Chapter Six
Aspen tapped her fingers rhythmically on the steering wheel, staring through her windshield at the Thomas H.
Kuchel Visitor Center with uncertainty. It was her day off.
And on every beautiful day off, Aspen’s usual routine was to park at the visitor center and walk a chair down to the beach to read.
But instead of enjoying the sea air, she hadn’t moved a muscle since turning off her car.
Mo, just another tourist, had disrupted her world, and she was unsure how to bring it back into alignment.
Aspen glanced over into the passenger seat, her eyes falling to an apology card that had sat untouched since she’d bought it, which was right after Mo had run off.
Aspen had felt terrible for pushing Mo about Annie.
The guilt had nagged at her, and she desperately wanted a chance to fix it, but that hinged on her ability to find Mo.
An actual stranger.
Just as she was about to give up, an idea popped into Aspen’s head. She reached for her cell phone, sliding her thumb across the face to scroll through her contacts. After finding the first prospect, she placed her phone to her ear and listened patiently to the ringing.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Candy. It’s Aspen. I had a question if you’ve got a quick second?”
“Totally, hun. What’s up?” Candy replied, her Midwest accent sounding slow and sweet.
“I know it’s awkward to ask about your cabin renters, but I had a bar patron the other night who left behind something valuable and I wanted to return it,” Aspen lied, hoping her nerves weren’t obvious to the woman. “All I know is that her name is Mo and that she’s alone.”
“Hmm, Mo…” Candy mumbled while Aspen heard the telltale sound of clicking keyboard keys in the background. “I don’t have any renters by that name, but I do remember a Mo calling a few days ago. I didn’t have anything open for an extended stay, so I referred her to Odessa.”
“Oh, Mrs. Pearson does rentals?”
“Indeed she does. I would give her a call. I’ve left my purse at bars one too many times, so I’m sure Mo will want that back,” Candy replied kindly.
“It’s unfortunately common. Thank you so much, Candy, you are a lifesaver. The next time you drive down from Seattle, hit up Dry Creek. I have a free margarita with your name on it.” Aspen beamed, dancing a jig in her seat with excitement.
“Sounds wonderful, Aspen. I will see you later in the summer.”
“Will do, buh-bye!” Aspen ended the call, quickly going back to her contacts to call Mrs. Pearson. “Come on, come on—”
“Hello, Ms. Anderson. Looking to place a pickup order?” Mrs. Pearson answered in her usual business voice.
“Not today, but I do appreciate you asking. I had a different question instead?” Aspen’s voice lilted a little, and she chastised herself internally.
“What’s that?”
“Well, a recent customer, I think her name was Mo, left something valuable behind at the bar and I’ve not seen her since. I was wondering if you had anyone by that name staying at one of your beautiful cabins?” Aspen asked sweetly, hoping Odessa would be far easier to work with than her husband.
“Ah yes, Imogen Reeves. She’s staying at Horsing Around.
She’s an interesting lady, not the usual happy and outdoorsy kind that I rent to.
Very serious, short with words, but I could care less because she paid up front for a full month,” Mrs. Pearson offered easily.
“I can text you the address, it’s super close to the market. ”
“Could you? This item seems really important.”
“Of course. Do you need anything else?”
“No, thank you, this helps so much. Will I see you for pot pie night?” Aspen asked, hoping to end the conversation soon so that Mrs. Pearson wouldn’t forget to text.
“You know it and…” Mrs. Pearson paused momentarily. “There. Text is sent. Thank you for being such a sweetheart, Aspen. See you soon.”
“No, thank you. Bye.” Aspen ended the call before pumping her fist in the air. “Yes!”
Clicking over to the text, Aspen copied the address and put it into her GPS.
After studying the map, she felt confident that she knew exactly where Mo was staying, and she turned on her car.
She didn’t go straight to the cabin, instead turning right onto Route 101 to go toward the little gas station on the edge of town.
After buying two coffees and two egg, bacon, and cheese croissants, she drove her car back toward the creek, making sure to hang the first right before the bridge.
The drive wasn’t too difficult, and she found the tiny cabin perched back in the woods pretty easily.
Without much thought to how Mo would react to Aspen standing on her doorstep at eleven in the morning, she parked next to the Subaru and hurriedly placed her gifts into one arm.
A quick jog to the door and Aspen began knocking out a cute tune against the wood, waiting patiently for an answer.
The only reply was a loud but muffled groan of discontent, which made Aspen grin.
“Hello? It’s me. Not a stalker or serial killer but instead a very sorry woman with delicious coffee,” Aspen yelled before knocking again. “I promise.”
