Page 105 of Falling for Keeps

“Demi.” I grab her hand and pull her back. “Maggie’s engaged, remember? To the most perfect man who ever existed. She’s probably not…it’s probably harmless?”

“So she says,” Demi mutters. “You know, I’m glad you got Seth out of your system. You deserve so much better.”

“Better like…Carson?” I ask.

“I knew it.”

Sadie turns around after plating the last of the maple cookies. “Did I just hear what I thought I heard?”

Ari closes the circle, her dark hair swinging over her back. “Ooo. I want to know. What are we talking about?”

My face turns warm, so I know a blush is seeping into my cheeks, giving me away. Sadie probably relates, since her fair skin and red hair do the same thing, and she narrows her eyes. “Are you official now?”

“Who?” Ari asks, eyes wide.

“Yeah.” I take my last bite of the blondie and swallow. “Uh…Carson Price.”

“Oh, he’s perfect for you. His little girl is the cutest.” Ari gives me a knowing smile. “I knew something was going on.”

“Are we going to talk about all the men in this town? Because I have a few questions of my own.”

“I’m good,” Sadie says.

“Yeah,” Ari agrees. “No comment.”

Demi stacks the napkins on the table into a neat pile. “You’re all ridiculous. Take it from a happily married woman, there’s nothing better than putting the dating game behind you.”

“You’ve been married for like a month,” I remind her.

“So I know from experience,” Demi says.

Ari sighs. “My life is pretty wedding-centric right now. I’ll be happy on Friday, when it’s all behind us.”

People start to filter out, so I clean up the table—every treat was taken—and gather the napkins to put in the back. We wave goodbye to Ari and Sadie and finish putting chairs back at the study tables.

After Seth and Maggie leave, it’s just Demi and me left to turn off the lights and lock up. I take soup out of the back, something I had picked up earlier for my sister. “For what it’s worth, I’m really happy about this thing with the dentist,” Demi says.

“You already guessed it, though.”

“Hard not to when Carson’s taking your car to surprise you. Besides, he’s a real adult with a real job and he cares about you. I’m sure it’s a good thing.”

“You know Seth is older than both of us, right? And our boss?”

“Not in maturity. Why does he feel like the guys I knew in college?”

“I don’t know.” But I see what she means. I hold the soup while Demi locks up behind us. “I need to run this to Rosie.”

“Okay, I have a call to make, so I’ll meet you at the car.”

“That’s mysterious.”

She smiles widely. “See you soon.”

I cross the street, climbing the steps to Rosie’s inn and letting myself inside. “Rosie, I’m here.”

Silence. I put my purse down on the new check-in desk and carry the soup into the kitchen. Rosie’s studio apartment is through the kitchen in the back, and I find her laying in bed, her face pale. Dean is sitting on the end of the bed, talking to her, and they both look at the doorway when I get there.

Play it cool, Emma. It’s not weird for a man to be in my sister’s room while she’s this sick. It’s also totally normal that both times I’ve been to Rosie’s inn this month, this guy has also been here. “Hey, guys.”