Page 17 of A Love Like Pumpkin Spice (Wayward Hollow #1)

Henry

“Anyway, I’m thinking of getting pet chickens. I will call them Chick Jagger, Cluck Norris, and Lady MacBeth.”

“Hmm,” I answer, but truthfully, Kieran’s voice goes in one ear and out the other as my eyes trail after Nic and Lauren entering Caleb’s. She seems better today, now that color has returned to her face. Well-rested and a lot less crazed than the last time I saw her at the café.

I haven’t stopped thinking about our dinner a few days ago. I can’t.

About her laugh when Jensen ran against her window and left a mark on the glass. Or that smile on her face as we talked over her new kitten care and watched Pumpkin try to climb out of her box. That little flinch when Pumpkin screamed particularly loud.

The way she looked at me when she thought I wouldn’t notice. Those contemplative wrinkles scrunching on her forehead as she rolled over thoughts that I’m dying to know more about.

“I’m thinking of livestreaming their fights. One of them will get little boxing gloves, and I’ll give the other a gun and take bets on who will win. I bet it’s tough for a chicken to pull a trigger, but my money would still be on them.”

“Sure.” The door closes behind the two, and I shake my head as if waking up from a dream once they’re out of sight. “Wait, what?”

“Ah, there you are.” Kieran chuckles and even Jensen eyes me as though he’s trying to say, “Dude, you’re ridiculous.

Pull yourself together.” Kieran found me playing with Jensen in the town square and making the best of my lunch break.

Though I quickly got distracted from his chatter as soon as I saw Nic and Lauren walk by.

“You want to shoot chickens?”

“Nope. I wanted to see how far I could push this without you noticing while you gawked at the town’s celebs.” I quickly turn my head away from Caleb’s, heat creeping into my cheeks. Was I that obvious?

“On second thought, it does sound fun.” I shoot him a sharp glare and lift my eyebrow, making him backpedal quickly. “Getting chickens and giving them ridiculous names, not giving them guns. Don’t give me that look.”

“With you, I just never know.” I shake my head, half laughing as Kieran shoots me a knowing smile.

“The only thing I’m hearing is that you have a lot of faith in me,” he jokes and shoots me a wink.

“You know what? I’m suddenly craving coffee.

” Before I can stop him, he takes Jensen’s leash out of my hand.

And like the little traitor my dog is, he trots right alongside Kieran across the street, tail wagging and all.

“What are you—” I try to object, but he merely lifts a hand in a lazy wave and throws me a smug grin over his shoulder.

“We’re going to hang out with your crush,” he says in a singsong voice. I lean my head back, exhaling a deep sigh toward the sky before I follow them. That guy sure is keeping me on my toes.

Not that I’m complaining too much. I’m all for the quiet life, the expected. Maybe it’s not the worst thing that Kieran shakes those things up, with a grin on his lips and mischief on his mind.

By the time I catch up, they’ve already crossed the street and are walking right toward Caleb’s front door, held open by Mr. Peterson, who’s cradling his daily afternoon pastry and paper cup containing a black coffee with an extra espresso shot.

“Thanks, Bobby,” Kieran chirps, and I offer Mr. Peterson a smile as I pass.

“Aw, man, what a crowd!” Kieran groans dramatically, sweeping his arm across the room like we’ve entered Coachella during a Lady Gaga performance.

I lower my head, debating whether to pretend I don’t know him.

Then again, he’s taken my dog hostage. There’s no escape.

It’s not even crowded today. There are at least two free tables. But he continues with the same amount of drama, “Where should we sit?”

“Kieran,” I hiss in warning, but he’s already at the girls’ table, interrupting their conversation.

“Hey, ladies, mind if we join you?”

The two look up at Kieran with amused smiles as they scoot toward the window on their bench seats.

“Of course not,” Lauren says, already reaching for my dog with a wide grin.

“My boy Jensen is always welcome. How are you doing, you handsome, furry creature?” she coos, launching into conversation with him as he responds with a string of his signature whines.

It’s fair to say their adoration is mutual.

Kieran scoots onto the bench down next to Nic, shooting me a subtle wink.

