“New-ish.” Latte & Bean had been open for a while now, but it was new to Juliette, and that’s what mattered. “You remember Miss Bobbie, right?”
Her dark brows lifted in surprise. “Miss Bobbie Jean Blanchard? You mean the town busybody who prides herself on being the biggest gossip on this side of the Mississippi?”
“The very one.” Brock grinned. “She opened this spot up after the zoning for Starbucks fell through.”
“Wow. How convenient of her to open a coffee shop where she can eavesdrop on conversations all day.” Juliette smiled. Bright and brilliant and beautiful. It left his heart racing.
Brock sucked in a breath. Damn, he’d missed her smile. In fact, he missed everything about her. He just hadn’t realized it until now.
“Entrepreneurship at its finest.” Brock cleared his throat.
The cold slammed into them as they got out of the truck. Brock held open the door of Latte & Bean so Juliette could escape the wind’s bitter sting first. They were instantly greeted with the comforting scent of coffee beans and freshly baked pastries. It was a cozy cafe, all warm woods and cheerful neutrals with a few clusters of tables, chairs, and one evergreen velvet couch for conversation. Jazz music crooned from invisible speakers, softly disguising the chatter from the handful of other patrons.
Brock led Juliette to the counter where Evelyn, his usual barista, was lazily examining her manicure. “Hey there, Evelyn.”
“Hi, Brock.” From behind the counter, Evelyn’s eyes illuminated and she perked up instantly. She leaned forward, fluttered her false lashes, and he caught a whiff of her overly saturated perfume. “What’ll it be? The usual?”
“Yeah, I’ll take a medium cinnamon dolce latte, please.” He stole a glance at Juliette and didn’t miss the way Evelyn’s gaze narrowed. “Jules—I mean, Juliette. What do you want?”
Juliette skimmed the menu, rolling her lips together. If she knew Evelyn was sneering at her, she made no show of it. “I’ll just have whatever he’s having.”
“Yeah, I bet you will,” Evelyn muttered, just loud enough for Juliette to hear.
Brock scowled. It wasn’t like her to be so snippy. Or rude, for that matter.
After they got their lattes, Brock chose a small table by a window, away from Evelyn’s harsh stare.
“Nice to see you haven’t lost your touch.” Juliette took a sip of her coffee and eyed him over the rim of her cup. “Did you two have a thing?”
Brock blinked, not willing to risk looking over his shoulder.
“Me and Evelyn?” He shook his head, popping off the plastic lid of his latte. “Nah, she’s not really my type. Strange how she’s acting, though. She’s usually pretty friendly.”
Juliette’s mouth pulled into a smirk. “If by friendly you mean shooting daggers with her eyes, then yeah, she looksrealfriendly.”
Brock laughed, but it was cut short by an all-too-familiar voice.
“Well, well. If it isn’t our very own Kelly Gallagher.” He winced at the use of his middle name and looked up to see Miss Bobbie hovering over their table. “Where have you been hiding these last few weeks?”
Miss Bobbie leaned down to give him a squeeze. She was petite and plump, and wore a busy floral dress to match her personality, with a white sweater wrapped around her shoulders. A bright pink flower was pinned into her mass of silver hair, and she smelled like fresh cotton and faded roses.
Brock offered her a charming smile. “Just working, Miss Bobbie.”
She pushed her purple-rimmed glasses up her nose, and her beady eyes zeroed in on him. One gray brow arched across her wrinkled forehead. “I bet your father’s hostile takeover of your yaya’s beach house has kept you pretty tied up.”
Brock nearly choked. He had no idea how she’d found out about his father’s dealings, but he wasn’t the least surprised. Still, it caught him off guard.
Juliette smacked him firmly on the back, and he coughed again.
He set his coffee down. “It’s hardly a hostile takeover?—”
But then Miss Bobbie let out the loudest squeak of a gasp he’d ever heard.
“Juliette Laurent! Well, I’ll be.” She clutched one hand over her heart. “It’s been ages since I’ve seen your sweet face around Mystic Cove. When did you get back into town?”
“I came home on New Year’s Eve.” Juliette’s smile was polite but pinched.
Miss Bobbie’s gaze immediately cut to Brock, and she pursed her bright pink lips in consideration. “Wasting no time, I see.”
