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“I wouldn’t want to put your mother out. Surely there’s other family staying there today. With everything that’s going on.” He indicated the crowds of people.
“I’ll check,” Clara said, pulling her phone out and sending off a quick text.
She didn’t have to wait long for her reply. Her phone dinged, and she looked at it for a few seconds before she looked back up with a smile.
“It’s yours if you want it.”
“Okay.” He’d never stayed at a bed-and-breakfast before. Typically, he had Clara book the highest quality hotel she could. Bed-and-breakfasts were just so...quaint, and they felt like something a couple would do. Not a single man on a business trip, which were the only kinds of trips he took.
She typed a few more things out on her phone, then shoved it back in her pocket. “Here’s the diner,” she said as they walked past a building whose entire front was glass. He could see the seats inside, and every one of them was full.
“Looks like there’s going to be a wait.” He didn’t care. The best restaurants usually had one. Unless a person had reservations, but he was going to go out on a limb and say that the diner probably didn’t take reservations.
“We can always order the food and go sit somewhere outside.”
He wondered where in the world she would think to sit, but he shrugged and said, “All right.”
Chapter 5
When Alexander andClara walked into the diner, all the seats were indeed full. They hadn’t made it to the cash register when a voice called out, “Clara! So good to see you! I’ve been hearing everyone talk about your artwork. It’s the most popular thing at the festival, at least from what I hear.” A small, dark-haired woman hurried out from behind the counter, her apron full of pens and notebooks and straws and stained with food, looking like she’d worn it all day. But her steps were sprightly and her smile huge.
“Really?” Clara’s own smile split across her face, and it made Alexander wish that she was smiling at him, rather than at a compliment on her artwork. It made him a little jealous, if he were honest.
The two of them embraced and chatted a bit about the day and what a success it had been for both of their businesses.
Business talk was something he could understand, and he could get how a festival like this would be a boon for a small town.
The woman had barely walked away, promising to be at the cash register to take orders in just a sec, when someone else came up to talk to Clara. “Girl! What a day. I loved your paintings. I saw so many people walking around carrying one. They were such a hit!”
“Thanks so much!” Clara said, beaming as she stepped back after giving the woman a hug. “Kim, this is Mr. Hudson, my boss.”
The man standing behind her holding a baby carrier watched as Kim held out her hand and Alexander shook it.
“And this is my husband, Davis,” Kim said.
Alexander shook Davis’s hand, and his eyes narrowed. “You look familiar.”
