Read Hunting Human for Free Online Page B

“God, no! I love Angie, but there are days when I just…” She made a frustrated gesture with her hands. “Argh! Days when customers are never happy, the espresso machines are on the fritz, my feet ache and all I can think is that I am never, ever , going to wash off the smell of burned coffee.”
    “And to think, you don’t even take advantage of all the free caffeine.” Bit by bit her nerves were fading—she smiled more, became more animated.
    “You’re right. I should quit tomorrow.”
    “Hell, don’t do that. Angie would have my head.” They rounded the corner; the Grind’s flag was waving from an overhang at the top of the next block. “You must like something about it. You’ve been there almost six months.”
    “I like Angie. She’s easy to work for.”
    “You’ve got to be kidding! Angie? Easy to work for?”
    “No really. She’s tough, and she likes things done her way, but you always know where you stand with her and I always feel like she looks out for the people she works with. It’s nice.”
    “That sounds like Angie.” Not quite ready to get back to the café, Braden slowed his pace a little. “But I still couldn’t work for her,” he muttered.
    “She takes a lot of pride in her business. It shows in everything she does, from the way she plans the menus, to the way she maintains the café. It’s easy to see why she has so many regular customers.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Everything about the Grind is inviting, from the comfy sofas to the way the building was restored. The café itself is amazing, the ceiling tiles and moldings all look original, everywhere you look there’s something interesting, something old. Even the door is interesting and different. I’ve worked there six months and I still find new details. Somebody took a lot of care with the building.”
    Braden placed a careful hand at the small of her back and reached around her to pull the door to the café open. “That somebody would be me.”
    “What?” She waited for him as he paused in the entry, propping the wet umbrella in the corner.
    “Edwards Construction did the renovation. It’s our family business. The Grind was one of the first projects I worked on with my father. That’s how I met Angie.”
    “You did an incredible job.”
    Warm with pride, Braden trailed Beth into the kitchen.
    “Hey, Ange.”
    Angie glanced up, shrewd gaze assessing them in one quick sweep. “Oh, good. You haven’t drowned.”
    “I’m sorry. Braden helped me get the top up, but we waited in the Jeep until the rain stopped. Did things get busy?”
    “It’s fine. Come take over for me, I want to get the soup on the stove.” Beth went to work putting together what looked like a variety of sandwiches.
    Angie grunted as she pulled a large pot of soup out of the built-in fridge.
    “Let me help with that.”
    Angie’s glare stopped Braden before he’d taken a half step toward her. “I’ve got it,” she snapped. “Been doing this long enough without you, haven’t I?”
    Braden held his hands up in surrender and watched, more than a little amused, as Angie hefted the pot of soup onto the stove and flicked on the burner. While she was preoccupied, Braden tried to subtly slide toward Beth.
    “Customers belong up front.”
    Braden rolled his eyes. Damn, that woman had eyes in the back of her head.
    Braden ignored her. “Is that tomato basil?” Angie’s silence was answer enough. “Aw, Ange, for me? You know it’s my favorite.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed a playful kiss to the side of her cheek.
    “Back up, Edwards.” Angie angled her elbow into his ribs, forcing him to retreat. “You can go grab a table and buy a cup like everyone else.”
    “I’ll just wait back here.” Braden met Angie’s disapproving glare with a grin. “Better company.”
    “I resent that!” Marianne bustled through the door, carelessly tossing the tray she was carrying into the sink. Hands free, she pulled