Page 24 of Making A Mess of Things

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Sharp banging on the door broke them apart. Their breathing was irregular. Suzy softly moaned. Why didn’t people check their phones?

“Someone must not have received the text message,” he said, loosening his embrace.

“Looks that way,” she mumbled.

“I know you’re in there,” a man yelled, banging on the door again. “It’s time for class.”

Suzy frowned. “That’s Mr. Peterson. He’s not a people person, to say the least, and he’s always in a hurry.”

“Do you want me to handle this?” Daniel asked.

“No, but it wouldn’t hurt for you to follow me. He is a big guy, and he has a temper.”

“How big?” Daniel’s eyes widened.

“His size or temper?”

“Both?”

“Don’t worry, I got this.” She went to the door and swung it open. “Good day, Mr. Peterson. I’m afraid the class has been canceled. You must not have received my text.”

He glared at her, jerked out his phone, and began scrolling through his messages. “You canceled an hour before class. I was driving in traffic to get Becky here on time.” He pointed to a small, mousy child who smiled shyly at Suzy. “Do you know how busy I am?”

“Yes, you’ve told me several times,” Suzy said with a smile. “Why doesn’t Becky come in and paint while I clean up? No charge, and you can come back to get her?”

Mr. Peterson shifted his jaw. “Well, if you insist, I guess that will work.”

“I’m sure the bakery has a delicious cinnamon bun you might like,” she said, pointing to the building next door.

“Okay.” He looked at his daughter. “Have fun, kiddo. I’ll see you in an hour and a half. Be good for Miss Suzy.” He glanced inside. “Be careful in this dreadful mess. I’ll bring you back a cookie.” He glared at Suzy. “This is quite unprofessional of you.”

“Come on in.” Suzy took Becky’s tiny hand. “What do you want to create today? Something marvelous I imagine.”

Becky bobbed her head happily. “Yes, a pink dragon. Can I use glue and glitter?”

“Sure thing.” Suzy helped Becky up onto a tall chair next to a desk. “But how about a blue dragon? There are already piles of blue glitter on the table. Help yourself.”

“Thanks, Miss Suzy.” Becky took paintbrushes. “Sorry about my dad. My mom says he’s stressed, but I think he’s just grumpy.”

“Maybe a nice gooey cinnamon roll will make him less stressed.” Suzy squeezed Becky’s shoulders. “Now, let’s create some magic.”

Daniel walked over to Suzy. “You’re something special.”

Her heart fluttered as heat crept to her cheeks. She grabbed paper towels, sprayed them, and scrubbed the tables. Glitter danced in the air as her stomach tightened.

Maybe kissing him wasn’t such a good idea because she certainly did not want this fairytale to end. Not that Daniel was a prince charming, nothing of the sort, but she did like him.

She cleaned the tables while he swept and mopped the floor. He hummed along to the music in the background, a sappy love song, as Becky chattered away about whether her dragon was blue enough and whether she used enough glitter.

Suzy sighed. The kiss was definitely a bad decision, especially because she wanted to do it all again with him.

Chapter eight

Joann breezed through the door carrying bags from the local art store. She looked especially pleased with herself. Suzy studied her. Maybe a great sale. If she was mad about Suzy canceling the class, it sure didn’t look like it.

“Hi,” Suzy said. “Sorry about canceling the class this morning.”

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