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“What about your drink?” she asked as the front door slammed.
Had this man gotten into Tanner’s special lollipops?
She followed him onto the porch and nearly dropped the glass. Schuman Sweet stood in the middle of her front yard with a ladies’ shoebox in his hands. And it didn’t belong to him. She recognized the box. It held the black high-heeled shoes her grandmother used to wear when she was playing with the symphony.
What the hell did Mr. Sweet want with her grandmother’s shoes?
“Listen, Mr. Sweet, if wearing ladies’ heels is your thing, I’m totally good with that, but you don’t have to steal my grandma’s shoes.”
There’s a sentence she’d never expected to say.
The man’s handlebar mustache twitched, and he broke out into laughter.
“You’re kind of freaking me out. Did you get into your nephew’s candy stash?”
“No, a friend asked for this. It’ll help with the challenge.”
Yep, this guy wasn’t firing on all cylinders.
“Don’t we need to start baking for the challenge?” She glanced at the house. “I’m not sure if Landon will show up, but I’m here, and you’re here. We can do this together.”
“Landon’s taken care of everything. He’s already prepared for the third challenge.”
She took a step back. “What?”
“It’s all in hand, Harper.”
“Have you seen him?” she asked as the kernel of hope in her heart warmed.
“I have.”
“And is he…? How does he…?” she blathered.
“Why don’t you drink that glass of water,” the man offered.
“Good idea,” she said and downed the liquid.
“Landon’s doing well. He’s been busy.”
“Will he be at the challenge?”
Schuman nodded.
“What’s the challenge?”
A grin spread across the baker’s face. “It’s the bonbon challenge.”
“Bonbons,” she whispered as a black SUV barreled down the street, then came to a screeching halt in front of the house.
Mr. Sweet took the glass from her hand and set it on the porch. “By the way, that’s our ride.”
She eyed the beast of a vehicle. “Are you sure? Babs drilled into my head the lesson of not getting into a stranger’s car.”
As if on a creepy car cue, the back passenger side window lowered.
Now she understood how Charlotte thought she’d been kidnapped, because this whole scenario felt hella kidnapp-y.
She peered into the car but couldn’t see the occupants. “Hey, whoever you are, my grandmother taught me not to talk to strangers, so piss off.”
