Betwixt Two Hearts (Crossroads Collection)

by Amanda Tru

  Her contribution to this collection, Whole Latte Love, is about seeing ourselves the way the Lord does—as a precious child of the Most High—and not as others see us. No one knows our innermost being better than our Father. When best friends Drew and Addi are matched up by Betwixt Two Hearts, they need to overcome self-doubt and past hurts and just believe that truth.

  See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

  1 John 3:1-2

  I think you’ll be blessed by Whole Latte Love. It’s a fun story with profound spiritual truths that will stay with you long after you finish reading it.

  Author of The Swedehearts Glory Quilt

  a novella by

  Copyright Notice

  Whole Latte Love, original copyright © 2019 by Kari Trumbo

  All rights reserved. This book is a work of fiction. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or recording—without express written permission by the authors and publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed or broadcasted articles and reviews.

  Each book in this collection is the intellectual property and the copyrighted material of the respective author and/or publisher and is reprinted as a part of this collection (anthology) only once and only by permission of the owners. The publisher makes no claim on, or to, the property of the owners which exceeds that permission. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the authors’ imagination or intended to be used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, organizations, places, or persons living or dead is purely coincidental and beyond the intention of either the authors or the publisher. The characters are products of the authors’ imaginations and used fictitiously.

  Addi Merrick had spent her life waiting for him to show up, or so it seemed. For months he’d come in every day The Bean was open. Mr. Dependable. Not that he’d ever really noticed her. Oh, he requested she make his coffee, but he never talked to her beyond a hello and a thank you. He only had eyes for her boss, Kaylie.

  Addie froze in her spot by the table where she watched for him. The gray cement floor gleamed with a polish that accented the rustic, rough wood walls and booths of The Bean on Main. Two of the corners boasted comfortable seating arrangements, and one corner even had a fireplace, not that they usually needed it in Texas. Her spot created the perfect vantage point to watch him come around the corner and into the little shop he used as his morning office.

  Perfectly on time, he swept inside with a burst of cool Texas winter air, the scent of cloves, and a smile… directed at her boss. Kaylie gave him a face that resembled a baby tasting peas for the first time, then turned her attention to Addi, giving her the I’m going to be in back look. She shoved away from her spot at the till and rushed through the swinging door to the small storage area and lounge at the back of the coffee shop.

  Drew set his laptop at his usual window booth, then hung his front-zip sweater on the peg she’d come to think of as his. Tall and lanky, he never seemed to put forth much effort in reaching for anything. He was always the same, yet took her breath away every single day.

  “Can I get you your usual, Drew?” She ventured from her spot across the room where she’d been wiping off a perfectly clean table. It hadn’t even been used yet that day, but he wouldn’t know that. Always kind and warm, he treated her nicely, just not with any affection or even friendliness. She could feel his lack of interest with every interaction. It didn’t stop her from hoping. One day he might just notice her.

  “Sure, thanks. Must have been Kaylie’s break time? Guess I’m later than I thought.” He strode back over to his seat, his fitted maroon, button-down shirt hugging his frame. The sun shone through the window, gleaming on his dark hair and beard for just a moment as he settled into his spot.

  “Yeah.” It wasn’t actually Kaylie’s break, but she couldn’t tell a customer, especially not this customer, that her boss would rather have her teeth pulled than to socialize with him. “She had a long morning, so she took her break a little early. But I’m happy to help you.” If she made her voice sound chipper, she might force her mood in that direction. It wasn’t fair. She was always the buddy, the friend, the confidante, never the girlfriend. Never the main attraction. Sidekick syndrome, all the way.

  He nodded and didn’t give her another glance that she could see. He soon opened his computer and clicked various keys, happily ignoring her.

  Addi made his coffee—which wasn’t even on their menu—a straight-up black coffee with a hint of mint, and brought it over to his table. He gently removed the lid she’d just put on it and took a deep sniff, closing his eyes. “I needed this, thanks. Now, time to work.” He opened his eyes long enough to hit her with their deep-blue depths, then flicked his attention back to his laptop, her cue to leave.

