Page 99 of Cream & Sugar

I drag my teeth over my bottom lip. “I could give you a private audition, if you like. Just me and my guitar. Clothing mysteriously absent, of course.”

“Tempting.” Shaun hands me back my phone and starts to pace up and down, stroking his beard. After a couple of laps, he lets out a small sigh. “But I think I’d rather hold off for your debut.”

“My debut?”

Shaun stops pacing and leans against the counter. “Live next Saturday at Cream & Sugar café: Freddie Young, the singing barista.” He gesticulates with one arm like he’s giving a pitch on Dragon’s Den. “It does have a nice ring to it.”

No way! He’s going to let me play?

“Next Saturday? I mean, yeah totally! Although I have to say, I don’t love the ‘singing barista’ bit.”

Shaun gives me a crafty look. “Fair enough. Do you have your own mic and stuff?”

I nod, vigorously. “Yup! Mic, amp, pedals, everything.” Safely stashed in the garage where the burglars couldn’t reach. “Are you sure you want this, Shaun? You want your perfect little café full of me and my crooning?”

“Once a week. Saturday afternoons. We can charge a fiver entry, or free if they buy something. Any tips you make are all yours. What do you think?”

“I think you’re the best boyfriend ever!”

“Get me that printed on a mug or it means nothing.” He chuckles, then looks at me all serious. “Look, I know you’d rather be playing music than making coffee. It’d be a bit shitty of me to deprive you of the chance. And clearly the crowd loves you.”

Wow. Could this man be any more amazing? I leap forward and give him a bear hug, him being the bear, of course.

“Thanks, Shaun. You’re awesome.”

He hugs me back, lifting me so the tips of my shoes are skimming the floorboards.

“You’re awesome too, Freddie.”

“I know.” And then, because I can now, I give his butt a playful squeeze.

By closing time, I’ve emailed off applications for two other jobs: a Christmas temp stacking shelves in a warehouse and a porter at a local hotel. Both night shift, urgent start, no experience required.Guess I can say goodbye to sleep if I get one of them, although with Shaun and I making it official, I wasn’t planning on getting much anyway. At least it’s only temporary, and if it means knocking a year off my repayment plan, then so be it.

There’s a clunk from behind the counter as Shaun removes the cash drawer from the till.

“What are you going to do tonight?” he asks, counting up coins. “You’re welcome to stay at mine again, but you’ll need to go home eventually, you know. Might want to strike while the iron’s hot.”

“Aye, you’re probably right,” I admit. “I should just speak to—Rory?”

At the window, fogging up the glass as he stares inside like an angry bull, is my brother. What the hell is he doing here?

I stand up and he spots me, his nostrils flaring as he points and mouths the word “you!”

He turns heel and marches for the door. Fight or flight kicks in, only I can’t fight for shit and there’s nowhere to run. This place could really do with an escape hatch.

“Yeah,” says Shaun who’s too fixated on cashing up to notice we’re about to have an after-hours visitor. “I’m sure he’ll understand—”

The café door bursts open as Rory bulldozes his way inside.

“Freddie!” he booms.

There’s a clatter of coins as Shaun jumps a mile at the sudden intrusion.

“Excuse me, we’re—oh, it’s you.” Recognising him, Shaun looks between me and my brother like a referee at a boxing match. “Can I help you with something?”

Rory ignores him and clicks his fingers at me. “You. In the car. Now.”

Crap, what have I done now? I haven’t even been home for the last forty-something hours! Rory’s showing all the signs of a fullreactor meltdown. Better get him out of here so Shaun doesn’t have to witness him going nuclear.