Espresso Your Love (The Coffee Loft Series: Fall Collection)

14. Ryan

14

Ryan

“Black coffee and a pup cup, please?” I ask the young barista, whom I’ve seen working at Coffee Loft before.

We’re a few hours into the festival, and it’s been smooth sailing on the security side. But we still have several hours so I’m keeping my eyes peeled. I haven’t seen Cassie since earlier, and hopefully, that isn’t a bad sign.

“Sure thing, Officer Hayes,” she says as she takes off the lid of the large can of whipped cream.

Max’s ears perk up, recognizing the sound.

“Thank you.” I grab the drinks and thank her before turning on my heel.

The smell of popcorn and cinnamon fills the air as my stomach growls. Maybe it’s time for that break. I scan the crowd until my eyes fixate on her blonde curls.

I make my way through the crowd as she turns around toward me now. Her smile is bright as she animatedly talks with a guest. As if on cue, her blue eyes meet mine across the blur of activity.

“Think you can take that break now?” I ask when I reach her.

She grabs her radio. “I’m going to grab some food. Only radio me if it’s an emergency.”

“Got it, Boss,” a young girl’s voice chimes over.

“You hungry?” she asks.

“Starving. You lead?”

“You’ll follow?”

She grabs my hand and leads me through the crowd to a vendor serving hot dogs and hamburgers.

“I know it’s simple. But I have heard rave reviews all day about them.”

“I’m down for a burger any day. Max?”

He lets out a bark.

“Max is in, too.”

We put in our order, and as I’m about to pay, Cassie stops me.

“It’s on the house. I can get anything from any vendor for free today.”

“I just paid double the normal price for this black coffee.”

“You should’ve found me first,” she teases.

We grab our burgers and sit down at a bench nearby.

“You did an amazing job.”

“Thanks, Ryan. I think everyone is enjoying it. That’s all that matters.”

“So what must we see today?”

“I could beat you in pumpkin bowling.”

“How do you know you’ll win?”

“It’s a little thing called…I’m in charge.” She shrugs with a mischievous grin.

“Is that so? Well, I never back down from a challenge, even if it’s rigged.”

We finish our burgers and begin walking toward the games. I wrap my hand around hers and see a smile spread across her face.

We reach the pumpkin bowling stand. The bowling pins are painted like candy corn and there are small pumpkins in place of bowling balls.

Cassie steps up first, but I don’t let go of her hand.

“I’m a righty, kinda need my hand.”

“I thought I’d make it a little more interesting since you have the home advantage.”

She shakes her head but grabs a small pumpkin with her left hand and rolls it down the makeshift alley of hay. She knocks all but one down.

“Guess I didn’t need my right hand after all.” She winks at me.

“Show off,” I tease, and she bumps me with her shoulder.

“Let’s see what you got, Officer Hayes. I’ll even give you both hands.” She tries to let go of my hand, but I squeeze hers instead.

“Not a chance.”

I pick a small, round pumpkin and roll it down the alley. It hits two fewer pins than Cassie’s did.

She pats me on the arm. “That was a good try.”

We each go two more times, but each time, I get worse. She wins by a landslide.

“Winning with your nondominant hand.” I wave my arms up and down. “All hail, the pumpkin bowling queen.”

She laughs, her eyes sparkling. “C’mon, time for the hay maze!” She grabs my hand and runs to the opposite side of the town square with Max trailing me.

“Do you have the hometown advantage here too?”

She giggles. “No, I didn’t design it, but hopefully, you have a good sense of direction cause I’m awful with that.”

“I do, but getting lost is the fun part.”

“Hey, Hayes,” Mitchell says as he stands at the entrance. “I see you’re letting the rest of us do the hard work,” he teases.

“Perks of being in charge,” I tell him, taking after Cassie.

Mitchell laughs. “Heading inside the maze?”

“I’m going to test his directional skills.”

“Want Max to hang out with me while you go inside?”

I nod and command Max to stay with Mitchell.

Cassie spins around at the entrance, her blonde curls bouncing. “Shall we?” She walks backward and pulls me into the maze.

Despite having no sense of direction, she takes the lead. One thing is for certain, it’ll always be an adventure when she’s around.

She starts turning left and right at random. Hand in hand, we make our way through the maze. We come to a fork, and she pauses and looks both ways then starts toward the right. We turn the corner and hit a dead end, for the second time.

“Another one?” I shake my head and click my tongue.

“I thought this was the right away!”

I chuckle. “I’m starting to think you’re doing this on purpose so you can spend more time with me.”

“Would that be so terrible?” Her eyes twinkle with mischief, and my heart flips inside my chest.

“Not at all. I like spending time with you.” I pull her closer to me, our bodies inches apart. Her eyes meet mine, and everything else disappears.

In this quiet cove of hay, where it's just the two of us, I can't help but think about kissing her. It's not the first time the thought has crossed my mind. I wanted to kiss her when we were in the truck, looking out over town. And as we stood on her front porch after our first date. And I've been thinking about it constantly since then.

“You’re not so bad yourself, Officer Hayes.” She winks as she spins around tugging me in the direction we came.

We go back the way we came until we reach another crossroad. She pauses to look both ways before turning right. As we’re walking, she suddenly yanks my arm to stop.