“Hey,” I say much more awkwardly as I take a seat beside Lauren.

Nic offers a small smile, lowering her gaze to the table, but even that is enough to send the butterflies in my stomach on a mission.

From the corner of my eye, I watch Lauren try unsuccessfully to bite back a grin while still cooing at Jensen.

Kieran puts his chin in his palms, leaning his elbows on the table as his eyes keep darting between Nic and Lauren, his questions all but written over his face. He might be a lot of things —a good friend, handsome—but subtle certainly isn’t one of them.

“Just go for it, Kieran,” Lauren snickers, then lifts her gaze to meet his eyes, amusement written all over her face, a mischievous glimmer in her eyes. “But for every question you ask, I get to ask one about your job, too.”

“My jo—” Kieran’s eyes widen, and his mouth drops when he sees her knowing grin. He catches himself quickly, then leans over the table and hisses, “How the hell do you know? Did that witch from the antique store tell you? I swear she’s been looking at me funny when I see her in town.”

“Please,” Lauren scoffs and narrows her eyes at him. “We live in the same town with, like, one main street and five Wi-Fi signals. That and the fact that I have eyes, a fairly good memory, and Instagram. You’re not as hard to recognize as you might think.”

“Instagram?” Nic sounds confused, and I can only nod. What are they talking about?

“Come to think of it,” I say amusedly, crossing my arms in front of my chest. “What is your job? I assumed it was a work from home thing.”

“It has to be something that makes enough money for one of the lakeside mansions,” Nic thinks aloud, narrowing her eyes at Kieran, like she’s a detective who stumbled over a huge new lead.

“And since you’re suddenly awfully interested in the ceiling, I’m guessing it’s something you don’t want us to know. ”

“You were awfully interested in their jobs though,” I can’t help but point out. Oh, I’m enjoying this. Especially after the teasing I got about my crush on Nic. “Now I’m curious. Come on. Tell us.”

“Is it porn?” Nic turns in her seat, trying to read his face better. He’s biting the inside of his cheek, and avoids looking at her. “Do you sell your socks online ? Spit it out, Kieran.”

“Please don’t spit on my floors.” All four of us startle when Caleb suddenly appears next to our table, the usual grim expression on his face and two mugs in his hands. “Lattes. Here you go, ladies.”

“I wasn’t going to spit on your floor,” Kieran mumbles, crossing his arms in front of his chest with a pout. Caleb continues staring at him without any expression. “They want to know what my job is.”

“Well, I don’t care. As long as you pay and tip, spare me from more gossip,” Caleb says gruffly, letting out a sigh that from the sound of it must have been building since the moment he was born. Then he glances at Kieran and me expectantly. “Are you getting the usu—wait, what the hell is that?”

His eyes widen and the notepad nearly slips from his hands. A horror-stricken expression washes over his face as he stares at something behind me, as if it has personally offended his coffee-making skills.

“What?” Lauren asks with wide eyes, only the slight twitch at the corner of her mouth revealing that she knew she’d be getting a reaction out of him.

“Oh, this thing?” She lifts the full liter bottle of something orange.

Where did she even hide that? “This, you heathen, is pumpkin spice syrup. Says so right here.” She points at the label with a smile as if she doesn’t understand the problem.

“I can read, thank you very much.” He closes his eyes and forces himself to take a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose. “What is it doing in my café?”

“I brought it for my coffee,” she says sweetly and wiggles the bottle for emphasis. Oh, Lauren must have a dead wish.

Nic is hiding her giggles behind a hand while Kieran’s and my gazes bounce back and forth between them faster than the ball at Wimbledon.

“Nope. Away with it. I won’t tolerate this disgusting stuff in here.”

“ Don’t discriminate.” She opens the bottle and pours a healthy amount into her coffee, all while keeping eye contact with him.

“Your coffee is just too strong. I need some pumpkin spice sweetness to counteract. Relax, it’s not as if opening the bottle is suddenly going to make all of your coffees taste like pumpkin spice.

Although you should totally consider that. ”

“Oh God, that hurts to see.” Caleb sounds pained, and I’m fighting hard to not burst into laughter. I can see how much he’s suffering, and I have to say, it’s refreshing to see a break from his usual stoic poker face.

