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It was a funny thing when you finally took a step back and looked at the person you’d become. She was doing that a bit lately and had to say she wasn’t happy with what she saw.
She wasn’t someone she’d want to hang around with if she had a choice…, which made no sense, but yet did.
I’m clearly going crazy.
“I have a mystery muffin every day. Drives the customers mad.” He spoke in a calm, even voice. “Especially Jake’s wife, Branna. She’s never guessed yet.”
“So you don’t label it?” Mandy was curious now that her heart had settled into its normal rhythm.
“No. Only I know what’s in it. If they guess, they get the muffin and a coffee free.”
His smile wasn’t wide like the Texan’s had been, but it was genuine and reached all the way to his eyes.
“My aunts do blindfolded tea tasting with some of the locals. Joe’s best at it. He can guess what’s in them down to the last ingredient.”
“That’s impressive, but I’m not telling him that.” He was poking about looking in cupboards and on shelves now. “You want to share recipes?”
“My specialty is lemon and blueberry scones. Do you bake scones, Buster?” She made herself converse. This man ran a successful cafe. Joe had told her.
“I’ll tell you something, Mandy, but I need you to promise not to tell any of the Howling party.”
“Promise.”
“I can’t bake scones very well. Not sure why, as I’m a god in the kitchen, according to my woman, but scones….” He made a clucking noise in his throat. “They’re like algorithms. I never got them either.”
Mandy laughed. “I’ll tell you a secret too, Buster. I’m pretty bad with pastry.”
He made a pshaw sound. “That stuff’s easy.”
“Shall we trade lessons?”
“I’ve only got two more days, but I’d be grateful. Don’t feel bad if they don’t work out though, it’s just me, not you.”
“Deal.”
“I can swap that blueberry and lemon recipe for a chocolate muffin with caramel filling. Jake would sell his firstborn child for it.”
“Fin’s a bit like that with scones, although he doesn’t have a child to sell.”
They talked, and while she filled rolls for the bachelor party’s lunch today, which they wanted after their basketball game, Buster baked some of Jake’s favorite muffins.
“Willow, that’s my wife, she’s an artist.”
“I can’t even draw stick figures.”
He pulled out his wallet and unfolded a piece of paper. It was a drawing of him and a woman, presumably Willow. The detail was amazing.
“She’s good.”
“And then some. She’s pretty much the best part of me.” He said the words matter-of-factly, and yet Mandy knew that he loved his wife to distraction.
She’d never really expected that in her life. Maybe one day that would change too.
“You thought about altering the shop layout at all, Mandy?”
“Lately I’ve been thinking we could make a few changes. I’m not sure what though.” Which wasn’t exactly a lie. A plan had been percolating, she just wasn’t sure she could pull it off yet.
He talked about some options, and Mandy grabbed her notebook and jotted down his ideas.
