Page 56 of Dark Endures

“Men are crazy, Cow.” But food sounds good. At ten in the morning on a Saturday, the bakery has to be packed.

A break right about now would be amazing. Maybe on one of those benches in one of those parks.

With a cup of tea and something sugary and delicious. Pure decadence.

“See you later, Cow.”

***

I might never move from this spot.

Even the air smells sweet. That’s probably the bakery, but we’ll just pretend it’s a fantasy land for a few minutes. I dig into the bag and pull out a napoleon. The layers of cream and flakey dough pulled me in. And I don’t even care that I could have bought several days of food with what I spent just now.

Mmmm. Totally worth every cent.

“This is one of my favorite spots, too.” The crazy lady, I think they called her Louisella, has an all-new set of jewelry on.

“Hello.” I spray little flakes of dough across my jeans.

“Do you know I almost threw one of my knives at Jacko when he was painting this mural. That boy could try my nerves like no other.” She smiles and slides her feet out of her shoes and onto the soft-looking grass. “That boy still irritates me. Every time I try to match him up with someone, he disappears.”

I’m sitting in a small park talking to a crazy woman about Jacko’s, the multimillionaire, playboy artist, love life or lack thereof. “He isn’t just traveling.”

“Oh, I know. He’s creating art for the world to enjoy for generations and all of that nonsense. The boy needs to settle down.” She twists to face me. “Do you like artists?”

Uh oh! “I enjoy art.”

“Excellent.”

“But artists are a bit too much for me.” There’s no way I’m going to even pretend this woman could actually talk Jacko into dating me. Like I want a playboy for my one divorce.

“It’s good to know what you don’t want. Like that job of yours.”

“Um. Yeah.”

She leans in. “How is it going?”

“Fine.”

“You should quit your other job. You’re working too much.”

People keep saying that. “It’s fine.”

“Sure, it is.” She stands up. “Don’t worry. He likes a challenge.”

Huh? “What—” It’s too late. She’s gone, and I’m talking to thin air. That woman is very odd.

I’m not going to let her ruin my extravagant break.

***

Why am I holding this bag? It was a stupid idea to buy a pastry for Maddox.

He’s your boss.

Adonis gets treats for people all the time.

What’s the harm in bringing Maddox one measly napoleon? He’s bought me dinner a dozen times. And lost at chess each time. I shouldn’t be grinning at that thought.

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