“Did you say coffee?”
“Yes!”
Aspen heard another groan, then a shuffle.
A few moments passed before the lock was disengaged and a bed-ruffled Mo was standing in front of Aspen, looking downright cute but exhausted.
Blinking in surprise, Aspen quickly noticed that Mo was wearing only boxers and a tank top, allowing her a great view of her lean but toned arms. She swallowed, butterflies floating around in her stomach as her eyes moved up to her collarbone then down to her chest, taking extra care to notice how the tight tank top accentuated her small but round breasts.
A few silent moments passed before Aspen dragged herself back to the present and put on a big signature smile before passing Mo one coffee cup from the carrier.
“One ‘I’m sorry I’m a big doofus’ coffee for Mo and”—Aspen reached for a sandwich, putting it into Mo’s other hand—“one bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich made not by me, so you know it’s good.”
Mo cleared her throat, a dazed but not upset look on her face as she studied the breakfast sandwich’s wrapping.
“Oh,” Aspen added, sliding past Mo into the cabin. She easily stepped over a pile of bags right in front of the door and made her way straight for the counter where she deposited her own coffee and sandwich. “I also got you a card.”
“How did you find me?” Mo asked curiously, closing the door behind her before taking a sip. “Ooh, this is actually really good.”
“Of course it is. Joe at the gas station made it, and he does not fuck around with his coffee.”
“I can tell.” Mo pulled in another sip, making a strange gurgling noise as she tasted the coffee.
“For a light roast it has a bit of sweet, a bit of acid, and maybe hints of…vegetables? But overall it runs smoothly over the tongue and isn’t bitter or overroasted in the slightest,” Mo concluded, taking another longer sip. “I needed this.”
“You must be a coffee sommelier or something. I grabbed some milk and sugar if you want, but I have a feeling that’s not your jam.
All good, now let’s…” Aspen started, looking around for a table and chairs.
Odessa definitely went bare with this cabin, so Aspen pointed to the next best thing, which was the love seat, and continued, “Sit and eat. I have something else to give you.”
Mo seemed to freeze for a moment, but as Aspen took her goodies to the loveseat and flopped down, she made her way to sit next to her.
Aspen took a quick sip of her coffee, which she had doctored at the gas station with entirely too much sugar, before placing it on the floor next to the arm of the chair.
Then she happily unwrapped her sandwich and took a big bite, moaning at how salty and delicious it was.
“I love these things.”
Mo took a smaller bite but hummed in agreement. “Yeah, it’s pretty good.”
Aspen spun in her spot to face Mo, her jean-capri-covered knee now lightly touching Mo’s bare thigh. She grabbed the card from under her arm and presented it with a loud, “Ta-da! For you.”
Mo smirked, placing her sandwich down in her lap before slowly opening the card.
“I’m sorry I didn’t see…” Mo read aloud, opening the card to display an intricate pop-up design of a black cat chasing a string. “How purrfect you really are. I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable. Aspen.”
Aspen couldn’t help but bite her lower lip as Mo turned to meet her gaze.
“You didn’t…” Mo started, blowing air from her mouth as Aspen watched her guilty hazels study her face. “It wasn’t you.”
Aspen shrugged. “I’m sorry anyway.”
Mo closed the card, turning to put it on the foot of her bed.
“So,” Aspen said, changing the subject. “You seem to be quite the coffee connoisseur. Is that what you do for a living?”
“Now hold on here.” Mo raised her voice with a commanding tone, taking another bite. “You have asked question after question about me, but I have yet to learn anything about you. Well, other than you’re a quirky bartender who somehow figured out where I am staying.”
“It’s a small town,” Aspen reasoned, nervousness bubbling up.
“Ah, well, I think I’m gonna need to know more about you to make sure you aren’t a stalker. Protocol and all that.”
“Protocol? What are you, a cop?”
“You’re deflecting,” Mo warned, her voice playful. “I know you live and work here in Orick, but did you also grow up here? Are the bar owners your parents?”
Aspen squirmed under Mo’s attention, her mind reeling at how best to answer that question. “Uh…no, I’m not from Orick. And are you asking about Virginia and Salvador?”
“Yep, I actually met Salvador at the market a few nights back. I wondered if he was your dad.” Mo’s voice was even, but her gaze was fixed on Aspen even as she took another sip of coffee. “You seemed pretty close to that older woman at the bar too.”
“No,” Aspen replied quietly, looking toward the door to avoid Mo’s eyes. “Do you like the beach?”
“Don’t like talking about yourself?” Mo chuckled.