Chapter 16 #2
He loved the joy vibrating in her voice. As they walked in, the bell rang above the door, and Reid breathed in the delicious
scent of pastries.
“Kaiah,” one of the Watson twins called—Reid could never tell who was talking if he couldn’t see her name tag—“you’re back.”
“I am! I just had to bring Reid to see those cupcakes.” She towed him to the counter. “Do you have any you can share?”
Jenni held up her pointer finger. “I’ll be back in a sec.” She disappeared into the back and then returned with a tray of
cupcakes decorated with lighthouses, shells, life preservers, and starfish. “What do you think?”
Reid picked up a cupcake that looked like it had a real lighthouse lying on top of it. “Are these plastic?”
“Nope!” Jessica laughed as she joined her twin sister behind the counter. “I promise they’re edible.”
“How did you make them?” he asked.
They shared a knowing look and then said in unison, “Magic.”
Kaiah laughed. “Trust me, they’re much more professional than the ones we made for the PTO bake sale.” She unlocked her phone
and shared a photo of the infamous icing-fight cookies they had donated to the school.
The twins examined them and nodded slowly.
“Not bad,” Jenni said.
“Okay, you’re just being nice,” Reid declared, and the group shared a laughed.
Jessica folded her hands and leaned on the counter. “I’m sure the kids enjoyed them.”
“We hope so,” Kaiah said with a chuckle.
Jenni pointed to a pile of flyers by the register. “We’ve given a flyer to each customer and have one hanging in the window.
We heard quite a few families have already signed up for the mini-marathon.”
“That’s fantastic,” Reid said before turning to Kaiah. “I spread the word at work yesterday. The fire department is going
to support the Run and Walk too. Most of the guys have signed up, and Coach Emmerson has teams registering at the schools.
And he’s an early bird on those awards too. He already has them ready to hand out.”
“Really? That’s great news!” Kaiah pointed to the tray. “Seriously, I’ve got to have a couple of those cupcakes before they sell out.” She pulled out her wallet. “How much are they?”
The twins shared another look and smiled.
“Free for you two since you’re working so hard to get this festival off the ground,” Jenni said.
“Absolutely,” Jessica chimed in. “It’s going to be great for our little town.”
“Well, I’m not going to fight you too hard on that.” Kaiah bumped her shoulder against Reid’s arm. “Pick one.”
“Okay.” He chose a lighthouse cupcake while Kaiah took one sporting a life preserver. He took a bite and closed his eyes,
savoring the light, fluffy cake. It reminded him of the birthday cakes his mom made him growing up.
When he opened his eyes, Kaiah asked, “Well, what do you think?”
“Definitely better than our cookies,” he quipped, and they all cracked up again. He turned to Jenni and Jessica. “You guys
have outdone yourselves. These are going to be a hit. Could I buy some to take home to Piper?”
Reid purchased one of each design, and Jenni packaged up the cupcakes before he and Kaiah headed back out to the street.
“I told you the cupcakes were good,” Kaiah said.
“You weren’t kidding.” He unlocked his Suburban and stored the box in the back seat. When he turned around, he caught Kaiah
snapping photos of Main Street. He leaned against the SUV and enjoyed seeing her expertise in action. She’d line up a photo
and push the shutter button, her face clouded with concentration. Somehow she seemed even more attractive while he watched
her work.
She pivoted to face him. “I wanted to get a few shots of Main Street with the banners stretched across and the lighthouse in the background. Talk about Americana. It’s going to look adorable in the next article.” She cocked her head to the side. “Are you staring at me?”
He grinned at her. “Who, me? Nope. Nuh-uh. No way.”
Her eyebrow flew up, and she placed a sassy hand on her hip. “You’re staring at me, Reid. How come?”
“No reason.” He pushed off the Suburban. “You know what we haven’t done yet?”
She hung her camera around her neck and adjusted the straps on her backpack purse. “What’s that?”
“Booked musical groups for the stage.”
She studied him, and an amused expression flickered over her face. “I can’t say I know any musical groups around here. That’s
the locals’ job. So do you know any musicians around here?”
“Actually I do.” He lifted his chin. “I went to high school with a group of brothers who formed a country band. The Sandy
Boots Brothers.”
She giggled. “I love it. Are they still around?”
“They sure are.” He joined her on the sidewalk. “They own the pet store a couple of blocks over. Let’s go talk to them.”
Kaiah snapped a few photos while they made their way to the Best Friends Pet Shop. Reid found flyers advertising the festival
on the door, and when they walked inside, Kaiah rushed over to a young woman with a black cocker spaniel.
“Ohhh,” she gushed, bending down to meet the dog. “What’s your puppy’s name?”
The young woman beamed. “This is Patrick.”
“How are you, buddy?” Kaiah held out her hand. “Is it okay . . . ?”
The woman nodded. “You can pet him. He loves attention. He’s a sweetie.”
Kaiah stroked the dog’s head and asked Patrick’s owner all about him. Every time she glanced down at the spaniel, her face radiated her affection for animals. Reid yearned to capture the moment. He pulled out his phone and took a few photos while she was completely unaware.
After a minute, Kaiah stood. “Thank you for letting me meet Patrick.”
The woman chuckled. “No problem. You made our day.”
Kaiah sighed and looped her arm through Reid’s. “I miss my dog so much.” When she rested her head on his arm, he melted into
her touch. “I hope Georgie is healthy and happy.”
“Reid?”
Turning, Reid spotted Brad Duncan waving on his way down the dog food aisle.
“Hey, Brad.” He shook his friend’s hand, then turned to Kaiah. “Brad is the lead singer and oldest brother in the band. This
is Kaiah. She’s a journalist who’s working on a story about the festival.”
“Great to meet you, Kaiah.” Brad folded his arms over his chest. “Are you guys here for cat food?”
“Actually, we’re wondering if the Sandy Boots Brothers would be interested in performing at the festival.”
Brad’s face lit up. “The festival? Now that’s a good gig. Count us in.” He pointed to the store’s front window. “We’ve been talking to customers about the festival, and
my brothers and I were just thinking about what we could do to help. We’re forming a team for the marathon, for sure. I’d
heard that there was going to be a market and a stage. Sounds like we might be a fit for both of those.”
“Right on,” Reid said.
Kaiah wrote in her notebook. “What kind of music do you and your brothers play?”
“Mostly classic country, but we have a few of our own songs. We’re working on an album.”
“That’s so cool! I can’t wait to hear you play.”
Reid patted his old friend’s shoulder. “I’m sure you have some contacts in the local music scene. Could you spread the word
that we need some folks to perform? We’re putting out feelers for other acts.”
“Sure thing. I’ll text you some folks to reach out to right now.”
After Brad shared the details, Reid and Kaiah headed back out to the Suburban.
“I’d say we’ve had a successful day,” Kaiah said as she climbed into the passenger seat.
He smiled over at her. “Me too.”
And when an idea for a romantic evening began to form in his mind, his pulse sped up.