Page 54 of The Billionaire and the Runaway

“Sam, don’t call her that,” I scold, even though I love his nickname for her.

“Whatever. She’s a total you-know-what,” he states.

“Yeah,” I sigh, “you’re not wrong, but she’s been weird lately.” I decide not to tell them too much. They are too young to understand. “Anyhow, I think she’s gone for another day or two.” I frown as I try to remember when she is coming back. I’ve been so busy, I haven’t been thinking about it. Or maybe, I just don’t want to. I feel the clock ticking on me telling my dad.

“I hope her flight gets delayed or they ruin her luggage or something,” Lucas says.

“Guys, thanks for calling with the intel, but I’m swamped with work. Can we catch up next weekend?” I ask.

“No can do. I have a party and Sam here is going to some sort of geek convention,” Lucas says.

“It’s a robotics competition,” Sam growls.

“Yeah, a geek convention, like I said,” Lucas teases.

Sam punches his arm.

“Behave, you two. I’ll talk to you soon,” I say.

They wave bye and I hang up, shaking my head at their ridiculousness. I decide I’ll call my father this evening. I’m out of time. I’m dreading his angry outburst but at least it won’t be in person and Eric will be here with me when it’s over.

Thor meows as Joy walks back in from getting lunch. She sets a sandwich on my desk.

“Elisha made Ari’s favorite today. Turkey Reuben on focaccia. It’s so good,” she says.

“Sounds yummy,” I say as I look out the window. It’s a beautiful day. One of those spring days that threatens to be warm enough for shorts, but doesn’t quite reach that temperature.

“I’m going to see if we have any good strawberries to go with this,” I say as I get up and pat Thor on the head. I walk over to the farmstand. Looking around, I spot some strawberries just as a young man comes in and says hello to Kingsley.

“Hey, Kevin,” Kingsley says. I realize it’s one of the bartenders from Max’s Restaurant in town.

“Hey,” I say to him.

“Oh, Ariana, right?” he asks as he picks up some basil.

“Yep,” I reply.

“What brings you out here?” I ask.

“Oh, we’re running low on basil because some new guy put it in the freezer instead of the fridge. So I’m picking up some to get us through till tomorrow,” he explains.

I grimace. “Sounds like that guy had a bad day.”

He shrugs. “I guess so. It’s tough being the new guy. I should know.”

“How long have you been here?” I ask.

“About nine months now,” he replies as he sets his produce on the counter.

“You like it here?” I ask.

He nods. “I’m from a small town, so it feels very homey here. My town wasn’t by the ocean though, so that part has been nice,” he says.

“It is nice, isn’t it? It’s like everyone here really knows each other,” I state.

“Small towns are like that. They become like a family instead of just neighbors. I like the community vibe of it,” he says.

“Kevin?” I ask. “Would you be interested in making some mocktails for our re-opening event? If Max wouldn’t mind, that is. I mentioned it to him, but he’s been out of town, so we never cemented anything.”

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