“It’s Blue.”
Jo missed the glass container. “I can’t look at that.”
“That TV interview he did has aired.”
“Well, good for him,” she said, wiping up the sugar she spilled. “Now he’s a star.”
Yet, as soon as she spoke, she wished she could take back her bitter words. She was working on letting him go, but he still had a hold on her heart. Her grandmother had warned it could take a while to get over him.
She rinsed out her dishtowel in the bar sink. “I mean, I’m happy for him if it helps him get what he wants.” That still hurt.
Candy shook her head slowly, pondering her tiny screen. “I don’t understand what all these other comments are about.”
Jo’s ears perked up, and her heart quickened. “Is something wrong with the campaign?”
Maileah had warned her that some people might leave ugly comments, which could hurt the campaign. People had been known to cancel their pledges, even if comments stated something untrue.
Candy looked up. “I don’t know, but I think you should check right away.”
“I’ll get my phone.” Jo’s heart hammered. They’d all put so much effort into this.
Junie raced through the door. “I left the shop early. I had to make sure you saw this. Unless you’ve seen it already.”
Her internal alarm system went off, and Jo stopped. “Seen what?”
Junie thrust out her phone. “Look at that first.”
It was a clip of Blue.
Jo caught a glimpse. Those eyes, that hint of a smile on those lips… She shook her head. “Stop, I can’t watch that.”
“Here, I’ll zoom in.” Junie spread her fingers on the screen. “Look what he’s holding.”
Jo did, and what she saw was unmistakable. “That’s one of my new cups. I don’t understand why he’s holding that.”
“It makes sense to me,” Candy said, still scrolling.
“But why?”
Junie put a hand on her shoulder. “Maybe that’s his favorite cup, or maybe he felt bad for you.”
“Maileah told me this video is all over social media, and—” Junie paused. Her phone dinged, one message after another. “It’s Maileah again.”
“I need to finish these sugar canisters,” Jo said, returning to her task.
A strange look crossed Junie’s face. “I think you should see this.”
“I’ll finish filling the sugar containers,” Candy said, shooting a look at Junie. “Jo, you need to look at that. Take a break.”
“Come on, let’s go outside for a minute,” Junie said, steering her out the front door and under the neon Cuppa Jo’s sign.
“You have to look at this,” Junie insisted.
Jo did. The episode was a short segment of Badges, a show on a streaming platform. The thumbnail clip showed Blue in uniform, walking along the Crown Island boardwalk with the ocean behind him. He looked like a recruitment poster. Determined, square-jawed, impossibly photogenic.
“He must hate that,” Jo said. The Blue she knew would. But this new version of him? She had no idea.
“A lot of people love it.”
