A Guide to Being Just Friends(17)
The woman gave a happy laugh, making her ponytail bounce when she nodded. “We do like our veggies and smoothies. I’m Jaycee, by the way. I think you’ll probably see me again. Do you have a loyalty reward card or anything?”
Wes’s slightly know-it-all voice rang in her head. Yeah, yeah, she needed to do that. “I’m Hailey, and not yet but I’m working on it. How about today I just knock off the price of a salad?”
“Awesome.” Jaycee’s phone beeped and drew her attention even as the bell rang over the door.
She recognized Noah and his laughing eyes. He was followed by Chris, who had slightly lighter hair and a more serious smile. Wes was behind him and her heart did a happy little skip. She told herself it was the same one as when she saw Piper. Having friends stop by felt good.
She smiled and waved as he came through the door. “Hey, guys!”
They waved. Wes had a shy, slightly awkward smile that she found appealing. Platonically speaking. Because there was no other category for her right now. Even if there was, she didn’t want a checklist, ideas man. She’d had enough of that with Dorian. You should wear the blue dress, it goes with what I’m wearing. You shouldn’t wear those sunglasses; they’re too big for your face. You should separate my laundry from yours. My clothes are more expensive.
The guys said something to Wes that made his gaze narrow as they made their way to a table.
“I think a couple of them work out at my gym,” Jaycee said.
It was hard to see Wes as a gym rat but she’d proven she didn’t always get the best read on people. If he did go, it probably wasn’t for yoga.
“I’ve become addicted to the cake next door, so maybe I should work out at your gym,” Hailey said, finishing up the Landslides.
Jaycee dug around in her purse, then slid a card over the counter. “Here’s a free pass if you want to try it.”
As Hailey accepted it, an idea whirled in her brain. She thought about what Tara had said about joining forces with other shops, but what if she could branch out farther than the square? She should talk to Piper and see what she thought.
“Thanks. I just might do that.”
Jaycee left with a bag full of salads and Hailey got a satisfying thrill out of ringing up her order. She’d planned to go to the table and ask the guys what they wanted but they approached the counter.
“Hey,” she said, meeting Wes’s gaze.
“Hey. That was a lot of salad.” He gestured with his thumb toward the door.
“It was. Every day gets better.”
“You remember Noah and Chris. Guys, you remember Hailey…” he trailed off.
“Sharp,” she said. “I guess we didn’t exchange last names. Though, I know yours.”
Noah—his eyes crinkling—started to say something but Wes elbowed him in the ribs. Hailey laughed.
Wes pointed to Noah. “Try to ignore most of what he says.”
Noah bounced his eyebrows. “It’s nice to see you again, Hailey. Sorry my brothers don’t know how to behave.”
“I’m regretting bringing you both here,” Wes said, shaking his head. He rubbed a hand over his smooth jaw—did he ever let just a hint of stubble grow? She bet it’d look good on him.
“Well, I’m thrilled he brought you, and I had a customer order a BLT cup with no lettuce or tomato today so you won’t ring any bells for strangest order.”
“They wanted just a cup of bacon?” Noah’s smile was charming and bright.
She nodded. “Yup. And dressing of course. Wanna guess what kind?”
Wes’s smile increased in tiny degrees. “Ketchup?”
Scrunching her face, she pointed at him. “Yes! How did you know that?”
Chris clapped Wes on the back. “Big fan of ketchup and bacon sandwiches right here.”
She couldn’t stop herself from making an “ew” face. “I’m sorry. To each their own. Totally legit. I dip fries in ice cream.”
“That’s actually pretty good. Gracie, my girlfriend, introduced me to that,” Noah said, scanning the menu.
“Everly loves peanut butter and bananas together,” Chris said. His smile was warm and when he said her name, his tone softened.
“Peanut butter and banana isn’t a weird combination,” Wes said, looking at his brother.
“It’s gross, like ketchup and bacon.” Chris looked up at the menu. “Let’s order so Hailey doesn’t unfriend you.”
She laughed the whole time she made their salads—a Mexi Cup, which was turning out to be one of her most popular—an SV Supreme, a combination of lettuces, julienned vegetables, chicken, turkey, and tuna, and, for Wes, a Fruit Fetish, which the guys teased him for ordering. She informed them that the mixture of berries, mango, Greek yogurt, slivered cinnamon-glazed almonds, chia seeds, and a drizzle of honey would make them jealous.
“I’ll bring it out,” she said as she accepted the payment from Chris. Apparently, it was his turn.
She’d always wondered what it would be like to have siblings. Close ones, like these three. She’d had her books and loved falling into any young adult or adult romance she could but it wasn’t the same. Growing up, Piper was the closest thing she had to a sibling and she usually only got to see her during school breaks. Her parents hadn’t wanted children and though they loved her, they loved their marriage and alone time more. She spent most summers with Piper’s family. At the time, she’d felt lucky. But looking back, she wondered why they hadn’t missed her. Why hadn’t they wanted to make memories with her? It made her heart twitch uncomfortably so she tried not to spend a lot of time thinking about it. Or them.