He was standing just a foot or so away from their table, surveying the farmers market with a look that lived somewhere between derision and boredom, and she found the heat in her core now felt more like annoyance. She was about to lean forward and tell him that if he really had to stand there and brood, to please do it three feet to the left, when Charlie appeared at his side.
“Hello!” He beamed.
Jane spun around from where she was taking inventory of the mocha chip muffins. The motion was so fast Lizzy thought she would fall over into the nearby ginger peach scones. “Charlie! Hi!”
Charlie’s smile broadened, and it was another minute before he noticed Lizzy there, too, sitting behind the table. “Oh, Lizzy! Good to see you! Will, look! It’s Lizzy!”
Will only glanced at her before letting his gaze continue across the crowd.
Lizzy was almost grateful for the excuse to ignore him, waving at Charlie as if his friend wasn’t there at all. “How are you, Charlie?”
“I’m great! Better now,” he said warmly.
Jane blushed. “I… I didn’t expect you to stop by.”
“Well, you told me I had to try your muffins, so here I am!”
Lizzy couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled up. She coughed,trying to disguise it, but she apparently didn’t do a very good job because when she looked up again, Will was glaring at her.
“So what do you have?” Charlie continued, oblivious.
Jane began to walk him through the litany of flavors. “Well, there’s lemon poppy seed and blueberry and zucchini. And my favorite: sour cherry.”
She picked one up and handed it to him. He didn’t hesitate in taking a bite, crumbs dusting his chin as his eyes rolled closed.
Lizzy knew that look, the moment when the flavor hitting a customer’s taste buds exceeded their expectations. It happened the first time she’d tried one of their sour cherry muffins, too. No one could remember which Bennet came up with the recipe—her father claimed it was his invention, while Jane insisted it was her mistake after she used almond extract instead of vanilla—but either way, they were so popular they practically kept the lights on.
“You have good taste,” he said, still chewing. “This is incredible.”
“Oh, it’s not just me. It’s everyone’s favorite,” Jane said, tugging a strand of dark hair behind her ear.
“Will, you have to try this,” Charlie said to his friend, then turned back to Jane. “Can I get one more?”
Jane opened her mouth to answer, but Lizzy beat her to it, leaning forward in her chair and blocking the sign that identified the long row of sour cherry muffins. “Sorry, that was the last one.”
Will watched the motion, pointedly looking between her and the baked goods she was doing a poor job of hiding. She offered him another plastic smile.
“Oh, too bad.” Charlie clasped his friend on the shoulder. “You’re missing out, Will.”
“We can only hope he survives the hardship,” Lizzy said with a painfully manufactured sigh.
Jane laughed so loud and so nervously that everyone turned to look at her, including a few people passing by.
“How much do I owe you?” Charlie asked, nodding to what was left of his muffin.
“Don’t worry, it’s on the house,” Lizzy said.
“I insist.” He reached into his pocket and handed her a five-dollar bill. “And don’t worry about change. This muffin is worth at least double that.” Then he took another bite.
Lizzy smiled, slipping the money into the cash box before turning to her sister. “Jane, have you volunteered to show Charlie around the farmers market yet?”
Her sister blanched, mouth falling open. “Oh… I… I’m sure Charlie has other things to do…”
“I would love that,” Charlie said, ignoring the fact that she was tripping over her words. “If you’d like that, I mean.”
“Sure. Yes… okay,” Jane said, a deep flush crawling up her neck as she turned around, awkwardly looking for her tote bag before realizing it was still over her shoulder. Then she finally looked up to meet his gaze again. “Ready?”
They stared at each other, and for a moment Lizzy wasn’t sure if Charlie would wait for Jane to walk around the table or if he would just lean across it and kiss her. But finally he said, “You lead the way.” Jane smiled. Then she stepped around the table, and together they made their way into the crowd.
