items she could switch around to make it so she wasn’t lying. “And I’m going to work on my books again.”
“You should’ve hired someone to do those by now.”
She shrugged. His scrutinizing gaze made her nerves twitch.
“You’re avoiding me because of Loyal,” he accused.
Her stomach pitched as she shot him a frown. “I am not.”
“Are, too. Last night you barely even talked to me.”
She hadn’t talked to him because Loyal had been hanging out with him much of the time. But she’d been avoiding his brother, not him. “It was a busy night. You guys all had a lot going on.”
The shake of his head said he didn’t buy it. “Listen, I know it’s been hard adding Honor into the mix, and I—”
“I love Honor,” she insisted. “I am nothing but thrilled you found your special someone.”
“I know, and she loves you now, too.” They shared a brief grin over that. “The thing is, I know it’s been different, and I just don’t want what happened between you and Loyal to make things weird. You mean too much to me for him to get in the way of our friendship.”
Heaviness settled in her chest. She did her best to hold her smile as she reached out to grasp his forearm. “Same here, Ace. But we’re good. I promise.”
And for her to keep that promise, she had to get over Loyal and move on.
“Okay.” Asher pulled her in for a quick, tight hug, then backed toward the plastic sheeting covering the opening between the two shops. “You’re sure about tonight?”
“I’m sure.” She forced a smile. “Lots to do.”
“You know where we are if you change your mind.”
“Have fun.”
Honor called goodbye through the opening as they left, and everything got quiet once they locked up. She filled her last hour cleaning the coffee area, vacuuming the carpet, and switching a few things in her front displays to keep from lying to her best friend. She might have also been keeping an eye out for Loyal.
Six o’clock came.