#asset: barton

     “Add his to my tab,” Maria says, looking up from the phone in her palm, having slid into place in line behind a familiar posture not seconds earlier. The phone disappears and she shifts her weight, chin tilted so she can catch the barista’s eye over his shoulder to ensure the directive was being carried out. 

There’s no denying the pass of breath between her teeth- pure relief that it’s not someone else showing up unannounced to make her life hell.