Sweet Nothings Read online

  Sweet Nothings

  Tory Baker

  Contents

  1. Kinsley

  2. Luke

  3. Kinsley

  4. Luke

  5. Kinsley

  6. Luke

  7. Kinsley

  8. Luke

  9. Kinsley

  10. Luke

  11. Kinsley

  12. Luke

  13. Kinsley

  14. Luke

  15. Kinsley

  16. Luke

  17. Kinsley

  18. Luke

  19. Kinsley

  20. Luke

  21. Kinsley

  22. Luke

  23. Kinsley

  24. Luke

  25. Kinsley

  26. Luke

  27. Kinsley

  28. Luke

  29. Kinsley

  30. Luke

  31. Kinsley

  32. Luke

  33. Kinsley

  Epilogue

  Epilogue

  Author Links

  Also by Tory Baker

  To my friends, readers, bloggers, and authors who have helped me along the way.

  Thank you.

  1

  Kinsley

  Opening the shop at such an early time in the morning isn’t one of my favorite things to do, but as the owner, I pick up where I’m needed. Although, there is one perk to opening, the tall, dark drink of water that comes in, he definitely helps. Too bad he’s always staring at his phone or grumbling to someone on the other end to notice me.

  For the past two weeks, I’ve watched him come in. He wears a different suit every day, the kind you don’t get from the neighborhood men’s warehouse, no you can tell his suits are tailor made just for him. They’re all in varying shades of black, gray, and blue. Some have pin stripes, some are more than a three-piece-suit, but every single one of them mold to his tall and muscular frame like a second skin.

  He doesn’t just affect me either, my other baristas stop what they’re doing when he steps foot into Topped Off. I’m pretty sure we all have to wipe the drool off of our faces when he leaves. His mocha colored hair, slicked back as if he just got out of the shower, dressed, and came here for his signature black coffee. I’m not sure why he buys a three dollar cup of black coffee when he can make a whole pot at home for the same price, but hey, it’s extra money in the bank for me.

  I go about turning on the lights, fixing books on the shelves, and then get the coffee bar ready. This place was my dream, ever since I was a little girl. I’d sneak sips of my father’s coffee, when my mom wasn’t looking, add in my love for reading I got from my mother. A dream formed, a coffee shop inside a bookstore. It’s situated in our small downtown square, it’s on the smaller side, but it works great for our customers.

  Once everything is ready, I flip our sign on to open, and unlock the door.

  I’m making a caramel iced coffee for myself while I await the arrival of the early birds that like to get in here at seven o’clock in the morning.

  The display case is even stocked with pastries from our local bakery, Sloane and I help one another out. Kind of like bouncing off one another, I carry a few of her pastries, and place a business card in the cute teal bags when they order their items to go, along with a cute sign we have in the display case.

  Croissant and coffee in hand, I scroll through my Instagram feed. I interact with some of the comments on our latest posts before uploading a new one with my coffee and croissant, making sure I tag Crumbs, Sloane’s bakery.

  By the time I’m done eating, customers are starting to show up, well, at least our usual customers are.

  “Hey Stan, how are you today?” I ask one of our older gentlemen customers. He lost his wife, Stella, a year ago and has found his way here every morning.

  “Doing good, Kinsley. How are you, pumpkin?” He knows my obsession with pumpkin when the Fall weather comes around.

  “It’s Friday, you know what that means come tonight,” I say with a wink.

  “Pizza and wine again?” he questions. He reminds me a lot of my father, Stan genuinely cares about me.

  “Absolutely, it’s a tradition,” I tell him as I hand him his coffee and blueberry muffin.

  “One day, you’ll have someone to share that tradition with, and even after fifty years of celebrating that tradition, it’ll still put a smile on your face.” Stan hands me the money for his order.

  “I look forward to that day,” handing him the change, he puts it in the tip jar like he always does.

  “Have a good day Kins, I’ll see you later,” he turns around for a table to eat his muffin, drink his coffee, and read the comics in the newspaper.

  2

  Luke

  I’m thirty-seven years old, tired to the bone, and stressed, more than not. My phone rings non-stop with either calls, emails, or even texts. My one saving grace is my coffee, strong and black. Some even say I like my coffee like my soul, dark and black. I laughed it off, really my soul isn’t black, but my bank accounts are all in the black. And, that’s more than most can say for themselves. in the corporate field.

  I started at the very bottom, I even did pro bono work, it fucking sucked, but I did it. I worked my ass off, now I can choose what clients I want to take, when I want to take them.

  Walking into the downtown coffee shop before getting to the office is my saving grace. Have you ever had a first-year intern make coffee? It’s pure sludge, it’s disgusting, and I refuse to even use the coffee pot.

  I’m an asshole on the best of days, I know this. It’s part of the reason my colleagues think my soul is black. They can say what they want though, they’ll figure it out eventually.

  The smell of coffee and books assault my senses. If I had more time, I’d plant my ass in one of the seats, drink my coffee, and people watch.

