Read Bound Together for Free Online

home himself. I got the feeling he was desperate for me
to come home.
     
    It was quieter in the shop
today. I assumed that was because people weren’t at work on
weekends so therefore wouldn’t need to grab a coffee on their way
in. The majority of customers were students from Cali State. I
recognized a few from my dorm but didn’t know them well enough to
make conversation.
     
    No one had come in for
nearly half an hour, so I pulled up a stool and sat by the counter.
Grabbing a caramel latte, I opened up one of the magazines sitting
in the rack next to the register. I rested my elbows on the
countertop and blew on my hot coffee. I was just reading an article
on how shoes can cure depression when I was distracted by someone
clearing their throat.
     
    The sound startled me,
causing me to almost spill my coffee. I jumped off my stool trying
to look professional. I put the magazine aside along with my coffee
and looked up from the counter.
     
    Oh what new hell was this?
     
    Standing in front of me
with a wry grin on his face was Jared. He was wearing jeans and a
white t-shirt that showed off his impressive arms. I plastered my
most genuine looking smile on my face and looked up at him. “Hi.
What can I get you?”
    He regarded me almost
amused for a moment before scanning the board behind me. All of the
day’s special brewed concoctions were listed on it and every day
they were changed. At the moment, Lorraine had a “Coffees of the
World” theme going.
     
    I drummed my fingers on
the counter impatiently and stared at him, waiting for him to make
a choice. I was sure I saw the corners of his mouth curl upwards.
Not quite a smile but he was certainly amused by my
irritation.
     
    “So many to choose from.
What is one to do?” He had his head angled to the right and was
biting his lip. My eyes were fixed to his mouth as I watched his
teeth sink into his flesh, wishing I could be doing the same. He
may be a douche but my god he was hot. I was only human after all.
Continuing to um and ah over the menu I realized he was now trying
to provoke my irritation deliberately. Happy to oblige, I folded my
arms across my chest and tapped my foot loudly. His eyes darted to
me. “I’m sorry I didn’t realize that your service came with a side
of attitude.”
    I couldn’t believe how
utterly rude he was. Just when I thought he couldn’t become any
more discourteous or irritating, he did. I’d had enough of this
game. He was seriously pissing me off and I was going to make damn
sure he knew it.
     
    I leaned across the counter
with my hands tightly gripping the edge. “Look, I don’t know what
your problem is. I apologized for the coffee. I offered to pay for
the shirt and I even apologized for your stupid nose even though the fact
remains that if it had been pointing in the right direction you
would have seen me through the glass. It’s you strolling in here with your laid
back, make her wait while I dick around attitude that really grinds
my gears.”
     
    Oh. My. God. Did that just
come out of my mouth?!
     
    He took a step back from
the counter and stared back at me. His eyebrows were raised and his
mouth was pulled into a tight line. I stood back and crossed my
arms again, staring right back at him. He cleared his throat and
smirked wickedly at me. Urgh!
    “I’m so sorry. I didn’t
realize you were busy. I’d hate to tear you away from your very
important task of sitting on your ass and reading articles about
how chocolate is better than sex.” He glanced over at my magazine
which was still sitting on the counter. Ah crap. “By the way, I can
assure you that it’s not.”
    I could feel my cheeks
warming. This was getting tiresome. I had a job to do and he was a
customer. We couldn’t go on like this. I decided to take the moral
high ground, which itself was very difficult for me. I always had to have the
last word.
     
    “You’re right. I apologize
for my rude behavior. What do you say we start over?” I