“Andrew Keegan, you freaking jerk. I want my mug back,” I bark as I storm into the café, furious beyond reason.

“Good morning, Emily,” Andrew greets me politely from the table he’s sitting at.

I glare at the handsome young man, who seems completely unfazed by my outburst. That’s when I notice he isn’t alone. Sitting across from him is a blonde woman, seen only from the back, and the sight makes my annoyance spike. 

Seriously? He was my date yesterday, and now he’s having brunch with someone else?

“Where is my mug?” I hiss through gritted teeth as I approach his table.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” His lips curl into an innocent smile.

“You are unbelievable, Andrew,” I snap once I’m standing in front of him. I don’t even bother looking at the woman with him because I don’t need another reason to feel awful today.

I catch the glint of pure mischief in Andrew’s eyes as he glances at his companion before turning back to me. Then, far too calmly, he asks, “Emily, may I introduce you to my mother, Jackeline Keegan?”

I finally look at the middle-aged woman and realize, with much horror, that she really is Andrew’s mother. I recognize her from when I used to stalk—I mean, accidentally run into her son on the streets when I was a teenager.

“It’s nice to meet you, Emily,” Mrs. Keegan says in a dry tone, her expression flat.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Mrs. Keegan,” I reply sheepishly, wishing I could disappear right now.

“So, you’re the girl who was obsessed with my son during high school, aren’t you?” The beautiful green-eyed woman arches an eyebrow, never once breaking eye contact with me. 

“Wha-What?” I stammer, caught off guard by the fact that she knows about my crush on her son.

“Emily Sky, I can’t believe it’s you!”

A female voice rings out nearby, snapping my attention away and prompting me to spin on my heels to see who’s talking to me.

“Hi!” A blonde young woman with brown eyes waves at me enthusiastically, smiling.

“Hi?” The word slips out of my mouth with a question mark, as I have no idea who she is.

“Emily, that’s my sister, Brianna,” Andrew explains, clearly amused by the confusion written all over my face.

“How do you not remember me? We used to see each other at school every day,” Brianna huffs while dropping into the seat beside her mother, whose eyes remain fixed on me as if she’s inspecting my soul—or its lack thereof.

“We did?” I frown, taking a step back, already searching for an excuse to get out of here as fast as possible.

“Of course, silly. You’re Charlie’s friend and the crazy girl who was obsessed with Andrew.” Brianna laughs.

Oh dear god. Can I just disappear now?

“Melanie, could you bring a hot coffee and croissants for Emily, please?” Andrew tells one of the staff members, who nods before hurrying off to prepare the order. Then, before I can react, the jerk grabs my hand and pulls me toward the chair beside him, forcing me to sit. “You’re having brunch with us, Emily,” he declares nonchalantly.

“Excuse me?” My eyebrows shoot up, my mouth falling open in disbelief. “But why?”

“When is Dad joining us, Mom?” Andrew ignores me completely and turns to his mother instead.

“He’s meeting us at the restaurant for lunch,” Mrs. Keegan responds casually. Then she looks at me with that unsettling gaze of hers. “What a strange coincidence that you and my son live in the same building, don’t you think, Emily?”

“Are you implying that I’m still following your son around, Mrs. Keegan?” I hiss, both annoyed and offended. 

What is her problem? Why does it feel like she already hates me?

“Following?” She arches one eyebrow, her lips pressing into a thin line that only makes her look colder.

“This time, it’s actually the other way around,” Andrew interrupts, coming to my defense. “I’m the one following Emily, Mom.”

His comment leaves me completely baffled.

“Emi, I’m a huge fan of your books,” Brianna cuts in.

“Really?” I can’t help smiling, despite everything.

“You have a long way to go as a writer, young lady,” Mrs. Keegan scoffs. “I read one of your books, and I wasn’t impressed.”

The words hit me hard, leaving me feeling small and foolish. Yet they also remind me that not ending up married to Andrew was probably for the best, since being related to his mother would be unbearable.

“Thank you for your feedback, Mrs. Keegan,” I say, somehow keeping my tone polite as I offer her a small smile. “That said, the sales numbers suggest my books are doing quite well worldwide—despite the occasional sour reader.”

Jeez, my mouth really does have a mind of its own, doesn’t it?

As a result, Andrew and Brianna both gasp at the same time. Their mom, however, simply stares at me, her expression unreadable. I can’t tell whether she’s offended, amused, or has already decided I’m a lost cause who once loved her son and was never loved back.

“Here’s your coffee and croissants, Emily.” Melanie sets a mug and a plate in front of me, completely unaware of the tension. She smiles warmly. “I haven’t seen you in weeks. What happened?”

