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The bell above the door jingled softly as it swung open and closed. Normally, Louise would’ve been at the ready, menu in hand, the Burger of the Day on her lips. But they hadn’t even opened yet, and she had a tingling suspicion about who had just entered the restaurant. She glanced up from her clipboard and scoffed.
“Who forgot to take out the trash?”
The trash, aka Logan Bush, paused mid-step, one eyebrow cocked. He tsked, shaking his head in mock disapproval. “Now, now, Four Ears, is that any way to greet someone delivering a morning sweet treat?”
Louise gave him a once-over despite herself, muttering a silent curse. He looked annoyingly good today. His signature blonde hair, a touch darker with age, was styled in that aggravatingly perfect messy way. The deep maroon button-up, sleeves rolled to the elbows, wasn’t helping either—especially since he’d started doing it after she drunkenly admitted it made him look hot. And those jeans. Damn those jeans.
What an asshole.
Her gaze landed on the two coffees in his hands, one of them undoubtedly her beloved caramel iced coffee. Her mouth watered, but she refused to show it and let him think he had a leg up on her. Crossing her arms, she tilted her chin up.
“And what will I have to do in exchange for this so-called sweet treat?”
Logan leaned against the counter, close enough to invade her personal space despite the barrier between them. His height was unfair, his smirk unbearable.
“How about a kiss?”
Louise wrinkled her nose and pretended to gag, an Oscar-worthy overreaction to disguise the warm, syrupy feeling pooling in her stomach. “You’re such a sap.”
“Maybe,” he said, shrugging, “but now that I’ve worn you down, I’m your sap.”
“Fine,” she huffed. “I’ll play your little game. Now, hand over the coffee.”
She reached for the cup, but Logan held it just out of reach, lifting it above his head with a smug grin. Louise jumped once, only to fail miserably without coming even somewhat close to the drink.
“Payment first,” he said, his grin widening.
Louise’s eyes narrowed as she grabbed his collar, yanking him down for a sweet, chaste kiss. His lips, warm and unfairly familiar, teased hers with the ease of someone who knew exactly how to unravel her.
Logan smirked against her mouth, and before she could pull back, his hand slid to the nape of her neck, fingers tangling in her hair. The kiss deepened, igniting into something far hotter than she’d planned. His lips coaxed hers open, and when his teeth scraped lightly over her bottom lip, a shiver ran down her spine.
She answered with a playful bite of her own, her pulse quickening as his grip tightened. Sparks erupted, spreading like wildfire through her veins.
The hard edge of the counter dug into her stomach, abruptly yanking her back to reality. She broke the kiss with a shove to his chest, her breath uneven as she glared up at him. The last thing she wanted was for her parents to walk in on her making out with her arch nemesis, even if he was her boyfriend.
“Enough,” she hissed, glaring. “This is a family establishment.”
Logan, unbothered, handed over her coffee with a triumphant smirk. “The payment didn’t go through. Should we try again?”
She snatched the drink from his grip. “Don’t you have somewhere else to be? Like, I don’t know, your job ? Go bother someone else.”
“I’ll miss you too, Four Ears.”
With a wink Logan strutted out of the restaurant, but not before running into Bob and Linda as they both walked through the door, Linda singing an unknown tune as always. He gave them his schmooziest smile, told Linda how beautiful her singing was, and disappeared from view.
Bob turned to Louise with a puzzled expression while he put on his apron for the day. “What was Logan doing here so early? Doesn’t he usually come around lunchtime? And why would you let him in?”
Louise sipped her disgustingly sweet coffee, masking her smirk. “Bribery. He thinks it’s working. Don’t worry, it’s not.”
Linda hummed her way up to the register before covering her heart with her hands. “He is such a sweet boy, that Logan. Always is so polite and he loves my singing! Can you believe it? Grew up to be nothin’ like his mother.”
Louise picked up the inventory clipboard to continue the task that Logan had so rudely interrupted. “You know he’s just schmoozing you to get you to like him, Mom. He’s a sleazy kiss ass.”
Her mother completely ignored Louise’s comment and continued on while prepping for the day. “Oh, and he has become quite the looker, dontcha think?”
“If you’re into faces that look like Halloween masks, then sure.”
“Plus, the way he looks at you every time he comes in! You should try asking him out sometime.”
Louise stilled, glancing up from the clipboard. Beside her, Bob also froze in place before he frantically began to shake his head at Linda, who looked like a deer caught in the headlights.
Normally, Louise was good at picking up on social cues. Much better than Tina, at least. But right now? She had no clue why her parents were acting so weird. “What do you mean?”
Her mother began laughing nervously and wringing her hands, eyes darting side to side. “Hah, I mean, whaaat? Who said anything about asking him out! That would be so silly, wouldn’t it? Logan and his--his weird face.”
Lousie frowned. “I mean, I totally agree that his face is weird, but I don’t get why you guys are acting like this. It’s not like we’re not already together.”
Bob and Linda both went quiet for a moment before bursting out in simultaneous laughter. After several long moments of laughter, Bob wiped at his eyes and her mom bumped Louise with her hip playfully. “That was a good one, Louise. Way to get back at me for thinking you two should go out.”
Her parents began to move towards the kitchen, but Louise darted ahead of them and blocked their path before they could go any further. “Wait wait wait wait, wait a second. As gross as it is, you guys do know we’re dating, right?” The word tasted horrible in her mouth, but she had to be blunt. After all, her parents did not seem to understand what was going on.
