“I know that. Don’t you worry about that, now.”
Why did hearing her say so make him feelworse?
“I wish I was there to bake you some cookies, Noah.”
His eyes suddenly burned, and he let out a shaky laugh. God, Wyatt had pegged her so well. “I know you do. I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too, son. Chin up.”
He took a few angry swipes at his eyes after they ended the call. His phone chimed, and he picked it up and groaned. Sandy again. She’d been texting him nonstop, and when he’d finally caved and replied, he’d blamed his ghosting her on his challenges with supplies and waitstaff—no need to share thereallybad news with her—pleading no bandwidth beyond getting the tavern fully stocked and staffed again. He’d hoped she would lay off, but instead she was coming on stronger than ever with a sympathy play, which was the last thing he needed or wanted.
He tossed the phone into the cushions only to have it ding again.
“Fuck, girl, don’t you know when to let it go?”
Then it rang. Only the ring was a special one he’d used in the past for Ursula and forgotten about, so he plucked up the device and confirmed she was the caller. “What is going on with the universe?” he muttered as he swiped to answer.
Before he could utter a, “Hey,” he got blasted by bitchy Ursula. “That was a cute trick, you asshole.”
“Excuse me?”
“Your waitress, or should I saygirlfriend, and her sneak attack. You’ve really sunk to a new low with that white trash.”
He sat up. “I don’t have a fucking clue what you’re talking about.”
“That girl with the stupid rhyming names, or should I sayinspector, waltzed in here yesterday to check our kitchen and ended up wrangling her way into my boss’s office. Why didn’t you warn me who she was?”
Noah’s eyebrows crashed together.I thought she quit.She probably lied about that too. “Hold up. Why were you dealing with her? You don’t work in the kitchen. And she’s not white trash.” Why the hell was he defending Hailey?
“I wasn’t in the kitchen, genius, but my boss came storming in here after talking toher, wondering why I hadn’t set up a meeting withyouyet. That setup was a shitty thing to do, Noah.”
“So was using your position to keep me from meeting with him, Ursula,” he snapped. But his confusion didn’t dissipate. What the hell had Hailey been doing there?
Ursula came back at him in her pouty voice. “Well, I’m calling because I’m supposed to set up a time with you to discuss your stupid train idea, among other things. When can you meet?”
He nearly laughed out loud. “My schedule is wideopen.” Apparently, news of the Miners Tavern’s demise hadn’t reached the high peaks of Silver Summit yet.
Once they scheduled a time, he couldn’t resist. “Did your kitchen pass inspection?”
“With flying colors, apparently, though that pushy little bitch had some ‘suggestions’ she could only deliver to a person in ‘high authority.’ That’s how she ended up talking to my boss. I don’t know what all she said, but he was hopping mad when he barged into my office.”
As he should have been. Giddiness bubbled in Noah’s veins. Maybe there was justice in the world after all.
An hour later, hestrolled into Mountain Coffee with three goals: one, he had been humbled enough to know that he needed Amy’s advice about reopening after the bad publicity from the shutdown. To his knowledge, she’d never experienced the same humiliation, but she’d been at this longer and was a savvy businesswoman he respected. His second goal was to get himself a much-deserved cup of excellent coffee with high-octane caffeine to counteract his recent sleepless nights. His third and final mission was to escape Dixie’s well-intentioned but stifling mother-hen act. Plus, Chance needed a walk and to get used to the town, so Noah brought him along, leaving him on Amy’s dog-friendly outdoor patio, where he could bask in mountain sunshine.
As he was leashing him, his mutt peered through the glass front door and went into serious wiggle-butt mode, his tail whirling like a propeller.
“What do you see, dude? No one’s here, not even a squirrel.”
The reason for Chance’s excitement became crystal clear when Noah walked inside the coffee shop. Behind the counter stood one honey-blond ponytailed traitor in a flannel shirt open to her bustline. It revealed a crisp white tank beneath and fit a little too well, scrambling his pledge to stay pissed at her for all eternity. Snug blue jeans and a black apron tied around her trim waist made her a prime candidate for a fully clothed barista-of-the-month centerfold.
Hailey didn’t see him at first because she was busy deflecting Deputy Shane O’Brien’s hyper-focused attention. Deputy Shane had obviously not made a vow to hate on Hailey, and if Noah read his expression correctly, the guy was picturing her as a different sort of centerfold at this very moment.
So Noah did what came naturally and cleared his throat … at a deafening decibel level.
Shane spun in surprise, but Noah barely registered the movement becausehisfocus was directed entirely at the bane of his existence. Herwide eyes were the color of glacial ice today, so strikingly pale blue that he sucked in a quiet breath.
You hate this woman. Except she somehow did what you couldn’t do and arranged an appointment with not one, but four of Silver Summit’s principals. But that was a guilt play, not because she’s a decent human being. Or she’s setting you up again. Yeah, that’s gotta be it. You hate this woman.
