Cafe Love: Cupid's Cafe Box Set Books 2-4

by Ashley Lauren

  A hand gripped Tasha shoulder, forcing her to swivel slightly in her chair. Hazel eyes looked piercingly into her soul, and Tasha had to hold back the urge to grimace.

  “Tasha, I’m talking to you,” Faith said.

  “Sorry,” Tasha mumbled. She wanted to run away, but it felt like she was glued to her chair.

  “No. I should be the one apologizing. I think I could’ve handled that situation better. I just wanted to tell you that you’re still free to work with me if you would like to. I’ll try to keep my temper under control, so something like this doesn’t happen again.” His voice was calm as if she were giving a lecture to her classroom.

  Tasha could hardly believe it. Faith is apologizing? Her mind buzzed for some kind of plausible explanation. “Do you really mean that?” she asked in disbelief.

  “Yes.”

  “But why? You were so adamant this morning,” Tasha pointed out. There had to be a reason behind this sudden change of heart.

  “I convinced her.” Emmitt stepped up, resting a hand on his sister’s shoulder. “My sister can be a little hard-headed at times. I should know that best.”

  Faith arched a delicate eyebrow at her brother. “And you can be too soft-hearted.”

  “True, enough,” Emmitt admitted with a shrug of his shoulders. “But I know how hard Tasha works for you, and you know that she's the best TA you’ve ever had.”

  Faith huffed out a breath of air. “Tasha’s work has been exemplary,” Faith paused shifting her gaze to Tasha. “When it’s on time.”

  Tasha was well beyond shocked and didn’t know what to reply to first. Faith’s compliment, somewhat half-hearted, but still a compliment, or Emmitt’s willingness to speak with Faith. She decided to thank Faith since Emmitt was, admittedly, the kinder-hearted.

  “Thank you, Professor Mason. I would like to continue working for you.”

  “That’s fine, just make sure to have those grades online by 6 pm this evening. I should have been more specific on when I expected them done. I will try,” Faith looked to her brother, “to be more considerate in the future.”

  Tasha knew she wasn’t going to get a better deal than that and smiled at her boss. “I would appreciate that.”

  “Good.” Faith stepped back and let her brother slide in front of her.

  “I’m sorry. I should’ve listened to you when you said you were busy… I was too focused on how much I wanted to go to the party with you that I didn’t consider how it would affect you,” Emmitt apologized.

  Tasha just stared at him, shocked at how kind he was to her, even though she had snapped at him. She felt terrible about the whole thing. “No, I should be the one apologizing. I shouldn’t have yelled at you. I’m sorry. I was just upset and lashed out at you.”

  Emmitt took her hand, pulling her to her feet. “It’s okay. We both weren’t at our best. Are we good now?”

  Tasha smiled, feeling her heart grow about five sizes. “Yeah. I can’t believe you spoke with your sister for me.”

  “Of course.” Emmitt’s smile widened. “I saw how much it upset you. I knew I had to try and fix things. Besides, Faith’s told me a couple of times how good you were. I couldn’t let my pushiness deprive you of a job and Faith of a great TA.”

  Emmitt leaned in and lightly kissed her on the lips. A zing of heat flashed through Tasha. Too bad they were in the middle of Cupid’s with Faith looking on. She’d loved to have given Emmitt a real kiss.

  “Is that all, Emmitt? Can I get going now?” Faith said in a rushed manner.

  “Why don’t you stay and try some of the food. You haven’t been here in what twenty years? When was the last time, mom brought you in.”

  Tasha’s stomach flipped in realization. Katy knew Faith, and she’d been saying all those awful things about her… yet she’d never said a word. Tasha's eyes searched for Katy who appeared behind the counter just as Faith began to speak.

  “I don’t like diner food,” Faith said, pressing her lips together. “Besides, I have a perfectly good sandwich waiting for me in my fridge.”

  “What kind of sandwich?” Katy asked with a bright smile, catching Faith off guard.

  “Katy….” Faith stuttered. “I haven’t seen you in ages. Mother speaks of you often, but I haven’t---“

  Katy cut her off with the wave of her hand. “Don’t worry Charlotte keeps me up to date on everything. Hmmm. You look like you could use a tuna melt, lite mayo, right?”

  Faith blinked. “Yes, how did you know?”

  Katy took advantage of Faith’s confusion. She ushered her over to a booth, saying, “Honey, I wouldn’t stay in business if I didn’t know people and what they liked to eat.”

