Page 7 of The Beachside Cafe 4
Her phone buzzed on the passenger seat where she’d thrown it and began to play the tune she’d assigned to her daughter.
She grabbed the phone and put it to her cheek after pressing the answer button.
“What’s up, Buttercup?” she said.
“Hey, mom,” she heard in her ear. “Where you at?”
“Heading to the café. What about you?”
“Good, I’m here with Alex and we wanted to talk to you and Cameron. Do you know where he is?”
“He’s on his way there, too. We’ll be right there.”
“Okay, I won’t keep you on the phone while you’re driving. See you soon.”
“About fifteen. See you soon. Bye.”
FIVE
Cheyenne was seated at the bar with Cameron’s genius friend, Alex. The two of them were in their twenties, much closer in age than Cameron and Jaymee, who were almost twice that.
Jaymee pulled up in the parking lot, having followed Cameron all the way there. She got out and pushed the key fob to put on the alarm.
“Got a call from Cheyenne,” Jaymee said as she met Cameron in the middle of the lot and they headed for the café.
The parking lot was used by the community for all the little shops and cafes along the boardwalk of the California shoreline. Grand Bay had spent quite a lot of money making it look unique and beautiful. Jaymee had admired this particular area for a long time before Doug agreed to buy a space for her to have her café.
Thinking about how accommodating he’d been made her heart hurt. Sometimes he had tried, she thought, to make it seem like their marriage was real and he actually loved her. It didn’t stop the pain from knowing who he really was. In fact, it only made it worse. She avoided thinking about his good qualities, now that she knew who he really was.
“Yeah, Alex is here,” Cameron replied.
She looked up at him as they crossed the street to the café on the other side. “She called you, too?”
Cameron pulled his eyebrows together. “No, why would she call me?”
“Oh, Alex called you.”
Cameron eyed her. “I parked next to his car. That thing is unmistakable. I don’t know how a man with a mind as sharp as his could care so little about the car he drives.”
Jayme was a little surprised. “He had a dirty car?”
Cameron shook his head. They’d reached the entrance and he pulled the door open and stepped back so she could go in. “Not dirty. Just filled mostly with papers and binders and folders. It’s the disorganization that gets me. That would drive me nuts.”
They spotted the two young people at the bar, both with martinis in front of them. Jaymee was a little surprised to see Cheyenne drinking. She glanced over her shoulder at Cameron who had come in behind her.
“Well, would you look at that? Looks like your friend is a terrible influence on my daughter.”
They both laughed at the very idea.
“Doing a little day drinking, are we?” she asked, sliding in between Alex and Cheyenne and grinning at Russo, who was behind the counter. The older man held both hands up in the air.
“Don’t fire me. They’re old enough.”
Jaymee shook her head laughing.
“I’ve got something to celebrate, Mom,” Cheyenne said, smiling wide. “And this is only my first. I mean the only one I’ll probably have until later today anyway.”
“Later today?”