  “Good morning, what can I get for you today?” Her voice is smooth like a melody, when I look up from this God forsaken phone that never stops buzzing. Her gaze is on mine, her eyes are grey in color, but what really sucks me in is the depth that you see behind them.

  Her smile is soft and sweet, her hair the color of honey, hanging loosely down past her shoulders. I know her name, I’ve heard the customers coming and going singing her praises. I’ve even rolled it around on my tongue, shamefully while fisting my cock in the shower, and once or twice in my office. Her looks are sultry, she’s dangerous, yet I haven’t even touched her, let alone interact with her very much. But, from what I can see, her body is one that calls to me like a siren’s song. She’s smaller than me, with breasts that are bigger than the palms of my hands, always bouncing when she walks. There’s nothing fake about her body, and what a figure it is. Hips I want grasped in my hands as she rides me, maybe even in a reverse style so I can watch her ass move with every downward stroke. Yeah, it’s about time I finally make my move on her.

  “Large, black coffee, please,” I order. My phone pinging tears me away from her gaze, “shit,” I mumble out, just what I need. Looks like another problem client is tearing into my secretary.

  Handing her the money as I’m dialing, Michelle, “What could he possibly want now, he doesn’t even have an appointment until next month,” I say into the phone before she can even say hello.

  She hands me the change back from my coffee, it’s only a couple of dollars, I put the rest in the tip jar, move over, and wait for the barista to hand me my coffee.

  I listen to Michelle ramble on, “I’ll be there in ten minutes, have him wait in the conference room,” I tell her and then hang up.

  Looking back up, I see my coffee is ready and sitting on the counter, “Thank you,” I say to her.

  “Kinsley, my name is Kinsley,” she mumbles, I’m sure she thinks I’m an arrogant jer
k.

  I turn around, stating, “Luke, I’ll see you around, Kinsley.” With one last look, I turn around and walk out the door.

  3

  Kinsley

  After Luke introduced himself to me, my heart is still trying to slow down from its rapid succession inside my chest.

  Cleaning the counter, trying to come to the realization that Luke may actually have a personality and isn’t just glued to his phone. I mean, everyone has told me he’s the most cut-throat attorney around, so I figured this was his normal character. Apparently, I was wrong. Every time he’s been in here though, he’s only ordered his coffee, grunted, and then left.

  Returning to work, I wipe down the counters and situate the extra sugars and creamers that we leave out.

  When I told my parents my dreams in high school about wanting to open my own business, they were in my corner, from the get-go.

  They sat me down, while we talked about the pros and cons. The good outweighed the bad in my eyes. At the age of sixteen, I got a job as a barista and started taking college credit courses while still maintaining my high school career. Them being there as I received my diploma was the highlight of my life, so when they handed over an account, they were saving for college but that I could use to start up a business instead. I was ecstatic.

  My parents supported me in every way imaginable. Every time I felt like a failure, they were there to lift me up.

  They were there for me through everything, even the opening of Topped Off, but shortly after they sold their house, bought an RV and are busy traveling all over the nation. I couldn’t be happier for them.

  I’m knocked out of my stroll down memory lane when Kate walks into the shop.

  “I’m so sorry I’m late, my car wouldn’t start, my boyfriend was missing in action, per his usual,” she’s flustered, but Kate has nothing to worry about. All I ask of my employees is to shoot me a quick text or give me a phone call if something delays them. All of them are great, we haven’t had a problem with this group in well over a year.

  “No worries, you texted. Are you going to be able to get it taken care of?” I ask her, knowing full well her live-in boyfriend is a worthless piece of crap. A few times he’s taken her car, leaving her stranded with no way to get to and from work. Kate just keeps chugging along, she somehow still managed to get to work with minutes to spare, even if it meant walking the two miles here. She did it. “Oh, yeah. I called my dad this time. He’s coming to take a look at it. Though, this is my last straw. When I get home, he’s gone, this is the final straw. I’ve really tried, Kins, I swear I have, especially when he’s just sits on his rump while I work my tail off.” Kate says while she’s tying her apron on.

  I see the weariness in her eyes, I’m concerned when telling her, “If you need me there to help, let me know. We can go after work.” I can see her emotions are starting to come out, I do the one thing I know she needs, a hug.

  “Thank you, Kins, I’ll let you know, my dad said he’d be there with my car, so I think I’ll do it then,” Kate dries the tears that have gathered at the corner of her eyes.

  “I’m glad your dad is there for you, but know I’m here for too,” I say, and then we both get back to work.

  After a couple of more hours helping with the morning crowd, I excuse myself to the back office, to do the part I loathe doing, but it’s a necessary evil.

  4

  Luke

  I get into my office, only having a few sips of my coffee. My pace is fast, and I don’t like to leave a client waiting, even when they are a pain in my ass.

  “Good morning, Michelle. Give me two minutes and I’ll meet Nathaniel in the conference room,” I state.

