Coffee and Cafés - Book Two of the Café Latte Trilogy

Babyccino

Owen chuckled. "And you can rest safely knowing that you brought it about."

"Inadvertently," I reminded him, but smiled fondly at the thought that I was the one to have subjected the world to Joss. "Raven is actually Ross' sister. She's very much like Ross in her attitude, but she's got a much more firm grip on reality."

"She does seem very cool," Owen replied. "And now I have to awkwardly ask if you're actually a couple and I'm massively misreading this situation."

I grinned. "Raven and I would absolutely destroy each other in a relationship." I added with a cheeky grin, "You're not misreading the situation."

Owen looked more relaxed after that. I liked him. He was fun, light-hearted and sunny. He reminded me of Misa in a way, which I told him and he seemed delighted to learn that I was comparing him to a peppy person. I felt my phone buzz in my pocket, and took it out to check it wasn't Harper wondering where I was.

Did the apartment viewing go okay?

I frowned. It was Angelo. Owen noticed my frown and said, "Uh-oh, that's quite a face. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just..." I shrugged. "My boss just wanted to know if the flat viewing went okay."

"Oh," Owen was surprised. "Nice boss you got there, checking in at... whoa, it's already nine? You are far too easy to talk to, we finished dinner an hour ago."

I quickly fired off a reply to Angelo.

Yeah, all good. Hope nothing too exciting happened while I was gone!

"So, how come you moved all of a sudden?" Owen asked. "Raven mentioned you had moved from Brighton?"

"Oh, yeah," I nodded, putting my phone back in my pocket. "A friend of a friend needed someone to fill in a position, but I've ended up really liking the job, so I'm going to be living here permanently."

"Score one for London," he grinned.

"Flatterer," I teased, and my phone buzzed again. I quickly took a look.

Chris and Barbie got into an arm-wrestling match. Barbie won.

I stifled a laugh at that, and Owen looked at me in amusement. "Your boss?" he enquired, and I raised my eyebrows at his suggestive tone.

"Don't even," I told him sternly. "I'm getting enough of that from Jasper and Ross."

"Is he dreamy?" Owen teased.

I kicked him under the table, pocketing my phone without replying. I'd reply later. "He is very dreamy, but no, I'm not interested."

Owen eyed me and said, "C'mon, you're a little interested."

I laughed and said, "I mean, I'm a little interested in the same way I'm a little interested in Tom Hiddleston, but I'm not pursuing anything. Everyone seems to think I'm going to jeopardise a job for a dreamy boss."

"I get you, I get you," Owen replied, taking a sip of his mocha. "Well, if you're not pursuing anything there, and you're interested in pursuing anything here," he gestured to himself and I smirked. "Then that's entirely available. But I should warn you, I'm not looking for anything serious. I'm leaving at the end of February for a job in Oregon."

"Oh, cool," I replied. "Oregon as in America?"

"Yes," he replied. "I've got a job as a swimming coach out there - that's what I do for my second job, I coach swim teams. I've only been working at the real estate's to help my brother-in-law out, he had a bunch of student staff quit on him a few months back."