Page 78 of The Good Luck Cafe
Moira ducked her head. “Why on earth would you think that has anything to do with me?” she asked, trying and failing to dodge their suspicion.
All the women stared at her.
“Who wants to take a field trip to Moira’s home and see if there is a vase of flowers on her dining room table?” Lucy asked, raising her hand first.
Moira shook her head. “Okay, yes. Gil bought the flowers for me, but it’s not a big deal, you guys.”
Della’s mouth dropped open. “A date and flowers? Fancy.”
“Flowers are a pretty big deal in my book,” Trisha agreed. “The only guys to ever bring me flowers were the ones who were seriously working hard to impress me.”
Moira held up the book they were supposed to be discussing. “Can we please talk about the book forbook club?”
Tess folded her legs under her body. “Fine.” She placed her book on her lap. “But what are you going to do if he wins another term as mayor? When the votes come in, it could get complicated between you two.”
“Maybe, but I can be an adult about it.”
“Mm-hmm. And what ifyouwin?” Tess asked.
“Then he’ll be an adult,” Moira said as if the answer was obvious.
“Gil would be out of a job doing what he loves. Are you sure he’ll be okay with that?” Della asked.
“The election is still months away. We have a lot of time. We might not even be together come election time.”
Tess hummed thoughtfully. “I think you know that’s not the case. I think that’s why you’ve been avoiding Gil all these years. You haven’t been ready to explore this thing between you two. And now you are.”
Moira kind of knew Tess was right. Some part of her had always known that exploring the attraction between her and Gil would lead to so much more than she was ready for. At least what she was ready for before now. “All I know is running for mayor is something that excites me more than I’ve been in a long time. Gil excites me too. Maybe I shouldn’t hope that I can have both, but I do.”
Tess stuck her hand over Moira’s. “You’re my best friend. And if you want both, I say go for it.”
“I wholeheartedly agree,” Lucy said. “You’ve waited a long time for love.”
“Love?” Moira pulled back, jaw dropping. “It’s a little soon for that, don’t you think?”
“Well, it’s not a crush. You’re way past crush. And we all know Gil has been in love with you since kindergarten,” Lucy said matter-of-factly.
Moira looked at Tess, who didn’t seem to disagree. Moira’s insides churned. She was ready to explore this thing between her and Gil, but she wasn’t quite sure she was ready for the big L-word.
Seeming to read her face, Tess held up the book again. “Okay, time to talk about this book. For real this time, ladies.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Gil wasn’t naive. He knew what he was walking into tonight at the tavern. The guys were going to hound him about whom he’d purchased flowers for. His friends were pretty ruthless when it came to teasing each other.
He could lie, but that wasn’t his way. It also wasn’t his style to kiss and tell.
“So, Gilbert,” Miles began, drawing out his syllables in a playful fashion.
All the men’s heads swiveled in Gil’s direction.
Uh-oh. Here it comes.
“Who is she?” Miles wanted to know.
Gil played dumb for a minute, focusing his gaze on the carbonated bubbles of his soda. “Who is who?” he asked casually.
“The mystery woman you bought flowers for,” Jake said, following Miles’s lead.
