7. Chapter 7
Kylie
I peek into the town's one and only café, trying to make out the menu behind the counter.
As he announced, Erik was gone by the time my alarm rang this morning. A part of me didn't think he would be. I mean, who leaves a stranger alone in their house? I could have robbed him, burned it down on my way out or pushed all his furniture a centimeter to the right.
It just goes to show how trusting the people of this town are.
What a contrast to the city, where anything not bolted down was basically up for grabs.
Once, I made an attempt to grow my own strawberry plant, left in a pot by our front door so I’d remember to water it when Abby and I went out. Two weeks later it was suddenly gone.
Maybe one day I’ll share their level of trust.
There was no way I'd have taken advantage of his hospitality and rummaged through his kitchen for coffee. So, I packed all of my stuff back into my bag, tidied up the guest room he let me stay in as well as I could, left a little thank-you note, and went out in search of caffeine goodness. My phone brought me right here. Caleb’s.
It's the closest café my map showed me, right in the center of Wayward Hollow. What a cute little town.
The café is situated right by the town's main square, a park packed with trees higher than the surrounding houses and a gazebo peeking out between shrubbery. All stores along the square are decorated for autumn already.
There's a flower shop with the prettiest orange wreaths for sale, the currently closed hotel has garlands of artificial leaves hung around their doors and even this café has subtle leaves along the lower sides of the windows.
Paired with the bright orange, red and yellow trees in the main square, it looks like a movie set.
Can Abby come inside the café with me? Back in the city most cafe's were really strict and only allowed her in outside seating areas. Which Caleb’s doesn’t have.
I scan every inch of the front door. There's no sign saying dogs have to stay outside. I'll try my luck. Then another thought pops up in my head.
This is it. The trial by fire, so to speak. My Wayward Hollow debut. The moment everyone gets to stare at the woman who’s responsible for law enforcement tearing apart the lake shore.
At least I’ll have it over with soon.
I take a deep breath, straighten my shoulders, then push the door open and motion for Abby to walk ahead.
The gentle murmur of voices dies as soon as I enter. At least, that's how it feels. But when I glance around, ultimately everybody is busy with their own conversations or coffees. Nobody seems to gives a damn about me. Thankfully.
"Hey, Kylie!" Whoops. I got excited to soon. This is the moment that all heads turn to me, because Kieran thought it’d be a good idea to shout my name through the entire café. He might as well have shouted “Hey everyone! Check out the new girl in town!”
If I stare at the ground hard enough, will it open up?
"Get over here!" He waves at me excitedly, oblivious to my wish to disappear and pulls an empty chair from one of the nearby tables to the one he's occupying with Nic and Lauren.
Abby tugs at her leash, trying to make her way over to them.
And she’s right. I can stand here and wish for the ground to swallow me, or I can own it and get to know the group that so kindly took me under their wing yesterday and not have breakfast alone.
As we weave our way to them through the labyrinth of tables, Abby sniffs anything and everyone in the way. Much to their delight. To my dismay, though, because small talk without having had any coffee yet is rough.
Once we get closer, I realize Dick is also here, curled up right next to Kieran's seat and having the nap of his life, judging by the soft snores and conked-out expression.
When my eyes wander over to the counter, I see two more dogs hanging out and watching the seating area with curious eyes: a beautiful brown husky and a black labrador with a grey-speckled snout.
"There are so many dogs here," I say in awe and take a seat at their table.
"Isn't it amazing?" Kieran grins and leans down to greet Abby. "And not to toot my own horn, but they're all so well-behaved."
"You’re one to talk," Lauren snickers and shoots him an amused look. "Out of all the dogs here, yours is the worst behaved."
"Hey." His lips purse in a pout. "First off, Dick is an angel. Second, he’s going through puberty. Don't be so harsh on him."
"I'm not harsh, I'm honest." She shrugs and takes a sip of her coffee. The two break into friendly banter about Dick’s behavior, which Nic and I follow with amusement, when suddenly, a guy appears next to our table, notepad and pen in hand.
"Hi, welcome. What can I get you?" I jump and clutch my sweatshirt, right over my heart. How spooky.
"A coffee, please," I stammer.
The guy nods and gives me an emotionless stare.
Joke’s on him, because I stare right back.
Are you kidding me? Seriously, is this the small town of hot guys?
There was no note about it in my travel guide for this area about it.
I’m not mad about it but a warning would have been nice.
With some emotional preparation time I might have been able to get a coherent sentence out.
He’s tall, his dark hair hidden under a backwards cap. Light scruff hides a razor-sharp jawline and a blue plaid shirt spanning over his broad shoulders.