“Oh, look!” She points to a small opening between two towering stacks of hay bales. “Think it’s a shortcut?”

Without waiting for a response, she eagerly pulls me through the narrow passage. The only sound is the crunching of straw beneath our feet in this serene space. I follow closely behind her, engulfed in the sweet scent of jasmine. The sunlight gleams through the cracks of hay shining on her golden hair.

“I see an opening up ahead,” she whispers excitedly, picking up the pace.

As we emerge through the opening, we’re on the outside of the maze.

“We made it!” she shouts and jumps in the air. “I guess I have better instincts than I thought.”

“You should trust them more often. Where to next?”

“Hmm…funnel cakes?”

She loops her arm through mine, and we start walking toward the maze entrance to get Max.

My radio chirps. “Hayes, we have a possible situation.”

“Copy that.” I look regretfully at Cassie. “Duty calls.”

“Go, save the world.”

“I’ll see you later?” I ask.

“I’m counting on it,” she responds.

I lift her hand to place a kiss and reluctantly let go of it. I start to jog to the maze entrance, but Mitchell isn’t there. He must already be on his way over there.

“Mitchell, do you copy?”

“Copy. Meet me and Lawson by the southeast corner.”

“Roger that.”

I walk with a purpose but stay calm to not alert anyone. I spot Mitchell with Max and Lawson behind one of the booths.

“What’s the situation?” I ask as I reach them.

“Someone came to us about some teenagers who’ve been acting suspiciously,” Lawson fills me in.

“It could be harmless fun. Where are they?”

“Behind the bounce house.” Mitchell nods in that direction.

I scan each young face. One of them is twisting his fingers in his sweater, another keeps looking over his shoulder.

Lawson says, “We’ve been keeping an eye on them, but when I overheard them mention Cassie by name—”

My stomach drops. “Cassie?”

“Yes, they said—”

I glance at Mitchell whose face is laced with worry. “I was just with her. She was safe with me but now…now she’s alone!”

My heart is pounding. I need to find her now.

Mitchell radios, “All security officers, please find Cassie Thompson, about 5-foot, blonde hair.” He turns to me now. “Hayes, what was she wearing?”

“Uh…” Get it together, Ryan! Think like an officer . “Dark jeans, purple coat, purple scarf, brown boots.”

Mitchell repeats it over the radio.

“I’ll watch them, you find her,” Mitchell says to me.

Immediately, I’m off. Max is right beside me. I retrace my steps back to the hay maze. Surely, she didn’t get too far. I look all around but don’t see her. I spin on my heel looking for her blonde hair to pop out of the crowd. I spot one of the volunteers assisting her and rush toward her.

“Have you seen Cassie?” I ask them, trying to keep the panic inside.

“Uh, no. I haven’t. Need me to radio her?”

“Yes, please.”

She talks into her radio. “Cassie, come in.”

Silence.

“Try again,” I urge her.

She repeats it on the radio. Nothing.

“What frequency are you on?”

She tells me the frequency, and I tell her to keep trying and spread the word to get Cassie to call me. I’ll circle the town square until I find her and make sure she’s safe.

“Hayes, they’re on the move. Heading northwest across the square,” Mitchell says over the radio.

“Heading that direction.” A cold wave of dread washes over me. What would they want with Cassie?

“I see her, Hayes,” Mitchell radios in, his voice sharp among the live music and people chattering. “She’s buying funnel cakes.”

Funnel cakes. Why didn’t I think of that? I should’ve known she’d still go.

“Is she alone?” I ask.

“Yes, but I have eyes on her. Lawson is staying close to the teenagers.”

I don’t trust anyone but me. I need to be there. I need to see her and make sure she stays safe. I can’t lose her too.

A lump forms in my throat when the boys come in eyesight. There are four of them, in hoodies with their hands shoved in their pockets.

I move along the outskirts of the booths to stay hidden from the boys and try to spot Cassie. But they’re closer to her than I am.

“Max, seek,” I command quietly, and my loyal canine darts off with his nose to the ground. Maybe he can sense something I can’t.

The teens stop and huddle by the stage, but they look over their shoulder in Cassie’s direction. Their pause gives me an edge to get to her now.

Max comes to my side—he didn’t find anything suspicious. I start speed walking until I spot her. I feel my heart squeeze at the sight of her; she looks carefree, chatting away.

I’m just a few feet away from her when a loud, popping noise jars the air. I leap, grabbing Cassie and pulling her underneath me. My body over hers, shielding her.

“Ryan!” Cassie shouts.

The crowd lets out an array of screams and shouts.

“Mitchell, what was that?” I radio, but nothing comes back. I repeat, “Mitchell, what was that?”

“Hayes, we’re clear. I repeat, all clear.”

“Cassie, are you okay?” I ask.

She nods, clutching my shirt. “What was that?”

“I’m not sure yet,” I tell her, keeping my voice steady despite the adrenaline coursing through me.

I scan the vicinity; people are panicked but unharmed. It wasn’t a gunshot. A firework, maybe? No, something else.

I click the button on the radio. “Mitchell, Lawson, give me an update.”

“False alarm, Hayes. Meet us by the stage,” Mitchell radios back to me.

“Stay with me,” I tell Cassie as we move towards the stage now. I keep one hand on her back, as a jackhammer continues in my chest.