Page 5 of The Candlemaker

And myreality shifted again—which was far too many fucking times before eight a.m. and coffee.

The woman from the crosswalk—windswept waves, flushed cheeks, and loose blue pants—breezed into the coffee shop, the whole atmosphere altering with her presence.

There were two of them.

My exhale barreled out of my chest.

I wasn’t going crazy; they were twins. One in the crosswalk and one in the coffee shop.

“Hey, sis,” Lou called to the woman I’d almost hit. “I have your usual on the counter.”

“Great. I need it this morning after—” She broke off when she saw me. There was a blip of uncertainty—of questionable recognition—before it disappeared, and she smiled wide like her sister.

“Hi, I’m Frankie.” She strode right up to me and extended a tiny but brash hand, her head tipped almost all the way back to meet my eyes. “You must be new to Friendship.”

“Frankie—” her sister started.

“Just visiting,” I replied and took her hand. Warm, soft, small…and firm. Damn, this woman reeked of small but mighty.

“For friends, family, or work?” she probed without a filter.

“Family,” I replied easily and then took my coffee and muffin from her twin sister’s hand.

“Oh, you got a blueberry muffin. Those are Lou’s favorite,” she said, her eyes twinkling in a way that was less like stars and more like a fuse of dynamite.

“Makes sense she recommended it then.”

“Wow.” The way her mouth moved over that word was fucking sinful—and not what I should be thinking about right now. “She must really like you to offer up one of her favorites.”

Lou blushed, then stammered, and then channeledher focus into wiping the counter no one had dirtied. Meanwhile, her twin sauntered over to the register and picked up her drink like she owned the damn place.

The two of them were night and day. Lou, the serenity of the moon, and her—Frankie—the bright flash of the sun. Or maybe more like the violent explosion of a star.

“How long are you in town for, Mr.…”

“Just a few days.” I took a bite of the muffin and addressed Lou so I could avoid sharing my name—or anything else about me. “This is amazing,” I told her. “Thank you.”

She avoided my eyes. “You’re welcome.”

“Are you familiar with Friendship at all? My sister has some other great recommendations for places around town, don’t you, Lou?” the bold one hinted and then wrapped her lips around the straw to her coffee.

I gritted my teeth, feeling my dick start to thicken. Jesus Christ, maybe there was some brand of insanity infused into the air.

“Yes. Well, a few, but?—”

“A few?” She tsked. “My sister is too humble. She knows everything there is to know about things to do and sights to see in Friendship. She wants to go into hospitality, so just ignore her protests. She’d love nothing more than to be your local guide.”

“Frankie,” Lou hissed, and it was only because my head swiveled a half-second too slow that I caught the quick wink from the outspoken twin.

I might be a workaholic and a social hermit, but I knew when I was being set up.

But…if Lou knew everything there was to know about this town, maybe she had an idea why the hell no one was buying my goddamn inn.

I gave Lou my best charming smile. “Well, if you have thetime, I’d love a private tour.” Thank God for muscle memory, though I was sure some dust fell from the corners of my mouth from how infrequently it tipped up like this.

Lou’s blush deepened, and it was adorable. Beautiful, even. But for some reason, all I wondered was if her sister blushed the same.No,was my instinct. It would take much more to bring color to Frankie’s cheeks, and the idea of that challenge was one I couldn’t get tangled in.

“Of course,” Lou stammered and returned a hesitant smile.

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