Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Andrea barely remembered any of the details about her trip back to Los Angeles.
She recalled the aching in her chest as she backed out of the townhouse driveway and left the cozy neighborhood, but the drive to the airport and all the pre-flight milestones passed through her mind and vanished as soon as they were over.
The next thing she knew, the pilot was announcing their descent into LAX.
She checked her phone while she waited at the baggage claim carousel, though she wasn’t sure what she expected to find.
A text from Wes appeared, wishing her a safe flight.
She hadn’t yet told Lainey or anyone else in LA she was returning home.
For all of Lainey’s warm, fuzzy earth goddess vibes, she also had a fiery streak and could cut a witch in a heartbeat if the situation required.
Andrea knew better than to expect her to be the voice of reason when it came to confronting Paige.
Twenty minutes later, with her suitcases in tow, Andrea departed the airport and climbed into the backseat of the rideshare sedan she’d ordered.
Fortunately, the driver wasn’t the chatty type and seemed content to let Andrea doomscroll through her phone in silence.
She’d booked a room at a boutique hotel in the heart of Hecate’s Kitchen, a three-minute walk from Sunset Sweets, not wanting to disturb the rest of Marren’s vacation, though the woman had offered.
The hotel suited her fine, and she had everything she needed in her bags.
A friendly clerk handed her a room key and offered directions, and Andrea continued on to her suite in full autopilot mode, despite never having stepped foot inside the hotel before.
The room was spacious and had a view of the hotel’s courtyard, lush with potted plants and flowers.
Despite the day of travel, the time change was on her side, and it was just past two o’clock.
In all likelihood, Paige would be at Sunset Sweets.
Andrea showered away the airplane air and dressed in a pair of skinny jeans, her favorite suede pumps, and a navy blue top with ruffled details and little mother-of-pearl buttons at the throat of the high-necked collar.
She twisted her hair back and pinned the layers that were too short to be contained against the sides of her head, before applying a bit of understated makeup.
She caught her reflection on the way out, in the dressing mirror by the door to the suite, and she paused.
Andrea generally wasn’t one for pep talks, but as she considered her reflection, she steeled herself and made a final rundown of her list of accusations, the way a prosecutor might arrange their closing argument to a jury.
Finally, on a slow exhale, she straightened her shoulders, lifted her chin, and gave herself a nod. “You’ve got this, witch.”
It was a pleasant surprise to find several customers waiting in line when she arrived at Sunset Sweets.
The dining room was quieter than she would have expected under normal circumstances, but it wasn’t a ghost town, either.
A tall, lanky man in mid-twenties glanced up from putting an order into the register and blinked in surprise.
His skin was dark brown, making his white teeth stand out all the more as he offered her a wide smile. “Boss lady!” he greeted. “You’re back?”
“Hello, Tyler.”
A few people in line turned to look in her direction, and from the smile on one woman’s face, she suspected she’d been recognized.
One of the women waiting in line elbowed the woman beside her. “I love your cookbooks!” she said, while the other nodded in eager agreement. “We both do!”
“Thank you.” Andrea smiled and inclined her head toward the pair, the moment truly warming her heart, though there wasn’t time to stop and strike up further conversation or offer to sign something for them.
Before they could ask, she hurried along the front counter and rounded its edge, her gaze intent on the swinging doors that led to the back of house. “Is Paige in the office?” she asked, glancing over at Tyler.
“I haven’t seen her today,” Tyler said, and a flicker of irritation passed over his face, though he quickly got it under control. “She might be at the bank. Want me to call her?” He was already reaching for the shop’s phone.
Andrea shook her head and cut a quick glance at the handful of people waiting in line. The doors opened and two other sales people appeared—they looked a bit harried and Andrea wondered what was going on in the kitchen.
They greeted her with the same surprise Tyler had shown, but quickly launched into action, dividing the cluster of customers into two short lines to attend to everyone as quickly as possible.
Tyler bagged up the order he’d had in progress, and Andrea waited for him to finish before she pulled him away, curious to get his report of whatever was going on.
“Can you take a minute?” she asked.
He nodded and followed her to her private office, where Andrea quickly closed the door. She gestured toward the two wingbacks opposite her desk before seating herself in her plush executive chair.
