AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Mason?” Clara called, entering the kitchen.
The pie box was on the kitchen island, slightly lopsided. The boy was nowhere in sight.
“Ooh, pie,” Maisie said, sidling up next to Penelope. She opened the box. “Messy pie, but still pie.”
When Maisie went for the plates, Penelope took a sip of her coffee. Clara always added cinnamon into the coffee before it brewed, and Penelope hugged the mug at the nutmeggy taste.
Amelia strode into the kitchen, then. All three Carter sisters shared the same slender body shape, but where they differed was in their hair, and Amelia’s had long ginger colored hair, which was a pretty contrast to her bright blue eyes. She took one look at Clara then at the pie, then smiled at Penelope. “Wondered when you’d find your way back to us.” She stepped closer and made herself a coffee, then whispered, “Saw you on YouTube. You were hilarious.”
“Don’t tell Clara,” Penelope begged.
“I won’t. Promise.” Amelia lifted the mug to her lips, and before she drank, she said, “I like you alive.”
Penelope cringed, but Maisie thrust a plate at her. She accepted it with a smile then dropped down onto a stool at the kitchen island. “Anything exciting happen while I’ve been trapped in the snowstorm?”
“Oh, no, you don’t,” Clara said, moving closer, ignoring the pie, and folding her arms. “You promised you weren’t going to be any trouble.”
“I’m not being any trouble,” Penelope countered. “In fact, I’ve decided to help Darryl over the holidays with some of the Christmas events the police are putting on.”
Amelia’s shoulders shook with her laughter. Okay, so she obviously suspected this wasn’t exactly a voluntary venture.
“Really?” Clara said, some of her scowl lessening. “When did this happen?”
“Just a few minutes ago,” Penelope explained, cutting into her pie with her fork then devouring a big bite.
“Hmm,” Clara said. “Well then, I’m sorry I misjudged you. We just have a lot riding on our reputations right now.”
They did, Penelope knew that. The three sisters had inherited the property when their grandfather passed away. Instead of selling it, they all sold their houses and apartments and moved into the brewery, giving up their jobs to take their grandfather’s craft beer and work hard to get the beer distributed in North America. They were fulfilling an old man’s dream, and Penelope didn’t want to hurt that dream. “I won’t mess up. Promise.”
Clara gave her a disbelieving look, and hell, Penelope deserved that look a thousand times over. But then her gaze fell to the bay windows behind the kitchen. “Mason. You need a coat!” She rushed toward the back door, grabbing his winter coat before heading back outside.
“You’re my hero,” Maisie said with drawl when Clara disappeared out the back door. “Skating on the fountain in high heels. And somehow getting out of a Clara lecture. Amazing.”
Penelope ignored Maisie’s amusement and whirled around to Amelia. “Seriously, you saw me on YouTube?”
“Oh, yeah, and it was so damn funny,” Amelia said, digging her fork into her pie. “We also saw you fawning all over Darryl.”
Maisie handed Penelope her phone. The hazy event from the other night appeared on the screen. She wasn’t sure what she expected to feel, but she did know one thing. “Hey,” Penelope said after a minute. “I am pretty damn good in my high heels!”
Amelia laughed and nodded. “I take it things went well with Darryl?”
“Very well,” she said. “I think he’s actually gotten hotter over the years. How is that even possible?”
Maisie shrugged. “He’s probably also happy that a woman from out of town is here. All the well-meaning ladies keep trying to set him up, but it’s always with girls totally wrong for him.”
/> “I’m with Maisie on this one,” Amelia said. “The poor guy has got two big red Xs against him. Recently divorced. And a cop, meaning he’s gotta be the good guy all the time.”
“Ha,” Penelope said. “I think that good guy thing is all for show. That bad boy could definitely be on the naughty list, especially when you get him naked.”
Maisie giggled. “Gross, and yet, I’m happy for you guys. Darryl’s sweet, and you deserve some fun over the holidays too.” She paused then smiled warmly. “Nothing like rekindling a romance to warm up the winter.”
“I wouldn’t say we’re rekindling anything,” Penelope clarified. “It was a moment. We took it.” She paused at Amelia giving her a funny look. “What?”
“Oh, nothing,” Amelia said slyly, scooping up the pie on her fork. “I’m just wondering if maybe Darryl’s the type of guy that could make you stick around and live somewhere longer than a few months.”
“No one has that magical power,” Penelope said, digging into her pie again. “Especially not a small-town cop who plays by all the rules.”
“But didn’t you just say he’s a bad boy?” Maisie countered.
