Chapter 253

It was amazing how much free time they suddenly found themselves with on this rainy day. Amethyst decided to use the time to check inventory. After all, they did have to close early the previous day because they ran out of most of the food. The cherry juice was always low, thanks to Erina coming almost every day.

“Gray, write this down. Cherry, lemon…. And mint leaves.” Amethyst started listing the items she needed. Alexcent wrote down everything she said and the list became very long, very quickly. They were on the last shelf, when Amethyst brought down an item from the top near the ceiling.

Amethyst struggled to bring down the stack of take-out boxes. She wanted to make sure there were enough for the week. Alexcent stepped up behind her and took the basket from her hands before she dropped it.

“Is this what you needed?” Alexcent asked.

“Yes, thank you.” Amethyst stepped down from the small ladder. Alexcent was still there, right in front of her. She looked up into his eyes as he gazed down at her. Amethyst blushed at their closeness. If they were any closer, their lips would come together. She quickly looked away and poked her elbow lightly into Alexcent’s stomach.

“Can you move over,” she joked.

“Why did you hit me in the stomach?” Alexcent asked, rubbing his midsection.

“You need to take those outside. I can’t get out if you just stand there. Hurry. I hate feeling trapped.” Amethyst felt relieved, but also a little disappointed as Alexcent backed out of the small storage fridge. She took the basket from him and set it on the counter.

“I need to buy cups as well,” Amethyst said, trying to forget what just happened. Alexcent added them to the growing list.

“I also need to go to the market tomorrow and see what new varieties of fruits are available,” Amethyst announced.

“Shopping again,” Alexcent grumbled. Amethyst laughed.

“Not shopping but research for new menu ideas. Let’s call it studying!”

“If you say so.” He didn’t seem to believe that hypothesis.

As they suspected, there were no customers all day due to the rain. As always, Pauline and Erina stopped by at the end of the day to say hello, but they didn’t stay for a meal as they wanted to get home in case the weather turned worse. Amethyst and Alexcent sat at a table, relaxing before they turned in for the night.

“Gray, go ahead and use the bathroom first tonight. I have a couple of things to do down here before I come up.”

“I can stay and help you, if you’d like.”

“No, no. It’s something I need to do. Go ahead and don’t wait up. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“All right. Good night.” Alexcent pushed in his chair and headed upstairs.

Amethyst waited until Alexcent left, then took out the financial ledger for the café and placed it on the counter. She figured out the latest sales and added them to the book. It had been almost a month since Gray came. Thanks to him, the sales were up, and the café was making a profit.

Seeing the good numbers, she decided to give Alexcent his monthly wage early. She counted out the coins from her purse and put them in a small pouch. It wasn’t a lot, but since she had given him a home and food there wasn’t much that he needed.

Turning out the lights, she headed upstairs with the pouch of coins. She didn’t hear any sound from the bathroom. Thinking he had finished already, she knocked on his bedroom door. As she raised her fist, the bathroom door opened. Alexcent stopped in the doorway, with only the bottom half of his body covered in a big towel. Amethyst’s breath caught. She knew he was in shape, but she hadn’t realized he looked this good. She could not stop staring at his wide shoulders and rippling muscles. He must have thought she would be longer downstairs, so hadn’t taken any spare clothes to the bathroom.

“Ummm…you’re going to get cold,” she said awkwardly.

“I’m sorry,” Alexcent said, realizing he had embarrassed her.

“No need to apologize. It’s not like I saw something I shouldn’t. it’s good. I mean…” she laughed nervously.

Alexcent’s flinched slightly, his fists clenched. Amethyst thought he was upset and quickly tried to rectify the situation.

“It’s a joke. A joke!” she laughed

“Okay,” Alexcent said through gritted teeth. “Could you move aside for a moment? My clothes…”

“Ah, yes. Sorry.” She moved out of the way from his bedroom door so he could get past. As he went by, she couldn’t help but look down at his tight buttocks that were apparent even under the towel. She waited patiently as he closed the door and changed into clothing. He came back out quickly, his shirt only partially done up in the rush.

“Did you have something you wanted to tell me?” He asked.

“Ah, yes. This!” She handed him the pouch of coins.

“What is this?”