Page 5 of Scoop Me Up (Love in Maplewood #7)

Sam

I knew I shouldn’t flirt with the parents of my students, especially when those parents were presumably straight, but I could barely help myself.

Gabe was tall, with reddish blond hair and a classic “dad bod,” a physique that made my mouth water.

He was attractive, easy to be around, and he clearly thought the sun rose and set with Ellie.

Besides, he was a good sport—he’d eaten almost a pint of ice cream despite the pain that had been evident on his face.

I made my way back around the town square, heading to the booth I’d helped Cooper set up earlier that morning for his artwork. As I rounded the corner and he caught sight of me, his face brightened. Coop put down the book he’d been reading and waved me over.

“How’d it go?”

I shrugged. “They don’t announce the winners until later today. You know that.”

“I thought you might have gotten a feel for how it went over with the audience, though.”

“I think they liked it. For the most part, there weren’t any complaints. Not like the mac and cheese flavor.”

Cooper let out a startled laugh. “Don’t tell me—Theo?”

With a nod, I chuckled. “Nailed it.”

“Why am I not surprised?” A customer approached then, and I stepped back to give Cooper some room to help her.

He walked her through his artwork. They’d all been created on his tablet—digital art—and they were stunning.

He had some pieces that were of local interest, like local landmarks, a few of Mabel, the town’s cryptid, who most people believed was a sentient being that looked like a giant, tree-shaped creature made of maple limbs and leaves, but with eyes.

A lot of pieces depicting various stages of syrup harvesting, maple trees, and the like.

For today’s event, he’d made a few that included the ice cream theme, and that’s what the customer eventually left with.

After she was gone, I congratulated him on the sale. “Glad to see someone’s finally appreciating your art as much as I do.”

“Thanks, friend. I mean it.” He gestured to a chair next to him. “Come sit down. Relax a little. You’ve got a while before the announcement, after all.”

I settled into the seat and we chatted between customers.

“How did you come up with that ice cream concoction, anyway?”

“My grandma. She loved walnuts and planted a few on her property a long time ago. Way before I was born. The maple part just seemed natural.”

“And the fig and tamarind?”

“Figs were her favorite fruit. I’m not sure where the tamarind inspiration came from, but it felt like it worked.”

“Well, I can’t wait to hear how much they loved it.”

“I can tell you one person who loved it.”

He quirked an eyebrow. “Yeah?”

“You know Ellie Winslow?”

“I think so. She’s pretty new in town, right?”

I nodded. “She’s one of my students. She moved into town at the beginning of second grade with her mom. Divorce.”

“Ellie liked your tamarind ice cream?”

I leaned close to Cooper. “Not Ellie. Her dad .”

“Oh. My. God. You didn’t.”

“What? I didn’t do anything,” I protested.

Cooper smirked. “I bet you didn’t.”

My cheeks heated. “Look, just because he’s hot—”

“I knew it.”

Dropping my voice to a whisper, I leaned a little closer. “He really seemed to like it. But… he’s straight. Probably. Right?”

Cooper shrugged. “Just because he was married to a woman doesn’t make him automatically straight. I mean, hello. Welcome to Maplewood.”

I snorted, and I was about to point out the fact that he’d shown no interest in me as anything other than his daughter’s teacher, when I heard a voice call out to me. At that moment, Ellie skipped over to the table. “Hi, Mix,” she said, waving enthusiastically.

“Hey, Ellie. I thought you were going home to take a rest.”

She shrugged, and a second later, Gabe caught up to her.

“El, you can’t just run—oh. Hi.” He rubbed the back of his neck and nodded in greeting.

“Daddy, can I go back to the coloring station?”

Gabe frowned and hesitated.

“It’s safe,” I assured him. “This is Maplewood.”

He turned to Ellie. “Okay, but go straight there. I’ll be over in a minute.” With that, Ellie took off in the direction of the kids’ zone and the coloring tables.

When she was gone, I cleared my throat, a little nervously. “No rest for the weary?”

Gabe laughed. “No rest for parents, especially not this parent.”

We were silent for a second before Cooper broke the tension. “Hi. I’m Cooper.”

With a smile, Gabe turned his attention to him. “Gabe.” He raised his eyebrows. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

I elbowed Cooper in the side and shot him a look that begged him not to embarrass me.