  Tasha stared, open-mouthed at Katy. How did she persuade people so easily? She always managed to get her way.

  “I’m really glad everything worked out.” Emmitt said and nodded over toward his sister. “Katy will be good for her. She needs someone to shake up her life a bit, and Katy might be just the right person to do that.”

  Tasha watched Katy chat with a flustered Faith. She never thought she’d see the day when her boss had someone bossing her around, but that’s what Katy was doing. Tasha laughed knowing just what it was like to be bulldozed over by Katy’s smiles and good-natured chatter.

  “You know, I actually feel sorry for her,” Tasha admitted.

  Emmitt let out a bark of laughter. “Don’t be. I think she’ll be fine. Now, about us,” he said, reached forward, gently cupping her cheek in his hand. “I think I need another kiss from my Princess.”

  He took a step forward, closing the distance between them. Her heartbeat quickened as she looked up into his deep green eyes, feeling him peering into her soul. “I…” She wanted to say something, but any and all words left her vocabulary. She just stood there, caught in the spell of his gaze, unable to say or do anything else except watch as his lips moved toward hers.

  He captured her lips and pulled her close. She wrapped her arms around his neck, making sure the kiss wouldn’t end anytime soon, forgetting all about Faith and the rest of the diner. All of her emotions, from anger to happiness, seemed to culminate into one: love. There was no denying it. She loved this man, more than anything else in the world. Maybe even more than chocolate… maybe…

  Finally, they pulled away. Emmitt’s emerald eyes sparkled with happiness as he pulled her toward him once more, hugging her tight, laying her head on his shoulder.

  “From the first moment I saw you delighting those kids, you bewitched me. Then, by some strange twist of fate and before we’d even spoken, you were in my arms. It just felt so right. Everything about you pulled at me, and I had to know.”

  Tasha pulled back to see his face. “Know what?”

  “What it would be like to kiss the woman I loved.”

  Tasha sucked in a breath. “You’ve loved me since then?”

  “Yeah and everything I’ve learned about you since then has only made me love you more,” Emmitt said as he trailed a finger along her jaw.

  Tasha shivered at his touch, his words, and the emotion she could feel pouring out of Emmitt. She didn’t know how someone as ordinary as she was could find herself in a fairytale, but she couldn’t deny what she felt for Emmitt.

  “I didn’t believe in love at first sight until you, but now… I love you Emmitt,” Tasha said and pressed a kiss to his lips.

  Someone cleared their throat, and Tasha turned to see Katy holding a root beer float. She took a step back from Emmitt but kept a hold of his hand.

  “I see you’ve settled everything,” Katy said, offering Emmitt the root beer float.

  “Yes,” Tasha said.

  “Wonderful. I have Faith all settled with a sandwich. How about you two, are you guys hungry?” Katy asked.

  Tasha looked at Emmitt, wondering what he wanted to do. He just looked back at her, shrugging. They both laughed at their own indecision before Tasha nodded. “We never did have brunch, so why not?”

  Katy smiled.
“I’ll be right back with some menus then.”

  “At this point, though, it’s more like lunch,” Emmitt said.

  “By the way, how did you know I’d be here?” Tasha asked.

  “Well, if you’re anything like me, I always find myself coming back to this place and talking to Katy whenever I have a problem. I’d say it’s a lot cheaper than consulting a physiatrist.” They both laughed, knowing it was true.

  Katy eventually came back with two menus. Tasha grabbed one, looking through all her options before she noticed the logo at the top. It was the word Cupid’s in large pink lettering and an arrow shooting through it. Below that was a small tagline. Where love is always on the menu. Tasha tapped her finger on the words and wondered if that had always been there. She couldn’t remember seeing it before.

  She was going to ask Emmitt if he’d remembered seeing it when her gaze caught Katy’s. Katy smiled at her, winked, and then walked away to check on Faith. Tasha shrugged, realizing it didn’t matter. She’d found her love, and that’s what really mattered.

  Epilogue

  A year later, Tasha found herself nervously waiting outside a set of large wooden doors. She knew that inside this building sat all of her friends and family, waiting for her. That even Emmitt would be standing there, waiting for her. She gulped, trying to picture it, anxiety trying to get the best of her. Am I jumping into this too soon? Tasha had an urge to pick up the hem of her dress and bolt for the exit.

  “Are you nervous?” Katy appeared next to her, wearing her maid-of-honor dress. It was a playful red and white dress that complimented her personality rather well.

