Matchmaking Mischief by A.R. Casella & Denise Grover Swank

Author:A.R. Casella & Denise Grover Swank [Casella, A.R. & Grover Swank, Denise]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781940562612
Publisher: Laughing Heart Press
Published: 2022-01-05T18:30:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

ALEX

Team Sunshine stayed for a long time on Tuesday night, and although Nicole tried to engineer a reason to leave Willow with me, God bless her, Willow said she needed to get home so she could be at the bakery at eight.

Wednesday was a long blur of words, which gushed from me like water from a busted pipe, as if they’d gotten backed up by all these months of nothing. And, in a weird way, Willow was with me all day, because I could hear her whispering in my ear, telling me the heroine wouldn’t do that or that she’d be a bit nicer to people for goodness’s sake.

We texted a bit, too, on the Team Sunshine group text, and also just the two of us. I asked what her plan was for Dottie and Bear, of course, and her reply was that we’d discuss it on Thursday night. I neglected to tell her that I was planning on seeing Dottie before then, because…well, I had a very strong impression she’d tell me not to, and…

Shit, I almost hate myself for saying so, but I have a good feeling about this.

When I get to Tea of Fortune on Thursday afternoon, I’m still flying high, feeling very glass half full.

The door is locked. Of course, it’s after closing, and it’s possible Bear forgot to pass along my message. Possible but not likely. My gaze shifts to the bakery next door. It’s already closed, but there’s a handmade sign on the door that says, “The filming site for @LaughingHearts’s viral TikTok video!”

Something tells me Kate must have put it up. I doubt Willow would want to advertise Blake’s embarrassment.

I’m ready to walk away from Tea of Fortune when the door suddenly swings open. It’s Dottie, wearing a bright red dress that should clash with her purple hair but somehow doesn’t.

“Oh good, you’re here,” she says. “I had a feeling you would come today.”

“Didn’t Bear tell you? I asked him to.”

“Oh, yes,” she says, waving a hand dismissively. “And he brought over a lovely chocolate date cake.”

Huh. He’s getting less subtle. That’s good news for us.

“Well, I’m sorry for being a few days late,” I say. “I got tied up.” My mind flashes to Willow tying me up to my bed with gauze, like the heroine did to Dr. Love in Ivy’s book. (Not practical or probably even possible, but I won’t lie. It was kind of hot.)

Is it weird to have fantasies about her driven by something her sister wrote? Fuck, I think it probably is.

But Dottie’s holding the door open, so I walk inside, not sure what else to do.

“Back here,” she says, leading me to a booth. There’s already a pot of tea sitting on the table, along with two cups and a plate full of cookies that look much better than the ones I burned yesterday afternoon. It’s possible Bear made them, but I won’t be touching them. You can never be too careful.

We sit down on opposite sides of the booth, and Dottie pours tea for us.

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