  She took one step back, then another, her face getting hotter by the second. Why couldn’t she act like a normal person around Drew? “I’m, um, just going to be in the back for a minute. If you need anything—,” She tripped over her own foot and gasped. “Bye.”

  He flicked her a glance as she spun and raced from the room. The swinging door hit her in the rear as she made her escape. “If you need anything— Bye?” she mumbled. “I’m so stupid.”

  Kaylie rolled her eyes. “Why do you let yourself get so flustered over him? It’s just Drew. He’s more annoying than anything.” She crossed her arms and legs in an abrupt movement from where she sat on the checkered couch she’d picked up from Goodwill.

  Addi flinched at Kaylie’s assessment. “Says you. You go out all the time. I never do.” Though her hands weren’t dirty, she wiped them on the towel hanging near the washstand by the door. Drew always made her so nervous her palms got sweaty.

  “Yeah, says me. He’s asked me out twice because the first no wasn’t enough.” Kaylie’s head slid back and forth to accent every word, and each one lodged deeper in Addi’s wounded heart.

  “Good for you. He’s a nice guy. You don’t need to be mean.” Not to Drew, or her.

  “I’m not. I’ve got someone. I don’t need him asking me out all the time. It’s weird. Is he coming in here every day to stalk me or something?”

  Addi had hoped she was part of the reason he kept coming in, but it couldn’t be true. He rarely gave her a second glance and never really talked to her. Certainly not like he tried to engage Kaylie. “I really don’t think he’s the stalker type. He looks more metro bus than van by the river.”

  Kaylie rolled her eyes again. “If you like him so much, you go out there. Make yourself available. Wouldn’t hurt to get your hair done or maybe wear some makeup.” She gestured to Addi’s leggings and belted shirtdress, then sighed. “Never mind. You probably wouldn’t even know what to look for. I’ll be back in for the lunch rush. You’ve got the floor. I’m going home.” She stood, flung off her apron and tossed it on the couch, then grabbed her purse. “He needs to find a new coffee shop. Seriously.”

  If he did, Addi would never see him again. Even though he didn’t care for her, she cared about him and wanted to know him more. She’d lose that chance. “But he likes this one. We cater to him.” Addi bit her lip, but the words couldn’t be taken back.

  Kaylie’s eyes lit up, and she gave her first genuine smile since Drew had walked in. “Perfect. I’ll stop ordering the mint, and he’ll stop coming in. Problem solved.” She swung out the back door and let it slam.

  Drew Tanner stared at his screen and tried to type up a proposal for a new client. He was a freelance marketing consultant, and The Bean on Main provided a perfect place to get work done. Finding new ways for businesses to interact with the public and attract attention was
his specialty, but not when he couldn’t focus.

  Kaylie had intentionally avoided him since he’d asked her out for the second time the week before. He hadn’t even planned to do it, but she’d been smiley for a change, joking with him. It had just come out. Kaylie’s coworker, Addi, had looked mortified, but not as much as Kaylie herself. He didn’t stand a chance. She acted and looked so different from the last woman he’d dated, so out of his league. Different from the woman who walked away. That had to make her better, more his type, didn’t it?

  The door swung open, and he hoped to see Kaylie coming off her break, but Addi came through instead. He sighed, unable to contain it. Addi was nice but too soft-spoken, too girl-next-door, too much like Lauren. So, she had to be wrong for him. Wrong in every way. Sometimes, he couldn’t even stand to look at her, because she acted too much like what he’d lost.

  Addi had soft, brown hair that she always tied back in a tail with the end stuck in the ponytail holder to form a loop. Her casual clothes always fit nicely but didn’t scream for attention. In fact, none of her screamed for attention. He jumped as she slid into the booth across from him. He hadn’t even seen her coming, and she’d never done anything like that before.

