The only way to avoid it was to side with the Catholics. Full-on abstinence.

Jason pushed a broom around, catching the crumbs from the pastry incident. His eyes were full of mischief as he pretended to dance with the handle and sweep it into a dramatic kiss. I wasn’t mad, not really. These people wanted something good for me. They just didn’t know any better.

And I wasn’t going to enlighten them.

•*´`*•*´`*•

My heart started hammering the moment the clock struck twelve. Jenny came in through the front, looking harried. “Stupid traffic jam on 52. No accident or anything. Just slow people.”

Jason tucked his apron under the register. “Too many people. Always too many people.” He tied his dreadlocks into a ponytail. “I’d stick around to see the happy reunion, but I have class.”

Jenny leaned on the counter. “What’s he talking about?”

“Nothing,” I said. Austin probably wouldn’t show. No use feeding futile gossip.

Jason halted, his hand on the door. “It’s not nothing! Latte here has a hot hookup with one of the regulars.” He saluted us and headed outside.

“Are you holding out on me?” A customer came in, so Jenny moved around to the back, shoving her messenger bag in a cabinet.

I ignored her and smiled at the middle-aged man asking for a cappuccino. I’d serve him, then head to the back to do setups. Austin could arrive at any time. On a good day, you could get here from campus in about fifteen minutes. In traffic, it might be longer.

Jenny waited for me to hand the man his change before launching into questioning. “Who was Jason talking about? Why don’t I know about this?”

I shrugged. “Some guy gave me his e-mail address yesterday. I left the note in one of the aprons. Jason found it and e-mailed the guy.”

“WHAT? That is a blatant disregard of the hookup code!” She tied an apron around her waist. “Contacting potential boy toys is at the sole discretion of the best friend!”

I moved past her. “I’m going to do the dishes.”

Jenny grabbed my arm. “What does he look like? How will I know he’s here?”

“It doesn’t matter. I don’t think I’m up for that.”

She let go. “It’s because of hunk boy, isn’t it? He’s got you all wired up.”

“Maybe.”

Jenny shook her head. “I guess I’ll be seeing him tonight. Maybe I’ll give him a piece of my mind.”

I walked to the end of the counter and lifted the overflowing tray from the busing station. “Actually, you won’t. Gavin switched too, thinking he’d get away from me. We were both there last night.”

A girl walked up to order something, but Jenny held up her hand. “Just a minute.” She turned back to me. “So you’re saying you had to be on the roof with him after all?”

I shrugged. “There was nothing romantic about it. Just a lab mapping out the Big Dipper.”

Jenny frowned. “But weren’t there stars? Night breezes off the ocean? Anything?”

I pictured Gavin on his back, head on his pack, lying next to me, my fingers still warm from where he held them. My stomach turned, and I could feel my breath threatening to kick up. “No,” I managed to say. “Just lab work.”

Jenny blew a puff of air at her frothy pink bangs in disgust. “Then that class is a total waste.” She finally turned back to the girl. “What can I get for you?”

I pushed my elbow into the door, trying to avoid spilling any of the mugs or cups on the tray. Plenty of dishes to deal with until the end of my shift, unless Jenny got swamped and needed someone to make the drinks while she took orders. Hopefully that wouldn’t happen. We didn’t serve anything substantial here, so lunch tended to be quiet.

Rinsing dishes to load into the industrial washer was good, mindless work. My Tuesday/Thursday schedule was tough, two upper-division lit classes with a murderous reading list, but the first novel quiz wasn’t until next week, and I had all weekend to catch up. I didn’t have a bead on the profs here yet, but I figured most classes were the same. Read the books, figure out the instructor’s preferred interpretation of the text, and spit it back at them on the midterm.

I swore if I ever got a class of my own, free thinking would be required, not regurgitation. But maybe one of these profs would surprise me.

The door to the back opened and Jenny peeked through. “Someone’s here for you.”

I glanced at the clock. 12:32. Not close enough to the end of my shift to sneak out.

“Can you get him to leave?” I asked.

“I don’t think this one is going to be easy to put off.” She pushed the door open wider, and Gavin’s frame filled the doorway.

I backed up a few steps. “What are you doing here?”

“You told me you worked at a coffee shop on Broadway. I’ve been to six today, trying to find you.”

“We have class tomorrow.”

“I didn’t want to see you in class.”

“Oh, boy!” Jenny said and ducked under his arm.

He let the door close behind her.

I held a damp rag out in front of me like a pathetic shield. “I don’t know you anymore. The Gavin I used to know wouldn’t just take off like you did last night. Like you did at the funeral.”

“You’re not the same either.”

I lowered my arms. “What are you talking about?”