Raegan repeats my order then pulls me out of line, directing us to a bar seat by the window. Before sitting down, she gives me a massive hug, squeezing me the way I would normally squeeze her. It makes me smile, a bit of the fog clearing from my day. “What was that for?”
Raegan pulls back and gives me a pitying grin. “It looked like you needed it.”
Guess that means I look like shit.
I roll my eyes and chuckle half-heartedly. “Thanks.”
“What’s wrong?” Raegan’s head tilts just like her cat, Cleetus, and in this moment, I remember that most people really do resemble their pets.
I don’t want to rehash everything that went down, so I just tell her, “My morning was shit.”
She frowns. “Do you wanna talk about it?”
I shrug off my coat and scarf so I can sit down on the stool and Raegan joins me. “Just shitty people being shitty.”
Raegan’s face remains flat. “Shit.”
We both grin and my eyes fall on the stack of papers she’s placed on the bar top. “What’s that?”
Her eyes light up in excitement as she glances at them. “You’re going to hate it,” she says with absolute glee.
I narrow my eyes. “Why?”
“It’s a speed dating event. Tonight.”
Snatching what I can now see is a flyer from the top of the pile, I examine the text carefully. “Ha,” I fake laugh. “I’ll admit, I do hate it, but why do you care about my opinion?”
Raegan’s grin turns sneaky. “Because I’m about to ask you to participate.”
Without letting a beat pass, I let out a, “hell no,” and slap the paper back onto the pile.
“Oh, come on.” She wiggles her shoulders, trying and failing to give me a sexy smirk.
“Since when are you the event planner of Shadow Hills?”
She shrugs guiltily. “I sort of gave the idea to Mayor Musthaven after he mentioned wishing we’d done something to take advantage of the holiday and got landed with the job of putting it together. Only I didn’t realize he actually expected me to do it, so now I’m trying to scrounge up all the singles in Shadow Hills before the event starts…tonight.”
“Raegan. Baker.”
“I know! But I’ve already filled half the spots! Help me fill one more?”
I roll my eyes. “We just had to have an event to fill February, huh?”
“You know Musthaven. He’s always trying to increase tourism.”
I let out a defeated sigh. “Fine. Maybe I’ll find my soulmate,” I say in a deadpan tone.
Raegan beams, clapping her hands in glee. “That’s the spirit! This can be like my early birthday present to you.”
“Does that mean I don’t get an actual present?”
“Of course not.” The corner of her mouth turns up conspiratorially. “In fact, I have something for you next door.”
I follow her outside where she points up to Claudia’s Bakery.
“Wait right here,” she commands, pointing a demanding finger at the sidewalk.
I stay outside, shivering from the cold wind while I wait for her to run into the bakery next door. She comes out a minute later holding a white box tied with pink string. I know exactly what it is before she hands it to me.
