Page 55 of This Moment

“Opal.”

He said her name almost as a plea. I looked at Opal and she seemed to regain her composure. She stood straighter, dropped her hand from mine, and cleared her throat. “Jake, what a surprise.”

My head snapped back to look at Jake. Did Opal know him? Clearly, she did; she said his name, and he said hers.

Looking between the two, I had to break the strange silence. “You know each other?”

The older man, Jake as she’d called him, let out a lighthearted laugh. “We’re old friends.”

“Friends?” Opal repeated with a hint of anger in her voice.

He shrugged and made his way closer to us. Stopping at the counter, he lowered his voice and said, “Should I say old lovers?”

I gasped and looked around the bakery. Even though I knew no one was there, his directness still shocked me.

“I’m sorry; what did you just say?” I asked him.

Opal gently took my arm and stepped in front of me. “Jake, what in the world are you doing here?”

He smiled, and the way his eyes lit up when he looked at Opal made me feel a strange pain in my chest.

“I thought I saw you the other night, and finally found the courage to come into the bakery. You look…wonderful, Opal.”

“Thank you,” she said curtly. “Why are you here? In Moose Village.”

He smiled. “My daughter lives here with her husband and little girl. My son-in-law is from Moose Village, and they decided to move here from New York City for the small-town living.”

“Really?” Opal said with a fake smile. “Does that mean we will be seeing you more often?”

“I hope so.”

When their silence became awkward, I asked, “Where do you live, Mr. …?”

Jake held out his hand. “I’m sorry for being so rude. It’s Jake Magoffin. I live in New York City.”

I shook his hand. “And how do you know our Opal?”

I wished I could have taken it back the second I asked it because his declaration of them being former lovers made my entire face heat.

“We dated many years ago,” Opal stated. “Jake here grew up in Lake Placid.”

“Oh,” I said with way too much excitement in my voice. “How lovely.”

He nodded and gave me a warm smile before focusing back on Opal. “Opal, can we please talk?”

“Talk? I’m so sorry, Jake. I am swamped with special orders and preparing things for tomorrow. Please make yourself at home and order what you like on the house.”

Opal turned and looked at me. “Cadie, please take care of Mr. Magoffin, will you?”

My eyes bounced between the two of them. “Sure. Yes, of course.”

And without looking backward in Jake’s direction, Opal walked to the back of the bakery.

Jake watched her walk away, then looked at me and gave me the saddest smile.

“Is there anything you would like?”

He shook his head. “No, I’m afraid it’s long since passed for that.”

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