Ever After at Sweetheart Ranch by Emma Cane

up.”
    They paid and carried their goodies to a table, where Kate said in a low voice, “Isn’t that a lucky coincidence.”
    â€œUh-­huh,” Lyndsay answered, then took her cup to the coffee station for sugar and creamer. Back at the table, she removed the foil lining of her cupcake.
    â€œSo, have you asked Will out yet?” Kate asked, then took a bite of her carrot cake.
    â€œKeep your voice down.” Lyndsay moaned as the first bite of velvety chocolate hit her tongue. “Can’t a girl enjoy her dessert in peace?”
    Kate crossed her arms over her chest. “Not if the girl is being cowardly.”
    Lyndsay leaned over the table and said in a low voice, “We shouldn’t be discussing this in his sister’s bakery.” She glanced at Steph, who was thankfully distracted by an elderly gentleman.
    â€œI just think you should go for it.”
    â€œI will, I promise. But I haven’t found the right moment yet.”
    â€œDo you think he’ll turn you down?”
    â€œI don’t know, and I’m not exactly worried about it. But asking over the phone seems . . . impersonal, and I won’t be able to see his expression.”
    â€œI’m glad you’re not worried. And when you do date, if it doesn’t work out, it’ll be okay. The girls he dates always seem to remain friends with him. They might as well start a little Facebook group of Will’s exes, they all get along so well. I don’t remember you getting all that depressed when you broke up with a guy. You don’t seem depressed over the dentist. But then, you weren’t in love with him.”
    â€œNo. I honestly haven’t been in love since John broke up with me just when I thought he was going to propose. Maybe I have that in common with Will, that I’ve always been wary since then.”
    Will entered, magically summoned by his name, and the door jingled as if angels had announced his presence. Two middle-­aged women at the counter smiled and waved. Everybody loved him, Lyndsay thought, shaking her head with fond exasperation.
    Using her finger to pick up a crumb on her napkin and eat it, she eyed Will. He met her gaze, and she felt a charge of awareness, as if a lightning storm had just passed. Was it her imagination, or did his smile fade a bit into intensity before he tugged his Stetson with his thumb, nodded, and turned toward the counter? Lyndsay shook herself and refocused on her friend, who thankfully hadn’t seemed to notice anything unusual.
    â€œOkay, now that we can’t talk about him,” Kate said in a reasonable tone, “let’s discuss your writing.”
    â€œShh!” Lyndsay hissed a little more forcefully than she should have.
    The ladies at the counter looked right at her, but luckily Will was saying something to his little sister.
    Kate’s mouth briefly fell open. “What has gotten into you? I said nothing in a loud voice, and I just mentioned writing, not—­something specific.” She looked suspiciously from Lyndsay to Will, then whispered, “Why would you care if he heard that word?”
    â€œI don’t want anyone to hear that word, not right now. I’m not ready, and my students’ parents need time to digest it before fall. I’ve explained all this.”
    â€œYes, and those excuses made sense. But I think there’s something else going on.”
    â€œKate—­”
    â€œJust tell me now, because you know I’ll figure it out.”
    Lyndsay took a sip of coffee and ignored her.

 
    Chapter 7
    W ill kept his back to Lyndsay and Kate, trying to ignore his feeling of confusion. His awareness of Lyndsay was undergoing some kind of shift, and he didn’t know what to make of it. She’d seemed to stiffen when he’d walked in the door. Maybe she was still embarrassed about being drunk the other night, but he didn’t think that was it. Too many