"Not 'tilyousaid it out loud." He jabbed a finger toward the back room. "Andyousaw the guy. He never put down his phone. What do youthinkhe's lookin' at?"
The woman hesitated. "Well…"
"Exactly! He's probably got one hand on his phone and the other on his—"
"Don't you dare say it." But then, her mouth twitched like she was holding back a smile.
And now, the guy looked ready to smile, too. "Relax. I wasn't gonna."
"Yes, you were." She gave him a playful swat to the arm. "And you're just mad you lost the bet."
"Not yet, I haven't." He turned toward the counter and bellowed past me, "Hey, buddy! Why don't you put down the phone and come out here!"
"Bob!" the woman said with another swat. "That's cheating!"
I looked from her to him and back again. "Cheating?"
"Yeah," the woman said. "When the guy ran off,Isaid he wouldn't be back. ButBobsaid he would."
"Yeah," Bob grumbled. "And loser buys the coffee."
"It doesn't matter who buys it," she told him with a laugh. "It all comes out of the same pot."
"It matters tome," Bob said. "You won the last three in a row."
"Four if you count that thing with your bag. I told you they'd deliver it."
"Don't remind me," the guy grumbled before turning to me with a grimace. "Do you know, some guy tried to steal my duffel?"
The woman laughed. "No, he didn't. Your duffel was in the room, just like I said it would be."
"Yeah, butIdidn't know that, did I?"
Her voice turned triumphant. "You would've, if you'd listened to me from the start."
In the middle of their debate, I somehow managed to learn that they wanted two blueberry scones plus a couple of caramel lattes.
Probably, it was the lattes that sent Skip running.
And he neverdidemerge from the back.
I swear, it's like hewantedthe business to fail.
If so, he was off to a spectacular start.
And me? I was caught somewhere in the middle – too afraid to look for another job and too desperate to quit.
Yeah, things were definitely getting complicated.
14
Jamison's Guide to Rot and Rumors
Ryder
Jamison greeted me with a flashy grin. "I can't believe you said yes."
He practically quivered as I stepped out of the car and onto what used to be a smooth circular drive – now cracked and crusted with gravel and weeds.
