Page 34 of Sawyer (Sabre Security Daddies #6)
L ele was getting tired of creating boozy treats. She’d shown Tazzy and Georgia how to make boozy cherry bombs, drunken gummy bears, champagne strawberries, and bourbon-infused pineapple chunks.
Winnie, Breezy, Lovie, Suzi, Gabi, Rory, and all the other Musketiaras came to watch and help. They especially liked being taste-testers. They all had, actually.
Lele was beginning to think an hour of taste testing was a bit much. She wasn’t so sure their Daddies were going to be as excited about that part, seeing as it wasn’t even lunch yet.
“Do you think we should drink some coffee or something?” she asked Georgia.
Georgia slapped her hands on the countertop. “That would be good. Where should we get some?”
Tazzy wrinkled her nose. “We’re in a coffee shop, silly.”
“Oh yeah. I love this coffee shop, it’s the most wonderfulest coffee shop in the whole wide world,” she said before bursting out in giggles.
Okay, so maybe some of the treats were boozier than others .
Winnie blinked slowly. “Did…did someone move the shop to the side of a mountain? Everything is kind of tilted.”
The slur in Winnie’s words was funny. Lele tried to hold back her giggle, but her holder backer was broken.
“Oh, oh, oh!” Breezy yelled, running, well, stumbling to Winnie’s side, all the while laughing her head off. “It’s not the mountain, silly. It’s you. You’re leaning sideways.”
“Ooooh.” Winnie said, turning to Breezy and capturing her in a hug. “Thank you, soooo much. You… are a beautiful person, my friend.”
“Hey! Hey, wanna know a secret?” Tazzy asked. “Wanna know why I’m wearing a long sleeve shirt in August?”
“Yes!” Gabi shouted, even though everyone was right there. “I have been dying to know. It’s a bold fashion choice, since I think it’s supposed to get up to three hundred and ninety-five degrees today.”
“Here, I’ll show you,” Tazzy said. She pulled up her sleeve, revealing an adorable tattoo of a crown that looked just like the ones the Musketiaras wore.
“Holy smokes!” Georgia said. She leaned down, putting her face three inches away from Tazzy’s tattoo. “Where’d you get it? I want one.”
“Me, too,” Suzi said. All the other Musketiaras joined in.
“That’s cool,” Tazzy said. “If we go right now, we might be able to get a group discount.”
Lovie laughed. She’d only had one boozy treat, but it appeared to have hit her hard. “You can’t say we. You already have one.”
Tazzy stared at her arm. “Oh, yeah. Does that mean I can’t go?” Her eyes began to water.
“No, course not,” Georgia said, throwing her arms around her friend. “You can always go with us. Right, guys?”
“Right!” all the Musketiaras said together. They all ran, well, stumbled to Tazzy and enveloped her in a group hug .
Everyone except Lele. She couldn’t get a tattoo because she wasn’t a Musketiara. Unbidden, the sniffles were upon her.
“Oh, Lele, what’s wrong?” Breezy crooned when she noticed Lele’s tears. “Everybody, Lele’s crying.”
The herd of Musketiaras stumbled to her, wrapping her in hugs. “I can’t get a tattoo!” she said.
“Why not?”
“Is it Sawyer. He has tattoos.”
“You can get one if you want one.”
Everyone spoke at once, so Lele chose the comment she wanted. Shaking her head, she said, “I can’t cause I’m not a Musketiara.”
“What? You are too! I have your crown and everything. Hold on, I’ll get it.
” Georgia rushed, to the best of her abilities, behind the counter and started pulling everything out.
“I can’t find it. I know I have it, but I must have left it at home.
I know!” She teetered back to Lele’s side.
Taking the crown from her head, she placed it on Lele’s.
“You wear mine. I…we can swap back once we’re home in Arcadian Hills. ”
Lele tapped the tiara on her head. “Wow! That’s so sweet. You’re so sweet. I never knew anyone who was as nice as you!”
The doorbell jingled, and everyone turned and stared as a man walked in. Everyone except Lele. She headed to the counter to look for a mirror in her purse.
Georgia spoke up. “Um, escuse me, but w-we are closed today. Hey, ho-how’d you get in, anyway?”
The man hooked a thumb back to the door. “It wasn’t locked.”
In the loudest whisper Lele had ever heard, Winnie said, “Stranger danger. We-we should yell stranger danger.”
Lele turned to see the stranger in the room and squealed with glee.
Racing… okay, she might be stumbling too.
But that was okay because she was a Musketiara now…
tottering to the door, she waved back her friends.
“That’s no stranger. Silly peoples. That’s my b rother, Hector!
He loves me, and he came to see me. Hi, Hector!
Thanks for dropping by. Um, how did you even know I was here? ”
Glancing at her friends, Hector smiled, but it seemed forced.
Maybe he needed some boozy treats. “I didn’t.
This is the eighth place I’ve stopped this morning.
” Turning back to her, he lost his smile.
“You left without saying goodbye. I’ve been worried about you.
Can we go for a ride and talk? Just a short one. I’ll bring you right back.”
“Oh, you’ve been worried? I’m soooo sorry about that. You guys, Hector was worried about me. Can you believe that? He’s the best.”
“Have you been drinking? It’s eleven thirty in the fucking morning. I knew this Saul guy was going to be a bad influence on you. Did he bring you back here?”
“Nnnope! Saul is fake. Sawyer is real.”
He grabbed her arm and jerked her back to face him. “Owie, Hector, you’re hurting my arm.”
“I need to talk to you. Let’s go for a ride. We don’t need an audience.”
“Sorry, no can do. I’m supposed to stay right here until my Daddy gets done with his meeting.”
“Your Daddy? Are you crazy? Lele, your Daddy is dead.”
That reminder killed her buzz. Snuffed it out like a candle. She tried to yank her arm free, but he wouldn’t let go. “Not my father, my—you know what, never mind. I’m not supposed to leave.”
“Lele, for god’s sake! I’m your brother. He won’t care if you go on a short ride with me. It’s not like you don’t know me.”
Guilt hit her. He was right. He’d always been there for her.
She’d always depended on him. There couldn’t be any harm in taking a ride so she could explain everything that had happened.
“Okay, Hector. But I can’t be gone long.
” Turning to her friends, she waved. “I’m going to take a ride with my brother. I’ll be back soon.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t go, sweetie,” Lovie called to her.
Lele waved back, smiling. “I won’t be gone long enough for anyone to miss me.”
Pulling her out of the shop, he smirked at her, “That was a waste of words, sis. No one is going to miss you.”