I hadn’t realized I was staring until he unhitched his gaze from the board displaying the menu and turned to look at me. He was absolutely gorgeous. I’d been wrong; his eyes weren’t simply hazel. They had golden flecks too. I broke the eye contact as my turn came. I ordered my usual—cappuccino with whipped cream and caramel topping.

While waiting for my drink, I discovered that I’d developed a wandering eye that was intent on surveying the stranger, cataloging every detail. He joined me in the waiting corner. Now he was close enough that I couldn’t look at him without being obvious. But oh, I could smell him. I recognized the cologne instantly. It wasn’t one of mine, but it was a favorite nonetheless. I concentrated on the sweets display, my mouth almost watering at the sight of the blueberry pancakes. Nope. I’ll be strong today. No pancakes.

Our drinks were placed on the counter at the same time. The stranger reached for his first, but the server must have placed it too close to the edge, because it toppled right over... knocking mine as well. I jumped backward as the hot contents spilled everywhere.

“I'm sorry,” the stranger said. Ah, that voice. Just another tool in his arsenal to make him more irresistible to poor souls like me. “I’ll buy you another one.”

“No need.”

“I insist. I knocked it over.”

A man with manners. Will you look at that?

“Well, if you insist, I won’t say no.”

We went back to the cashier.

“A cappuccino with whipped cream and caramel topping for the lady. And a blueberry pancake,” he said.

I looked at him questioningly. “Why did you order that?”

He gave me a half smile and a wink. “Saw you looking at them earlier.”

I smiled, caught by surprise. I hadn’t felt like smiling all morning. I’d woken up in a frenzy, with my heart in my throat. I’d hoped that sticking to my usual morning routine would keep the nerves about the potential lawsuit at bay. But until this beautiful stranger had made me laugh, my insides had been twisted together like a vine.

“Well, you caught me there. And since you bought it for me, I can’t let it go to waste, can I?”

The stranger gave me a crooked smile. He motioned with his head to one of the empty tables. “Shall we?”

I glanced at the time on my smartphone. “I only have twenty minutes.”

“Plenty of time to drink our coffees and for you to enjoy your pancake. By the way you were looking at it, it wouldn’t last longer than five minutes anyway.”