Page 66 of The Good Luck Cafe
Within a few minutes, the coffee maker sputtered the last drop of coffee into the pot, and Gil inhaled the thick scent of java goodness. He grabbed a mug and poured himself a serving. Then he shuffled over to the stool next to Doug’s.
“You mentioned a problem?” Gil asked.
Doug nodded. “Denise Berger.”
Gil lowered his coffee mug to the counter and gave Doug his full attention. “Oh? What happened?”
Doug placed his cell phone on the counter in front of Gil. “Watch.”
Gil picked up the phone, which had a paused news video pulled up. He clicked the playicon and turned up the volume so he could drink his coffee as he watched.
Denise was on the screen, dressed to the nines in a flashy houndstooth suit and talking to a reporter from WTI-News. “How can the town of Somerset Lake even consider reelecting a mayor who doesn’t care about our small businesses? Small businesses are the heart of this town.” The fake laugh that tumbled out of her mouth set Gil’s back teeth clenching. He tried not to keep enemies, but Denise rubbed him all wrong. “Gil Ryan is not the guy for the job if he can’t support the things that matter to its citizens.”
Gil watched as Denise made her case against him. Then the reporter asked about the other mayoral candidate.
“Is Moira Green still in the running? Was she ever even in it, or is that all talk?” Denise fake laughed a second time. “That woman has no political experience. All she has is a vendetta against what’s happening to her mom’s bakery. And who can blame her? She doesn’t need to be mayor to fight for her family’s business though.” Denise pressed a hand to her chest. “Ican do that. I have the experience, the team, and the passion to implement change in Somerset Lake.”
The news anchor smiled and looked at the camera. “You heard it here at WTI-News. Denise Berger for mayor in Somerset Lake.”
Gil slid Doug’s phone back toward him. He sipped his coffee some more before talking. “How do you find this stuff so fast? Do you search my name in the news every morning?”
“Of course.”
Gil should have guessed as much. “It’s just talk. Negative press is expected when you’re running for any position in the government.” Gil didn’t mind Denise’s criticism of him, but he was bothered that Moira was on the receiving end too.
“You should do an interview with her,” Doug said.
“With who? With WTI-News?”
Doug nodded. “I can set it up.”
Gil massaged a hand over his face. “No thanks. I don’t need to defend myself against Denise on a news station. I might end up saying a few things about her on live TV that I’ll regret.”
Doug looked disappointed as he drank his orange juice. “What about Moira?”
Gil glanced over. “What about her?”
“Is it true that she doesn’t count?”
That wasn’t exactly what Denise had said, but Gil understood why Doug had interpreted her words that way. “No, it’s not true.” Gil shook his head. “If you ask me, she counts more than Denise.” Gil stood and looked at Doug. “It’s early, buddy. And it’s Saturday. I’m going back to bed. Make yourself at home but don’t wake me up.”
Doug still looked upset.
“I’ll make sausage for lunch, okay? We’ll talk about possibly scheduling an interview.”
This made Doug smile. “I’llmake us sausage at lunch,” he said. “Night.”
Gil headed toward his bedroom. He wished it were still night. He wished it were still last night with Moira. He climbed back under his covers, thinking of that kiss. No, Denise was definitely wrong when she implied that Moira didn’t count. She counted.
***
Moira yawned and blinked sleepily into the depths of her coffee.
“Must have been some date last night.” Lucy waggled her eyebrows across from Moira as they sat at a table in Sweetie’s Bakeshop.
Tess laughed wryly. “Didn’t get much sleep, huh?”
Moira shook her head. “The date is not the reason I’m tired. Someone threw a rock at my door at two a.m. and woke me up.”
