Caffeine Kisses & Winter Wishes (The Coffee Loft Series) by Audrey Carnes

Author:Audrey Carnes [Carnes, Audrey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-03-06T00:00:00+00:00

12

Drew

“What are those?” Phoebe asks, pointing at the boxes in my arms as she opens the door to the hotel suite. She steps back to let me pass.

“Pastries. Delicious ones. You should try the cheddar bacon scone. It will change your life.”

Tinkerbell runs over to me, sniffing my legs and making cute little yips.

Phoebe doesn’t laugh. “I’ve never seen you bring treats to a meeting before.”

I shrug, placing the boxes on the table. I open one and grab a piece of cheddar bacon scone, then kneel down to feed it to Tinkerbell. She does a happy dance, spinning around on her hind legs. “Maybe it’s time for a change.”

“You think the board meeting where you oust your father from his company is the time for that change?” She looks like she bit into a sour lemon.

“Why not? Maybe it will help soften the blow.” I grab a toy to play with Tinkerbell, tossing it so that she can retrieve it.

“I doubt that.”

“You might feel differently after you’ve had a scone. Just look how happy it’s made Tinkerbell.”

She eyes me. “What’s up with you? You’re acting strangely.”

I’ve been trying to listen to what I think my mother would tell me, and the answer hasn’t been easy or obvious. I took some time and space this past week, and all I’ve achieved is a lack of sleep. “Cheer up. We’re about to finally accomplish a huge step forward.”

“And do I spy the certain logo of a certain coffee shop of a certain pink-haired proprietor?” Phoebe asks, peering at the boxes.

“Maybe.” I step in front of them, as if that could shield them from her.

“So, you’re not only helping her plan a protest against yourself, but you’re also apparently increasing her revenue for the month. Not only that, but I received a list of demands from her just a moment ago and I’m guessing you had a hand in that as well.”

“Good,” I say, fishing out my phone. “Forward it to my email.” I’m rather excited to see what she came up with–and even more excited to hopefully accept her terms. If I can show her I’m actually a good guy, maybe she won’t be so mad at me when she finds out my real identity.

“Fair warning that there are some doozies in there. Something about Taco Tuesday with free margaritas every week.”

I chuckle, guessing that came from one of the tenants who’s trying to give me a hard time. Now that I had met them all, I can see that they weren’t really a bad bunch.

Phoebe shakes her head. “You have an odd way of launching an attack.”

I play with Tinkerbell to avoid looking at her. If listening to my mother’s voice has given me any insight, it’s that whatever path I choose, it absolutely can’t result in harm to Kayla. “I’m not launching an attack anymore.”

Her reaction is exactly as expected. “Oh, really? Whatever happened to her being an annoyance? To doing whatever it took to get her on your side? You know, honey or the stick,” she says, her voice dropping an octave lower to parrot mine.

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