with utmost courtesy. Sam peered around the edge of the curtain.
Finally, the customer set the heart box on the counter and reached toward the
microscopic purse that hung by a skinny strap over her shoulder.
“I’ve got someone special in mind
for these chocolates,” Felicia said. “Have you tasted them?”
Jen nodded and punched some keys
on the register. “They’re really good, aren’t they?”
“Better than good.” Felicia
lowered her voice. “I think they can make a person fall in love.”
Sam almost pulled the curtain
down. Was that what was going on with Kelly and Riki last night? With her
married employees who couldn’t wait to get home to their husbands after work?
Jen started to open her mouth,
then closed it. She’d noticed the same thing—Sam would bet on it.
“So anyway . . . there’s a
special man here in Taos. We dated a few years ago. I thought it might go
somewhere . . . permanent . . . but it didn’t. Maybe we were simply too young
at the time. Now, however . . .” A grin spread over her perfect features and
she raised an auburn eyebrow at Jen. “Now, I think I know how to get him back.”
Jen passed the gold card through
the machine and waited for it to process. “Oh? He still lives here, then?”
Felicia sighed. “Yes. He stayed
when I left. I couldn’t seem to convince him to try life in the big city.” She
signed the slip Jen had set on the counter. “But this time he’ll come. I will
just bet he’s not found anyone to compare with me, here in Taos.”
Jen managed to suppress the
expression that would have said, that’s a pretty safe bet.
“You might even know him,” Felicia said. “His name is Beau
Cardwell.”
Chapter
11
Sam nearly fell through the split
in the curtain. Jen was staring at the back of Felicia Black, her mouth hanging
open, as the woman flung the door open and swooped out toward her Lexus.
“What nerve! I’ll—” Sam marched
toward the door, intent on grabbing the witch in the silver fur and yanking her
off her feet.
“Sam.” Jen said it so quietly
that Sam stopped in her tracks. “You’ve got a little—” She brushed her finger
across her cheek.
Sam reached up to her own face,
wiped at it and came away with a smear of chocolate. How long had that been
there? She slumped and turned away from the windows.
“I . . . surely she can’t . . .”
“She can’t be for real,” Jen
said. “And she darn sure won’t get Beau. He’s in love with you.”
Sam straightened her shoulders.
An SUV pulled up to the curb as
Felicia’s silver Lexus drove away. Sam quickly scooped up the rest of the
spilled sugar packets and ducked though the curtain as another customer opened
the door. In the small restroom at the back, she took a hard look in the
mirror. A faint trace of the chocolate smear remained, and the short layers of
her hair stuck out at odd angles. She didn’t remember running her fingers
through her hair earlier but she must have, while her head was all sweaty. A
blob of red frosting had landed on the white baker’s jacket, smack on her right
boob, in addition to the normal-enough smudges that she half expected to always
be there.
“I’m such a disaster,” she wailed
at herself in the glass. Her eyes began to well up. I have to draw the line
at this, she thought. I cannot walk back out there and let my crew see
me with red eyes. She grabbed a paper towel and wet it, ridding herself of
the smears and sugar granules. The jacket would have to go into the wash, but
luckily she’d brought a spare one for precisely this reason. She reached into
the medicine cabinet and found her hairbrush, worked with the graying layers
until she didn’t look quite so ridiculous. She stood up straight, raised her
chin, and walked out to the kitchen to change her jacket.
The writing on the order sheets
dimmed in front of her eyes and the normal bustle of the kitchen went
unnoticed. Should I warn Beau about Felicia Black? Tell him she’s back
Finally, the customer set the heart box on the counter and reached toward the
microscopic purse that hung by a skinny strap over her shoulder.
“I’ve got someone special in mind
for these chocolates,” Felicia said. “Have you tasted them?”
Jen nodded and punched some keys
on the register. “They’re really good, aren’t they?”
“Better than good.” Felicia
lowered her voice. “I think they can make a person fall in love.”
Sam almost pulled the curtain
down. Was that what was going on with Kelly and Riki last night? With her
married employees who couldn’t wait to get home to their husbands after work?
Jen started to open her mouth,
then closed it. She’d noticed the same thing—Sam would bet on it.
“So anyway . . . there’s a
special man here in Taos. We dated a few years ago. I thought it might go
somewhere . . . permanent . . . but it didn’t. Maybe we were simply too young
at the time. Now, however . . .” A grin spread over her perfect features and
she raised an auburn eyebrow at Jen. “Now, I think I know how to get him back.”
Jen passed the gold card through
the machine and waited for it to process. “Oh? He still lives here, then?”
Felicia sighed. “Yes. He stayed
when I left. I couldn’t seem to convince him to try life in the big city.” She
signed the slip Jen had set on the counter. “But this time he’ll come. I will
just bet he’s not found anyone to compare with me, here in Taos.”
Jen managed to suppress the
expression that would have said, that’s a pretty safe bet.
“You might even know him,” Felicia said. “His name is Beau
Cardwell.”
Chapter
11
Sam nearly fell through the split
in the curtain. Jen was staring at the back of Felicia Black, her mouth hanging
open, as the woman flung the door open and swooped out toward her Lexus.
“What nerve! I’ll—” Sam marched
toward the door, intent on grabbing the witch in the silver fur and yanking her
off her feet.
“Sam.” Jen said it so quietly
that Sam stopped in her tracks. “You’ve got a little—” She brushed her finger
across her cheek.
Sam reached up to her own face,
wiped at it and came away with a smear of chocolate. How long had that been
there? She slumped and turned away from the windows.
“I . . . surely she can’t . . .”
“She can’t be for real,” Jen
said. “And she darn sure won’t get Beau. He’s in love with you.”
Sam straightened her shoulders.
An SUV pulled up to the curb as
Felicia’s silver Lexus drove away. Sam quickly scooped up the rest of the
spilled sugar packets and ducked though the curtain as another customer opened
the door. In the small restroom at the back, she took a hard look in the
mirror. A faint trace of the chocolate smear remained, and the short layers of
her hair stuck out at odd angles. She didn’t remember running her fingers
through her hair earlier but she must have, while her head was all sweaty. A
blob of red frosting had landed on the white baker’s jacket, smack on her right
boob, in addition to the normal-enough smudges that she half expected to always
be there.
“I’m such a disaster,” she wailed
at herself in the glass. Her eyes began to well up. I have to draw the line
at this, she thought. I cannot walk back out there and let my crew see
me with red eyes. She grabbed a paper towel and wet it, ridding herself of
the smears and sugar granules. The jacket would have to go into the wash, but
luckily she’d brought a spare one for precisely this reason. She reached into
the medicine cabinet and found her hairbrush, worked with the graying layers
until she didn’t look quite so ridiculous. She stood up straight, raised her
chin, and walked out to the kitchen to change her jacket.
The writing on the order sheets
dimmed in front of her eyes and the normal bustle of the kitchen went
unnoticed. Should I warn Beau about Felicia Black? Tell him she’s back
Similar Books
