see you. We heard you were going to be staying here on the island with us for a while.” He pulled back, holding me at arm’s length. “Wow, you look great.”
The café door opened, and Helena appeared in the doorway. “Nate,” she said, clearly exasperated. “Don’t make the poor girl stand out there in this weather.” She propped the door open with her hip. “Come on in, Maddy. And welcome to Fade Island.”
The café interior was warm and inviting. There were a few small wooden tables scattered about, a plush sofa covered in a nubby, maroon fabric off to the left, and a coffee bar in the back. A menu board hanging behind the bar held only the chalky smears from a swipe of an eraser, but nevertheless, the smell of freshly brewed coffee punctuated the air.
After a few customary niceties of the recently reacquainted, I said, “Oh, I wanted to drop off my grocery order.” I pulled the folded form from my back pocket. “I’ll probably order online next time, but I really wanted to stop in, see the café, and say hello of course.”
Helena took the order. “I’m glad you decided to come in. I thought I saw you drive by yesterday in Adam’s old Lexus.”
Aha, so I was right about the car!
“Yeah, that was me,” I replied, feeling somewhat foolish that I’d been noticed and had not stopped in.
“How ’bout some coffee?” Nate chimed in. “It’ll warm you up before you go back out in this mess.”
Helena added, “I was about to make myself a cappuccino. But I can make you whatever you like. I even have soup today since we’ve had a lot of fishermen stopping by lately.”
“Just a cappuccino is fine,” I said as I sat down at one of the tables in the middle of the café.
Just as Nate was about to sit down in the chair across from me, the café door swung open. I fully expected it to be a fisherman or maybe Max. But no.
It was Adam who stepped in, clad in a dark brown field coat, jeans, and hiking boots. Very outdoorsy, very handsome, I noted. He looked especially good as he ran his fingers through his wet hair, and a trickle of rainwater trailed down his temple.
Adam caught me watching him and started to smile, but then Nate distracted him as he waved him over. “We were just getting caught up with Maddy,” Nate said.
Adam came over to the table, and Nate motioned to the chair across from me. “Here, have a seat.”
Adam glanced at the empty chair, and then, smirking, he said, “Actually Madeleine and I had a rather unexpected, but certainly not unpleasant, opportunity to get reacquainted last night. I think it’s safe to say we’re all caught up .” He looked my way and added, “Isn’t that right, Maddy.”
Nate looked perplexed, and I tried to explain lest he think the worst from Adam’s vague, innuendo-laden comment. “We sort of ran into each other yesterday evening.”
Adam coughed to stifle a laugh. I shot him a pointed look, but he pretended not to notice.
Nate, surely catching all this but being too much of a gentleman to comment on it, said to Adam, “OK, well, what brings you down to the café today, then?”
“I need to discuss something with you,” Adam said, suddenly serious and somber.
Helena was returning with the cappuccino, and she smiled and said “hi” to Adam.
Adam nodded to her, and Nate said, “Let’s give the girls some private time. We can talk in the back room.”
Helena set the steaming mug on the table and sat down. “What was that all about?”
I watched as Nate followed Adam through a door in the back of the café that I guessed led to the mysterious back room. “I don’t know. Um, Adam said he wanted to talk to Nate about something.”
“Hmm,” she said, “I overheard your conversation. So you ran into Adam last night, eh?”
“Uh, kind of,” I muttered. My cheeks warmed; surely I was blushing.
Helena didn’t ask for details, thank heavens, but her eyes did meet mine. She leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, “You
The café door opened, and Helena appeared in the doorway. “Nate,” she said, clearly exasperated. “Don’t make the poor girl stand out there in this weather.” She propped the door open with her hip. “Come on in, Maddy. And welcome to Fade Island.”
The café interior was warm and inviting. There were a few small wooden tables scattered about, a plush sofa covered in a nubby, maroon fabric off to the left, and a coffee bar in the back. A menu board hanging behind the bar held only the chalky smears from a swipe of an eraser, but nevertheless, the smell of freshly brewed coffee punctuated the air.
After a few customary niceties of the recently reacquainted, I said, “Oh, I wanted to drop off my grocery order.” I pulled the folded form from my back pocket. “I’ll probably order online next time, but I really wanted to stop in, see the café, and say hello of course.”
Helena took the order. “I’m glad you decided to come in. I thought I saw you drive by yesterday in Adam’s old Lexus.”
Aha, so I was right about the car!
“Yeah, that was me,” I replied, feeling somewhat foolish that I’d been noticed and had not stopped in.
“How ’bout some coffee?” Nate chimed in. “It’ll warm you up before you go back out in this mess.”
Helena added, “I was about to make myself a cappuccino. But I can make you whatever you like. I even have soup today since we’ve had a lot of fishermen stopping by lately.”
“Just a cappuccino is fine,” I said as I sat down at one of the tables in the middle of the café.
Just as Nate was about to sit down in the chair across from me, the café door swung open. I fully expected it to be a fisherman or maybe Max. But no.
It was Adam who stepped in, clad in a dark brown field coat, jeans, and hiking boots. Very outdoorsy, very handsome, I noted. He looked especially good as he ran his fingers through his wet hair, and a trickle of rainwater trailed down his temple.
Adam caught me watching him and started to smile, but then Nate distracted him as he waved him over. “We were just getting caught up with Maddy,” Nate said.
Adam came over to the table, and Nate motioned to the chair across from me. “Here, have a seat.”
Adam glanced at the empty chair, and then, smirking, he said, “Actually Madeleine and I had a rather unexpected, but certainly not unpleasant, opportunity to get reacquainted last night. I think it’s safe to say we’re all caught up .” He looked my way and added, “Isn’t that right, Maddy.”
Nate looked perplexed, and I tried to explain lest he think the worst from Adam’s vague, innuendo-laden comment. “We sort of ran into each other yesterday evening.”
Adam coughed to stifle a laugh. I shot him a pointed look, but he pretended not to notice.
Nate, surely catching all this but being too much of a gentleman to comment on it, said to Adam, “OK, well, what brings you down to the café today, then?”
“I need to discuss something with you,” Adam said, suddenly serious and somber.
Helena was returning with the cappuccino, and she smiled and said “hi” to Adam.
Adam nodded to her, and Nate said, “Let’s give the girls some private time. We can talk in the back room.”
Helena set the steaming mug on the table and sat down. “What was that all about?”
I watched as Nate followed Adam through a door in the back of the café that I guessed led to the mysterious back room. “I don’t know. Um, Adam said he wanted to talk to Nate about something.”
“Hmm,” she said, “I overheard your conversation. So you ran into Adam last night, eh?”
“Uh, kind of,” I muttered. My cheeks warmed; surely I was blushing.
Helena didn’t ask for details, thank heavens, but her eyes did meet mine. She leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, “You
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