“Also, we have the mission to”—she shoots Nic a glance and both continue in unison—“romanticize the fuck out of fall.” Lauren continues on her own. “And drinking pumpkin spice lattes is on the top of that romanticizing list.”

Caleb stares at her with his mouth agape, before he closes his eyes resignedly.

“Anyways, Kieran’s job,” Nic gently redirects the conversation. Caleb wanders off, mumbling something about “damned city girls and their weakness against bitterness,” and Lauren wordlessly hands the bottle to Nic, who also pours a healthy amount into her coffee.

“Can we pretend that conversation never happened?” Kieran all but begs, but my interest is piqued. “Please?”

“Nope, Pandora’s box is open now. How bad can it be?” I wonder and tilt my head. “Are you selling pictures of your feet? No judgment if you do. If it gets you a house as expensive as the lakeside mansion, I might just pick it up as a side hustle.”

“You’re so close,” Lauren giggles and Kieran grinds his teeth, before the tension falls from his body at once, and he shakes his head in resignation.

“Oh, this is going to be good. I know it.” Nic takes a sip of her coffee and exhales a happy sigh.

“ I’m a content creator,” Kieran mumbles, shrinking into himself and clearly wishing the earth would open up and swallow him.

“That doesn’t sound too bad. Or is ‘content’ a code word for porn?”

“Almost. He’s a thirst trap,” Lauren clarifies with an eyebrow wiggle, and Kieran hides his beet-red face behind his hands. “Meaning, he dances to music half-naked. And I’ve got to hand it to you—it’s kind of hot and only a little cringe.”

Nic bursts into laughter, and it’s the sweetest sound I’ve heard all day. Which is not a hard thing to achieve when 90 percent of what I hear all day is my husky yapping.

“I loved the one where you wore that elephant slip and did the—”

“God, Lauren, please stop.” I can’t help but stare at Nic, feeling only a little creepy. But she’s gorgeous when her eyes light up with amusement and those adorable dimples in her cheeks appear. It makes me want to learn a bunch of stupid jokes by heart, just to make her laugh.

“What’s his handle?” Nic asks, but Kieran intercepts her before Lauren can hand Nic her phone.

“I’ll tell you later,” she whispers loudly with a wink, quickly schooling her face when Caleb is back at the table. He sets down Kieran’s and my usual drink with a loud clank and glare to go along with it.

“Want some pumpkin spice syrup?” Lauren can’t help but ask in a fake whisper, way too loudly to be intended as subtle.

“Don’t you dare.” Caleb shoots Kieran and me a hard look before he turns back around.

“You’re the first person in a long time to get him to show emotion,” I whisper, swallowing back a grin. “Even if it’s anger.”

“Good,” she whispers back and smirks. “I’m going to have a lot of fun.”

“ That poor guy,” I say with a chuckle, noting the dangerous grin on her face. Apparently, Caleb will have his hands full with this one.

“By the way,” Kieran quickly changes topics. And judging by the glare Caleb shoots our way, it’s the right decision. “What’s with you two and the antique store? Andrea told me about you helping out that afternoon, but a little bird told me you’re there pretty often.”

“Oh, we help out Amanda now,” Nic explains with a happy smile. “You know, setting up a website for her and all that stuff. And in exchange, she doesn’t curse us. Fair deal, isn’t it?”

“And I get a card reading!” Lauren adds, happily taking a sip of her coffee concoction. “I always wanted to get one!”

Nic shakes her head with a soft giggle, then glances at me. “It’s fun. I get to take a break from Pumpkin’s screaming and research old furniture.”

“Is she still that bad?” I ask her with a grin. Of all the cats I’ve encountered, she’s by far the most vocal one. It’s funny if I only see her for a few hours, but God, I couldn’t imagine hearing that twenty-four-seven, and I already have an extremely vocal dog.

“Only when she’s hungry or if the day ends with Y.” Nic rolls her eyes. “I’m hoping she grows out of it.”

“If not, let me know. Happy to help you find a strategy to calm her down,” I offer, ignoring the knowing eyebrow wiggle Lauren makes at Nic.