Gabe chuckled a little. “Have you?”

I kicked Cooper under the table and leaned forward. “I was just about to tell Cooper how you conquered that ice cream eating contest.”

With a snort, Gabe shook his head. “Hardly.”

“You gave it your best,” I said.

Another little chuckle. “I guess I did.” He paused for a moment before speaking again. “Well, it was good to see you again. I guess I’d better keep up with the monster. See you at the judging.” He gave us a little wave before heading off in the direction of the kids’ tent.

The minute Gabe was out of earshot, Cooper grabbed my arm with one hand. “Oh. My. God. He is hot. The dad bod is totally working for him.”

“Okay,” I said, holding up a hand to stop him.

“Do you disagree?”

I lowered my voice to a whisper. “No, but I don’t want him to hear us. The last thing I need is to alienate the parent of one of my students.”

“You never know. He could be into you.”

“Unlikely.”

A second later, Gabe reappeared. “I think I got turned around. Would you—”

Cooper nudged me. “They’d be happy to show you where the kids’ zone is.”

I looked from Cooper to Gabe, stunned into silence, sending traitor vibes in Cooper’s direction. I’m sure he would’ve thought of himself as a good wingman instead.

“Right, Sam?” Cooper asked meaningfully.

“Of course.” I got to my feet. “Let me show you.”

As we walked, I struck up a conversation. “I haven’t seen you around much. When did you get into town? Did you just move in?”

“Oh, I’m just visiting. I got here a couple of days ago. I’ve mostly been hanging with Ellie at home. We spent the weekend hiding from the heat. I haven’t explored town much.”

My stomach sank at the idea that Gabe wouldn’t be in town for long. Not that it mattered—he hadn’t given any indication that he was into me, either. “How are you liking it here so far?”

“It’s great. I’m not really used to the small-town thing, but I like it. The pace is slower. People are friendlier. That kind of thing.”

I nodded. “I’ve never lived anywhere except Maplewood, but I love it here. I can’t imagine being anywhere else. How long are you visiting for?” Hope fluttered in my chest. Stop that, I told myself. There’s nothing here to hope for.

“I’ll be here until the end of August.”

My eyebrows shot up. “Really? That long?” As we walked, the back of my hand brushed his, and my heart jumped into my throat. I pulled away and mumbled an apology before putting a little more space between us. When I glanced at Gabe, his cheeks and the tips off his ears were tinged with pink.

He shoved his hands into his pockets. “Yeah. Jennifer, Ellie’s mom, decided to spend the summer traveling with her boyfriend. They left Saturday.”

“So you’re here to take care of Ellie. Makes sense.”

Gabe nodded. “I haven’t seen Ellie much since her mom and I got divorced.

They moved here as soon as it was final, and I live about an hour away.

I get her every other weekend, but usually Ellie comes to me.

This is my first time in Maplewood. When Jennifer decided to live out her dreams of a tour of Europe she asked me for help and I jumped at the chance.

I can usually work remotely, so I promised Ellie I’d stick around for a while.

” He closed his mouth abruptly and exhaled through his nose.

After a moment, he spoke again. “Sorry to unload all that on you.”

I shook my head and gave him a gentle smile. “I don't mind. It’s not unloading anything on me at all.” I definitely did not want to make a joke about his load.

He looked at his feet, his ears pink again. “Thanks.” A second later, he looked at me. “What about you?”

“Me?”

Gabe nodded. “Yeah. What’s your story?”

Reluctantly, I gestured ahead of us. “We’re here.” Kids swarmed the tent, some blowing bubbles, some eating ice cream, some coloring or painting or drawing on the nearby sidewalk with chalk. Ellie was in a chair having her face painted, beaming, and waved at us the moment she spotted us.

His face fell, but he recovered quickly. “Does that mean you’re abandoning me with all these kids?”

I laughed. “I’m sure you can handle it.”

“Doubtful. They’ll probably eat me alive.” His tone was light, though, not worried.

The face painter, a teenager named Molly, looked up at us. “Oh, hey. You’re Ellie’s dad?”

“That I am.”

“We just got started. It’ll be a little while before I’m done. Do you want me to walk her home after I finish?”

“Don’t you have other faces to paint? I wouldn’t want to pull you away from your painting duties.”

