Chapter 18
To say I was in a good mood when I got to the bakery would be putting it mildly. I even out-smiled Joy and Amber. Mind you, neither was dating anyone right now, so they probably hadn’t had the kind of smile-inducing morning I’d had. An orgasm that good would have made Ebenezer Scrooge break into a grin.
I was extra friendly to all the customers, greeting our regulars by name and remembering their usual orders. Joy was working in the kitchen with the other bakers, so it was just Amber and I on the counter. And when we finally got a short break without any customers in the store, Amber turned to me with a laugh.
“What’s gotten into you this morning?” she asked. “Whatever it is, I want some! I’ve never seen you so happy.”
Our conversation would get X-rated if I tried to describe exactly what had gotten into me, so I just gave her a little shrug. “I had a very pleasant morning.” But I couldn’t keep my smile from widening even further as I said it.
She raised her eyebrows, grabbing a cloth to wipe some crumbs from the countertop. “It must have been special. You’re glowing.”
“Am I?” I put both hands to my cheeks. They did feel a little warm.
“It’s because of a man, isn’t it? You have a dewy look.” She squinted at me. “It doesn’t have anything to do with Cy Baxter, does it?”
I didn’t need to answer. The fact I couldn’t stop smiling was answer enough.
She pushed her lips to the side. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Mags, but are you sure getting involved with him is a good idea? I’m not usually one for gossip, but the rumors about him carrying on with his daddy’s business have come from several different people. Can they all be wrong?”
“They are all wrong.”
“He must be growing something, seeing as he’s been buying straw?—”
“It’s not drugs. He’s growing mushrooms. Gourmet ones.”
She furrowed her brow, scrubbing at a sticky spot on the countertop. “Are you sure?”
“I saw them with my own eyes. He showed them to me last night, and he’s going to sell them to all the restaurants around here.”
“Oh.” Her expression relaxed. “Well, if you’ve seen it, then it must be true. And it’s not the first time wild rumors have been flying around that turned out to be wrong.” She rolled her eyes. “Some folks like to believe the worst and spread it to anyone who’ll listen.”
“That’s part of the problem. Cy’s niece is fifteen, and she’s just started going to school here. If people have the wrong idea about Cy, how will she be treated?”
“I’d hope she’d be treated well, no matter who she’s related to.”
“Cy doesn’t think she will be. And I don’t want to take the chance.” I made my mind up as I said the words. “I’m going to start a campaign to fix his reputation.”
“How will you do that?”
“By telling people they’re wrong about him.”
“Okay.” She put the cleaning cloth back in its place under the counter and wiped her hands on her apron. “You’ll talk to everyone in town?” It sounded like a sincere question, as though she believed it would really be possible.
“If I have to.”
She nodded. “Well, you’ve been getting to know folks, and they seem to like you. If anyone can do it, I think you probably can.”
I grinned at her, appreciating her vote of confidence. “Who are the key people to influence?”
“The biggest gossips are folks like Karen Smith and Bonnie Linton, but they’re not well-liked around town.” She paused for a moment thinking it over. “I’d say you need someone like Flo McClure on your side. She works at the sheriff’s office and talks to everyone. Most folks like her.”
“Okay. I don’t think I’ve met her yet.”
Amber snapped her fingers, her eyes lighting up. “Wait, what about Noah’s momma? She’s involved with all kinds of things around town, and on every committee you can think of. And she’s a really nice lady. I’m sure she’d help spread the word.”
“Great idea! I’m having lunch with her on Sunday.”
The door opened and some customers came in. I nudged Amber, giving her a wide-eyed look. “Here we go,” I murmured. Then I raised my voice. “Hello, Shelly,” I said to the tall woman who approached the counter first. “And hi, Beau.” I waved to the red-haired man just behind her.
Beau said a friendly hello, then gave me their order. As I was bagging their muffins, I asked. “Do you two know Cy Baxter?”
Shelly shook her head, glancing at Beau. “I don’t believe so.”
Beau’s forehead creased. “I don’t know Cy real well,” he said. “But I knew his daddy. Ike Baxter was friendly with my daddy.” The flare of his nostrils told me he didn’t consider that to be an endorsement of Ike’s character.
“Cy’s a good person,” I said. “Nothing like his father.”
Beau gave a little shrug. “Like I say, I barely know him.”
“Well, now that Cy’s back in town, he’s starting up his own agriculture business. He’s growing gourmet mushrooms to sell to restaurants. Golden oyster mushrooms that are the color of daffodils, and tall white ones that look like alien pincushions.”
