Chapter 2 An Awful Date

Elena couldn't walk or drive with her injured foot, so she had no choice but to stay at the shop and wait.

Still, a blind date at an auto repair shop? Talk about awkward.

She let out an uneasy laugh and tried to explain the situation to Oliver. "I can't put any weight on my ankle right now, but one of my friends is picking me up later."

She kept her face composed, but the way she looked away gave her away.

"Okay. You can wait here," Oliver replied, kindly letting the obvious lie slide.

Every second Elena sat there felt like an hour.

It turned out that her blind date really was close by. He walked into the shop less than ten minutes later. He wore a crisp suit and looked decent enough.

Lucy went over to welcome him.

"I'd like to get my car washed," Liam said. "And I'm here to meet someone."

"Please come this way."

By then, Elena had already noticed him. It only took him another second to spot her.

"Don't get up. Just stay there." Liam saw her start to move and quickly walked over. "They're washing my car anyway, so we may as well sit and chat."

Elena gave him a small, restrained smile while keeping her usual polite distance.

"You're even prettier than you looked in your pictures." Liam couldn't stop staring at her.

Elena wasn't the kind of beauty who dazzled you at first glance. Instead, there was a quiet elegance to her delicate features. Something soft and fragile about her made her seem almost untouchable. She reminded him of fine porcelain—beautiful, cold, and impossible to ignore.

"Would you like something to drink, sir?" Lucy came over and put an end to Liam's shameless staring.

"Bring us two coffees, please. The snacks are free, aren't they?"

Lucy smiled politely. "Yes, they are. I'll bring some over right away."

Elena immediately tried to stop her and said she didn't need anything. She wasn't about to mooch off the shop like that.

"Don't worry about it. We're paying clients. It's all part of the service." Liam brushed aside her concern before turning to Lucy. "Make sure everything looks good when you serve it."

"Of course." Lucy gave him a perfectly professional smile.

Elena couldn't believe what she was hearing. Did he think he was in some fancy café?

"I heard about this place a while ago. People said it offered incredible service, so I thought I'd see what it was like," Liam explained in a deliberately casual tone.

Soon afterward, Lucy came back with two beautifully prepared sets of refreshments.

Each set included a hot latte and handmade butter cookies. Three cookies sat on every small plate with a gold rim, and each one had a different color and flavor. Delicate foam art decorated the lattes, and each cup sat on a silver coaster. Lucy had arranged everything neatly on a wooden tray, which made the entire spread look simple yet elegant.

The sight left Elena speechless. Everything looked so exquisite that she wondered if the shop was losing money every day.

"This looks nice," Liam exclaimed. "The coffee looks freshly ground, and these cookies look pricey. You'd pay a fortune for this at a café. Try it."

Elena just stared at him, at a complete loss for words.

"You should taste it," Lucy suggested to Elena with a friendly smile. "Our boss made the coffee and cookies himself."

Oliver had made all of this? Elena blinked in surprise.

Every cookie had been baked to the same size, and the edges had turned a perfect golden brown. Finely crushed almonds covered the tops—they looked like they came from a specialty bakery.

Had Oliver also baked the sandwich cookies she ate earlier when her blood sugar dropped? She honestly hadn't expected him to be good at something like this.

Curiosity finally got the better of Elena, so she took a bite. The sweetness was just right, and the crisp almonds went perfectly with the smooth, rich latte. Oliver could honestly open his own café.

"These really are better than most cookies. Your boss really doesn't cut corners," Liam said through a mouthful.

"Anything for our clients. We're happy as long as you're enjoying them."

Elena turned toward the speaker and discovered that Oliver had come over without her noticing.

His expression remained composed and serious, yet quiet amusement showed in his eyes.

For a moment, Elena couldn't make sense of it.

The cold look from before was gone. Still, she couldn't figure out what he found so funny.

When Liam glanced over his shoulder, he stared at Oliver as if he had seen some movie star.

After blinking in surprise, he asked, "Sorry, who are you?"

"I own the shop. Was there something else you needed?" Oliver asked as he looked at Liam.

Liam surveyed the shop before asking, "Do you offer anything else for free? I've never been here before."

