London Calling Read Free

Hey, buddy, we’re gonna be locking up now, so if you
don’t mind.”
    “Yeah, sure, man.” He stumbled as he stepped backward. He
was several inches shorter than Tim and looked overwhelmed. “Hey, yeah, I’m
gonna go find some bagels.” He wove past the tables then headed out the door.
    Tim turned toward Jenna, who still looked a bit shaken. “You
okay?”
    “Fine. Thanks for that.”
    “My pleasure. I’ve worked a lot of pubs. Getting drunk men
to stop harassing women is one of my specialties. I’m Tim, by the way.”
    “Jenna.” She smiled.
    “I know. I heard your coworker saying good night to you.
You’re not the only one who eavesdrops.”
    Her cheeks flushed a warm shade of pink, stirring something
deep within his belly. “Well, I’m sorry you had to spend your free time playing
bouncer on my behalf.” She flipped off the switches on the espresso machine. “I
really am about to close up. Can I get you anything else?”
    “I’m good.” He watched as she swiped a cloth over the streaks
on the display case. She disappeared into the back and returned a moment later
wearing a denim jacket and carrying an enormous black messenger bag.
    Her brow furrowed as she looked at him. “So who are Bill and
Crystal?”
    Tim chuckled. “Bill,” he pointed to the spindle-pierced
stack of receipts next to the register, “and Crystal.” He pinged his finger
against the cut-glass tip jar.
    “Clever.”
    “I do my best work under pressure.” Tim fastened the plastic
lid onto his tea then held the door for her. She pulled the metal accordion
gate shut and fastened a padlock through the loop.
    Her skin looked even more luminous under the glow of the
streetlights. With her standing right next to him, he noticed how tiny she was,
nearly a foot shorter than him. “I think I should see you home. In case Bagel Boy
is lurking nearby.”
    Jenna let out a breathy laugh. “That’s totally not
necessary.”
    “No, I insist. I’ve got a mum and two older sisters back in
London and they’d never let me hear the end of it if they knew I let you walk
home alone after some wanker hassled you.”
    “So you plan on doing this every day?” She looked him up and
down and he realized she might be assessing how safe it was to let him, a total
stranger, walk her home.
    He raised an eyebrow as he awaited her appraisal. “If
necessary.”
    “It’s ten blocks,” she said.
    “That’ll be a new ten blocks of New York I get to see then.”
    Her eyes widened. “What?”
    “I haven’t even been here twenty-four hours yet, and I
managed to spend most of that eating, sleeping and getting sacked, so there’s
not been much sightseeing.”
    “Well, I don’t think you’re going to see any sights on this
walk, but I can point out a few places to eat that serve more than coffee and
pastries.”
     
    Letting Tim walk her home might not be the smartest thing
she’d ever done. But something about him made her want to trust him—maybe
it was the chivalrous act back at the café or maybe she was being a little too
lax with her rules. Never let a strange guy walk you home.
    Their eyes connected for an instant as they waited for the
light and a breeze whipped around the corner of the building. She watched as
Tim’s shoulders bunched up to his ears.
    “You really need to wear a jacket this time of year.
Especially at night.” She shifted her messenger bag behind her as they crossed
the street.
    “I’m going to have to pick something up. I packed like a
bloody git.”
    She smiled wide but turned away. She loved his adorable
British slang, which elevated him far beyond cute.
    “This market is better than the bodega by the coffee shop,”
she said, pointing to a Korean grocery with an abundance of produce and flowers
displayed out front. They turned the corner. “And that Russian deli has the
best pierogies.”
    “Thanks so much for all these tips. I’m sure I seem
completely helpless.”
    “No, you don’t. You’re in a strange