Page 28 of Vodka and Pop Rocks (Empire Records 3)

Willow

The smell of delicious spices, like cinnamon and cumin, fills the streets as we follow Chloe and Enzo along the lanes of the local market. The food at the restaurant was the best I think I’ve ever had. Archer and Enzo ordered a feast of appetizers, and Chloe introduced me to the blackberry mint martini, which was like drinking skittles, and reminded me of Charlie. It also led me to drinking two of them, and telling everyone how much I love all things Charlie James, her music, and all the new artists coming from Empire thirty-nine. I gushed about Harmony, and I found out Chloe was from the same small town in Iowa that Grace was from. It surprised me that Archer’s friends were so down to earth. Nothing like his friends in the city. It got me thinking about all the things I don’t know about him.

Chloe is adorable, with blonde hair that hits just below her chin, bright baby blue eyes, and a small dimple on her left cheek. Her husband Enzo is as sexy as sin; Sicilian, tall, dark skin, and a sharp jawline, with a sense of humor that matches his wife’s. I spat out my martini the first time I heard him make a that’s what she said joke.

“Here, taste this.” Chloe turns back to me from a vendor's table. It’s scattered with jams, jellies, and fruits, and she hands me one that looks like a mini coconut, but when she peels back the skin easily, the fruit inside is clear and colorless.

“Mmm,” I moan around the bite that reminds me of a starburst. It’s juicy and sweet with a light tart taste.

“It’s called a pitomba,” Chloe says, thanking the farmer, a tiny old man with no shirt on and curly black chest hair. He takes her money and hands her another bushel that she puts in her tote bag.

“This, and the local rum are must-haves in our house,” she says, then turns, and we keep walking down the old, cobbled street lined with vendors selling goods of all kinds.

Farmers, jewelers, and souvenir shop owners are all set up with tables and tents as dozens of tourists mull around, shopping for the finest foods and goods this side of Rio…or so I’m told.

The smells are spicy and delicious, it's noisy and fun, and even though I’ve never been here before, it’s quickly becoming my favorite place.

“Back home where I’m from, our farmer's market is legendary,” Chloe whispers to me even though the streets are so loud no one can hear her.

“Oh yeah? What makes it so special?” I ask, biting into another pitomba, and she slips her arm through mine.

“Well, the food is tops, like straight from the ground fresh produce. Plus pies, jams, jellies. It’s like here but more country-grown than exotic,” she says, but then Enzo runs up and wraps his arm around his wife, finishing her sentence.

“But what makes it so special is the local folklore,” he says.

Archer’s arm snakes across my back, and his lips come to my ear.

“Missed you,” he says so quietly, I almost don’t make out the words.

I smile back, feeling lighter and happier than I’ve been in a long time.

“Right. So local legend has it that if two people meet at the Hawkins Farmers Market, they’re destined to be together forever,” Chloe says, then sighs dramatically with the back of her hand against her forehead. It’s cute. She’s cute. I can already tell that she makes friends easily. I’m already falling into her trap.

“Is that where you two met?” I ask, not knowing.

“No. We didn’t exactly meet under normal circumstances,” she says, blushing, and they both laugh.

“We met in an airport lounge,” Enzo says with so much adoration for his bride. Simple words are spoken, but I get the feeling it is anything but simple.

I turn my attention back to Archer, giving the couple a bit of privacy while they clearly get lost in the memory.

“Where are you taking me now, Mr. Alexander?” I purr up at him.

He grins, and my eyes are drawn to his lips when his tongue slips out, swiping across them. I swallow hard, my mind filling with all the images I’ve stored of him between my legs.

“I have a surprise for you.”

“Oh, I’m intrigued,” I say, surprised.

He just nods, looking forward. We walk a little further, and he pulls me into a narrow alley and into a beauty shop.

“Chloe, love, so good to see you.” An older woman with huge black hair comes over to our friend and gives her a hug.

“So good to see you too, Gloria, but today is not for me.” She then reaches for my hand, which I take awkwardly, never being one to hold hands with other girls. Not even Lyla or Grace. Harmony, maybe, but she’s a kid.

“Well, aren’t you lovely? Come, sit. I’ll make you look like a million dollars, love.” She escorts me as Enzo whispers something I can’t hear to Archer.

“Thank you so much; this is very nice, but I just had my hair done. I really don’t need…” Before I can finish, Archer interrupts.

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