Page 14 of Cider
Instead of going to one of the tables, she sat at the counter. “This place seems so magical. I love it so much.”
“It really does, doesn’t it?” If only she knew. “It’s one of the many reasons I opened up my shop here.”
“The only thing that kind of made me sad about this place is that I saw Darcorp was putting up a shop. This place just doesn’t give off the kind of vibe to have that kind of place.” Vida took the hot cider from me as I placed it in front of her. “Oh! This is so good!” She didn’t even blow on it before gulping it down.
I liked that she didn’t like seeing Darcorp. Hearing it from a customer was nice.
“Some of us aren’t too pleased either, but we have great customers like you, so we aren’t too worried.” That was a big lie.
After Vida left, I rolled my shoulders. There were no new customers, so I had a chance to call Triple E. Eirlys picked up on the second ring.
“Triple E. Eirlys speaking. How can I help you?” She sounded distracted.
“Hey, uh, it’s Cider. I know we’re going to see each other tomorrow morning, but I was wondering if you’d noticed the new reviews that popped up overnight?” I started to wipe down the counter.
“Hey. Yeah, actually, I saw them this morning. Think it’s Darcorp?” She sounded weary.
“I think it’s Samuel, at the very least. He’s the manager, in case he didn’t end up at your place yet to introduce himself. He was being all sleazy yesterday after closing. Most of those reviews are all the same except for the names of the shops. I was thinking we could contact the website host and see if they could do anything?” Some of the flavor bottles needed to be refilled and I bent under the counter to grab some new ones. “And I was thinking about getting back at him. He has such a super fancy car. I have a few things that could be done to mess with it.” Placing the box of new bottles on the counter, I mumbled, “dear readers, please don’t do any of these pranks for the author will not be responsible for damages.”
I had several rolls of saran wrap that I hadn’t used the past few months. That would be perfect. I grabbed a few of the rolls.
“What was that last part?” Eirlys spoke louder over someone in the background.
“Nothing! Just making a reminder for myself is all. So, what do you say? Take the battle to them?”
“Yes. He started it. Let’s do it.” I could hear the grin in her voice. “No one messes with the Silver Springs Ice Rink family. We will make more plans tomorrow.”
We hung up. That’s when I noticed the zamboni on the ice. Jack.
My fox bristled. I needed to talk to him. There had to be a reason he was being such a jerkwad.
As I flipped the sign on the door, letting any customers know that I’d be back in a few minutes, and walked out, Titus was there.
Tall, sexy, dangerous Titus. His blue eyes made my toes curl just by gazing at me.
“Hello, Cider.” That deep voice.
“Hi.” My voice was barely a whisper as he leaned into my space, his lips brushing mine.
“Where are you headed off to?” His fingers brushed along my cheeks.
“I was going to go yell at Jack for being a dick.” But Titus was distracting me with his touch.
He paused, his hands resting on my shoulders. “Jack?”
“Yeah, so, looks like I have three mates now.” I leaned into him, forgetting that I was holding rolls of saran wrap for a few brief moments. “Surprise?”
Titus threw back his head, letting out a large belly laugh. His chest heaved as he fought to calm down, but every time he looked down at me, looked to the rink, he started all over again.
I started to tap my foot. “Are you done? I don’t know why it’s so funny.”
“No, dear one. I’m not laughing at you.” Titus wiped at his eyes. “Jack is an old friend. I can only imagine what he said to you. He’s a little bit of a grump.”
I stopped my foot as he pulled me against him again. “Oh. So, it’s not because it’s me?” That eased tension in me I hadn’t been aware had been there.
“Baby girl.” Titus’ husky voice filled my ears. “There is absolutely nothing wrong with you. Jack has his own issues.” His lips caressed my neck. “Why don’t I talk with him?”
“You don’t need—oh God.” My voice squeaked as he bit down on my collarbone with soft pressure. “We’re in public!” I hissed but didn’t give much of a fight.
