Both Diane and Eva’s eyes twinkled with mischief. Diane was a beauty queen back in her day. She still had bright red hair, which she kept long and wavy. She reminded me of Reba McEntire. Eva was a tiny spitfire of a woman at only five feet tall with short blonde hair who loved to stay tanned. Either they had some stories to tell or were waiting to hear some juicy gossip from me.
I took a sip of my coffee and savored the flavor as it went downmy throat.
“Thank you for getting this for me,” I said to my mother.
She winked. “It was perfect timing.”
Eva patted my hand, her grin wider than the Cheshire cat. “So . . . what’s going on with you and the new guy in town?”
I looked at my mother and she shrugged. “Hey, everyone saw you two at the festival. You should’ve known these questions were going to come up.” She batted her eyelashes innocently. “Although, I personally would like to know, too.”
Before I could attempt to answer, my phone saved me. Diane and Eva weren’t just looking for simple answers; they were going to want the down-and-dirty details. They weren’t afraid to ask the embarrassing questions. There was one time when I came home from college for a few weeks at Christmas when I was dating Andrew. Diane had asked in front of everyone if Andrew and I were having phone sex since we were spending a couple of weeks apart. I had never been more shades of red in my life.
I pulled my phone out of my purse and didn’t recognize the number.
“It might be for the clinic,” I voiced, holding up my phone and hurrying out of thecoffee shop. At least I was safe from answering their questions for a few minutes.
Once outside, I moved to the side of the building for some privacy and answered the call.
“Hello, this is Ayla Carington.”
Usually, I wouldn’t answer calls that way, but with the after-hours service connected to my phone, I wanted to sound professional.
“Good morning,” a man replied. “I’m assuming this is the Carington Dental office?”
“Yes. I’m Dr. Ayla Carington, owner of Carington Dental. How may I help you?”
I could hear him sigh with relief. “I know you probably don’t have any openings, but I figured I’d call and see. I ate some popcorn this morning, and I think I chipped a back tooth. The pain is not pleasant.”
I always made it a point to see everyone in an emergency. Having tooth pain could make anyone miserable.
“Of course, I can see you,” I told him, glancing down at my smartwatch. I had all day. “Does ten o’clock work for you?” It gave me thirty minutes to say my goodbyes to Mom and her friends and get to the office.
“It does. Thank you. I’ll be there at ten.”
Wehung up and I went back inside to grab my coffee. Diane and Eva were sad that I didn’t have time to fill them in on my love life, but it was a relief to me. There wasn’t much to tell.
My mother stood and grabbed my arm before I could leave. “I’m going with you. You might need help with something.”
There were times when she used to help my dad when he took emergency calls.
“Are you sure?” I asked, glancing over at her friends who were still chatting away at the table. “I don’t want to take you away from your Tuesday morning gossip fest.”
She waved me off. “Please. It’s the same old stuff.” Then she linked her arm through mine. “Besides, I used to like being at the office with your dad. Most of the time he didn’t even need me.” Her brows furrowed. “But I think that’s because I was a horrible assistant.”
That made me laugh because it was true. My father never came out and told her that, though. I was the only one he confessed it to.
“What?” she said, squeezing my arm. “Is it true? Did your dad tell you I was horrible?”
I patted her hand as we exited the coffee shop. “Of course not. You know howdad is. I think he enjoyed working alone at times.”
Her lips pursed. “Uh-huh. I think there’s something you’re not telling me.”
I led her to my car, avoiding her question altogether. “You can ride with me to the clinic, and I’ll bring you back to your car when we’re done.”
We hopped in my car and I finished the last of my coffee the second we pulled into the clinic’s parking lot. However, my mouth dropped when I noticed the expensive cherry apple red Bugatti Divo parked in my spot. No one in town had the kind of money to afford a car like that.
“Wow,” my mom gushed. “It’s obvious this person isn’t from Magnolia Grove.”
