The Middle | ✔️

Chapter 88 (Sarah)

Sarah

2 Months Earlier...

"You know, it's rude to stare." My friend Sheryl points out as she wipes down the counter she's currently standing behind. I tear my eyes away from the beautiful specimen of a man sitting at the other side of the bakery, sipping coffee and reading a newspaper.

"You know that guy?" I ask her. He looks a little older than us, sure, but age is just a number. I wouldn't mind having an innocent flirt with him.

"Not really, but I've only been working here for two weeks." Sheryl replies as she tightens the strings on her apron. "He's been in a few times. He's nice."

I'm currently sitting on a bar style stool by the counter in the coffee and cake shop Sheryl has recently started working in. She's starting at the University of Philadelphia after the summer, so she moved here a few weeks ago. This is the first time I've drove down from New York to visit her.

"Sarah, whatever you're thinking, forget about it." She knows me so well. "He's from Philly, and you live in New York. It would be a complete waste of time!"

"I know that! Nothing wrong with an innocent flirt though, right? How old would you say he is? Like mid-twenties?"

Sheryl looks over at the handsome, well dressed man and considers my question. He's looking up from his paper now and laughing at something. I follow his line of vision and see an adorable little girl running over to him from the door to the bathroom, she looks about 10 years old or something. She's wearing a cute sun dress with little cupcakes all over it, and her fawn hair is tied into pigtails. She starts dancing around in front of my mystery hunk and singing, and he continues to laugh at her.

"I don't know how old that guy is, but I do know that that little girl is his daughter." Sheryl leans across the counter and raises her eyebrows at me. He has a kid, so what?

"So he has some baggage, surely flirting with a hot 18 year old would brighten his day a little." I wink at Sheryl and she sighs.

"Sarah, leave the poor guy alone. He's just enjoying some coffee and cupcakes with his daughter. She don't need no step-mom."

I laugh at this. Sheryl is right, of course. I wasn't gonna talk to the guy anyway, but I can look. He is seriously attractive.

"If only there were a younger, hotter, child free version of him." I say to Sheryl with a dramatic sigh.

She laughs as the bell above the shop door jingles, and a younger, hotter, seemingly child free version of the man I've been staring at walks through the door. I blink a few times. Is God messing with me right now? Holy shit. I need to start wishing for winning lottery tickets.

"And, enter the younger, hotter, uncle." Sheryl says, struggling through her laughter.

Uncle? So this is his younger brother. Wow. He is unbelievable. I like what I see, a lot.

"Okay, details?" I say to Sheryl quickly as the hot younger brother sits down next to the hot older guy. I've never seen a more beautiful human in my life, and I am not missing out on the opportunity to talk to this boy.

"I don't know much, I just know the little girl calls him Uncle Joel, so he's her uncle, and I guess his name is Joel." Sheryl shrugs again.

"So have you talked to him!?" I ask eagerly. If she tells me she hasn't tried to hit on this boy, I won't believe her for a second.

"Not really, this is only the second time I've seen him." She looks over at them again and smiles. "I wish he'd come by more often though."