  “Good morning Mr. Bennett, I’ll let him know,” Michelle has been with me since the beginning, I give her a nod in acknowledgement.

  “It’s going to be one of those days, I can feel it,” I murmur into my quiet office. I walk around to my desk, throw my phone on it, start up my computer, and take a healthy swig of my coffee, knowing if I don’t finish it now, it’ll be cold by the time I’m done with Nathaniel. With that kind of name, you know he’s going to be a needy little shit.

  When my coffee is finally finished, I go to throw my cup away in the trashcan placed beside my desk, but I’m stopped in my tracks. There’ in cursive with loops, and swirls is a note, it’s a simple good morning with a heart and a flower.

  It makes me wonder if Kinsley has been doing this all along and I was stuck in my own world the whole time. I make a mental note to see what happens tomorrow.

  Returning to my task at hand, I see that Michelle put Nathaniel’s file on my desk. Grabbing it, I make my way back out of my office and to the conference room.

  “He’s all set, he asked for a cup of coffee. Don’t let him tell you I didn’t warn him. He insisted though,” she has a sly smile on her face.

  “He deserves it, pulling this shit so early in the morning without an appointment. If I’m not out of there within fifteen minutes, please come in. Make something up, a meeting, a proctological exam, freaking anything,” I sigh out.

  I leave Michelle laughing. I’m sure she’ll love to say, “Sorry Luke, I’m sorry Nathaniel, but Luke has an appointment to get his rectum checked,” she’d love that.

  “Luke,” Nathaniel stands and shakes my hand, he’s in a suit of his own.

  “Nathaniel, what can I do for you?” I ask him.

  “This contract, it’s complete bull shit. It needs to be taken care of as soon as possible” he demands.

  “We won’t be going over negotiations for some time, based on your requests, but if you give me this week to look over it, I’ll see if I have an appointment closer to your original date,” I stand up, shutting this shit down. He could have let Michelle deal with this, instead he wanted to push his weight around. Nathaniel’s lucky I’m not sending him to another colleague. In fact, if my father hadn’t pulled this favor, I wouldn’t have touched this case.

  “That’ll work, talk soon.” We shake hands, I walk him out, and then immediately head back into my office. It’s not even Monday, and shit is going sideways.

  5

  Kinsley

  Every day this week Luke has come in, even today, on a Saturday. He’s never come in on the weekends, only during the week. Of course, today he lingers longer too. Luke orders his signature black coffee from Kate, grabs a sit, opens his laptop, and makes himself at home.

  For some reason, seeing him here in what is basically my second home, warms something deep in my belly.

  Luke isn’t in his usual suit. No today he’s in jeans that are worn in, as if he’s had them for a lifetime, when he walked away his ass was something to behold. He paired his dark wash denim with a white cotton tee shirt, nothing like what I was used to seeing him in, and I can’t decide which I like more.

  “He’s a hottie,” Katie bumps my shoulder, grabbing my attention.

  “I’m thinking Luke may be more than hot,” I fan myself, and we both giggle.

  With the noise we’re making a few customers give us a look, but one handsome man is the only one I care about, his eyes are locked on mine. I feel myself blush, turning away I tell Kate, “We need to work on decorations for Valentine’s Day, the earlier the prep, the better off we’ll be.”

  “We have some stuff leftover from last year, but I think we may need a few things new to liven it up,” she replies.

  “I think I’m going to have an artist come out and paint the windows, that with some heart streamers, and a few other things you and I can pick up. It’ll look great, don’t you think?” I ask Kate.

  In the back of my mind, I know it’s time to promote Kate to more of a managerial position, she’s shown her worth, and proven time and time again how amazing she is. But, her now ex-boyfriend was holding me back. I shouldn’t have allowed that to happen, but I saw how badly he was bringing Kate down. A promotion is a bigger pay in wages, and let’s be honest, he would have milked her for all her worth.

/>   “Definitely, I’ll hit up the dollar spot inside Target on my way home, you want to tackle the craft store?” Kate asks.

  “You mean the take all my money, screw up on the craft, and laugh about it later? Absolutely,” my smile is bright on my face. I love to celebrate every holiday there is, it doesn’t matter what it is.

  “Oh! We need to come up with a coffee for Valentine’s Day. I’ll ask Sloane what she has up her sleeve, too.”

  “I love that idea! Okay, I’m off for the day, see you Monday,” she takes her apron off, and then heads back to the stock room to grab her things.

  I start thinking about something we can come up with for our drink menu option and get lost in my work.

  6

  Luke

  I’ve been waiting for what feels like hours. I tried to hold back and let Kinsley make my coffee, wanting to see her handwriting on my cup. Every day this week there’s been something different, and every time it brings a smile to my face.

  When I see her co-worker leave for the day, I make my way towards her. This is the time, I’m going in for the kill. Her sweet smile has pulled me in, it’s the first thing I think of when I wake up and the last thing I envision before I go to bed, not to mention the shit I think of while I’m in the shower.