Page 63 of Beaches, Bagels & Babes
Unfortunately for Candace, her reactions only goaded Daisy. Thanks to the woman’s own incessant social media posting, Daisy had the perfect excuse.
“C’mon,” she cooed. “Your #BagelBabefans willlovethis.”
Lips pursed, cheeks puffed up in defiance, Candace avoided Daisy’s bagel-poised hand. However, since her back pressed against the wall, there was nowhere she could go. Rio and their weeboo-self would have called it a “kabedon” moment, and with Candace blushing beneath her, Daisy could see the appeal.
“It’s embarrassing,” Candace grumbled. “And people will keep getting the wrong idea about us…”
“Oh? And what’s the right idea? Business is booming, and there’s a whole line watching, so let's give the people what they want. Now, say ‘ahh….’”
Staring daggers all the while, Candace popped her mouth open. Her tongue unfurled in a slow slip. Then, as Daisy was distracted wondering what magical things that muscle could do to her, Candace flipped the script. She snapped the bagel up like a feral animal, nearly taking a piece of Daisy with her.
Eyes shining with challenge, she warned, “I bite.”
Daisy grinned. Taking her phone back from Norman, he told her, “I think I recorded it the wrong way.”
“Oh no,” Daisy mock-lamented. “We’ll have to do itall over again.”
It would have to wait, though.
Tina was in dire need of bailing out. They had the briefest of lulls during shift change where Daisy thought it would be a good time for some promotional teasing. Out of nowhere,though, they were swamped.
The ‘wrong idea’ or whatever Candace wanted to call it, was damn popular. By the grace of the Algorithm Gods, their rainbow bagel Pride month post was shared by popular lesbian and LGBTQ+ influencers. In addition to a growing number of followers, they now hadfanswho dissected every post.
Were the #BagelBabesa couple? People asked about Candace and Daisy’s relationship even on regular bagel posts. They were becoming a “ship,” as Rio explained, a couple goal without even being together.
Daisy was more than happy to lean into it. Candace, though… She fled to the back without meeting Daisy’s eye, saying that she needed to do a freezer tally. Before Daisy could think too long on it, she lost herself to the customer chaos.
Sometime later, while Daisy was working the register, a man reached the front of the line. His face was unfamiliar to her, but the bland-looking older man greeted her by name.
“Ms DeMarco,” he said with a warm smile underneath his thick moustache. “How are you?”
With a pointed glance at the line behind him, Daisy replied, “Busy building a bagel empire. What can I get you?”
The man ordered a small coffee with cream and extra sugar, and pointed out a couple bomb flavors seemingly at random. As the bagels toasted, he waited off to the side, watching Daisy. It made her skin crawl. After she’d taken her next customer’s order, he kept talking.
“I’m not surprised you don’t remember me. It’s been a long time.”
Daisy forced an easy tone. “Yeah, sorry. I see a lot of faces. Give me a hint?”
“I handled some legal papers for your parents a while back,” he elaborated with a smile that seemed to mock her.
Daisy had no idea what he was talking about. Growing up, her parents had shared little of the practical, paper side of the business. It was part of why she had such a difficult time taking over with their secretive records and bookkeeping. Hacklesraised, she gave Tina a silent look that told her to take the register.
The man went on, asking, “Is Candy around?”
“No,” Daisy lied, internal alarm bells at full blast. “She left.”
Shrewd eyes bore into Daisy, but his mouth was still all smiles.
“Hm, too bad. That girl can be so flighty sometimes… Her uncle is worried about her.”
Of course the man was a Peter Perry lackey. Daisy shot back, “Candace is a grown woman. She’s doing just fine.”
“Is she? From working with Fortune 500 companies in New York to selling boardwalk bagels… No offence, but that’s quite the fall.”
As Daisy opened her mouth to retort with something she’d regret, Candace emerged from the back. She retrieved the man’s bombs and thrust the paper baggie at him.
“Shouldn’t you be barnacled to my uncle, Vinny?”
