Page 15 of Sweet Summertide

Holly snapped her fingers. “That’s it.” She shook the can again and rotated the nozzle for a fine spray line. “Make sure I’m all clear.”

“Got it, Picasso. Do your thing.”

Holly was grateful to have such a good friend, and happier to have her partner in crime back in her life after they had gone separate ways to college. It was humorous they had both said they would never move back to town, and here they both were, making a life and career in the place where they had started.

With the can held as high as she could reach to the store’s window, a vehicle’s headlights lit her up as it turned onto Main Street. They both dodged the light and tucked themselves behind one side of the bay window where it met the front door. Plastered against the wall, holding their breaths, Holly and Millie exchanged looks until the car had passed by.

“I thought you were on lookout,” Holly teased. “That was too close.”

“Just do what you’re going to do, and do it quicker.”

Holly shook the can one last time, and, with a plan in her mind, went right to work. She sprayed the gold paint over the existing words and changed the wordsoon, tonever, in theprettiest cursive lettering she could form with the spray nozzle. Her writing matched the old-world charm Teddy had mentioned he was aiming to capture. With the job nearly done, she stood back to look.

“Are you finished? There’s someone walking this way.”

The words didn’t look quite right and were missing some flair. “Almost done.” Holly walked confidently to the window and began to spray the gold chalk paint in smooth, pretty lettering when her phone rang.Back in Blackscreamed from her phone and filled the entire atmosphere. She dropped the can and dug inside the long-zippered section of her suit for her device. “Shit. It’s Teddy.”

Millie joined Holly’s side and they both fumbled for the phone, trying desperately to answer the call or silence it. “Answer it already!” she whispered and finally hit the green button to accept the call.

Holly stood up straight and took a little breath to calm her voice. “Hello, Theodor. What’s up?” she said, smacking her forehead when she realized she had called him by his proper name and not his pet name. Her voice had that fake-calm sound that she had perfected while attending events with her mother over the years.

Her words probably had all the hairs on his neck standing on end. There was an elongated pause and Millie motioned to her, asking what was going on.

Holly flapped her hand at Millie. “Are you there?” she said into the receiver.

“I was calling because I thought we could talk. I was thinking about how we both want to win that money, and how you said we could help each other. I don’t like being on opposing sides …” he said.

She looked up at her half-finished handiwork, and her thrill was replaced by a twisting guilt in her gut. She motioned toMillie to walk across the road, and they began to move, crouched down like sleuths. “I don’t know why you think there’s anything to work out. We are just two small business owners vying for the same thing. If it’s not the money now, it’ll be the customers later. I don’t really see how we could do anything for one another.”

“So, you’re saying we’ll never be anything more than two people who own shops across from each other on Main Street?” Teddy said.

“Do you really think I would help out my competition?” she said and knew it wasn’t true. “I just mean?—”

“Save it,” Teddy said with an all too justified sharpness. “Where is the charming, puffin-hating girl I met on the train? Tell me one thing. If there’s nothing between us, why did you answer my call, and why are you sneaking away from my place right now?”

She paused and looked up. The man walking down the sidewalk towards them held up a phone and waved the lit-up rectangular screen at her. Understanding the man to be Teddy, she hung up and ran.

CHAPTER 8

Theodor wasunable to recall a time during his life when he’d felt so bewildered. Blake Holly Hollis had not been kidding when she warned him about going up against her. What he thought was a friendly competition seemed like much more to her. What he couldn’t wrap his head around was why a rich girl like her needed the extra money in the first place. Perhaps her reasons weren’t unlike his own. At some point, a person must make their own way in life.

He was determined to learn the truth of her motivations, one way or another. For now, he would let her have her fun at his expense. The competition would end eventually, and he hoped no matter what the outcome would be that he would land in place beside her, not against her.

Theodor thought about her blonde hair as she had fled from her criminal activity last night, her long curls and romantic ribbon swinging in the breeze created by her impressive speed. Instead of using his fingers to comb through her glossy locks, he was scraping and scrubbing chalk graffiti from his front window. He had to give it to her, her little stunt had brought his shop a lot of attention and many onlookers.

He smiled down at a small child who was licking a hard candy lollypop. “You like sweets?”

The little boy with a round face nodded and grinned behind his confection.

Theodor leaned down while holding the top handle of his step ladder. “Do you like chocolate?” His question elicited an even wider grin from the child and an enthusiastic up and down head nod. “Come back and see me when my store opens, ok?”

The boy’s mother took his little sticky hand, and they walked away.

Back to work, Theodor took care in removing the gold script lettering Holly had sprayed atop his original window art, trying to salvage what he could. Most of the chalk paint had come clean with soap and water. He used a small flat edge razor blade and flaked off what remained of the tiny spray particles, careful to avoid the real lettering underneath. He was just glad she hadn’t used real paint, though it covered hisComing Soonsign all the same.

“Buongiorno, bro,” Alfonso said as he approached from down the sidewalk.

Theodor stepped down to the ground. “I wish it was a good morning.” He pointed with his thumb at the remnants of the golden graffiti. “This was Holly and your friend Millie.”

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