Page 13 of One Night Flame

A quiet smile. A hesitant handshake. A flicker of something I couldn’t name when our eyes met.

Lucy.

Not flashy. Not dramatic. But something had clicked, even if I didn’t understand why yet. I’d felt it. And that was enough to keep her at the front of my mind while the rest of the room buzzed about someone else.

I took another sip of coffee, letting their Pepper theoriesrun wild until the timing felt right. “Guess that makes me the opening act nobody remembers.”

Twitch snorted into his cereal. “Please. You went for a thousand bucks. That’s not an opening act, that’s headline-adjacent.”

“By someone’s grandmother,” Moose added. “Which is impressive in its own right.”

“She was bidding with purpose,” Donkey said. “Like a woman with a plan.”

Peach pointed at me with her coffee mug. “And you looked real nervous when she won. Like she was gonna have you regrout her bathroom shirtless.”

“She didn’t buy me for herself.” I kept my voice even. “She bought me for her granddaughter.”

“Ooh.” Twitch perked up. “That’s a twist. What’s her name?”

“Lucy Sullivan.” For some reason, the name tasted like something I shouldn’t say out loud—but once I had, I couldn’t take it back. “Anyone know her?”

A pause. Just long enough for the silence to feel pointed.

Moose shook his head. “Nope.”

Peach squinted like she was mentally flipping through the town roster. “Sullivan doesn’t ring any bells.”

“Which is weird,” Donkey said. “In a town this size, most folks can’t sneeze without someone updating the group chat.”

“Yeah.” I tried to sound casual, even as reluctant curiosity sparked in my brain. “How does someone manage to keep a low profile around here?”

“Maybe she’s got secrets,” Meatball said with mock drama. “Or maybe she’s just smarter than the rest of us.”

Twitch leaned back in his chair. “You planning a background check, Hollywood?”

“Nah,” I said, keeping my tone easy. “I just figured if she came witha grandma guarantee, I should at least know what I signed up for.”

Moose leaned around the fridge door. “You sort out the details of the date?”

“Not yet.”

Peach looked up from her clipboard. “Why not?”

“I’m working on it.” That was what I was telling myself as I continued to put off texting her to make the arrangements.

Twitch blinked. “You need a strategy now? I thought your whole brand was effortless charm.”

“I usually have something to go on,” I said. “This one’s a blank slate.”

Donkey whistled. “She really is off the grid. No one even knows what she does.”

“Maybe she’s in witness protection,” Meatball offered. “Or part of a secret pie mafia. Lolawouldhave connections.”

That got a chuckle from the room.

“Look,” I said, “I’ll text her. I just want the first date to not suck.”

Peach raised a brow. “Thefirstdate? Since when do you ever think about a second with anyone, let alone with someone whoboughta date with you?”

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