Free Midnight Run by Charity Hillis

girl. I
knew you’d be a natural at this.”
    Nora wasn’t so sure, but she didn’t want to
contradict him. Besides, it hadn’t been that bad. What could
possibly go wrong without Todd?
    Plenty, it turned out.
    First, her key got stuck in the lock when she
got there to open up, and she didn’t get inside for fifteen
minutes. By the time Laurel sauntered in an hour after the store
opened, Nora was covered in espresso, the floor behind the counter
was slick with melted ice, and a line of angry customers stretched
to the door.
    “Weren’t you scheduled to open?” Nora asked,
catching herself narrowly from wiping out on the floor as she
turned from the counter back to the register.
    Laurel shrugged. “I figured you could handle
it. Besides,” she added lowering her voice as she tied her apron
on, “what are you going to about it?”
    Nora gaped at her for a moment. Was Laurel
seriously testing her like this? “Nothing, right now. Can you grab
register and I’ll keep making the drinks?”
    Laurel looked like she wanted to argue, but
finally she shrugged and dropped it.
    Nora quietly fumed as she made the drinks,
wondering why Laurel had decided to act like such a bitch. She’s
always been that way , Nora realized. Ever since my first day
here. She’d never known why, and she’d always been too shy to
ask. But now that Nora was assistant manager, she didn’t want to
put up with it any more.
    Laurel’s laugh cut through Nora’s thoughts,
and she glanced back at the register. Her heart almost stopped when
she saw Kingston standing there looking at Laurel with a wide smile
on his face. Nora hadn’t been back to the running group since the
steamy cool down and even hotter dream, and her palms started to
sweat seeing him again. Would he recognize her now? And do I
even want him to?
    When Laurel called his order over her
shoulder, Nora busied herself with the espresso machine, trying not
to notice the way Laurel was flirting with the handsome Texan. The
girl was practically laying on the register, thrusting her chest
toward him like some ridiculous bird performing a mating dance, and
Nora bit her lip. Surely he isn’t the kind of guy who wanted a
girl to throw herself at him, is he?
    Finally, another customer coughed loudly, and
Kingston gave the man an apologetic smile before moving down the
counter. Nora smiled at him when she handed him his drink, but her
hand was shaking.
    Kingston grinned down at her. “Thanks, hon!
Haven’t seen you for a few days.”
    Does he mean here at the shop, or
running? “New shift,” she finally said, playing it safe. “I got
promoted to assistant manager.”
    His perfect smile stretched even wider.
“That’s wonderful! Congratulations!”
    She beamed at him. “Thank you. It’s only my
second day,” she admitted, “and I’ve got a lot to learn.”
    He waved his hand. “You look like you’re
doing a mighty fine job to me.”
    Laurel called down the next order, and Nora
wished for a moment that she could freeze time and just stand there
smiling at Kingston, watching him smile at her. “Thanks,” she
offered, pushing her glasses up her nose. “I’m trying.”
    He winked. “Keep it up, hon.” With a wave, he
headed back out into the city, and Nora stared after him for a
moment, watching his broad shoulders. When Laurel called down the
same order again, with an edge to her voice this time, Nora gave
herself a mental shake and got back to work, but her brain kept
turning their encounter over and over. Did he realize she was in
the running group? He’d seemed happy to see her, almost like he
knew her, but maybe that was just the way he was with everybody.
Nora worried it to death, and by the time she went off shift, she’d
pretty much forgotten about Laurel’s power play that morning, but
she was no closer to an answer about Kingston than she had been
when she’d been at work. There’s only one way to tell, she
mused. No matter how tired I am, I better lace up my