It Happened at Cafe Nix

No Dick Moves

No Dick Moves

Ainslie Paton

When a man asks a woman to live with him it’s a big deal.

It’s usually a good idea if he talks to her about it first. At least before signing a lease.

Mace isn’t much of a talker.

No Dick Moves is an additional scene from Ainslie Paton’s Insecure, published in March 2015 by Escape Publishing.

Mace grabbed the back of the cafe chair and pulled it around the table so he could sit facing Dillon. He’d still have a view of the harbour. It was just on 5pm, the mass scale exit from the city was about to begin.

Dillon made a face at the waitress. His flirt face. A raised eyebrow, a smirky try-hard smile.

Mace sighed. “Don’t be a dick, okay.”

Flirt face having failed to attract attention, Dillon tried it again with some added sitting up straighter. “You’re living in my flat, dude. I kicked my girl out for you, and you think I’m going to be a dick.”

He had a point. “You kicked Sharon—”

“Sharona.”

“Whatever,” Mace caught a waitress’ eye, “out because she was a dick.”

“Yeah, she was kind of. You know she stole money off me.” Dillon slumped. “I liked her though.”

Mace watched the movement in the cafe. Waitress approaching in six, five, four. “You like anyone who looks at you more than twice.”

“This is true.”

“So don’t be a dick. The only experience Jacinta has had with you was that phone call.”

“Hello, Dillon.”

Dillon’s head swung around to the waitress. “Nix. I didn’t see you.”

“Ah, but I saw you. I always see you. Usually ducking out on work time to sample my very fine coffee.” She checked her watch. “No one is going to sack you for it today.”

Mace laughed. Having not long ago quit in a blaze of totally uncharacteristic, less than smart, glory that included standing on a desktop telling jokes, and epically kissing the chick from HR, he found that funny.

Dillon smiled at Nix. Mace knew that look. “This is my friend and current, but not for long, flatmate, Mace. Mace, Nix. This is her show.”

Yeah, right, it was Cafe Nix. Mace nodded at Nix. “Hi.” More than a waitress. She was young to own this set up.

“It’s my family’s business. I’m just managing it,” she said with a shrug. “Coffee?”

They ordered and Mace watched Dillon watch Nix walk away. “You have a thing for her?”

“Hell, yeah.”

“Don’t be a dick.”

“I’m not. She’s. We know each other. I come here all the time. She’s got a broken heart, but she’s not interested in having me fix it.”

Mace picked up a roll of sugar from the canister on the table. “Not Nix. Jacinta. You were a dick.”

“Oh, right. That phone call. The one where—”

“You virtually called her a slut.” He put the sugar back, otherwise he’d play with it, break it, and it’d end up all over him and the table.