Charlie looks up at me with wide eyes. “She’s determined to make the perfect coffee to go with her cinnamon rolls. She’s been force-feeding me caffeine for the last hour, and I think my heart’s on the verge of stopping. Now it’s your turn to taste test.”
“Gladly!” I barely have time to finish saying the word before Magnolia is handing me two cups of coffee.
“Tell me which one you like better.”
I try both. “They’re both great!”
“But as a recommended coffee with the cinnamon roll?”
“Definitely the hazelnut,” I say. “The caramel is amazing, but it would be too sugary paired with a sweet pastry.”
“Good point. I made an extra-sweet salted caramel. What if I tried a raspberry white chocolate?” Magnolia muses.
“I’ll try whatever you make.”
She smiles brightly. “Perfect! You’re way more helpful than grumpy Charlie over here.”
Charlie slams the cupboard door and stands. “Hey now, I’ve drunk the equivalent of four lattes, and my legs are bouncing. I need a break from caffeine.”
Magnolia scoffs. “Quitter.”
Their easy banter reminds me of my sisters and makes me miss them. So I lean against the counter, sip my coffee, and prepare to be entertained by Magnolia and Charlie. It’ll be a good dose of nostalgia.
“So, how are things with Zane?” Charlie asks.
I choke on a sip of salted caramel latte. “With Zane?”
Charlie glances back at Magnolia. “She’s great at keeping secrets. I haven’t told her anything because it’s not my place, but if you want to bring her in the loop, you can trust her.”
“Bring who into the loop on what?” Magnolia asks after the machine quits spitting out coffee.
With a wary glance at the door, I decide that Charlie’s right. Magnolia can be in on the secret. “Zane and I didn’t get married because we fell in love. We got married because it was practical for us.”
Magnolia just stares at me, her jaw slack. “Wait. Like an arranged marriage?”
“More like…a beneficial-to-both-parties marriage,” I say slowly.
“So you’re basically a Regency romance heroine,” she says in awe.
“Sure, if you want to call it that. But less Lizzy Bennet and more Charlotte Lucas.”
Magnolia stares wide-eyed still. “But you could still fall in love—right?”
“Well, that part is a little too late. At least for me,” I admit as I rock back and forth on my heels and toes.
Charlie grins. “You love Zane.”
I don’t deny it.
Charlie turns to Magnolia. “She loves Zane,” she tells her as if Magnolia hadn’t heard her the first time…
“Have you told him?” they ask in synchronization, then bombard me with more questions.
Soon, I remember exactly how nosy friends can be. Before I know what’s happening, I’ve been through an hour-long interrogation about Zane and my interactions and analyzed everything that has taken place since we’ve been married.
“That man loves you,” Charlie declares at the end of the inquisition.
“We kissed—we didn’t declare undying love for each other.” Unfortunately. It sure would have been nice if he’d done something like that.
