Page 28 of Beaches, Bagels & Babes
“You’re seriously leaving me to clean up this mess?”
Candace stopped before the backroom partition. Mumbling an apology, she set her things back down and picked up a rag.
“That’s not what I meant.”
“What should I do? I’m pretty sure that kind of exit means she’s had enough of me.”
“Frankly,” Rio suggested, “you could start by apologizing. Don’t get me wrong, what you did was impressive. But Zee is touchy about this kind of stuff.”
“What ‘stuff’ specifically?”
“Attention, maybe? I’m not sure. She almost fired me when I tried to set up an Insta a while back.”
“Wow… I thought you were close.”
Shrugging, Rio admitted, “We’re closer now. I might be one of theonlypeople she’s close to, between you and me. It’s taken time for us to get to this. And even then, she puts up walls.”
“I see…”
An ache for Daisy thrummed inside Candace’s chest. Loneliness and isolation were things she understood all too well.
Rio continued. “To be honest, I thought Zee had given up. She’s worked herself to the bone and burnt out. Nothing gets her excited lately. Nothing, until you showed up.”
“If by excited, you mean furious. Making her mad seems to be my specialty.”
With a wink, Rio said, “Maybe. But who doesn’t root for a good enemies-to-lovers story?”
Scoffing, Candace shot back, “It’sdefinitelynot that.”
No, her thoughts echoed,this isn’t that kind of story. Not after what I’ve done.
At the very least, Candace knew Rio was right about her needing to apologize. Even if this was the end of whatever business partnership she and Daisy might have, she did not want to leave things between them on a sour note.
Not a second time.
Candace took a bolstering breath. She cast Rio a guilty look, but the helpful human waved her off.
“I’ve got things here. Not too much to do but close up when we’re sold out. Which is probably also part of why Daisy is pissed.”
“I don’t understand. Isn’t being sold out a good thing?”
“Not when Zee’s the only one making these things. From shopping cart to oven, she’s a one-woman show.”
“Really?”
“Yep. She keeps an inventory system that even I can’t make heads or tails of. Your deals are great, but they upset the balance. Now that you’ve wiped her daily inventory and her backup freezer stock here, we’re down to whatever she has prepped at home.”
Candace blanched. Her hand flew to her blouse, where she anxiously played with a button. “Oh no…”
“Yeah. Zee’s got some work to do thanks to you. At least it’s a Dotty/Me day tomorrow, but there goes her day off.”
“I really messed up. You’re right. I need to tell her I’m sorry. Do you have any idea where she’s gone?”
Rio tapped a finger to their elfin, angular jaw. “Well, she didn’t head out the back, so she couldn’t have gone far without Otto.” By Candace’s blank stare, they must have gathered her lack of a clue. They clarified, “Her golf cart. She doesn’t have acar, but she uses Otto to get around.”
“Ah.”
One mystery solved. Candace noticed Daisy pull up in the golf cart decorated with streamers, local Wonderwood regalia, and Bagel Bomb! branding. Probably not street legal, but it suited Daisy. Candace could picture her, aviators on and hair whipping in the open air, looking like she owned the island. It brought a smile to her face without even realizing it.
