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Kayleigh protested, but he told her that since it had been his idea, he would take care of it. She didn’t look pleased but also didn’t argue with him.
Adela quickly made the coffees while another woman got the pastries from the case. “Are you going to stay here, or do you want them to go?”
Kayleigh glanced at him, so Hudson decided for them. “We’ll stay here.”
Obviously, Kayleigh hadn’t expected that answer as her brows lifted slightly.
“Here you go,” Adela said as she placed a tray with their drinks and food on the counter.
“Thank you.” Kayleigh picked up the tray, then looked around the room.
It wasn’t full, so they had their choice of spots and ended up at a table that looked out over the street.
“Are you a regular here?” Hudson asked as he lifted his cup for a sip of coffee. “Hmmm. This is good.”
“I’m not a regular, but the coffee makes it special whenever I do stop by.”
“So she knows you from periodically coming here for coffee?”
“No. We attend the same church.”
The croissant was delicious, especially when he took a bite, followed by a sip of coffee. As they drank their coffees and ate their croissants, they discussed the meeting with the police.
“Kayleigh!”
A woman’s voice interrupted their conversation, and Hudson looked up to see a young Black woman standing beside their table.
“Hey, Janessa,” Kayleigh said, sounding less than enthusiastic. “What brings you by here in the middle of a workday?”
“Well, first, that’s a question for you as well,” the woman responded with a bright smile. “But also, Aria is having a sad day, so I came to get coffee and pastries to cheer her up.”
Kayleigh frowned. “What’s wrong with Aria?”
“Gareth’s been at a medical conference in Portland for the past few days, so she’s missing him.” Janessa gave Hudson a curious look. “Why are you out and about on a workday?”
“This is Hudson St. James,” Kayleigh said. “He’s here from Remington headquarters regarding the thefts we’ve had at the resort. We just got out of a meeting with the police.”
Hudson was a little surprised she gave those details to someone, but it was clear she knew this woman well enough to trust her.
Janessa held out her hand. “Nice to meet you, Hudson. I’m Janessa.”
Hudson shook her hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”
“Oh, the pleasure is all mine,” Janessa said with a laugh.
“Nessa, please don’t.”
“Don’t what?” Janessa’s expression would have looked innocent if it weren’t for the spark of humor in her brown eyes.
“By the way, Hudson, Janessa is my sister,” Kayleigh said. “So don’t mind anything annoying that she says or does.”
Janessa crossed her arms and gave Kayleigh an indignant look. “I’mneverannoying. Who do you take me for? Charli?”
That made Kayleigh laugh. “Oh, I’m going to tell her you said that.”
Though Hudson would never have pegged them as sisters because they looked like they belonged in two different families, their interactions spoke of their familiarity with each other.
“She probably won’t believe you.” Janessa’s eyes narrowed for a moment, then she turned to Hudson. “Are you leaving today?”
