Annie didn’t want to admit to herself that she was nervous because Kristin was due to arrive. The success of the Pink Bean in her shop was of crucial importance. If Kristin and Mia didn’t sell enough coffee, they would pack up their coffee machine and move elsewhere. Annie shook off the thought. Mia had told her time and time again that the decision to join forces with Annie’s shop was influenced by much more than purely business. Still, Annie felt like she had to impress.

The door of the shop opened and both Mia and Annie looked up. It was always a guessing game whether the person walking in was after coffee, a book, both, or none.

Annie didn’t need to look at Mia to know a smile was spreading on her lips. Annie smiled too at the sight of Lou.

Lou gave Annie a wave and headed straight for the coffee counter to kiss Mia on the lips. All this young love on display. Annie wasn’t entirely sure how that made her feel. She was happy for Lou, who had suffered a bad breakup in Brisbane, and she and Mia made a great couple. That wasn’t the issue. It was witnessing what the beginning of romance looked like that put her out sometimes. The energy between them was palpable. It had been a long time since Annie had felt that kind of energy buzz through her.

Annie had known Lou for a long time and she wasn’t the type to engage in too much public canoodling. Yet Annie saw her melt under Mia’s smiling gaze. She was still looking at them from her place by the cash register when the door opened again. This time it was Kristin. Annie nearly jumped to her feet, even though that door opened countless times a day and it was hardly the first time Kristin had come in to see how everything was going. Annie was happy Mia and Lou were preoccupied with each other so they hadn’t noticed her reaction.

Having spotted Lou, Kristin headed straight for Annie, and stood at the counter. Just as Mia kissed Annie on the cheek every morning when she arrived, so did Kristin when she bestowed a visit on the second Pink Bean branch. When Mia kissed her hello, Annie didn’t even think about it. It was as automatic an action as actually saying hello. But with Kristin it was different.