Page 48 of Meet Me at the Fudge Shop

Nope. He wasn’t going back to that moment where he’d almost, nearly, yes wanted to abandon all his clear thinking.

“So that’s your brilliant marketing move. Flirting.” She tied back her hair in some sort of quick knot that bared the soft curve of her jawline. Not that he was noticing.

“I hardly think smiling at her constitutes flirting. She came in, tried samples from both of us, and chose mine.”

“Really. That’s what you’re going with.” She shook her head.

He gave her a smile. “Do I detect jealousy?”

Her mouth opened. “I’m not jealous. But really—there’s no other reason someone would choose plain chocolate over this sticky toffee pudding masterpiece.” Lily pulled a piece of white fudge with chopped pecans from her sample plate and waved it in the air.

“Someone who likes the classics would.”

“Wrong. Someone who was hypnotized by the man behind the counter.”

“Really. So now I have hypnotic powers?”

“Oh brother.” She shook her head. “I supposesomewomen might find the Top Gun look you have going on attractive.”

Her gaze flitted down him—today he wore dark wash jeans, Amberjack leather boots, a white T-shirt, and his aviators hanging from the collar.

“Top Gun?”

“Whatever.” She lifted a shoulder, but what looked like a blush stole across her cheeks.

Interesting. Maybe it was time to address what had happened yesterday, again. They were both adults. And yes, he hadn’t handled things well after Isaac had left, but she’d been the one with the deep freeze. The tape down the room.

And maybe he’d gotten a little annoyed with his attempts at asking what was wrong—and her not answering him.

“Lily—”

The bell jingled again, and in walked two twenty-something women.

“Welcome in!” Lily called, turning away from him.

The women, one blonde and one a redhead, looked back and forth between Declan and Lily, at the two registers, the blue tape, the two platters of samples, Lily’s significantly larger than his. “Do y’all have the same fudge?” the redhead asked in a Southern accent. “Why are there two registers?”

“Oh, just a little friendly competition we’ve got going on.” Lily waved them over.

The women exchanged a look and a shrug before approaching Lily’s side. Declan tried to busy himself with pulling more chocolate fudge from his display case and chopping it for the sample platter, but couldn’t help watching from the sidelines.

“We’re looking for some fudge for our mama,” the blonde said.

“Fabulous. I’ve got at least fifteen different flavors.” Lily’s voice was bright, vivacious. Okay, she did have a way with people—other people, not him—that seemed genuinely warm. “What does your mama like best?”

“Oh, well, I’m not sure.” The blonde peeked at her sister. “Kerry, what do you think?”

Kerry pushed at the roots of her already large hair. “Can we try a few to see what we think would strike her fancy?”

“Of course.” Lily pushed the sample platter forward. Each sample was about four ounces compared to Declan’s half-ounce samples. “Feel free to try whichever ones you’d like. I’ve got your classics, of course—peanut butter, almond sea salt, white chocolate—and then some that are more unique, like bergamot, lavender, and chocolate-cherry. Oh, and for the truly adventurous among us, I’ve got some lemon blueberry mascarpone fudge in the back.”

“Oh my, those all sound amazing,” Blondie said. “Would you mind if we tried one of each?”

Now it was Declan’s turn to cough. Was the lady serious? With the way Lily had cut her samples, that was nearly two pounds of fudge she was giving away for free.

Lily shot him a glare before turning back to her customers. “Not at all.” Lily used a pair of tongs to lift each sample onto a disposable plate. “Feel free to sit at the window bar if you need a little time to decide. The fudge is sold in one-pound blocks, but I also sell sampler boxes where you can mix and match.”

“This is great. Thank you.” Kerry took the plate from Lily and walked toward the counter-height bar that ran in front of the eastern-facing window along Jonathon Boulevard.

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