Sweeter With You by Susan Mallery Page A

that would help her make a name for herself and get over Greg Clary once and for all.
    * * *
    M AYOR M ARSHA T ILSON was the longest-serving mayor in California. She was a well-dressed, white-haired woman who loved her town—idiosyncrasies and all. She welcomed Ana Raquel warmly and led her over to her desk.
    â€œWe’re so happy to have you back in Fool’s Gold,” Mayor Marsha said with a smile. “You were missed. You’re always so friendly and enthusiastic. Even when you were little, you looked out for the other children, and now that you’re grown, you’re feeding all of us.”
    â€œThank you. I’m glad to be here,” Ana Raquel told her. “I learned a lot in San Francisco, but it’s not the same as being home.”
    Ana Raquel was one of three girls. Fayrene, her twin, owned a temp agency and pet-sitting service in town, while Dellina, their older sister, ran a party planning and decorating business. The Hopkins women were self-starters.
    The mayor picked up a flyer for Ana Raquel’s street cart from her desk. “We’re getting excellent feedback on what you’ve been serving. The locals appreciate another place to go for lunch, while the tourists love both the food and the convenience.”
    â€œI’ve been experimenting a lot with ingredients,” Ana Raquel told her. “You know how specific foods are served at different festivals? Rather than make people wait for their favorites, I’m working on ideas of turning festival specialties into everyday recipes. I created an Elephant Ear Pull-Apart Bread. It suits the season, but gives us a taste of what we miss.”
    â€œI’ve heard your Carrot Cake Muffins are creating quite a stir. There was something close to a riot over them last week.”
    Ana Raquel laughed. “I ran out of muffins and there were still people in line. It got a little loud there in the park.”
    The mayor smiled. “I believe that is what they call a high-quality problem. Now tell me about the cookbook you mentioned when you set up our meeting.”
    Ana Raquel clasped her hands together and leaned forward. “I want to take what I’ve learned and share it with people on a larger scale. I want to create a cookbook based on the town and what we like to eat here. I thought I could collect recipes from locals who want to share them. I’ll also create some of my own. I was thinking the recipes should be delicious but not too complicated. People are busy and not everyone wants to spend all day in the kitchen. We could call it the Fool’s Gold Cookbook .”
    She squeezed her fingers, hoping she could hide her sudden nerves. She wanted the mayor to be excited about the cookbook idea.
    Mayor Marsha leaned back in her chair. “That’s very interesting,” she murmured. “I like the concept. Ironically, someone else came to me last week with a similar plan. Given that you both have cookbook ideas, I hope you don’t mind that I took the liberty of inviting him to join us.”
    Even as she spoke, Mayor Marsha was standing and motioning for someone to enter the room. Ana Raquel knew who it was before she bothered to turn around. Because there was only one person who would invade her meeting and steal her idea.

CHAPTER TWO
    â€œH ELLO , A NA R AQUEL .”
    Ana Raquel stood and turned toward the man standing next to her. She hadn’t seen Greg in six years. She could have gone the next sixty without seeing him and been totally happy. She sat—mostly because her legs gave out. He took the chair next to her.
    She opened her mouth to tell him that she didn’t want him at her meeting, only suddenly she couldn’t speak. Even though he was sitting, she had the sense that he was much taller than she remembered. His shoulders were broader. He seemed so much more like a man than the teenager she remembered from prom night.
    His eyes were the same dark brown, as was