  “Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. Can I get you a refill on your coffee?” Her warm, brown eyes smiled at him, yet her face remained placid as usual.

  He glanced down at his coffee, still full and steaming. “I’m good. Thanks.” She seemed nervous, but she had no reason to be. “Is everything all right?” He’d never seen her sit with patrons and definitely not him. He’d done his best to keep her just the barista who made the perfect coffee. Sliding into his booth was too much like a friend, and that’s just how Lauren had started.

  Addi rubbed her arms against the cool air seeping through the nearby window. “I’m just not used to handling the whole shop alone. Kaylie had to run some errands and won’t be back for a few hours.”

  He always hoped to get a word or two with Kaylie, but that wouldn’t happen if she’d left. He often only stayed until lunch, so he didn’t take up a table during their rush. “Oh, I’m sure you’ll do fine.” He closed his laptop. He had no reason to stay if he couldn’t see her.

  “You’re leaving?” Addi’s eyes widened. “But you never leave this early.”

  He popped the lid back onto his coffee, surprised she kept track of when he usually left. “Well, I really do hate the quiet of my apartment, but even your shop is a little too quiet for my taste today.”

  She drummed her fingers on the table and searched out the window, then gazed at him, not that it lingered. “You doing anything for Christmas?”

  He had half a mind to lie and tell her he didn’t believe in Christmas, but that would be mean, and she’d never been anything but kind to him. Just like Lauren, right up until she walked out of his life, leaving him to explain to their wedding guests why there would be no wedding. He swallowed the memory back. One day he’d even throw out the suit he’d bought for that day. No other man he knew bought a suit for their wedding, but he had because he and Lauren had planned to renew their vows every five years and try to do as many of those in the same clothes as possible.

  “I,” He paused to consider his words, “don’t really celebrate.” He slipped his laptop into its case and stood to get his sweater. He turned to avoid Addi’s brown-eyed stare as he slid his arms into his sleeves. Small talk wouldn’t get his proposal written. He shouldn’t feel like a jerk for leaving a coffee shop, but he did. Addi might be exactly like Lauren, or nothing at all like her, but he wasn’t willing to find out.

  “Well, see you tomorrow, then.” She wiped down his table, though he’d left nothing on it, and turned to head to the till.

  He followed as he pulled out his wallet. Coffee every day, a luxury he couldn’t live without. He handed her the money and waited for her to make change, then dropped a few coins in the tip jar. “I’m sure you’ll do just fine on your own.”

  Her jaw stiffened slightly, and she nodded. “I’ve managed so far.”

  It struck him as the first thing they had in common; so far, he’d managed just fine alone, too.

  Christmas parties were the worst. Addi caught a glimpse of her light-up, ugly Christmas sweater in the mirror that ran along the whole back wall of the gilded ballroom. The deep-red, flat-weave carpet clashed with the bright red of her sweater, not that she’d ever witnessed a single piece of clothing in the entire world that wouldn’t clash with it. Kaylie had asked everyone from all three of her locations to wear ugly sweaters, but, as Addi glanced around the room, the only ugly sweater belonged to her. Now, she looked like a fool amid the nicely dressed guests.

  She knew no one else at the party besides her boss, who made her way around the room to each little group of people, smiling and laughing loudly. Her current date, Julien, hid behind a huge potted fern with one of the girls from Kaylie’s uptown location. Uptown would give Kaylie a run for her money in style, and apparently in her taste in boyfriends as well.

  If Kaylie’s trajectory stayed true, she would miss the scene playing out for all of her employees. If she shifted just a bit, she might catch him, though Kaylie could be somewhat oblivious. Either way, she wouldn’t make it to Addi for a while because Kalie always dealt with her last, and if she took about five minutes per group, she would barely have time left to talk to Addi before the party ended. She should’ve just stayed home. Kaylie acted like a friend, sort of. She talked to Addi at work when it suited her. But when it came down to it, Kaylie wouldn’t give Addi the time of day, even at a work party.