"You the new one?" he asks gruffly. I nod. So does he. "Got it. I'm Caleb, owner of this café."
Right. Caleb's. I could've gathered that.
"So be aware, the coffee order you're giving me now is the one I'm going to associate with you for however long you come here."
I'm not sure whether he looks bored, annoyed, or wholeheartedly done with the world. He's got a resting bitch face if I've ever seen one. I bet he kills it at poker.
"Come on, babe." Lauren pulls on the hem of his shirt until he turns to her. "Be nice. Don't scare our new neighbor off."
"I'm not scaring her off."
Within the blink of an eye, his whole demeanor shifts. The resting bitch face melts into an expression of adoration. A hint of a smile tugs at his lips and the corner of his eyes as he focuses on Lauren.
"Stop flirting." Nic lightly punches Lauren's upper arm. "Look at the poor girl, she hasn't had a coffee yet. Right?"
Caleb's expression turns a little firmer again. "What can I get you?"
"Really, I'm easy. Coffee with a splash of milk, please."
He gives me an approving nod as though I passed a test I didn’t know I was taking. "Good choice. I'll be right back."
"You're so mature," Lauren says almost in awe. I blush. If only she knew how wrong she is, but there’s no way I’m telling her about the coloring books on my shelves. Or how splashing through puddles with Abby is one of my favorite pastimes.
“I’m not a fan of foamed-up milk," I admit with a giggle. "I'm too impatient and have burnt my tongue on it often enough. Also, it's so annoying to mix with the coffee or wait until the foam dies. I'd rather stick to simple coffee with cold milk in it."
"Don't take it so personally, Lauren," Kieran chuckles.
Abby is satisfied with the amount of attention she got and nudges her way between my legs to lie down.
"The first time Lauren and Nic ordered a pumpkin spice latte in here, Caleb looked like he was about to have a heart attack," Kieran mumbles as though he’s telling me a secret.
"Can you even believe he didn't have pumpkin spice lattes on the menu before we moved here?" Lauren rolls her eyes and taps her fingertips on the wooden table. “Seriously. This town should thank me.”
"Does he now?" I stretch my neck and try to read the menu on the black chalkboard on the exposed brick wall behind the old wooden counter. However, the angle I’m sitting at is too steep to read any of the words on the chalkboard.
When I first came in, I was too occupied with my desire to make a good first impression to pay it any mind.
"Don't bother, it's not on the menu." From seemingly out of nowhere, she puts a giant glass bottle on the table with a heavy ‘thunk.’ "I have girlfriend privileges." She wiggles her eyebrows.
“Sounds more like a dealer position,” I point out and giggle. Kieran and Nic burst into laughter.
“Now that you’re saying it,” Lauren stares at the bottle, then makes it disappear under one side of the beige cardigan she’s wearing. “Hey. Kiddo. Want some pumpkin spice?”
“Stop it.” Kieran bends over laughing and flicks a piece of paper her way. “Oh my God I’m dying.”
“You better not. We don’t need another ghost,” Nic presses out through laughter.
“Another ghost?” Nic and Kieran only slowly get a grip on their laughter, so instead Lauren leans in to explain.
“Remember the cat Nic told you about? The one she found on her first drive to Wayward Hollow?” I nod. “Nic’s convinced said cat is haunting her house.”
“Seriously?” My eyes widen. How does she tell me about this so with the same enthusiasm as the weather forecast?
Nic finally caught her breath. “Yes. My two other cats act as if there’s a third one around. I can feel her brush my legs. And I’m convinced she’s the one who brought Pumpkin and Cinnamon to my doorstep. And the reason Dick, and Lauren’s cats Taytay and Jenna appeared at my backdoor.”
“So you’re trying to tell me this town has a human pumpkin spice syrup dealer and a ghost-cat pet dealer?” My eyebrows wander further up with each word of my question.
“Add ‘matchmaker’ to the ‘ghost-cat pet dealer’ because she’s the reason Henry and I got close.” Now all three burst into giggles. Meanwhile I’m wondering what kind of town I moved to. It certainly doesn’t sound as boring as the internet makes small towns sound.
"Speaking of matchmaking..." Nic leans her elbows on the table and props her chin on her hands. "How was your night at Erik's?" Lauren and Kieran freeze, as if they only suddenly remember I spent the night at a handsome stranger’s place.
"Uneventful," I declare with a smile. Caleb reappears at the table. Without a word he sets down a huge cup of coffee and a small plate with a pastry on it right in front of me.