  Katy’s presence soothed some of Tasha’s jumpiness. “A little…” Tasha admitted, feeling the need scratch at the neckline of her dress. To her surprise, she had ended up choosing out a large ball gown, very similar to the Cinderella dress she had worn when she had first met Emmitt. Maybe that was why she went for it.

  “There’s nothing to worry about, honey. It’s obvious that you both love each other very much. Just relax and enjoy yourself, okay?”

  Tasha looked at her, thinking it was easy for Katy to say so when she wasn’t the one getting married.

  “Easier said than done,” Tasha mumbled, tightly holding on to the bouquet of flowers as she played with the petals.

  “Good thing we got you fake flowers or they would’ve been destroyed by now.” Katy teased, seeing her nervous fingers toy with the flowers.

  Tasha stilled her fingers and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Emmitt’s smiling face, his soft lips pressed against hers, and the deep sound of his laugh flashed through her mind. The tingle of nerves eased. Everything was alright. Tasha knew that this was always meant to be.

  The sound of music came from the organ pipes. The large wooden doors opened up, and the steeple bell started ringing. The wedding procession marched forward, starting with the flower girl and the ring bearer, who both looked simply adorable. At the end of the aisle, they stopped, holding hands. The little boy turned and kissed the girl on the cheek before they both ran off giggling.

  Emmitt watched them, his eyes glowing. He couldn’t believe the day he had been waiting for so long was finally here. A broad smiled formed on his lips as he looked around the chapel. He tried to get a glimpse beyond the door to see her, but it was impossible. Nerves played along his skin. Emmitt feared that she might run away at the last moment. She tended to flee whenever she was nervous.

  Behind him, Liam, his best man squeezed his shoulder. He relaxed, trying to convince himself that everything would turn out okay in the end. Breath held, he watched the rest of the bridal party come down the aisle, ending with Katy who made her way to the altar. It was time.

  The organist suddenly changed pitch, beginning the telltale melody everyone had been waiting for. Emmitt straightened up, his eyes glued to the door, waiting for his beautiful bride-to-be. His nerves felt frayed and raw, and his hands started to sweat. It felt odd to be this anxious. He was usually so calm, so collected.

  And then, she appeared. She stood in the doorway with her white dress, looking every bit like a fairy tale princess. Her hair tumbled down her back in soft ringlets, framing her round face, giving her an almost angelic glow. Emmitt stared at her, unable to look away, his heart beating as fast as if he were running a marathon. How on Earth did I find himself a bride like her?

  Tasha looked out at the crowd. All eyes were on her, and it made her even more nervous. Her fingers tightened around the base of the bouquet, and she bit the inside of her lip. For a moment, her body forgot how to move, and she stood there, frozen in place.

  Tasha searched the room and her gaze locked onto Emmitt’s. It steadied her. After taking a deep, shuddering breath, she stepped forward onto the red carpet that lined the aisle and lead to the dais that Emmitt and the minister stood on. She kept eye contact with Emmitt as she walked toward him, knowing that would keep her from running from all the eyes watching her.

  Her pace quickened the last bit, eager to get to his side, but as she did, she lost her footing on the second of the steps leading up. Emmitt lunged forward reaching out a hand to steady her.

  “I’ve got you,” he whispered into her ear.

  Tasha pressed a hand to her heart, thankful Emmitt had caught her before she fell. She whispered back a soft, but very much embarrassed, “Thank you.”

  “You really are like Cinderella,” Emmitt said.

  She scrunched her face in confusion. “Huh?”

  “You lost your shoe.”

  It was only then that Tasha realized she was balancing on one foot. She looked back, seeing it sitting at the bottom of the three steps and laughed. Of all the things that could have happened to her on her wedding day, she just had to lose her shoe like Cinderella.

  “C’mon,” Emmitt said, grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze. “You may be a princess now, but in a few minutes, you’ll be my Queen. Forever.”

  The End

  I hope you enjoyed Café Love, books 2-4 in the Cupid’s Café Series. You know what would be absolutely fabulous? If you could leave me a review to let me know what you enjoyed about the series.

  Personally, I love Katy. And I have a special romance planned for her in a few books.

  If you want to hear about that new release and other specials, make sure to join my reader’s group and claim your own copy of Fries Before Guys Book 5 in the series.

  http://www.ashleylaurenbooks.com/#!free-romance-novella/v1lmi