Page 50 of The Charmed Friends of Trove Isle
“How come you’re not hungover?” Liz’s throat felt dry and scratchy. Her eyes felt raw.
“Well, I think I’ve probably had more practice at drinking than you.” Melody gestured at the coffee on the bedside table. “That’s for you. I’m heading out. Rose offered to give me a ride to my car at the tavern.”
“Really?” Liz sat up stiffly.
“Yeah. I’m going home to freshen up and then open the thrift store this morning. Weekends are prime time for sales, and I’ve got to push out all the old stuff to make room for the new.”
Liz blinked again. If she wasn’t a little queasy, she’d be asking Melody a lot more follow-up questions.
“Drink your coffee and take the ibuprofen on the table too. You’ll feel better in about an hour.”
Liz was still furrowing her brow when Melody turned and left.
“I’m taking Melody to get her car,” Rose said from the doorway a moment later. “And before you freak out, I’m going to open The Bitery. I shouldn’t even be late. I plan to get all the breakfast items started, so stop worrying.”
“Really?” Liz asked.
“Yep.”
“Why?”
Rose laughed as she shifted back and forth on two-inch soles that made her miniskirt look even shorter. Liz would have something to say about that if Rose wasn’t being so nice offering to take her place this morning. “Because you deserve a morning to sleep off your hangover. And because I can.”
Liz was speechless for a moment. This was so unlike Rose that Liz wondered if she was dreaming for a moment. “Thank you,” she finally said.
“You’re welcome. See you later. No rush.”
Liz watched her sister disappear down the hall and heard the front door open and close a minute later. She sat there a moment before reaching for her mug and sipping her coffee. Just a few weeks ago, the thought of Rose opening The Bitery and running it on her own for a few hours would have made
Liz so anxious that she would have dragged herself into the shower and down the street no matter how horrible she felt. Not today though. Rose could handle things. And Liz did deserve a morning off. Since her parents had left for Ecuador, she’d woken at 4:00 a.m. most mornings and had worked full days. It’d been tiresome and thankless, and if Rose was stepping up to the plate for just a few hours, then Liz was going to enjoy her freedom. Or, at least, she was going to try.
She smiled to herself, relishing her French brew. She almost ignored her buzzing cell phone on the bedside table, but picked it up at the last second in case it was Rose alerting her that she’d burned the bakery down in two point seven seconds. She picked her phone up and read the text, her smile deepening. It was from Matt. A few weeks ago, a message from him would have made her anxious as well.
Matt: On a scale from one to ten, how bad is your morning after?
Liz’s grin slid away. How did he know she’d been drinking last night? It took a moment for foggy memories to lift to the forefront of her mind. She nearly dropped her coffee mug when she remembered texting Matt once she’d gotten back home last night.No, no, no.What had she texted him? She tried to scroll back and look through her message history, but there was nothing. Had she used Melody’s phone to send the texts? She vaguely remembered that she had for a reason she couldn’t recall.
Liz: I didn’t drink that much. I’d say the hangover is a solid four and a half.
Matt: Not bad. Do you need anything from me? I’ve discovered the secret to cure any hangover. I’ll share it with you if you’d like.
She tapped her finger along the screen.
Liz: Oh? We’re sharing secrets now. That sounds serious.
Was she flirting? She was hungover and flirting. This was so unlike her.
Matt: The secret is salted peanuts in Dr. Pepper.
Liz’s face scrunched up.
Liz: In?
Matt: Pour the whole pack inside the bottle. Then drink up. It sounds gross, but it’s kind of good. Salt is good for nausea.
Liz: I’ll take your word for it.
Matt: I’ll bring you some if you’d like.