  Addi turned off the blinking lights on her sweater just as Julien emerged from the other side of the plant, his paramour tagging along behind, tugging her skirt down slightly. The side of his mouth bore a grotesque pink slash of bright metallic lipstick. Kaylie froze in the middle of her obnoxiously loud giggling when she realized just what had happened right in front of all her employees. She strode to him, grabbed him by the tie, and dragged him over to the wall.

  Everyone in the room backed away and tried to look busy, glancing away from the scene or suddenly worried about their clothes. As Addi swept over the room with a quick glance, everyone surreptitiously watched Kaylie with varying degrees of interest. Uptown lady made a beeline for the door, grabbed her shawl, and disappeared through the large doors. Kaylie’s voice rose as she blasted Julien for embarrassing her in front of everyone. He dodged out from behind her and loosened his tie as he, too, made for the door.

  Part of her wanted to feel sorry for Kaylie, but she attracted people who used others because that’s how she, herself, treated people. Kaylie strode to the center of the room and crossed her arms. “I think that about wraps it up. Hope you have a great holiday.” By the end, she could barely be heard over her angry huffs. The sarcasm dripped from her words.

  A few people made a mad rush for the door; others gave Kaylie guilty glances, but left. After just a few minutes, Addi and Kaylie were the only people left, not that she wanted to stay. If she wanted Kaylie as a friend, she had to treat her like one, and that meant being there for her when she was down. As far as she could tell, Kaylie didn’t have any real friends, so she prayed Kaylie wouldn’t verbally slap her like she’d done with Drew.

  “Want to come to my apartment and talk about it? I’ve got rocky road.” Addi never knew what to do with her hands, so she held on to her elbows and felt like a turtle in the desert. She rarely invited anyone to her place, but Kaylie needed a friend. Unfortunately for her, she’d have to settle for Addi.

  Kaylie scowled at her; her ice-blue minidress matching her cold eyes perfectly. “Rocky road? You think ice cream is going to make me feel better? Do you have any idea how good he was for me?” She wiped under her eyes, but neither her mascara nor her eyeliner budged an inch.

  “Maybe. Have you ever tried it?” Addi headed slowly for the door and the two remaining coats hanging on the rack. Kaylie followed a few steps behind.

  “No. I guess
I never saw the point. Nothing has ever been solved over a pint of ice cream.” She yanked her tiny fur shrug off the hanger.

  “That’s why I don’t do pints. I do gallons.” Addi laughed, but her boss just rolled her eyes.

  “Okay, what other option do I have? I planned to be here late into the night, then Julien was supposed to take me out. He certainly can’t now.”

  As always, she was the last resort. Addi mentally kicked herself for the pity party. Kaylie had just gone through a nasty and very public breakup. She had a right to feel angry and hurt.

  “We’ll talk, eat ice cream, and make a plan.”

  Kaylie narrowed her eyes and took her handbag from the top of the rack. “Plan?”

  “Yes, what to do about tomorrow when you have to go to work.”

  She couldn’t fire the girl; it wasn’t legal. But Kaylie would have to be prepared to deal with her, assuming Uptown didn’t quit.

  “I don’t ever work in that location. I have a manager over there. I do payroll and deal with out-of-hand issues, which are rare.” Kaylie waved a jeweled hand. “I suppose I should thank her. If he did that at my own Christmas party, what was he doing behind my back?” This time her jaw quivered just slightly. Perhaps the woman Addi had always assumed was made of ice, actually had a heart. Maybe Drew saw her deeper than Addi had.

  Addi slipped her coat over her arm. She’d planned for cooler evening weather, but it hadn’t grown late enough to be cold. The horrible sweater made it too warm to wear both. “Good. I’ll lead the way.” She opened the door and held it for her boss.

  “No, you’ll give me your address. I’ll drive.”

  She hadn’t even been in a car in a long time, and she smiled, despite the state of affairs. A terrible situation could be turned to good. She could make Kaylie a friend yet.