Page 22 of Meet Me in Ivy Falls

‘Getting donuts and coffee,’ he said in that smooth-as-honey voice that used to win me over.

‘I can pay for my own damn donuts!’ I said, snatching the twenty off the counter and shoving it back at him.

Barb and Susan watched us with wide eyes.

‘I know you can but after what just happened I’d say I owe you breakfast.’ He reached around me and set the twenty back on the counter.

His fingers skimmed my sides as he pulled away, and I felt his gentle brush all the way to my toes. God, it was no more than a five-second touch and already my body was aflame.

‘Better idea,’ I said, pushing away the heat. Letting the fury take back over. ‘Use the twenty for the house because you’re going to need every penny.’

I slammed the money back against his chest. We stood in a stalemate for at least two full breaths before Barb cleared her throat.

‘Tor, honey, would you like to make introductions?’

Susan tipped her chin at Beck and I swear she was about to grin at him.

‘Barb and Susan, this is Beck Townsend,’ I huffed.

He reached over the counter and shook their hands.

‘It’s so nice to meet you. Did you just move to Ivy Falls?’ Susan’s warm brown cheeks did turn into a full-on smile.

‘I grew up here. Moved away,’ he mumbled. ‘But I’m back. Recently bought the place on Huckleberry Lane where I used to live.’

Barb’s thick, penciled-in brows shot up. ‘Oh.’ Her stare veered back to me. ‘I get it now.’

Beck gave a knowing smile and I yanked him over to a corner near the fridge filled with custom-made cakes.

‘Are you following me now?’ I snapped.

‘Maybe.’ He gave a playful grin like he thought I’d be amused. When he didn’t get the reaction he wanted, that grin faded. ‘I remembered this used to be your weekend tradition with your mom. Thought I’d take a chance and maybe catch you here even though you said you were going to work.’

I tried not to show any shock that he’d remembered my mom’s Saturday routine with us even when we were in high school.

‘You’re not going to change my mind. I said everything I needed to at the house.’

‘Give me a chance, Tor. All I need is five minutes.’

Before I could give him another irritated look, beg him to leave me alone, the echoes of my own voice rang through the restaurant. My blood went cold at the sound of that YouTube video playing at full volume.

‘Manny spent days under the house to ensure the foundation was stable…’

Mabel Lynne Parker and Suzanne Fitzpatrick, who were two years behind me at Ivy Falls High, glared in my direction. Their eyes shifted between their phones and me.

‘Once we understood the original structure, we made every effort to keep the historical details in place…’

The weight of every stare in the restaurant made me curl my hands into fists. I could recite every line of the video clip by heart as I was sure most of the town could by now. Some idiots had even turned my WTF line into a meme.

Barb stomped out from behind the counter, nostrils flaring. ‘Mabel Lynne and Suzanne, don’t you have better things to do? Stop hiding out here from your families and watching that damn YouTube.’

All the color drained from the women’s cheeks as they slid their phones into their purses and rushed out the door. Once they were gone, she leveled an inferno-level stare at her few patrons and everyone quickly went back to their food.

‘Damn busybodies,’ Barb growled and returned to the counter. ‘If it wasn’t for TMZ and People magazine, those women would be ten times worse about the local gossip.’

Susan shot me a sympathetic look before rushing off in the direction of the coffee machine.

I couldn’t move. Couldn’t think. It was bad enough that the whole damn town hated me, but now Beck had a front-row seat to my living shitshow.