Page 105 of Forever By Morning

We had to fight a bit of traffic, but finally, a sign appeared for public parking. I grabbed my phone and stuffed it into my bag. “There’s a café that looks like it has parking in the back. Sound good?”

“The coffee part sounds very good.”

We parked and ducked into the busy Brewed Awakening coffee shop. It wasn’t quite what I was expecting. The front of the building was in line with the rest of the town save for the skeleton propped on a beach chair beside a collection of branded coffee in the window. Inside was a mixture of slick industrial metals and warm wood with a side of kitschy horror meets cute. Bats in sunglasses and swimsuits were tucked between painted pumpkins on the abundance of shelves scattered all through the café. Books were set up like a community library with covers facing out and covered every subject imaginable.

The brunt of the café included tables and chairs to eat and drink, but the side wall was filled with comfortable couches and a scatter of larger tables for people to use as a workspace.

But oh, the scent of the coffee and baked goods sold me regardless of the aesthetic. Though I did find it oddly charming. On the far side of the room there were branded mugs, T-shirts, and more horror-themed memorabilia.

“This place is great.” Bells twirled around, her green dress floating around her curvy hips. Without even trying, she drew the eye from most of the males in the room. Her dark gaze bounced from corner to corner as mine had. Suddenly, she focused on something, and her grin widened. “Andthatain’t bad either.” She tipped her sunglasses down to look at a very tall man with long blond hair.

I pressed my lips together against a grin when he turned with a little girl strapped to his chest. “So is the kid.”

“Huh. Actually, the child doesn’t detract.” Bells pushed her sunglasses back up her nose with a snicker.

The man came back our way with a cake pop in hand for himself and for his little one, both dusted in pink glitter. He had one arm firmly around the strapped-in girl with the ACDC T-shirt and adorable blond pigtails. “Ladies.”

The little girl grinned around the pink icing wreathing her lips. “Hi!”

“Well, hello.” Bells shoved her sunglasses up on her head. “What kind of cake?” she asked in a stage whisper.

“Chocolate, of course.”

“Of course.” Bells nodded sagely. “Is there any other kind?”

“Her mama would say snickerdoodle, but we can’t resist the cake pops that Miss Vee makes, right, Bella?”

Bells held up her hand in a high five. “That’s close to my name!”

The little girl slapped her hand with a giggle. “My full name is Arabella.”

“Well, I’m Belinda, but my friends call me Bells.”

“Can I be your friend?” The girl’s eyes were huge and dark.

“I think we have to be with our names being so close.”

The man rubbed his chin over the top of the girl’s head, with a sappy smile. “Have a good afternoon, ladies.”

Bells turned to watch him walk through the door. “No problem from the front or the back with that one.”

“He’s very attractive. Huge. Is there something in the water around here?” Between the orchard and some of the men I saw on the street as we drove through town, there was no shortage of strapping men around here.

“There’s something in the water here, but it doesn’t have anything to do with the hotness factor of the men.” The woman behind the counter’s voice was as smooth as the dark brew that scented the air. “What can I get you?”

I scanned the menu then paused and glanced at the woman. “Should I worry about the coffee?”

“Not my brew. I filter the water.” She winked. “And only if you live in the Cove, though there have been some instances of cross-contamination from what I’ve heard.”

Bells crowded next to me at the counter. “Does it come with the hot guys?”

“Mostly nine months of gestation. Side benefit tends to be a startling number of marriages in this town. The guys tend to stick.”

Bells straightened up. “Nope. I’ll take the double-filtered water. Americana with two pumps of maple for me.”

The dark-haired woman had a choppy shag cut with peek-a-boo garnet strips in her hair, and she was nearly as tall as Bells in her heels. She threw her head back with a laugh. “I said the same for a long time too, sister. It’s a running joke in town. Mostly not based in fact. At least we’re pretty sure.” She moved to the espresso machine with blue flames welded to the side that faced the café and started tamping fragrant grounds inside the portafilter. “Here or to go?”

“Here is good?” I glanced at Bells who nodded.

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