“No can do, Stevie Boo Boo.” He taps me on the nose and winks. “I promised Cass I’d have you back before breakfast.”
“Hmm. Are the girls cooking again? Because if so, we may want to grab some to-go stuff from Broken Yolks. Last weekend the so-called Hot Girl Squad drank all the mimosas before they even started cooking, passed out with the bacon sizzling on the stove, and damn near burned the house down.”
Ani laughs. “No, the girls aren’t cooking. This is… something else.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “What are you plotting, Gingersnap? I’m not sure I like the sound of this.”
“I’ve said too much already.” He presses a final kiss to my lips, then shoos me back toward the blankets. “Get those packed up. No time to waste.”
Not wanting to miss a moment of a smile whose absence I’ve endured for far too long, I obey.
* * *
The air bikes are right where we left them at the bottom of the canyons, and we hop on and make our way back through campus. But rather than turning toward the portals that will take us back to Red Sands Canyon and the epic breakfast I’ve now set my heart on regardless of who’s cooking it, Ani swings left, leading us toward the Promenade shopping center.
“So we’re picking up takeout after all?” I laugh as we pull to a stop and park the bikes. “Ani, I don’t think any of the shops are even open yet.”
The Promenade sustained less damage in the attack then the main areas of campus, but it still needed a lot of repairs and rebuilding. Last I heard, they were planning a grand re-opening in a few weeks, coinciding with the start of classes.
“One shop is open,” he says cryptically, eyebrows wagging. “Rather, it will be soon. Come on.”
A nervous giggle erupts from my chest as he leads me toward a nondescript storefront, brown paper covering the glass doors. He pulls one open and nods for me to head inside.
To my surprise and delight, my friends and family are waiting for me just inside the entryway—Doc, Baz, and Kirin, of course. Carly, Isla, and Nat. Professor Broome and Professor Maddox.
Every last one of them is wearing a mischievous grin.
Ducking my suspicious glares, the group suddenly parts, and Ani ushers me to the center of the shop.
“So?” He spreads his arms wide, turning in a slow circle. “What do you think?”
I follow his gaze, glancing around at the space. It’s one of the shops that had to be completely remodeled, so everything is new and shiny, the air carrying the scent of fresh-cut wood.
Low café tables line one side, with a couple of smaller tables positioned near the papered-up windows. Counter seating takes up most of the opposite side, leading back into a kitchen. Tarot artwork graces the walls—the Arcana drinking from teacups and eating pastries.
“Wait!” The scent of fresh-baked scones hits me, and I bounce on my toes, my stomach turning as fizzy as Carly’s pineapple mimosas. “Is this a new tea café? Oh my Goddess, it looks amazing! I’ve been dying for them to put in a tea café! Why should coffee get all the love, right? Guys, this isamazing!”
“Isn’t it though?” Ani asks.
Still beaming, I turn to look at the rest of the gang. “So, who bought the place? One of the faculty? Someone from outside? Wait, don’t tell me it’s a franchise. Is it? I mean, as long as they know how to brew tea, I guess I can’t complain, but…” I pop my hands on my hips and roll my eyes. “Okay. Let me in on the joke, because I don’t get it. What’s so damn funny about someone opening a tea café?”
“Nothing,” Baz says, covering his mouth to hide the smile. Next to him, Kirin turns his obvious laughter into a very fake cough. When I turn my gaze on Ani, he stares up at the ceiling and whistles.
“What’s sofunny, Miss Milan,” Doc says, finally coming to my rescue, “is that this is, in fact, a tea café, yet the owner hasn’t opened for business, despite having a full shop of eager customers.”
“Customers?” I glance around the place, wondering where they’re all hiding.
At my obvious confusion, the laughter everyone was trying so hard to hold back finally erupts in earnest.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, a little bell chimes, but I have no idea what it’s trying to tell me.
There’s something I’m not getting here.
Brow furrowed in concentration, I take another deep whiff of scone-scented air.
Wait, not scones. Are those… cinnamon buns?
My heart—that telltale little beast—kicks in to high gear. My mouth goes dry, my hands and feet start tingling, and everything inside me goes absolutely haywire.
