Page 51 of Once Upon a Beast

“Oh, yeah, the owner just always parks around back. Come on, let’s go get us some tasty treats.”

She hopped out the passenger door without hesitation, motioning him to follow. He watched her round the engine. He’d follow this woman anywhere she led him. The thought should have scared him, but instead it brought him an unexpected peace.

Isaac beckoned his bully into the front seat and snapped the lead to Louie’s collar. It was time to be honest with her, he decided, as they followed a broad-smiling Del to the order windows. No more secrets.

But how and when to have his tell-all moment?

“What do you have going on tomorrow night?” Del asked as their malts were being blended.

“Wild party at my place as always. You wanna crash it?” He waggled his brows.

“Sounds fun, but I have a better idea—since I need to go over to the farm to check on Rex for Pops, why don’t we do a picnic dinner there? I can order carryout from the Sweet Mash, and make sure to get a double serving of cobbler this time. You can bring Louie along, and he and Rex can run around and play in the fenced area out back.” The ice cream attendant handed a dog-sized vanilla cone out the window, which Del knelt to feed to Louie. “What do you think?”

Another evening with Del, his favorite dog, and his new favorite dessert sounded perfect. It’d also be the ideal time to tell her about the less-than-ideal cloud hanging over his head.

“I think it’s a date.”

*

Delaney helped Chaseunload a truckload of fall flowers on Wednesday, grateful for the busy work. This late in the season, weekday residential shoppers were sporadic at best. And now that she and Isaac were starting to be a thing, she wished for the days to pass quickly so she could hurry up and get to her evenings with him.

Only, what she should be doing was throwing all her free time into the upcoming fundraiser.

She followed Chase with a tray of asters to the shop’s front porch, shaking her head as she went. Who would have thought she of all people would go and find a boyfriend in the middle of a bookstore crisis? Though she couldn’t feel too guilty about it. If she and Isaac hadn’t hit it off, who knows if the website would have been finished so fast? Crazy as it sounded, Brooklyn sliding into his front yard had turned out to be a blessing in disguise for them all.

“So how many people do you all have signed up for this talent show of yours?” Chase asked, setting his tray next to the others they’d already unloaded.

“None yet. Just waiting on Faye to get her charity bank account stuff set up, then we’ll cross our fingers and hope for a few brave souls to sign on.”

He chuckled. “You don’t sound very optimistic.”

“Just don’t want to get my hopes up too high, ya know?”

“Have faith, Del. The Sisters are all over this. If they say it’ll work, it will work.”

“I sure hope you’re right. We can’t lose the bookstore, Chase.”

“Pfft, like the Brooks family would let that happen,” he said with a wink. “But if you don’t get enough entrants, I promise to convince the locals to sign up and fill the empty slots.”

She pictured him, going door to door, drafting people, and couldn’t help but laugh. “We need talent, Chase, not just bodies.”

“Says who? Some of my favorite talent shows were the ones scarce on talent but full of heart.”

Del planted a hand on one hip. “And just how many talent shows have you seen?”

“I don’t know. How many did they make us suffer through in middle school?”

A devilish grin stole across his face, and Del swatted him with an empty cardboard box. “That doesn’t count!”

“Just because you didn’t win doesn’t mean it didn’t count!” he cried, shielding himself from her harmless attack. “Which reminds me, I’ve been meaning to ask—what’s your act going to be?”

“My act?” She stopped swatting and stood there, momentarily speechless.

“Wait—you mean to tell me you haven’t come up with an act yet?”

Del knelt to arrange the perennials closest to her. “I hadn’t event thought of it, to be honest. Haven’t had time to.”

“Of course not, you’ve been too busy helping that new man of yours design the website.” Chase grabbed a few containers and placed them on his side of the porch. “So when do I get to meet this guy, anyway? Gotta make sure he’s up to snuff, you know.”

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