Page 52 of Code Mages & Empty Pages
“Absolutely.” His voice was deep enough to rattle the tableware. “We like Hector.”
I laughed, relaxing into the easy banter. “Hope you’ll feel the same way about me.”
Maeve winked. “I’m sure we will. You have a lovely aura.”
Alaric snorted softly. “Can we stop talking about auras and start talking about what we’re here for? Where is Bee?” He checked his wristwatch, forever efficient, I supposed. As if on cue, a slender, silver-haired man approached.
“Hello!” He shook hands with the Gargoyle and me, then hugged Taran and Maeve. “Sorry I’m late. I brought the plans.”
We gathered closer. Bee unrolled blueprints, talking animatedly about the construction company and the designer.
“Fraser Thorne is so talented! You’re going to love his work,” he swooned. “I visited his workshop on the edge of Fernmere Forest yesterday. The vision is whimsical lighthouse core and heirloom-focused, studded with basket furniture and hand-thrown pottery. We want something different for the cafe,” Beryl added, mainly directed at me. “It needs to be different from this teahouse.” He gestured around and fixed me with his intriguing silver eyes.
“That makes sense,” I said because it felt like he expected me to answer.
“I like the sound of it, Bee. Throw in Ross’ coffee, and we have a winner,” Maeve said. “People are going to love it!”
“He was at Froth & Flurry’s opening, wasn’t he?” I asked.
She beamed. “Yes, that’s him. His coffee’s a game-changer.”
“It is,” I agreed. “We only had the terrible stuff from the machines at the office. Now nobody touches it.”
The talk turned to the complications they’d faced during the acquisition of their new cafe, which was one of the soulless Bean Me Up franchises and would be called Gust & Grind in the future. “Some staff are worried we’re gentrifying their town,” Maeve admitted quietly. “We bought a little flat here to stay in.”She reached out to take Taran’s hand. “But we fell in love with this place, and we want to keep its integrity.”
I understood what she meant. There was something enchanting about this town with its cobbled alleys, the salty air, and the quiet sea stretching out beyond its sandy beach. If I lived here I wouldn’t want to see it change either.
“Absolutely,” Bee said. “We want to give Bean Me up a soul. Gust & Grind will fit seamlessly into Carranbrae.”
A man caught my eye across the room as I leaned forward to take a sip from my tea. He glared at our table, then looked away.
“Who’s that?” I asked.
“He’s one of the baristas at Bean Me Up,” Alaric murmured. “And he isn’t thrilled about the changes.”
Maeve shrugged. “He’ll come around. They always do.”
With plans made for the next day, we said our goodbyes.
Before I left, I browsed the shelf with tea blends in pretty packaging. One label caught my eye. “Carranbrae Sunset Blend. Tastes the last golden light on Carranbrae’s cliffs: gentle, a little wild, and impossible to forget.”
It was the perfect choice for my Roe.
That night, I sat in the unfamiliar apartment, phone in hand, overthinking whether to text Roe. I didn’t want to seem clingy. In the end, I sent her a quick “Good night.” She replied within minutes with a photo of Ruffles snoozing, his head on her lap.
Dawn: Someone misses you
Dawn: Me, too
The knot in my chest loosened.
Luc: I miss you two too
I woke up the next morning from a dream where the house was empty. I grabbed breakfast from Bean Me Up because I wantedto see the place myself before they turned it into a whimsical lighthouse core fantasy.
Bee and Maeve had a point: it was terrible. Beat-up tables were haphazardly scattered around the room, making it difficult to even navigate the space. A broken lamp hung above the bar. In a different place it might have felt cosy. But here, surrounded by dystopian gloom, it just added to the bleakness.
The attractive guy who had watched us at the tea house yesterday worked behind the bar. His tone was stilted but polite.