"Huh?” I tilt my head and frown. “Thank you. But I didn't order anything."
"Welcome to Wayward Hollow," he says with a curt nod and walks right off again.
"Is this, like, my official acceptance to the town?" I eye the cinnamon roll. It sure looks and smells mouthwateringly delicious.
"Why did I never get one? It’s an honor for sure," Kieran whispers, longingly staring at the cinnamon roll. I take a sip of my coffee, and it's taking every ounce of willpower to keep myself from groaning.
Fuck, that's good coffee. No comparison to the one I have at home or the crappy cup I got from a drive-through on my way here. A proper coffee machine was on my ‘buy’ list but if I can get such a great coffee right here, without having to fight a manual for assembly or research coffee beans? The machine is flying right off my ‘buy’ list, I’ll come here instead.
But when I take a bite of the cinnamon roll, I can't hold it a soft groan.
"Holy shit, this is delicious." I close my eyes and try to savor every last crumb. It’s buttery and sugary and the combination with cinnamon is divine.
"What?" When I open my eyes again, I find the three of them are staring at me.
"Uneventful?" Lauren waves her hand through the air and leans closer. "Come on, tell us more. Give us every detail."
"Why are you so curious? You've known Erik longer than I have."
"Because-” Kieran turns his head, making sure nobody is listening in, but leans closer and lowers his voice nonetheless. "None of us know much about him."
"Yeah, he is, like, everyone's friend but nobody's bestie if it makes sense." Nic tilts her head, and her eyes dart to the window behind me. "Such a nice guy, though."
"Really such a bro." Kieran crosses his arms in front of his chest. “I tried to get him to be my friend. No offense gals, but it would have been nice to have a single friend.”
I hide my surprise behind another bite of cinnamon roll. Right. Of course he’d be single. I doubt he’d let a random woman stay over if he had a girlfriend.
"And he’s a hard worker," Lauren continues, stirring her coffee. "That's all we know."
"So..." Nic leans in and narrows her eyes. "Give us the deets, girl. Was he nice? What does his home look like?"
“Does he have his own personal prison cell?” All our eyes dart to Kieran. “What? We know nothing about the guy and I’m waiting for a big eerie town secret to drop.” He lowers his voice again. “It’s too perfect!”
“Don’t be ridiculous. If anyone has a huge, scandalous secret, it’s probably Harry,” Lauren rolls her eyes.
“Who’s Harry?”
“We’ll tell you some other time.”
The expectation in their gazes weighs heavy on me, but I shake my head. What Erik told me about his sister doesn’t seem to be common knowledge, so I'm keeping that to myself. And apart from that conversation, the evening truly was uneventful.
"I slept in his guest room, wasn't murdered, and I'm ecstatic to return home later today," I sum up and take another bite of my cinnamon roll.
"She's blushing," Lauren pretends to whisper to Nic, but does it so loudly, I can hear it very clearly. "Even the tip of her nose turns red. How cute."
"What is this, high school?" I ask with a giggle, and hide a yawn behind my hand.
"It's not, but Lauren and I have a theory," Nic explains.
"You know, when we first moved here," she points between herself and Lauren, "it took us only a few weeks until we got into relationships.
Now this one..." She points at Kieran. "...
has remained single. So when we heard about the final lakeside mansion finally being sold, we wondered if the falling-into-a-relationship thing is a woman kind of thing, or if Kieran is just unlucky. "
"Forever the third wheel." Kieran makes a peace sign, but his expression doesn't quite reflect the enthusiasm of his voice. "Yay."
"I recently got divorced. I'm not looking to jump into the next relationship," I mumble staring at my coffee cup. I’m not sure what I expected. Sympathy? Pity? But the three of them thankfully don’t bat an eye at my admission.
"Neither were we," Lauren points out. “And yet I got here and fell in love with a certain Mr. Grumpypants.”
"Seriously. I'm happy to be single for a while."
"That's what I said." Nic shrugs and takes a sip of her coffee. "Granted, I left my fiancé, he wasn’t my husband yet, but here we are."
Lauren knocks on the wooden tabletop. "Thank God."
"But still, finding a boyfriend was the last thing on my mind.” Nic gives my forearm a friendly squeeze. “So never say never."
"I'm not sure if I should find that reassuring or scary," I mumble, pull a piece off my cinnamon roll and pop it into my mouth.
The three of them break into grins, which can’t be good. Even so, a part of me relaxes.
As much as I enjoy spending time with Abby and myself, it's nice to be on the same wavelength with people here. Who knows, I might just find the closest friendships I've ever had right in this little town.