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The two of them exchanged another glance, but I let it drop. If this made them happy, I wasn’t going to interfere.

Isabeau packed up my products, and we said our goodbyes. As soon as I got out of the store, I called Grace. This morning with her had been fucking fantastic. I didn’t want our breakfast together to end. I’d been very close to convincing her to bail on her parents, but I’d promised Bella I’d watch the movie, and I didn’t like to disappoint her.

Grace answered quickly. “Hey,” she said.

“Are you still at your parents’?”

“No, I just left. I’m meeting Lais.”

“Listen, I was at my grandmothers’ store just now and told them about your idea. You’re welcome to stop by at any time.”

“Wow. Thanks. I didn’t realize you were going to talk to them about it already.”

“Why not? I wanted to get the ball rolling.”

“Did they say when?”

“No, but they’re always at the store.”

“Oh, they’re hard workers,” Grace said with admiration in her tone.

“Yep. They’ve always been like that. Isabeau usually jokes that what they do now doesn’t even require the stamina thatbeing a chef had. Says managing a shop is so easy that she could do night shifts too.”

She chuckled. “Being a chef is definitely not for the faint of heart. I’ll give her that.”

“What are you and Lais doing?” I asked.

“We didn’t make specific plans. We’ll probably have a coffee and...”

“Spill the beans?” I finished for her.

There was a short pause. I could already imagine her blushing and, if she was sitting, maybe pressing her thighs together.

Grace cleared her throat. “Yes, I will. All the spicy ones.”

Now it was my turn to pause. I hadn’t expected the return.

“What was your favorite one?” I asked as I headed toward my car. The Quarter was waking up from the afternoon lull and it was getting more crowded, preparing for yet another crazy night in town.

“Let me think. Probably the couch because it was unexpected.”

So, she liked to be surprised. I was going to keep that in mind.

“What else?”

“The fact that you always listen without judging makes me feel safe.”

That caught me completely off guard. I’d expected details about my prowess in bed, not something like this. Last night, it had taken a lot of effort to get her to tell me what was going on. That she trusted me enough to tell me only made me want to protect her all the more.

“You don’t have to keep things from me, Grace. I promise I’ll never judge or use what you say against you.”

“I’m starting to understand that about you.”

“Be sure to talk me up to Lais. It’s always good if your best friend likes me,” I teased to lighten things up a bit.

“True. And let me tell you, Lais doesn’t like people very easily, but you’re in luck. She seemed to like you even before meeting you.”

“Even though you told her how infuriating I am?”