“I’ve been busy,” I mumble, taking a sip of the coffee, which is delicious, comforting, and rich in a way that instantly relaxes me. Wait. This tastes different. “Is there cinnamon in this?” I ask her, surprised.

“Yes,” she confirms, grinning. “I’m glad you noticed. Mr. Keegan told me to add a pinch of cinnamon to your coffee every time you come in.” She gestures toward Andrew.

I turn to the culprit, his smug smile already getting on my nerves. “Why did you tell her to add cinnamon to my coffee?”

He chuckles, clearly enjoying my reaction. “Because I know you like cinnamon,” he shrugs, “and because it tastes good in coffee.”

My heart skips in a way I don’t like at all.

“How did you know I like cinnamon?” I ask, intrigued.

“Because I was chewing cinnamon gum when we first kissed. You know, when we were fifteen,” he states shamelessly.

Needless to say, my face turns scarlet in a nanosecond, thanks to Andrew casually announcing our kiss to his entire family. Is he out of his damn mind? Or is he actively trying to get his mother to destroy me?

“What does that kiss have to do with my preference for cinnamon?” I retort, forcing myself to stay composed instead of letting the embarrassment consume me.

“You like everything my brother likes,” Brianna snorts, somehow managing to make the situation even worse.

I drain my coffee in seconds, immediately regretting it when the heat burns my tongue and throat. I grab the croissants, wrap them in napkins, and shove them into my purse before standing up, fully prepared to storm out. This place is cursed, and so is its owner and his entire family.

“Where are you going?” Andrew holds me by the elbow, frowning.

“I need to go home and work on my new book because my agent wants the first twenty chapters by next week, and I haven’t even finished the first one yet,” I lie—not really, since I do need to write them before my agent goes bald from anxiety and stress.

“What’s it called?” Brianna chimes in.

“What are you writing about?” Mrs. Keegan adds, sounding almost interested.

“Love and shit,” I reply, my expression turning stony as I look at the evil witch—I mean, Mrs. Keegan.

Don’t get me wrong; I don’t mind criticism. But she wasn’t trying to help when she said she wasn’t impressed by my book. She was deliberately trying to humiliate me. Mrs. Keegan strikes me as overly protective, and the fact that I once liked her son probably set off every alarm in her system. Maybe her radar picked up that I’m a little unhinged, and now she’s trying to shield her precious twenty-something-year-old boy from me.

“Mily!”

A familiar male voice makes me turn toward the door, where I see Lucas heading in my direction, a wide smile lighting up his face.

“I’m so sorry about yesterday,” he says before pulling me into a tight hug.

“What are you doing here?” I gasp, sinking into his embrace, relief washing over me at his unexpected presence.

“I’m here to spend the day with you.” He presses a soft kiss to my cheek.

“So you’re the guy who didn’t show up for dinner last night,” Andrew snaps, standing up abruptly and shooting Lucas a hostile glare.

Lucas frowns in return. “And who are you?”

“My name is Andrew Keegan. I’m Emily’s friend—and the one who had dinner with her because you stood her up.”

“I’m really sorry, Mily,” Lucas tells me, wrapping an arm around my waist. “I know I messed up.”

“Yes, you did,” I mutter.

He laces his fingers through mine, his signature smile softening his face. “Come on, let’s go to my place. I’ll cook lunch for us.”

“You know I can’t say no to your food.” I giggle, finally letting go of the tension that has been wrecking my inner peace for the past fifteen minutes, courtesy of the Addams—I mean, Keegan family.

“Or you could have lunch with my family and me,” Andrew suggests, grabbing my hand and pulling me gently away from Lucas.

“Nope. Absolutely not. I can’t survive another minute with your family,” I snort, only realizing too late that I said it out loud.

“Excuse me?” Mrs. Keegan arches an eyebrow at me.

“It was nice meeting you. Bye!” I wave at both women before grabbing Lucas’s wrist and practically sprinting out of the café without looking back. I don’t even thank Andrew for the coffee and croissants in my bag—though I can always come back another day and pay for them myself.

“Who were those people?” Lucas asks once we’re outside. “And why does it feel like we just escaped something?”

“Just keep walking until we reach your car,” I urge, “and no more questions because I’m still mad at you.”

“All right, all right,” he complies, leading us to his sports car.

“Thanks for rescuing me,” I add.

“From what—or who?”

“No questions,” I repeat, shaking my head.

Lucas laughs as he opens the passenger door for me. 

As he drives us away, my thoughts drift back to Andrew and the unsettling realization that he might never speak to me again after the way I behaved. But, then again, maybe that’s for the best. After all, Andrew Keegan has always been trouble for my heart, and I really don’t need that kind of chaos in my life.

* * *