No Strings Attached(10)

Was she actually making conversation with Micky after having been so rude to her last week? Micky had seen her come in every day since, but as though luck itself had shone down on her, she’d never had to serve her. And what kind of a question was that? What was wrong with a simple hello, perhaps followed by a quick apology for being such an ass the other day?

Micky fixed her with a stare that, hopefully, said all she had to say. But then she remembered Kristin’s words—delivered in her head in Kristin’s gentle tone of voice. “The customer is always right, even if they’re wrong.” Micky had no choice but to be nice to her.

“Why does a woman of your age work in a place like this?” Robin didn’t let up. She had the kind of voice that, Micky suspected, got a lot of things done.

“Circumstance,” Micky said, but only because she had to answer something.

Not only did Robin order the most ridiculous drink, she was also wearing an insane outfit, she’d been rude to Micky without offering an apology, and the tone she addressed Micky with was hardly convivial. Micky wanted to just get up and leave. This job was supposed to empower her, not have the opposite effect.

“Ha, you’re the mysterious type,” Robin said. “That’s okay. Color me intrigued. Will you at least tell me your name?” She had the audacity to smile seductively at Micky.

Wait. Was that really what that smile looked like?

“It’s Micky.” Micky’s head was about to start spinning.

“Well, Micky, how about tomorrow when I come in, I ask you out? I’m giving you a heads-up because you look like the type who has to think about it for at least twenty-four hours.”

Micky’s jaw slacked. “What?” she managed to say after a few long, awkward seconds.

“Think about it.” Robin winked, then looked away and downed her coffee in a few large gulps. When she got up, she said, “I need to hit the shower and get to work. See you tomorrow.”

Micky was still recovering from what had just happened after Robin was long gone.

✶ ✶ ✶

Micky had needed the yoga class she attended with Amber the previous afternoon more than she’d ever needed it before. She had also needed Amber’s advice—though she could easily predict it.

“It’s a sign,” Amber had said. “Take the opportunity with both hands.”

“But… I can’t stand the woman,” Micky countered, whereupon Amber put her hands on her sides and gave Micky one of her looks.

“I think you can. Give her a chance. Perhaps she’s exactly the kind of person you’re looking for at this time of your life. You like loud, brash people, Micky, we both know that. You’re not looking for someone else to marry at this point, however, and she’s hot.”

Micky shook her head in desperation. Robin asking her out might very well be a sign of something else entirely. Like letting Micky know this was a bad idea and she should get her priorities straight.

Amber grabbed her by the shoulders and said, “Go for it, Micky. I’ll call you when the date is in progress so that, if you need an excuse, you can leave. I’ll pretend to be Olivia.”

Micky did want to go for it, but not with a CrossFitting arrogant woman like Robin. Though, as usual, there was a sliver of truth to Amber’s words when she claimed that Micky liked the type. Unless she had a different taste in women than in men. She had always loved Darren’s loud, look-at-me ways—an aspect of his personality that was beginning to show in Olivia. But at least Darren had never been obnoxious and he was always polite.

Then again, the fact that she was so conflicted about Robin and that she found it surprisingly hard to give her a clear no for an answer, must mean something.

So, by the time Robin entered The Pink Bean—not sporting white knee socks this time, but dressed impeccably in a navy pantsuit over a bright white blouse—and fixed her with a stare, Micky was ready to say yes. Even though she could be making the worst mistake of her life. But then, at least, she would have tried. She would have conquered some of her fear, just by saying one simple word: yes.

Robin drew her lips into a magnetic smile, giving Micky the impression that she was really turning it on for her. Perhaps she had one of those Jekyll & Hyde personalities. It did gnaw at Micky that Robin was the sort of person who could treat service personnel so rudely, without even apologizing for it. Being nice to people, in the end, didn’t cost a thing. Being nasty, as Amber would say, always cost you in karma points and putting negative energy into the universe.

But, more than any of that, Micky had the strong urge to show Robin that she was so much more than a woman working in a coffee shop. Even if whatever she was trying to prove was more to herself than anyone else, she felt as though she could only accomplish that by rising to this challenge. She was skilled at hiding it, except from Amber, but Micky had suffered from issues of decreasing self-esteem since her divorce—an overall sentiment of floating on thin air and not having a clue where her life was going—and, if she was honest, the fact that someone like Robin would be interested in her, was a boost to her ego.