Lifting my mug to my mouth, I murmur, "Mmm hmm," as I take a sip of my coffee.

"I've been wondering about something."

"What's that?" I ask.

"I need to know that you're okay with money. Since your parents aren't helping you out and you just work part-time at a coffee shop, I've been worried."

"Don't be. I'm fine. When I turned twenty-one, I gained access to my trust fund, and my parents resigned as trustees."

"I didn't want to overstep, but I needed to know you're okay."

"I am."

"Ryan, man! Where've you been?" a guy yells as he's crossing the street toward us.

Ryan stands up and walks toward him, clasping their hands together before leaning in for a quick hug as they slap each other on the back. "I've been busy keeping the bar going."

"Shit, man, last I heard that place was raking in the money."

"Something like that."

The guy looks down at me and back to Ryan. "Sorry, I'll let you get back to your friend."

"No worries. This is Candace."

He reaches out his hand, and I stand up and shake it, when he says, "I'm Gavin."

"Hey."

"Sit down and grab a drink, man," Ryan says, and Gavin pulls up a chair to our table. Ryan turns to me and says, "Gavin and I've been friends since I moved here for college."

"Oh, yeah?" I say.

"Yeah, this guy left my ass behind when he decided to buy that fuckin' bar."

"So what do you do then?"

"I work in promotions and marketing at Sub Pop Records."

"Really? That sounds like a lot of fun. Working with anyone good?" I ask.

"Ever heard of Washed Out?"

"Yeah, I have their album actually."

"Within and Without?"

"Uh huh. So they're your client?"

"Yep, one of them. We're trying to get a tour set up right now, but that shit takes forever. Before this guy got so tied up with work, he used to always come out and listen to all the bands play," he says, nodding his head at Ryan.

"You should give me a list of some of your guys, and I can check the lineup and see if I have space for any of them to perform," Ryan says.

"Yeah, man. That'd be great."

"So, Candace, what do you do besides hang out with this loser?" he says while laughing at Ryan.

"I'm a student, actually."

"U-Dub?"

"Yeah."

"What are you studying?"

"Dance. I'm a Fine Arts major."

"No shit?!"

"Yeah, man. No shit," Ryan jokes with a hint of possessiveness, and I have to laugh at his demeanor.

"Well, hey, I gotta run. I was actually on my way to a meeting, but I had to stop when I saw you."

"I'm glad you did. Sorry I've been out of pocket for the past couple months."

"No worries, but, hey, I'm throwing a party next month at my place. Everyone will be there. You should come by."

"I will. I'll call you next week."

"Oh, and if you're still around, you should come too," he says, cocking his head my way, "At least you have decent taste in music." He winks at me before saying, "Seriously though, it was nice meeting you."

Ryan looks at me and jokes, "Just ignore him."

"It was good to meet you too, Gavin."

"Take it easy, man," he says to Ryan as he starts walking off.

Turning to Ryan, I say, "So, why haven't you been hanging out with your friends?"

"I've been a little distracted for the past few months," he says with a grin, and I know he's referring to me.

Grinning, I say, "Well, don't let me keep you from your friends."

"Don't worry about my friends, I see most of them a lot 'cause they hang out at Blur to hear bands play."

"Oh." I feel like I have isolated myself from a part of Ryan's life because I never go to his bar. Maybe if I did, I would know his friends. Instead, there's this disconnect. Ryan knows my friends, albeit, only Jase and Mark, but he also chats with Roxy frequently when he stops by the coffee shop when I'm working. Although I've met his family, it would be nice to get to see him with his friends as well.

"I didn't mean how that came out," he says.

"No, I understand. You guys hang out, I just didn't know that."

Reaching over and taking my hand in his, he says, "Would you think about coming up again? We can just go together during the day. No people."

I stare at our entwined fingers, and I know that night bothers him. He hasn't mentioned anything since or questioned me about it, but I know it hurt him that I bailed with Jase and didn't turn to him. But, I don't know if I can ever go there again.

When I don't answer, he simply says, "Just think about it, babe."

"I will. I promise."

Hey! You home?

On way now. Leaving gym.

Mind if I stop by?

Not at all. Be there in 10.

See ya!

"Hey, Roxy," I holler over the coffee bean grinder. "I'm heading out, okay?"

"Yeah, okay. Thanks for covering the shift this morning."

"No problem. Have you found anyone to replace Brandon yet?"

"I have another interview today," she says as she hands a customer their drink.

"Well, I'll be in tomorrow."

"Okay. See you then."

"See you," I say while putting on my coat and popping the hood over my head before heading out into the rain.

I've been taking over Brandon's shifts after he had to quit a few days ago. I'm not taking as many hours in school right now, so I have the free time. Now I need to run by Ryan's and pick up that photo so that I can submit it to Thinkspace Art Gallery. I didn't bother selecting photos when I was over there last Thursday. That sort of turned into a mess that led to confessions on the bathroom floor. Not my finest moment, but let's face it, those are few and far between these days.

But, I only need that one photo that originally caught my eye. When I walk into his loft, I can hear the shower running upstairs, so I go into his office. Sliding the door open to his credenza, I notice the mattes aren't there. I head back into the living room to look around, but I can't find them.

"Hey, babe," Ryan says while he's walking down the stairs. He's dressed, but his hair is still wet from his shower.

"Hey."

"What are you scrounging around for?" he asks as he cradles my cheeks and kisses me.

"Your mattes. I can't find them."

Kissing me again, he briefly pauses to say, "That's because they're not here," before covering my mouth with his again.

"Where are they?" I mumble against his lips.

Pausing again, he says, "I tossed them," and then he kisses me again.

I pull back in surprise. "What?! Why?"

"Because they made you uncomfortable."

"But I was looking for the photo of the woman's back so I could submit it to the gallery."

"I don't have it. I threw them all away."

Flopping down on the large leather chair behind me, I let out a defeated sigh.

Ryan sits on the coffee table in front of me, elbows resting on his knees, and asks, "What's wrong?"