Page 73

“Shut up.”

“So proud,”Calix continues on.“Now, shall we cry into our nasty tea you drink every day or should we pretend you didn’t almost pass out like you were performing life saving heart surgery?”

I slam the laptop shut and down the last of my now cold tea. I am relieved and nauseous at the same time. Hopefully they reach out to me soon.

With Selene off on another adventure that Lou has sent her on, I’m free to sneak down to Crust Issues to see Bea about making some sweet treats. One of the things that Gail has on my very long to do list. She told me to make sure there were finger foods at the gallery that people could carry around with them as they viewed the photos while also highlighting the wonderful honey infused goodness that Bea’s known for.

Not understanding what she means by any of that, I’m hoping that Bea will understand this paper that Gail said to give to her. Apparently I can only be trusted with a sheet of paper and handing it to her.

I walk into Crust Issues with all the nerves and excited energy from earlier bubbling under my skin. I feel as if I have a signhanging on my back saying “I sent a life-altering email and might throw up about it.”

Which is unfortunate because Bea, the owner, clocks it the second her eyes meet mine.

“Well, if it isn’t the man of the month himself with the most anxious aura I’ve seen outside of anyone other than Marlowe when she is trying to sneak a treat,” she says from behind the counter where she’s piping chocolate onto something that looks like a croissant and sin had a baby. “Coffee or comfort carbs?”

“Both,” I grumble as I walk over to the register.

“Get the cinnamon twists with caramel in the middle. It tastes like victory,”Calix pipes up.

“Cinnamon twist with the caramel in the middle,” I say without argument.

Bea’s brows raise, astonished. “Feeling extra bold today I see.”

“Apparently,” I grow as I fidget with the papers on the countertop.

“Oh, do tell.” She lays the piping bag down and comes over with a fresh cup of tea and the cinnamon twist Calix wanted.

“I might have…sent in the Nat Geo submission for Selene,” I say in a rush of words.

“Wait, like THE National Geographic?”

I nod my head as I slide onto the barstool next to the register. The long bar has glass domes with varying baked goods meant to entice customers into buying more as they sit here chatting with friends and loved ones.

“She was grumbling all night about how she couldn’t get it perfect and she probably shouldn’t even send it in until she finally tossed the laptop onto the couch. So, this morning I copied and pasted it into my own email and sent it off with my phone number.”

Bea whistles, grabbing a brown cardboard box as she begins to fill it with extra baked goods as she continues to listen. “You’regoing to need some distractions if you are hoping that she won’t notice that you did that.”

“We survived worse. Remember that time when you touched her photo with Cheeto fingers?”Calix laughs.

“That was you,”I mutter.

“Semantics.”

Bea leans against the counter looking at me with a smile across her face as she slides the box of goodies towards me. “So what brings you to my sugary abode, besides emotional support treats?”

“The gallery opening,” I say as I unfold the paper from Gail and slide it back across the bartop. “Gail mentioned something about treats they can eat while they walk the gallery and something about it ‘highlighting the honey infused goodness you are known for’.”

Bea’s eyes light up as she claps her hands together excitedly. “Oh, how exciting. I have tons of ideas that would work for that but I think one of them should be an edible picture frame that we put a headshot of Selene in to feature. I can also make some mini tarts. Flaky maple bacon rolls. I can even make some photo-themed sugar cookies.”

I hold my hands up. “Whoa, I don’t even know what most of what you said even is. So I’m just going to trust you here.”

Bea pauses mid-count off on her fingers. “What’s the theme here? Rustic forest fae? Mountain Muse? Shifter chic?”

“Hot girl with a camera who swooped in and took over our lives,”Calix grumbles.

I can feel the panic starting to rise as I try to even think of an answer to that, before she flips open the paper and her eyes skim across what Gail wrote for her.

“Oh, lovely,” she hums as she continues to read. “She’s going to love that.”