Linda poked Louise’s arm. “Okay okay, we get it, Louise. I won’t make jokes about you and Logan again.”
Bob nodded, holding his hand up in an attempt at Scout’s honor. “I’ll make sure your mom doesn’t joke about that again. We got it, it was too far.”
Okay, Louise had to be going insane, right? She had told her family about Logan a couple of months ago. They had asked questions about him, hadn’t they?
She held her ground before her parents could try to escape. “I’m being serious. I told you a while ago, I’m actually dating Logan.” How many times would she have to say that for them to get it??? The words tasted worse each time.
Bob snorted. “Sure, Louise. Like you would be dating your arch nemesis. You two have hated each other since you were little, and that certainly didn’t change when Logan came back to town.”
It certainly hadn’t changed when Logan first waltzed into the restaurant after so many years, smug and cocky and actually hot. Sure, they picked up their rivalry immediately, but something something fine line between love and hate, or whatever that saying was. The first couple of months they kept things between themselves and only two months ago did Louise feel comfortable telling her family. Which she most certainly did.
The bell above the door jingled again and relief flooded through Louise. Tina and Gene entered, and she knew they would be on her side. They were there when she’d told everyone, after all.
Louise rushed over to her siblings. “Guys, tell Mom and Dad that Logan and I are-- ugh-- dating.”
Tina blinked slowly while Gene gasped with all the drama of a theater kid. “I called it! All those years ago, I called it!”
“What are you talking about, Louise?” Tina asked cautiously.
“I told you guys!” she cried. “Remember??”
Recognition flashed behind Tina’s glasses and she straightened up a bit. “Oh, that prank a couple months ago?”
“Prank? What are you--it wasn’t a prank!”
Linda jumped back into the conversation. “Oh, that’s right! For April Fool’s day, I remember now. You’ve already tried this joke on us, Louise.”
April Fool’s Day?? Had it really been April Fool’s Day when she’d told everyone?
“Mother fuck er,” Louise muttered. “Okay, that had been bad timing, but I’m serious. I was serious back then, too!”
Gene shrugged before taking a seat at the counter. “I dunno, Louise, you certainly don’t talk to him like you’re dating.”
“But that’s exactly our thing, I--” Louise stopped herself before taking a deep breath. Inhale, hold for four seconds, exhale. “Let me show you.” She whipped out her phone and opened up the photos app, scrolling through all her recent pictures…which were only of her dog, Slugodactyl. There were a couple of her siblings, her parents, but most were just of her dog.
Finally, Louise came across one that would hopefully do the trick. “Aha!” she held her phone up in triumph before displaying the picture for everyone, who all crowded around to take a look. “See that person sitting on the other side of the table? Logan.”
“Louise,” Bob began slowly, “this is a picture of a meal from the Wharf.”
“Yeah, and Logan sitting there with me.”
“That’s just a torso.”
“Okay, but it’s obviously Logan, that’s his favorite shirt.”
“Sure Louise,” Tina said in a light tone, reminiscent of her babysitter voice. “We get it now, you’re dating Logan.”
Louise growled and spun on her heel, stomping away. “Quit placating me!”
Never in her life would Louise expect that she had to defend her relationship (ew) with Logan, to her family of all people. Tina and Zeke had literally gone out with them one evening. What did Tina think that was, if not a double date??
Louise furiously pulled up her text chain with Logan and sent one message before tucking her phone away: Come to the restaurant as soon as you can. You’ll receive payment
She spent the rest of the morning stewing in the back, channeling her frustration into every slice of the knife as she diced onions and tomatoes with ruthless precision. On days like this, she was thankful her job involved sharp objects.
The familiar jingle of the doorbell snapped her out of her thoughts. She wiped her hands on her apron and darted to the front, relief flickering across her face when she saw Logan stroll in. For once, she didn’t even try to hide it.
He raised a single eyebrow, his smirk already in place as she rounded the counter toward him. “Miss me that much already?”
Louise glanced over her shoulder, confirming her parents, Gene, and Tina were all watching from their respective spots. Perfect. Turning back to her stupidly smug boyfriend, she grabbed a fistful of his collar, yanking him down with enough force to leave no room for hesitation. Their lips collided, a mix of frustration and passion sparking like a match catching flame.
Logan’s arms snaked around her waist with infuriating ease, pulling her flush to his chests. His lips moved against hers, deliberate and teasing, coaxing her into a rhythm that was somehow both infuriating and addictive.
When he tilted his head, the angle allowed him to deepen the kiss, and she swore she felt him smirk against her mouth. His fingers pressed into the curve of her back, anchoring her in place as her grip on his collar tightened. For a brief moment, the rest of the world dissolved, replaced by the electric charge between them.
It wasn’t until her chest tightened from the lack of air that Louise abruptly pulled back, breaking the connection with a gasp that sounded far too needy for her liking. Logan’s gaze was dark, his breath uneven, and a crooked grin tugged at his lips.
She ignored the way her pulse quickened and spun around to face her family, who were all staring with wide eyes and slack jaws.
“See?” Louise said, her voice a little more breathless than she wanted it to be.
They all stared silently for a few moments, before Bob leaned over to Linda, and said out of the corner of his mouth, “She’s really committing to the bit, isn’t she?”
“ARE YOU SERIOUS.”