“Golden oyster mushrooms?” Shelly looked interested. “They grow in clusters that make interesting organic shapes.”
I nodded, remembering she was a sculptor. “Beautiful shapes. You should take a look at his operation some time. I’m sure Cy wouldn’t mind showing you around.” At least I was pretty sure he wouldn’t mind. And if he made a few more friends, there’d be more people to spread the word that he was nothing like his father.
“I’d like to see them.” Shelly looked at Beau.
Beau smiled back at her, his gaze warm. “Sure, honey. If we run into Cy, let’s ask him.”
After they’d gone, Amber bumped my shoulder with hers. “Great job,” she murmured. “Beau’s easy to win over, seeing as he’s one of the nicest people in the entire world. But Shelly says exactly what she thinks. If she’s willing to give Cy a chance, that’s a good sign.”
“Those two are just the start,” I murmured back. Then I said a friendly hello to the next customer waiting in line, ready to start up a conversation and work Cy into it.
It proved to be a good day to start my campaign. We had a steady flow of customers, and I was able to talk about Cy to many of the people who came in. Lots of them had heard the rumors about him, but I managed to convince at least some of them that the gossip was wrong. Others seemed like they still had doubts, though I did the best I could. And I recruited Joy to help, so she and Amber could keep up the good work when I took a break from serving customers.
Around midday, Amber nudged me, nodding at the two women who’d just entered the bakery. “Here’s the real test,” she murmured. “It’s Karen Smith and Bonnie Linton.”
“Great. They like to talk, so they can help me spread the word about Cy.”
She wrinkled her nose. “They only like to spread bad news.”
“Follow my lead, okay Amber?” As the two women walked up to the counter, I gave them a wide smile. “How nice to see you both!” I exclaimed. “Mrs. Smith, you like the lemon cake, don’t you? Mrs. Linton, the banana cake is particularly good today. Would you like a slice?”
The two women looked a little surprised by my effusive greeting. “We’ll both have the banana cake,” said Mrs. Smith.
“An excellent choice.” As I dished it up, I turned my head to speak to Amber. “Did I tell you about Cy Baxter?”
Amber blinked at me. “What about him?” From the corner of my eye, I could see both Mrs. Linton and Mrs. Smith leaning in to listen.
“Cy was in here earlier,” I said, “and I tried to get my courage up to ask him out on a date. But he looks so handsome now he’s trimmed his beard, I’m afraid he won’t be interested in me.”
Mrs. Smith clucked her tongue. “Didn’t I warn you stay away from that one?”
Mrs. Linton was shaking her head, her mouth turned down. “Those Baxters are no good.”
“What?” I said, acting confused. Before they could say anything else, I let out a gasp. “Oh no, you haven’t heard about Cy, have you?” I turned to Amber, my eyes opened wide. “They don’t know about Cy.”
Amber widened her eyes too, clearly enjoying herself. “Good Lord. Could it be that they really haven’t heard?”
“Heard what?” demanded Mrs. Linton. Other customers had come into the bakery, but they looked as interested as the two gossips. In any case, nobody was suggesting we cut the chitchat and hurry things along.
“Well,” I said, “you know that Cy was an important corporate businessman when he lived in Boston, right?”
“You don’t say?” Mrs. Linton sounded like she didn’t believe it.
“You really didn’t know that?” I acted surprised. “But you must have heard he’s started a successful business here, selling gourmet mushrooms to local businesses?”
Mrs. Smith sniffed. “I’m certain he’s taken over his daddy’s drug business. There’s only one thing that man’s growing.”
I let out a laugh, turning to Amber. “That’s funny.”
She laughed even louder. “Hilarious! Oh my goodness. How could anyone think that?”
“Cy is the farthest thing from a drug dealer there could possibly be.” I put my hand to my chest as though the idea had made me laugh so hard, I needed to catch my breath.
“He’s highly respectable,” Amber said, nodding. “An upstanding citizen.”
Both Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Linton wore small frowns as I handed over their cakes.
“I’ve personally seen and tasted his mushrooms, and they’re the best,” I said. “He’s sure to be as successful in Green Valley as he was in Boston.” Hopefully I’d at least planted the seeds for some more charitable gossip than their usual fare. “Have a nice day, ladies.”
As they turned to leave, Amber and I surreptitiously high-fived each other. We made a pretty good team.
And maybe this was going to work.