Molly shook her head. “Ellie’s my last one before someone else takes over. I can walk her.”

Gabe shrugged and stammered out an answer. “I—um, you don’t have to do that.”

She gave Gabe a sincere smile. “I don’t mind. I’m taking a break after this one anyway.”

I took a risk and elbowed him gently. “Let her. Molly is trustworthy and reliable. We love her around here. She’s a great babysitter, too.”

Molly laughed and smiled. “Thanks, Mix.”

Gabe looked from Molly to me and back to her. “If you’re sure you don’t mind.”

“I’m sure.”

His stomach growled then and his eyes widened as he put his hand to his stomach. “I must be hungrier than I thought.”

I cleared my throat. “Why don’t we go grab an early dinner? And by the time we’re done, it’ll be time for the announcement and fireworks.” I turned to Molly. “Do you mind hanging out with Ellie while we eat?”

“Of course not,” she said with a shrug.

Gabe frowned and opened his mouth, shaking his head. “I don’t know.”

“Trust me. It’s going to be fine.”

He crouched to meet Ellie’s eye. “You okay with that, Bug?”

Ellie frowned. “I’m not supposed to move, Daddy,” she mumbled through gritted teeth.

“Fair enough. Okay.” He stood and looked at me. “Alright, it’s a d—plan. Lead the way.”

As I led him away from the tent, I pointed both left and right. “Which diner do you prefer?” When he frowned, brows dipping in confusion, I chuckled and clarified. “Red’s or Sparky’s?”

“I’ve tried Sparky’s so we should check out Red’s.”

I couldn’t stifle my surprised laugh. “You’re playing with fire here, but okay. Red’s it is.”

“Fire?”

I steered us in the direction of Red’s despite the feeling of wrong way that rushed through me as we walked. “I’m a hardcore Sparky’s person, myself. There’s a major diner rivalry and you really have to pick one or the other. If they hear you’re playing both sides, you’ll never hear the end of it.”

He laughed, sounding a little incredulous. “Okay, that’s weird, but whatever.”

I put my hand on his shoulder and stopped walking. “Hey now. Don’t judge our idiosyncrasies. I’m sure I’d think some of your city habits are weird, too.”

“Fair point.” He was quiet for a moment before speaking again. “You’re sure Ellie will be okay with Molly? It feels weird to just leave her behind with someone I’ve never met.”

I shrugged. “In Maplewood, everyone helps everyone.”

Gabe’s gaze flickered to my mouth as I spoke, before bouncing back to meet my eyes. When he made eye contact again, his cheeks reddened slightly and his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard. “I guess I need to learn to adapt to the way Maplewood runs, huh?”

With a chuckle, I nodded. “It would help.”

As we made our way to the diner, we continued to chat, mostly about Ellie and how much she loved Maplewood. “Even though it was a really amicable split, her academics have suffered since the divorce,” he confessed. “I’m glad she was able to get some extra help this summer.”

“I’m happy to help. Third grade is a tough year for struggling readers, but Ellie’s doing great. She’s making tons of progress, and I think she’ll be ready for third by the time fall rolls around.”

Once we’d made it to the diner, I gestured for Gabe to lead the way in. “Don’t be surprised if people say something about how I never stop by, okay?”

He reached for the diner door. “You’re being a little dramatic, don’t you think?”

“We’ll see.” I followed him inside and as we stepped in, several people glanced in our direction. Before I could tell him we’d need to wait to be seated, Ingrid spotted me.

Ingrid’s brow furrowed and they scowled at me. “Sam? What are you doing here? Recon for Sparky’s?”

I laughed and shook my head. “Hardly. Just introducing Gabe here to the second-best diner in town. He’s new. Here for the summer. Gabe, this is Ingrid.”

Ingrid rolled her eyes, grinning at the same time. “Second-best? Sure, if you say so. Have a seat there and I’ll be with you in a sec.”

As Ingrid walked away, I couldn’t help myself. I murmured at Gabe under my breath. “What were you saying about me being dramatic?”

He shook his head slowly. “You really weren’t kidding.”

I smirked at him. “Nope.” With that, we took our seats. As we slid into either side of a booth, our feet bumped into each other’s and once again, my heart jumped into my throat. I sighed quietly. It was going to be a long summer if I couldn’t get myself together.