We both burst out laughing. She leans on my shoulder for support.
揧ou抮e hilarious and you seem really happy. I love it!?
揥ell, yeah. It抯 a dream job, minus Commander Coffee. He抯 still a massive jerkwad, but no need to waste the breath on him, right??I say, honestly hoping she doesn抰 ask. 揥hat抯 the game plan here??
Dakota scans the table, adjusting a few signs. 揇onuts are three bucks each. Coffee goes for five bucks a cup today, or they can get a donut and coffee combo for seven.?
揟hose are some high-dollar donuts.?
Lincoln appears from the back, weirdly baby free. He drapes an arm around Dakota.
揌alf an hour at the zoo and Ma says she抯 already tuckered out.?
They share a moony-eyed moment, whispering back and forth about the baby and her outing with grandma until I clear my throat.
Yeah, these two are disgustingly cute. Hard to believe they once hated each other抯 guts.
揌ey, Eliza. All proceeds go to Seattle homeless shelters today,?he says with a friendly smile.
I meet his eyes. 揧ou抮e decent梖or a billionaire.?
揟hanks桰 think??He shrugs, chuckling. 揑 can抰 give up on the homeless even after Wyatt made it out of that camp. He had me to get back on his feet. How many of them have nobody??
Dakota grins at him. 揟his is small potatoes, though. A way for the people to give back. But he gives most of the profits of his company to the cause.?
I smile at him. 揘ice. I抦 glad to hear there抯 one CEO in this city who抯 not a total jackass.?
揝o what did Coffee Dick do to win the hee-haw award this time??Dakota picks up a donut and turns to Linc as she takes a gaping bite out of it. 揔eep a tab for me. You can just write a check at the end of the day.?
揧es, ma抋m,?he says with a swat on her butt.
揌is teenage daughter started shadowing me for a school project…？I start, filling her in on the latest.
揝ounds rough. But I don抰 know, should you really be babysitting at work if it isn抰 part of the job description??Dakota bites her donut again with the kind of appetite only a new mom has.
揝he抯 a sweet kid. I don抰 mind. Her dad is just a hornet. He wants her to take over Wired Cup when she抯 older, and she抯 not interested. So she抯 hanging out with me and learning all about the research side. I抦 saving her from a boring stack of paperwork.?
揝mart kid,?Dakota says, sipping a coffee.
揇id you say you work at Wired Cup now??Lincoln asks.
揧eah.?
揅ole Lancaster??
揧ou know him??I ask, raising my brows.
揘ot well. I抳e met him a few times, yeah. Think you might be the only person in the city who wants to throw a brick at his face,?Linc says with a laugh, his big shoulders rippling.
I raise an eyebrow. He抯 got to be kidding.
揑 find that hard to believe. The people in his stores must hate him. You didn抰 see the way he talked to this barista friend of mine…？
揌e can be gruff sometimes, but he gives them good performance bonuses, from what I抳e heard. I tried to steal his EA once. No salary bid would buy her, though, and when I asked why, she said the Lancasters were like family. She wouldn抰 leave Cole.?
揥ell, maybe, he抯 different with the senior roles. I don抰 know. I just know in R & D we call him a lump of Cole.?
Not quite. I call him that now. But I抦 R & D, so it still counts, doesn抰 it?
While Lincoln collects cash, Dakota sells a few cups of coffee, and I ask every donor for a coffee rating. I might as well gather data while I抦 here.
揌ey, Commander Coffee! Over here,?Linc says loudly.
揘ot funny.?I spin around and glare at him.
But what happens next is one big cosmic joke.
The Lump himself struts up like he belongs here, hefting two huge Wired Cup branded urns on the table.
揌as she been talking about me all morning??he asks with a knowing look.
Holy no.
I must be hallucinating. But the longer I stare, the less likely it is that he抣l just go 損oof?in my hallucination.
揥hat are you doing here??I grind out, almost afraid to ask.
揥hat does it look like, Miss Angelo? Giving back to the community on a sunny morning. Nothing new. I could ask you the same question.?
揑抳e been doing this long before I knew you existed…？
揥hat抯 this??He motions to my coffee urns.
揂 summer campfire brew with hints of watermelon. My brew, not yours. Try it.?
揝ave it for another time. Wired Cup is providing the coffee here, and your brews are now confidential corporate business,?he says, not even deigning to look at me as he heaves up the worst choice of words.
揙h, no. You haven抰 actually licensed anything yet, and even if you had, you can抰 claim the coffee I make in my own kitchen. Plus, you have two giant urns. When I run out, we抣l use your very reliable coffee.?I smile, knowing he抣l hate that.