LITMIR.BIZ

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a fresh batch of the organic medium roast coffee he wanted.

      “With Grams. She’s helping me with childcare.”

      “That’s nice. The coffee this morning was superb,” he said as he waited. “I admit to being skeptical when I realized someone else was making it for the shop.”

      “You aren’t the only one who was concerned. With two major coffee companies having been founded here, Puget Sound residents are passionate about their brew.”

      “Did your grandmother show you how to make it?”

      Jessica shook her head. “Actually, I’m the one who taught her and Granddad when they decided to put in the coffee corner. I’d been working as a barista, so I kind of knew the ropes.”

      “‘Kind of’ is an understatement.”

      “Thanks. It’s been years since I had that job, so it’s good to know I haven’t lost my touch.” She’d enjoyed being a barista, though there’d always been a few customers each day who thought they were too busy to wait their turn. The main reason she’d looked for another job was her need for a higher income.

      “Did you grow up in the Seattle area?” Logan asked.

      “I visited every summer as a kid, but until moving here last year, I mostly lived in the Washington, DC, region. I saw from your biography on the calendar that you aren’t a Seattle native, either. What is it like, living outside your own country?”

      Logan rested an elbow on the narrow coffee bar. She’d found it at a barn sale a couple of weeks earlier, along with four brass barstools. They’d come from an old bed-and-breakfast inn under renovation. The new setup didn’t take much room, but it helped separate the coffee corner from the rest of the shop and gave customers a place to sit if they wanted.

      “Living abroad can help broaden your view of the world and its people,” Logan explained. “You realize it’s ridiculous to assume that everyone does things the way we do at home.”

      “Conjuring a sense of humility?”

      “In a way, I suppose. Still, it’s easy to slide back into being egocentric. My folks might have been even more successful as diplomats if they’d fully embraced other customs and viewpoints.”

      Jessica was aware that her smile had become strained. “My parents have a similar problem. They know people make different choices than theirs, but usually believe those choices are foolish or wrong.”

      Logan gave her a sympathetic grin. “Including the ones you’ve made yourself?”

      “They would have understood me becoming a high-powered lawyer or going into a corporation and climbing the ranks. Or even if I’d become an actress. But my lack of interest in wealth or fame is a mystery to them. Instead I prefer my grandparents’ way of living. Simplicity, core values and not leaving too big of a footprint on the earth.”

      “An old-fashioned girl, huh?”

      Girl? She cocked her head, wondering if Logan was showing his true colors.

      “I wouldn’t put it that way,” she said casually. “People claim you’re old-fashioned if you choose certain things an earlier generation valued. But there’s nothing new in the world. People have adopted the hedonism of the Romans or the wild antics of the roaring twenties without being called old-fashioned. My parents have a huge amount in common with the robber barons of the nineteenth century, yet everyone calls it the ‘modern’ way.”

      “Good point,” Logan acknowledged.

      The coffee had finished brewing, so she refilled the paper cup he’d brought back from earlier that morning. “Anything else?”

      “No—” He stopped. “That is, not at the moment.”

      Jessica frowned after he left. There had been something unusually intent about how Logan Kensington had watched her. He also seemed to be trying to make a connection. There wasn’t anything creepy about it, but it was enough to make her wonder if he had a hidden agenda.

      At the same time, she was reasonably certain he wasn’t interested in her as a woman.

      Why would he be?

      Logan Kensington was a handsome man who’d photographed some of the most beautiful and sophisticated women in the world. She was a single mom who’d often shopped at yard sales to help make ends meet...just not for Cyndi’s school clothes. Kids could be cruel about that kind of thing and she was fortunate that she could spare her daughter having to deal with it at such a young age. Logan couldn’t possibly understand something like that. If he ever had kids, they’d probably go to private schools and shop at trendy clothing stores.

      Yet it really didn’t matter that he was out of her realm of experience. She’d already made too many mistakes with relationships and wanted to focus on making the shop an even bigger success while raising her daughter. Those were the things that counted.

       CHAPTER TWO

      LOGAN RETURNED TO his office, wondering if he should have initiated the conversation about moving the Crystal Connection. He’d been considering possible openings the entire time he was talking to Jessica. But maybe it was just as well he hadn’t said anything because he still thought searching real estate listings beforehand was a good idea. Also talking with Kevin.

      Oddly, Logan hadn’t been able to reach him after several calls and two voice mail messages suggesting they get together. Being out of contact was unusual for the agency’s former owner.

      The next day an email arrived from Kevin, apologizing that he hadn’t called back and explaining he was away for a few weeks. His daughter had given birth and he was in Chicago to see the baby and help out, possibly the only thing that could have pulled him from anxiously hovering over his friends and former clients. Kevin McClaskey was a classic overachieving nurturer who wanted to help everyone he met.

      Logan sorted through the rental listings he’d compiled. Several were in excellent retail locations, but they had higher rental fees than what Jessica was currently being charged. Surely that would convince her that moving to the rear of the Moonlight Ventures building would be best. That way she’d stay their tenant, expand her retail space, and they could ensure it was well worth her while.

      His gut instinct said he should talk with Kevin in person, but Logan wasn’t in the mood to wait. So that afternoon he tucked the listings in his pocket and headed for the Crystal Connection, hoping to find Jessica alone. Instead, two customers were there, picking up merchandise and examining it carefully, then moving on to something else.

      “Coffee?” Jessica asked.

      “In a while. I’m going to look around.”

      He began peering into various display cases so it wouldn’t be obvious that he was just waiting for the others to leave. The customers spent an inordinate length of time deciding which crystals spoke to them. Jessica was friendly as she dealt with their questions, while impatience welled inside of him.

      “Do you have to endure that very often?” he asked once the couple had departed with their purchases.

      “Excuse me?”

      “I’m talking about that sort of customer. You know, looking at everything and all the discussion about healing properties and whether a crystal is speaking to them. I wouldn’t have the patience to put up with it very often.”

      Her smile grew stiff. “I’m not putting up with anything. That couple has been coming to this shop since I was a kid. They’re good customers, are awfully nice and attended my grandfather’s funeral because they cared about him and my grandmother. But even if this had been their first time through the door, they were fine. I’ve heard people say a certain photograph or painting speaks to them. Why not a rock?”

      Logan could have kicked himself. Despite having

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