Page 92 of No Rings Attached
Celia shrieked again, a loud high-pitched sound that made me want to cover my ears.
Coco whimpered from under our table—the poor girl was shaking now.
Ellie immediately shifted, her amusement transforming into concern. “Drew, we have to get her out from under there. Some of the cake has chocolate.” She rolled off of me and lifted the edge of the tablecloth. “It’s okay, sweet puppy.”
I sat up to get a better view. Coco had pressed herself into the far corner of the table, her tail tucked, eyes wide and frightened.
“Glamma, you need to help get Coco,” I called out and got to my feet, helping Ellie up in the process.
“On it.” Glamma reached into her purse and got down on her knees next to the table. “Come on, Coco. Mommy has a special yummy snack for you.”
Coco’s ears pricked forward, but she stayed hidden. Celia was still yelling about the frosting embedded in her designer dress.
“Coco,” Glamma took out a piece of bacon. “Look what I have for you.”
I shouldn’t have been surprised, Glamma’s bag often rivaled Mary Poppins on her best day.
The dog’s nose twitched, and she gave a soft whine.
“Good girl, come on out now.” Glamma produced a second piece.
“Did she just pull bacon out of her purse?” Constance asked, horrified.
Glamma glanced up and grinned. “Who doesn’t have emergency bacon?”
It was just like Glamma to make something like bacon in her purse seem normal.
Coco inched her way out and sniffed the salty treat.
“Can you help Glamma get Coco out of here while I help Penny?” I asked Ellie.
She glanced around at the mess and hesitated. “I should stay … ”
“Please,” I murmured. I wanted her out of the line of fire because I had no doubt her family would find a way to pin this on her.
“Okay, but then I’ll come back in to help.” Stubborn as ever.
“If we need you to.” I kissed her quickly, then turned to Glamma. “Ellie will help you.” I threw a quick glance at her mom.
Glamma got my hint immediately. “Thank you, Ellie. My car is parked right outside.”
Ellie stood, and Glamma gently picked up Coco before she guided both of them out the door.
I turned back to help Penny as Celia sputtered and pushed Kyle away. “You’re making it worse.”
“You asked me to help.” His petulant tone scraped against my nerves.
I ignored the two of them and the laser-eyed gaze of Constance who had gotten up to help Celia. “Where’s the bathroom?” she snapped.
Penny pointed to the back wall toward a sign clearly marked.
While the two of them marched off, Kyle gave me a dismissive glance before leaning against the counter and pulling out his phone. As he scrolled I moved around the counter. “I’ll go grab the mop and bucket,” I called out to Penny who was trying to pick up what she could.
“Thank you,” she said, her voice shaking from suppressed laughter. The whole thing really was pretty fucking funny.
And it couldn’t have happened to a more deserving couple.
By the time I’d filled the bucket and made my way back to the front of the bakery Penny was the only person in sight. “Where did Kyle go?”
