“Hi.” Leah’s voice was a croak, so she cleared her throat and tried again. “Hi.”
“Hey,” Teddi said, then waved to the other chair. “Sit. Doesn’t look like you have much choice.”
“Thanks.” Leah pulled out the chair, sat, and looked around the room. Why, she wasn’t sure. Was she going to run to another table if one opened up? Stop it. Be polite, at least. She shifted her gaze to Teddi. “Come here often?” she asked. Winced immediately.
Teddi surprised her by barking a laugh. “I guess being in the Classic Café warrants using a classic pickup line.”
Leah grimaced. “I didn’t mean—”
“Relax, Leah. I’m kidding.” Teddi picked up her mug, took a sip.
Kidding. Okay. Unexpected, but okay. Leah would take that. “What are you drinking?”
“It’s a London Fog. Earl Grey tea with frothed milk and a little bit of vanilla syrup. It’s perfect for this kind of weather.” As Teddi glanced over her shoulder out the window, Leah wondered if the waves in her hair were natural.
“Here you go.” They were interrupted by a café employee who delivered Leah’s Irish coffee and cheesecake. “I brought two forks, just in case,” the girl said, then smiled as if she knew something they didn’t and left.
Leah raised her eyebrows and held a fork toward Teddi, who hesitated, her uncertainty clear. Leah added a gentle smile. “Help me?”
A visible swallow. A blink. Two. Teddi reached for the fork. “Maybe a bite.”
Thrilled. Alarmed. Awkward. All of those things raced through Leah as Teddi slid the fork from her fingers. She inhaled quietly, deeply, slid the plate to the center of the table, then pushed her fork through the end of the cheesecake. “I was serious when I asked if you come here often.” She snapped her eyes up. “Not a pickup line.”
Teddi followed suit with her fork. “It’s not far from my apartment, so yeah. I like it here.” She put a bite into her mouth and her eyes closed briefly, a soft hum coming from her throat. Leah stopped chewing, took a moment to watch. “You?” Teddi asked when she opened her eyes again. Those deep, dark eyes of hers.
Leah nodded. “Yeah, I always come if they’re showing a romance, especially a classic. Tonight was Pretty Woman.”
“What’s not to love about Julia Roberts, am I right?”
“You are very, very right.” Did the mood lighten? Just a smidge? “Plus, they have the best cheesecake in town.”
“I agree wholeheartedly with that.” Teddi cut another bite of the cheesecake. “Thank you for sharing yours.”
“Listen, I do not need to eat this entire piece on my own.” She pointed her fork. “I mean, don’t think that I can’t. ’Cause I totally can.” Teddi grinned and Leah felt things lighten again. “I just don’t need to, see?”
“I do see. I understand completely and am happy to share your burden.”
“You are a kind and noble person.”
“I’m a giver.” She took another bite. “God, this is sinful.”
“Right?” A beat went by, two, as Teddi seemed to people watch and Leah had an internal debate. Finally, she made a decision. She slowly forked another bite, her eyes on the cheesecake as she spoke. “You know…” Bite in her mouth. Chewed. Swallowed. “You know I was just doing my job, right?”
Teddi blinked at her. Stared as she ran her tongue over her teeth.
Leah waited, heart pounding. Why was this important? She’d had hundreds of cases by now. Lots of people blamed her for their situations—she was positive of that. Why did it matter to her that Teddi Baker understood?
It was like Teddi rolled that around for a moment, like she’d never thought about it from that angle, even though Leah knew she must have. She was a smart woman.
Finally—finally—Teddi exhaled a large breath, almost like it was in defeat. “Yeah. Yeah, I do know that.”
One nod. Okay. Leah had actually been braced for an argument, she now realized. Or maybe a snarky retort of some kind. Not complete agreement.
There was a shift. She felt it.
“Okay. Good.”
“It was a very bad time for me.” Teddi’s voice was quiet. Leah almost didn’t hear her over the din of café customers. Teddi’s face clouded just for a second before she yanked back control. Leah saw it, was learning her. “Yeah. It was a rough time.”
“I can imagine. Divorce is hard on everybody. That’s been my experience.”
“Harder on some than others, though…” Teddi’s statement seemed to dangle, as if not a statement at all, but an unfinished thought.
“True.” Leah couldn’t disagree with that.
“I bet you’ve seen some meltdowns.” Teddi picked up her mug, sipped her tea, her eyes fixed on Leah’s over the rim.
Leah nodded. “Yeah, but a lot of my cases don’t even make it to court. Often, I never meet the other party.” She set down her fork. “I’m done. So full.” An attempt at a subject change.
“Like my case.”
Leah nodded, picked up her own mug to have something to do with her hands, something to look at.
“Am I making you uncomfortable?” It was a bold question, but the tone had a slight edge of…Was Teddi teasing her? Elbows on the table, mug in both hands, eyes tracking Leah’s every tic.
Leah didn’t really get nervous. All her time spent in the courtroom in front of judges and clients and galleries, she was used to being front and center, focused on. But somehow, honesty seemed in order here. “Yes.” Leah allowed herself a nervous chuckle as she admitted the truth to this woman she barely knew. “A little bit.”
“Mm,” was all Teddi said to that.
Leah narrowed her eyes just a bit. “Are you playing with me?”
Dark eyes caught hers again, held them. How does she do that? How does she keep me prisoner with just her eyes? Leah’d never experienced such intense eye contact as she’d had with Teddi, more than once now.
Teddi set down her mug, broke the spell. “Maybe just a little bit.”
The relief that came along with Teddi’s gentle smile was big. Bigger than Leah expected, and she wasn’t sure she liked this, liked feeling that what Teddi thought of her was important. Leah was strong. She’d had to be. But now, here she sat with this woman who barely knew her, yet her sense of worth and acceptance suddenly seemed tied to Teddi.
That would not do.
Nope.
“Well.” Leah smiled, took one last sip from her mug, then set it down. “I’d better head home.”
If Teddi was surprised or thought her exit seemed abrupt, she hid it well. In fact, she seemed perfectly happy to continue to sit and enjoy her tea. “Better bundle up. That wind is brutal.”
Leah did, buttoned up her jacket, pulled her gloves from the pocket. “Thanks for letting me crash your table.”
“My pleasure. Thanks for sharing your cheesecake.”
Leah didn’t give herself permission to smile, but smile she did. “Anytime.” With a quick wave, she made her exit. Had to get out of there, though she wasn’t entirely sure why, or what was making her flee. Because that’s what she was doing. She was fleeing, absolutely.