Oliver gave Elena a quick look, and it seemed he was only humoring Liam because of her. "First visit, so I'll throw in a premium wash. Lucy can tell you about the rest later."

"Wow, that's really generous." Liam eagerly rubbed his hands together.

Any trace of a smile disappeared from Oliver's face. "Consider it part of the service," he replied coolly.

"Thanks. These cookies are delicious, too. Could I take some home?"

Oliver went silent for a beat, then let out a short laugh, not amused at all. "Fine."

Elena wished the floor would open up beneath her. Liam seemed determined to squeeze every free thing he could out of the shop.

Even worse, Oliver's laugh sounded painfully sarcastic to her.

She couldn't pretend to be unfazed anymore. Her face burned.

Liam leaned back in his chair and grinned at Elena. "This owner's pretty generous. Glad I came over today."

Elena didn't know how to respond to that. She glanced out the window, her patience entirely depleted. Dark clouds covered the sky, and rain seemed ready to fall at any moment.

She decided not to drag things out any longer. "Dr. Brown, we've both seen each other's profiles. This was just to see if we clicked. Sorry, but I don't think we do."

Liam stared at her in surprise. "We haven't even had a real conversation yet."

"I'm still sorry," Elena muttered.

Since Oliver was right there, Liam couldn't make a scene. He looked down and quickly finished the rest of his coffee and cookies.

As he left, he gave an offended snort. Even then, he didn't forget to take two bags of cookies with him.

Elena finally turned to Oliver because she had no other choice. "Charge me for everything on the table. Will two hundred cover it?"

One of Oliver's eyebrows rose. He sat opposite her and responded with a question of his own. "Did you like the cookies, Professor Barrett?"

"How do you know who I am?" Elena hadn't expected that, and suspicion immediately entered her eyes.

"Of course I know you." Oliver looked directly at her. There was something wild in his eyes, though his voice stayed lazy. "You're the prettiest professor at Crest University. Who hasn't heard of you?"

"I could say the same about you. My colleagues and students talk about you all the time," Elena retorted, unwilling to let him have the upper hand.

A quiet laugh came from Oliver. His easy smile softened the cold edge of his sharp, handsome face.

The view beyond the window grew darker. Moments later, rain began pattering against the glass.

Elena wanted to leave as soon as possible, so she transferred two hundred dollars to him. She was preparing to get up when her phone suddenly rang.

Her aunt Dina Smith was calling. She was also the person responsible for setting up that awful blind date with Liam.

Ignoring the call would only make things worse. Dina would keep calling and then corner her with a long lecture the next time they met.

Elena picked up at once. "Hi, Aunt Dina."

"Elena, what were you thinking? You agreed to meet Liam, so the least you could do was give him a fair chance. How could you turn him down when you barely spoke to each other?"

Had Liam already run to Dina and complained?

Elena let out a scoff. "Dr. Brown is way too good at mooching. I'm not worthy of him."

"What's so bad about saving money?" Dina launched into a rapid lecture. "Fine, then tell me what kind of man you're actually looking for. You find something wrong with every single one I introduce you to."

Rain hammered the windows as Elena answered wearily, "Just someone normal. That's all I want."

Oliver let out a quiet, low laugh.

Elena ended the call before she could give him anything else to laugh about. Meanwhile, she desperately searched her mind for someone who might be able to pick her up.

Once she went through her contacts, she had to admit that there wasn't anyone she could call.

Her only close friend who could help was away on a business trip.

Hoping Lucy might be an option, Elena looked over at her. Unfortunately, Lucy couldn't drive.

"Why don't you let our boss take you?" Lucy noticed a small signal from Oliver and quickly spoke up. "We took your car for a test drive, but we still need to check how it handles on a normal road."

Elena fell silent. She couldn't tell whether Oliver had another reason for offering or if the shop really offered service like this.

"And you shouldn't be driving with that foot," Lucy added in a gentle voice when Elena continued to hesitate.

Elena looked down and considered her choices. Getting the car home was the real problem. Otherwise, she could have simply taken a cab.

They probably wouldn't see each other again after today. Besides, she'd already paid him what she owed.

With that settled, she raised her head and responded, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Mr. Stewart."

"It's no trouble," Oliver said. "Just bring me more business next time."

Elena gave him a courteous smile without answering and passed him the keys.