Page 137 of Love Me Reckless

“But someone is?” I ask.

“Later,” Sofie says, hurrying to take the door from Hutch.

We hurry inside, to the welcoming scents of cinnamon and soft, sugary dough. I groan in anticipation.

“How are things with Sawyer?” she asks over the steady din of happy customers chatting.

Pleasure tingles erupt on my skin, and I smile. “Amazing.”

Sofie giggles. “Get it, girrrl.”

I laugh, and another layer of my fears melts away. Though I know my loyal friends will support me in anything, a little part of me worried that after the surprise of Saturday afternoon wore off, they’d be questioning my choices.

A twinge of unease niggles my gut, but I inhale the sweet scents and savor the busy chatter and steady whir of the espresso machine.

We join the back of the line, which strategically hugs the glass display showcasing all the goodies. The top two rows are for the many variety of donut holes, and the bottom are for bars, cinnamon rolls, and full-sized donuts.

“It smells divine in here,” Ava says over the din. “They don’t make anything like this in San Francisco.”

“You should get some for the plane tomorrow,” Sofie says, eyeing the display case.

Hutch glances back to Ava, and their eyes meet for a split second.

“Good idea,” Ava says, refocusing on the display, her face tense.

The line advances, and we each place our order. Miranda, theowner, rings us up while one of her helpers buzzes around, snapping bakery tissue from the box behind him and plucking donut holes from the case.

“Be right back,” Sheldon says after giving his order, and shuffles past us. I frown as he heads for the door. He seems… preoccupied.

“And coffees, please,” Sofie adds, drawing my attention back to the group just in time to whip out my card and slide it under Hutch’s arm to tap the machine.

“Hey, not so fast!” he protests with a laugh, pushing my hand away.

“Let me, please?”

He shakes his head. “I’m under strict orders.”

“Ha. That’s a bunch of baloney.” I nudge him to the side so I can sign the receipt.

“Not cool,” Hutch says, giving me a shrewd scowl.

“Um, try it again?” Miranda says, nodding at the machine.

“Oh, sure.” I tap my card on the pad, and it beeps. I’m about to put my card away when Miranda frowns. “Do you have a different card? This one doesn’t seem to be working.”

“Keer, let me,” Hutch says like he can read my mind.

The café’s noises seem to swirl around me, crowding my ears. “Sure.”

Why isn’t my card working?

Hutch taps the machine and immediately, the screen flashes with the signature prompt. My face burns with a prickly feeling I don’t understand, and my gut feels hollow, queasy.

Hutch adds a tip and signs.

I’m still disoriented when Sofie and Hutch hurry over to the big table in the corner where a family is just leaving.

“Something wrong?” Sheldon asks, spooking me so badly that I practically jump out of my skin. There’s the trace of a scent on him—does he vape? I try not to wrinkle my nose, but the ashy vanilla smell doesn’t help my unsettled stomach.

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