“Uh…okay,” he responded with a slight wince. “My bad. Sorry.”
Molly forced herself to laugh off the embarrassment rolling over her in waves. “Let me try this again.” She stuck out her hand. “I’m Molly Owens, editor-in-chief for the Britton Bay Bulletin. We’re looking for writers for our newspaper as we’re currently very short-staffed.”
His expression morphed into one that made him even more handsome. Not that she was interested. At all.
He took her hand and shook it. “Ahh. Okay.” He laughed. “Gavin Bright. Nice to meet you, Miss Owens.”
She shook her head and laughed. “Molly.” She glanced back and saw her friends and boyfriend watching her with amusement. Yup. She loved to provide amusing anecdotes. They were going to love this one.
When she dropped her hand, she let out a relieved sigh. Awkward moment mostly gone. “If you do any freelance writing, I’d be happy to take a look at a sample. I’m not sure if you’re looking for work.”
“Any writer knows that the only thing better than writing is getting paid to do it. I don’t have anything on me but could I email you? I’m definitely interested, though I’ve never done any investigative pieces or anything. I’m actually finishing up my creative writing degree.” His voice lowered like he was somehow embarrassed by that fact.
“You can absolutely email me. That’d be great. Go through The Bulletin’s website and I’ll get it. Sorry about the misunderstanding.”
“My fault. I’ll go get your nachos ordered. Thanks, Molly. This is really cool.”
He smiled and walked the rest of the way to the bar. Two people came up behind Molly and asked if she was saving the table.
She shook her head and hurried back to their table. When she slid onto the padded bench seat, the others stared at her expectantly.
“Do I need to beat him up?” Sam asked, reaching out to twirl a lock of her brown hair around his index finger.
Molly laughed and leaned into him, inhaling the familiar and sexy scent of his cologne. “Absolutely not. Especially if he’s a good writer.”
Sarah clapped her hands together. “Oh. Right. He said he writes plays. Good call. We couldn’t figure out what you were doing.”
Molly’s face heated again and she buried it in Sam’s shoulder as Chris commented, “I spend a fair amount of time wondering exactly that.”
Sam pressed a kiss to the side of her head and then his lips brushed against her ear, sending a shiver through her body. “Just one of the many things I love about you.” His words were quiet, meant just for her and they drowned out the lingering remains of embarrassment.
She tilted her head back and hoped that her mutual feelings shone in her gaze. They must have, because his grin widened and he pressed his mouth to hers in a sweet kiss.
They chatted about the play, other events coming up and a number of other topics with the ease of good friends. By the time their nachos arrived, Molly was feeling more than a little happy. She felt content.
“Here you go,” Gavin said, setting the nachos in the middle of the table and a cola in front of Chris. He looked at Molly. “Thanks again for asking about the writing. I’ll email you right after work.” He frowned. “Not that you have to check the email then. Just that—”
Molly lifted her hand as Chris’s phone buzzed on the table. “No worries. I look forward to reading your sample.”
“Awesome,” Gavin said. “You guys need anything else?”
“We’re good. Thank you,” Sam said.
While the others loaded their plates, Chris stared at his phone and then swore softly. Sarah put her hand on his arm. “You okay?”
He shook his head. Molly recognized his look. Something was wrong. “I need to go.”
“Oh,” Sarah said, her lips tilting down. She set her chip down and picked up her purse.
Chris shook his head. “No. You guys stay. Sam, one of the deputies will pick me up. Can you take Sarah home when you finish here?”
“Sure, man. Everything okay?”
Chris sighed heavily and leaned in, his forearms crossing on the table. “There’s some trouble out at the Granger farm. It’s the third time this month. Someone is coming into the barn and upsetting the animals but we haven’t been able to catch anyone. I asked John to install cameras but the most he’ll do is motion lights. He says he isn’t paying to install cameras on his own land so the government can have an easier time watching him.”
The three of them laughed but Molly wondered if Chris ever got tired of putting out proverbial fires. If he took over as permanent sheriff, his responsibilities would only increase. Looking across the table at Sarah and noting the slightly forced grin on her friend’s face, she couldn’t help but wonder how this sort of thing impacted a relationship.
Chapter Five
Molly pulled the door to Morning Muffins open, feeling only a tiny bit of guilt. She probably spent a good portion of her paycheck on eating takeout. But it was so good. By far, Morning Muffins and Come N’ Get It were her favorite stops. The bakery was already busy with four customers in line and several others dotted around the small space, sitting at high, round, bar-style tables with their warm beverages and delicious snacks.
Bella was a culinary genius. Molly must have shared this truth a fair amount, because when her mom and dad had visited at Christmas time, they’d insisted on tasting the scones she’d described as life-changing and the lemon loaf that was too good to properly articulate.
Fishing her wallet out of her purse as she got in line, Molly waved to a couple of locals. The woman in front of her pulled her phone from her pocket. It must have buzzed because it hadn’t rung, and she put it to her ear.
“Tiffany, speaking. Yes ma’am. I’m grabbing the muffins you asked for. No. No. I’m just waiting in line.” The woman sucked in a sharp breath. “I can’t do that. There are only a few people in front of me. Yes. Okay.” She held the phone away from her and glared at it.
Molly caught sight of her profile. She had flawless, pale skin that seemed almost ivory next to her jet-black, flowing hair. She had sharp cheekbones and a brow so furrowed it was easy to spot even from the side.
“Goodbye to you, too. And I’m fine this morning. Thank you for asking, you crazy, raving—”
“Next,” Georgie, one of Bella’s staff called.
Molly’s eyes widened as they each moved a step forward and the person who’d just paid left the line. The woman in front of Molly—Tiffany—flushed, probably realizing too late that she’d spoken out loud. She glanced at Molly and her cheeks reddened further.
“Sorry.”
Molly grinned. “Don’t be. I’ve had my share of evil bosses.” It was a hunch, but Molly was pretty good with those.
“How’d you know?” Tiffany shoved her phone back in her pocket.
“You called the person ma’am, looked to see if you could move things along faster, and waited until she hung up to share your thoughts.”
Tiffany laughed, tipping her head back, turning her features from lovely to striking. When her eyes found Molly’s again, they sparkled, looking like blue diamonds. “Are you a detective?”
Molly shook her head, grateful Chris wasn’t around. “No. Editor at the newspaper and