“I’m so glad you’re back,” Tyler said in an exhaled sigh as he sat down. He sagged forward a bit, as though twenty-pound weight plates were stacked on his shoulders. “Paige said you weren’t coming back until after Christmas, but I knew that didn’t seem right.”
Andrea scanned the top of her desk, expecting a stack of nightly sales reports or mail.
Instead, she found nothing but a bit of dust. What?
Had Paige let the housekeeping go to hell in a handbasket as well?
Her brows drew together as she focused on Tyler’s earnest face.
“What’s going on around here? I need you to be honest with me.
I can’t get into all the reasons why, but I suspect things haven’t been run properly in my absence. ”
Tyler scoffed. “You could say that.”
Andrea lifted one eyebrow, giving him space to carry on.
Tyler’s fingertips drummed his long, pianist fingers along his thighs.
“You can speak freely,” Andrea added. “Whatever you say stays between us.”
A tinge of wariness lingered in Tyler’s eyes, but he exhaled and began to speak.
“To be honest, I don’t really know where to start. Things have been a bit slow after the… you know—” He gestured vaguely in the air, and Andrea gave a tight nod, a bit chagrined to think of William, especially in light of her new suspicions.
Tyler cleared his throat and continued. “But things were starting to get better, and some of the orders came back. Probably when people realized they weren’t going to get a better deal anywhere else in the district.
But just as things started picking up, a bunch of shifts got cut.
Paige said it was because things were slow, but then we suddenly didn’t have enough people to cover, which of course led to customers getting upset. ”
He exhaled long and slow before continuing.
“And then, in the scramble, a few orders got screwed up. I don’t want to point fingers.
We’ve all been doing our best. But when I asked Paige about adding some shifts to the schedule, she practically bit my head off, and then when Zora asked if she would be around a bit more to help fill in the gaps, she stormed out.
She’s only been here a few times since.”
Andrea’s stomach roiled. This was worse than she’d even expected. “And when was all this?”
“About a week ago. I’m so sorry, Andi, I should’ve called you or something—but it’s just that Paige said none of us were supposed to bother you, and I know you have the cookbook thing and—”
Andrea raised her hand, silencing him. “This isn’t your fault,” she told him, meaning it. “I’m back now, and I’m going to set things straight. Remind me, you’ve done the scheduling before, haven’t you?”
Tyler nodded eagerly.
“That’s what I thought. Good. I know things are a bit hairy out there, so go help Zora and Piper get through the rush, but when it dies down, or you think they’ve got a handle on it, I want you to take a look at next week’s schedule.
Add as many shifts as you think we need, then start making calls and see who can come in. ”
“Got it!” Tyler jolted to his feet, eager and seemingly relieved. “Thanks, Andi. I’m really glad you’re back.”
Andrea couldn’t muster up a smile, though she was grateful for his words and willingness to jump into action. “Me, too,” was all she said.
Tyler nodded, then started for the door, only to stop short as he opened it, his face falling when he realized Paige stood just on the other side, one hand extended, as though she’d just been about to grasp the doorknob.
Andrea got to her feet, a spike of fresh anger coursing through her at the sight of the woman.
“What are you doing in here—” Paige started, her brow furrowed.
Andrea rounded the desk and Paige’s blue eyes went round as dinner plates. “Andi? What—what are you doing here?”
Tyler made an awkward squeaking noise and quickly edged past her before disappearing down the hall as fast as his long legs could carry him.
Andrea kept her focus on Paige and gestured toward the chair Tyler had vacated. “Come in. I think it’s time we had a talk.”
“I mean, sure,” Paige said, her tone hesitant. She reached up to grab at the strap of her oversized handbag, holding it close to her side. “I was just coming in to put the bank bags back in the safe,” she explained.
Andrea looked at the corner of the office where a vintage cabinet contained the safe.
She couldn’t tell if Paige was bluffing or trying to buy time, but she settled herself back down in her plush office chair and waited.
Paige crossed the room, her steps clipped and almost militant.
“You should have called and told me you were coming back early!” she said on the tail end of a laugh before squatting down to access the safe.