On a good day,my commute is pretty mindless. The nearly hour long drive is obviously not as easy as when I lived above the coffee shop. After things got serious with Monica and her boyfriend, Jason, about a year ago, I decided it was time to move out. With the way rent has only gone up the last few years, I couldn’t afford a place on my own. While I could try to find another roommate and scrape by in Jackson, I don’t think I’d find a roommate half as good as her. So for now I live in Rodgers, the first town on the other side of the mountain pass in Idaho.
Looking at the road ahead, today is not a good day. The wipers on my old car struggle to keep up with the torrential spring downpour, blurring my view. It’s probably time to get new wipers. Or is it wiper blades that I need? I don’t know. What I am sure about is that even with the obscured view, this is not a normal amount of traffic judging by the long line of red from all of the brake lights.
Shit. I drop my head to the steering wheel and groan in frustration. Unlike the red warning light on my dash I’ve ignored for weeks, I know exactly what those brake lightsmean. I’m going to be even later than I thought thanks to this heinous rain.
A whoosh of air and a loud thud in the backseat pulls my eyes to the rearview mirror. I look up to see Felix curled into a ball, his head tucked between his paws. He lets out a long whine and I peek at him over my shoulder.
“We’ll get to the shop soon and you can curl up in your chair, OK?”
He lets out another low grunt and gives me some side-eye. I can’t help but agree with his sentiment.
Days like this remind me that I definitely miss living in Jackson and our morning walks around town together. It was naïve of me to think that I could have ever afforded to own my grandma’s old house, but I desperately want to find some way to move back to the town I grew up in and still call home. For now, I guess that means settling for living almost an hour away just so I can be close to the mountains and town I love.
Finally, I see movement ahead. The brake lights fade and the long line of cars start to move. With any luck, I might only be half an hour late today. I pull through the intersection and finally see the neon Cowgirl Coffee sign a few blocks away.
When I pull into my parking spot, Felix’s ears perk up. He stands up and stomps his paws, looking out toward the propped open back door of the coffee shop.
I pull the hood of my rain jacket up and get out of my car. When I open the door for Felix, he leaps out and sprints right past me in a blur of black and tan fur. I follow him, snorting a laugh when he wriggles his way through the door ahead of me.
After hanging up my jacket, I walk through the small kitchen and find Monica at the counter. Her eyes meet mine and she wipes a bead of sweat from her brow.
“Glad to see you. We were just starting to get slammed.” She gives me a warm smile, but I definitely see therelief in her eyes from having someone else to help run the counter now. “Also, happy birthday!”
She wraps her arms around me in a bear hug, pinning my arms to my side. These are the moments that remind me why I love working with my best friend, just like our grandmas did right here. It’s something I’ve always dreamed of and never want to give up. It may not be a fancy, high paying career, and I don’t have equity in the business like Monica and her family, but I love it. This place makes me feel connected to the town and my grandma like no place else. After her house was sold, it feels like this is the last real connection I have to her. Working here, with Monica, just feels like what I’m supposed to be doing.
“Thanks, Mon,” I say and she finally releases me.
“You ready to get started?”
I nod as a sound from across the coffee shop cuts through the air. That laugh—so warm and genuine—is one that I would know anywhere. I gave up trying to ignore the feelings it stirs up years ago. I just wish it was coming from anyone other than Sutton Sterling.
I look across the room, already knowing exactly what I will see. My damn traitorous dog is on top of Sutton and those two are playing like they’re best friends.
If I didn’t already know who Sutton was, I’d probably give into the butterflies in my stomach, because seeing my dog with a man that handsome does things to me. Instead, it just reminds me of the one thing in Jackson I wish I didn’t have to see nearly every day.
So I do what I always do when I see him—pretend he doesn’t exist.
I lockthe front door of the shop and flip the closed sign over. The day might have gotten off to a rough start, but Monica and I survived like we always do.
At the counter, she hangs her apron up and takes a sip from her water bottle. “Ready for birthday drinks at Bridger’s?”
I walk over and lean against the counter across from her. “Yeah, but only one. I still have to drive all the way back to Rodgers tonight.”
“You could crash at my place. You know you and Felix are always welcome.” Her voice trails up into a plea. “It’s been forever since we’ve had a proper girls night out.”
I bob my head side to side, mulling it over. Felix is still over on the chair where Sutton was this morning and looks so cozy. He flexes his paws in front of his snoot and I see him let out a sigh. Clearly the dreary weather has worn him out too. What kind of dog mom would I be if I cooped him up in the car for another long drive home?
I tap my painted black nails to my chin. “OK. You win.”
She clasps her hands together and squeals. “Great. I’ll let Jason know to get the couch ready for you tonight.”
“Just let me finish cleaning up. I should be ready in a few.”
I grab the carafes of milk and creamer off the counter and put them in the fridge. Kneeling down, I’m tidying up the fridge shelves when I notice a small white box inside.
“Mon!” I call back toward the kitchen. “What’s this?”
She pops her head around the corner and sees me holding the carryout box that I know isn’t ours. She gnaws on her cheek and smirks.