There. Now she could go to sleep with a clear conscience. Well, almost clear. She still had the wallet to deal with. All she had to do was get to Saltwater Sweets before her mother or Chuck and stuff it between the desk and the wall and pretend like she’d never been there. Easy peasy.
CHAPTER20
Sam knew her mother always got in to Saltwater Sweets at 7:00 a.m., and she imagined Chuck didn't come any earlier, so she headed over at six.
She parked on the street two shops down and then hurried into the alley to let herself in the back door. At this time of morning, no one was open except for Ocean Brew, which already had a steady flow of customers. Thankfully, no one noticed her.
It felt strange sneaking around inside her own family store, but it was the only solution, and the quicker she got in and out, the better.
She hurried to the office and crawled under the desk to wedge the wallet up between the side of the desk and the wall. There was a little lip on the metal frame of the desk, and she balanced the wallet on the edge of that.
Her mother and Chuck had likely already looked all around the desk, but hopefully, they hadn’t pulled it out from the wall, or if they had, she would convince them that it hadn’t fallen down because it was caught on the lip.
All she needed to do now was “help” them find it.
She locked the door and skulked back out to the street, peeking out from the alleyway like some sort of foreign spy to make sure no one was watching. No one was, so she darted out and walked along to her car as if she’d simply been walking along the Main Street.
She was just opening the driver’s side door when she heard…
“Sam! What are you doing here?”
Her heart crashed as she turned toward the familiar voice coming from the other side of the street: Cole.
* * *
What in the world was Sam doing here at six thirty in the morning? Cole had assumed she’d be getting ready to do yoga on the beach. Which was kind of whyhewas here. He’d planned on picking up some coffees andaccidentallyrunning into her on the beach.
His gaze flicked down the street toward Saltwater Sweets. Had she come from there? But her car was parked two shops down. Why wouldn’t she park right in front or in the small lot in back?
“Hi!” Sam waved from the other side of the street, her smile bright as she crossed toward him. “I was just coming to Ocean Brew.” She leaned toward him and lowered her voice. “The coffee at the Beachcomber leaves a bit to be desired. What are you doing here?”
Cole turned toward the coffee shop. She was coming here? Weird, because it looked like she’d been gettingintoher car, notoutof it. Though he couldn’t say he blamed her, the stuff at the motel was pretty awful, and he’d made a few trips here himself since he’d come to town.
“Same. Since we’re both here, let’s grab coffee together,” he suggested.
“Great idea.”
They went in and ordered their coffees. Sam didn’t hesitate when he suggested they sit in the corner booth overlooking the street.
“Do you think our parents have recovered from the sailing trip?” Cole joked.
Sam laughed. “I don’t know. I think that was a big day for them. I’m barely recovered myself.”
“Me too. It was a good day, though,” Cole ventured.
Sam nodded. “It was.”
Cole let his gaze drift out over the main street of Shell Cove. It was a nice street, much different from the cities and sleazy back alleys he was used to. It was quaint and clean and happy.
“You know, I never realized how much I missed doing things like sailing… or just getting away from work and having fun.”
Sam seemed to consider that. “Me either. I’ve spent the last few years building up my clientele, and that’s involved just more and more work. I hardly even noticed it happening, but it seems like all I do now is work.”
“I can relate to that. What you’re doing is important. It helps people.”
She smiled. “Sort of, but maybe I’m getting a little burned out. This week, working in the chocolate shop gave me a different perspective. Maybe I need to make a change in my life.”
Their eyes met, and Cole said, “This week has given me a different perspective too.”
