Page 79 of One Small Spark
“You reminded me of when I used to have weddings for my Barbies in the barn loft.” Charlie nudges Shepherd with her shoulder. “That sparked the whole thing.”
“I have good ideas, too.” Leo feigns a pout that doesn’t mesh well with his good-natured demeanor.
“A fifty-foot waterslide really isn’t wedding-appropriate, no matter how much lawn space we have.”
“I meant you being my date to the gala.”
Charlie stares at him for a minute. I guess Shepherd’s not the only one who blurts out his inside thoughts. I’m pretty sure she’s wishing Leo had stayed in Texas when he retired. She turns to Shepherd as if Leo isn’t there.
“You also deserve credit for helping me convince Mom and Dad.” She looks up at him with a dash of big brother-adoration in her eyes. “That was the hardest part of the entire process, and I owe a lot of it to you.”
“Your parents are not easy to win over,” Leo says. “Like a certain someone.”
Charlie sighs and moves closer as if she wants to climb over the counter and join me back here. “I would love to place that order, please.”
“Sure.” I grab the store’s tablet from behind the counter and pass it to her. “You know how our special-order system works. How many pies are you thinking for that weekend?”
“Thirty.”
Leo raises his hand like he’s bidding on a cow at the county fair. “Fifty.”
She maintains intense eye contact with me. “I’m placing the order for a variety of thirty pies.”
“Always go bigger, Chuck.”
Her gaze darts sideways, her mouth pressed into a thin line. I don’t think she likes her nickname.
“You’re expecting a pretty large turnout then?” I ask to refocus her on me. They sometimes place special orders for guest events at the lodge, but those usually max out at ten pies.
“Several hundred at least. Between wedding vendors and couples, and Leo auctioning off a bunch of sports memorabilia, it should be a huge event.”
“A gala,” Leo says. “That’s what we call it in the biz.”
Charlie focuses on the tablet, scrolling through to mark down her pie selections. Leo releases Shepherd and sidles up next to her. He doesn’t throw his arm around her, but he flexes his fingers like he’s itching to.
“Maybe I should help you with that, teammate.”
“I should have just phoned it in,” Charlie mutters.
“Never phone it in.” Leo shakes his head at her. “Always give it one hundred and ten percent.”
“Have you ever been stabbed with a stylus?”
He grins at her, but I doubt she sees it. “Once.”
“Are you glad you don’t work at the lodge anymore?” I ask Shepherd.
“Very.”
“Are you going to the gala?” I’m not fishing for a dateinvitation. I’m not.
But…I would certainly consider going. If I happened to be invited.
“I doubt it.”
I’m cramming down unnecessary disappointment when my phone starts buzzing like mad in my pocket. I pull it out to check.
Shepherd’s does the same thing. We make eye contact over our phones.
