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Maggie handed Vera a small sample of her newest blend, a mixture of coconut and hazelnut.
Vera stopped sweeping the floor. “Yum, you’ve done it again. Put that one on the menu, too.”
“It’s not quite ready. There’s something missing, but I’ll figure it out. I just need to play around some more with the flavors.”
The doorbell dinged announcing a new customer had walked in.
“Well, not now. Lover Boy is here again and there’s no way I’m dealing with him today.” Vera turned her back.
Ryan Colton was by far Harte’s Peak most eligible bachelor, and one of Vera’s biggest fans. On the other hand, also a big fan of every woman. And with his rugged good looks, it was no wonder most women were part of the I Want to Date Ryan Fan Club. Not Vera, though. A mystery Maggie could still not crack.
“The usual, Ryan?” Maggie made preparations for a double espresso.
“Please don’t tell me I’m that predictable, or I’ll have to change my order,” Ryan said as he fiddled with the straws and seemed to ignore Vera.
Vera did a good job of ignoring him as well, staying near the back. They’d nearly made ignoring each other a spectator sport.
Vera, whose dating life was practically aWho’s Whoin Harte’s County, had somehow decided that Ryan was off limits to her. Go figure.
“Here you go, Ryan.”
She slid him the espresso with a tentative smile. She didn’t like playing this silly game. These two needed to realize they were crazy about each other and get over it.
“Are you girls obeying the speed limit like you promised you would?” Ryan asked with a boyish smile.
Maggie noticed that Vera threw him a look but didn’t respond. They both knew he meant Vera, who accumulated a speeding ticket every other week.
“Obeying the speed limit is what I do.” Maggie put a hand to her chest. “And I’m good at it.”
“You make my day,” Ryan said.
The phone rang, and Vera rushed to get it.
“Maggie, get over here,” she called out.
But the phone couldn’t possibly be for her. Lexi always called the cellphone, and who else could it be? Strolling toward the back where the phone was located, Maggie smiled.
“Finally ready to talk to him?”
“I’m serious. It’s Lexi, and she sounds upset.”
Vera handed her the phone. Maggie fished inside her apron for the cellphone she kept near for emergencies. There were three missed calls on it from Lexi. Maggie had forgotten to take the phone off silent. Again.
“Mom, some stupid cop wants to arrest me.” Lexi’s voice sounded small and tiny over the phone.
“What? Where are you?”
“I’m at home. Only he doesn’t believe me.”
A number of questions popped in Maggie’s head, like why Lexi hadn’t walked to the café after school as she usually did, but there would be time for that later.
“I’ll be right there.”
Maggie hung up the phone, and grabbed her purse and keys. “Vera, I have to go. Lexi is—”
“Go! Tell me about it later.”
Maggie ran past Ryan, hopped in her vehicle, and prayed it would start on the first try this time. She had to get home immediately, because there obviously had to be some mistake.Of course, she would just straighten this out, and they would laugh about it later. For all the trouble she’d caused in the past year, Lexi had never become acquainted with law enforcement.
