***  

The next morning, I still hadn’t heard from Harlow at eleven o’clock so I picked up the phone and called her.

“Sorry, I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had time to scratch myself,” she answered the phone in a flap.  It brought a smile to my face; couldn’t tell you why, but it did.

“All good.  But I need the fridge details so I can get that organised for you.”

“I’ve got a line that’s six customers deep.  Can I text you the info once I get through them?”

“Sure.  And once I know what’s happening, I’ll let you know,” I said and hung up.  I put the phone down and leant back in my seat thinking about her.  I’d actually been thinking about her all last night and most of this morning.  Fuck, I’d been waiting for her call.  Not my finest moment; waiting for a woman to call me.  I wasn’t sure what it was about Harlow that put her in my thoughts so often but I suspected it was how different she was to every other woman I’d ever met.  Being VP of Storm, I’d had my share of women who just wanted in on the club.  They were an easy lay; there was no challenge there.  In fact, there was never any challenge from any of them.  Harlow was the opposite; she’d questioned me repeatedly.  It annoyed the shit out of me, and yet, at the same time, it turned me the fuck on.  I wanted more of her sassy mouth.

***

At three o’clock I parked my bike outside her café.  I’d organised the fridge delivery and even though there was no need for me to be, I found myself here for it.  I stood outside for a couple of minutes assessing the outside of the café.  The outside needed some work; a lick of paint and some new signs wouldn’t go astray.  I pushed through the front door and was hit by the country feel they had going on; red and white checkered tablecloths and other random country knick knacks were impossible to miss.  It seemed out of place in the middle of Brisbane.

My eyes landed on Harlow who was bending over sweeping dirt up.  Fuck, she had an amazing ass and I couldn’t pull my gaze away.  I planted my feet wide and crossed my arms across my chest, enjoying the view.  She was wearing those tight jeans again and when she finally stood up straight and turned around, I sucked in a breath at the tight as sin red strapless top she had on.  Christ, my dick jerked to attention at that.

She was momentarily caught off guard by my presence but quickly recovered, throwing a smile in my direction.  “What are you doing here?”

“Came to make sure the fridge arrives okay.”

“Thanks, I appreciate that.”  She walked away from me, towards the counter, and my eyes were trained to her ass again.

The sound of kids coming through the front door pulled me away from what I was doing.  Harlow’s face lit up and she greeted the kids.  “Hey, you two!  Time for some red velvet cake?”

Their mother laughed and nodded.  “Yeah, they’ve been hanging out to come and see you and also to have some cake.  But mostly to see you.”

Harlow indicated to a seat in the front window.  “Take a seat and I’ll bring cake and milkshakes for you.”  She looked at me, her face flushed with delight, and said, “Do you want some cake while you wait?”

Not what I’d been expecting but fuck, I never knocked cake back.  “Sure, thanks.”

She flashed me a brilliant smile and said, “Great!  Grab a seat, I won’t be long.”

I did what she said and waited for my cake while I watched her interact with the kids.  She was a natural with them and I found myself wondering why Lisa couldn’t have been blessed with a mother like her; a woman who genuinely loved being with children and gave them her full attention.  While I was waiting, an older woman came out from the back area.  She looked so much like Harlow that I knew she had to be her mother.

She came over to where I was sitting.  “You must be Scott.”  She smiled at me.

“I am.  What was the dead giveaway?”

Now she laughed.  “Could have been the tattoos, or the boots but it was probably the cut you’re wearing.”  She winked at me.  I liked this woman straight away and that was something that rarely happened.

“Harlow hasn’t told me your name.”

She extended her hand and shook mine.  “I’m Cheryl.  Nice to meet you.  And thank you for what you’ve done for me with the fridge.”

“Good to meet you too, Cheryl.  As I said to Harlow, you can’t run a café without the right equipment.  Happy to help where I can.”

Harlow interrupted us at that moment when she called across the room.  “Mum, can you get Scott some red velvet cake please?”

Cheryl smiled and nodded.  “Absolutely.  You want a coffee too?  Or another drink?”

“Coffee would be good, thanks.”

“Coming right up,” she promised and left to go and make it.

I sat watching Harlow again after her mother left and didn’t realise that the time had passed when Cheryl came back to the table with cake and coffee.  She actually had two coffees in her hand, and when she sat at the table with me, I realised she was settling in for a chat.

“Why do I get the impression this is going to be a heart to heart?”

“You’re a very intuitive man, Scott.  And you’re a man who my daughter hasn’t stopped talking about for the past couple of days so I want to take this opportunity to find out why.”