Page 15 of Reindeer Flames
"How have I not known about this place?" I spun on my heel, taking in the different varieties. Along the far wall near the stairway to the main floor, I found a display of candy that wasn't chocolate at all. Gumballs, jellybeans, and colorful fruit flavors lined the wall. Each bin contained a different variety.
"They make their own rainbow candies." They were my favorite. I dipped the large scoop into the bin and grabbed a paper bag to hold the star-shaped delights.
"They have their own peanut clusters!" Silver called from behind me. He hadn't made it out of the chocolate rows yet. "Gold is going to love this place!"
I wasn't so sure about that. She seemed pretty adamant about the chocolatier stealing their business. So far, I had seen no one besides us.
That all changed when we arrived upstairs after paying for our bags of goodies. The main floor was packed with wall-to-wall customers. All but one table held the exact number of people it would hold. As I watched, a single person asked to sit at the table where there was a free chair.
When two people stood from their seats, I approached the man sitting on the same side of the table beside the empty chairsand tapped his shoulder. "Do you mind saving these seats for us?"
He glanced up at me and grinned. "Not at all. You can leave your coats here, if you'd like."
Silver huffed behind me. He said nothing, but he looked upset."Jealous,"my reindeer said.
"The place is packed," I explained to Silver as I removed my coat and hung it on the back of the middle seat. "I asked to save these seats, for when we have our drinks."
"Oh!" Silver's face brightened. "Great idea!" He pulled off his jacket and draped it over the back of the chair, and I set his sister's hat on the table between the two.
"Be right back," I said to the man sitting beside our stuff.
The line moved so fast, I wondered if one of the Santas was behind the counter. Instead, I found a beautiful arachnid fae with each of her eight appendages filling cups with hot chocolate, wrapping croissants in wax paper, and filling trays for each order.
She blinked all eight eyes at me and gave a slight bow of her head. "You are new here. Welcome! I am Laurie, the owner of this fine establishment. What is your name?"
"Hartley Comet." Some said you shouldn't give your full name to the fae, but I'd always found complete honesty was the best course of action with the fae.
She shook her head. "Not another one. If you cause a scene?—"
"I won't," I said. "I'm nothing like my cousins." I hoped.
I placed my order, and then it was my turn to be jealous. Laurie fawned over Silver.
"I know you," she said. "You own Silver and Gold's! You and your sister inspired me to open this place!"
"That's so kind of you to say." Silver's blush tinged his cheeks.
"Please, try the croissants, on the house! They're nothing like yours, but they've been good for business."
"Thank you." Silver and I took our wooden trays back to our table and watched the breakfast crowd while we munched. The line up to the counter had dwindled to a few stragglers, but it was standing room only. Some folks even braved the cold and sat along the window ledge outside with their drinks wrapped in their hands.
"What's the verdict?" I asked after Silver took the first bite of croissant.
"They're made from a canister puff pastry, not baked from scratch." He sighed. "The chocolate filling is absolutely delicious. With our pastry and her chocolate, we could make something really special."
Laurie's upside-down head dropped into my line of sight above our table, and I yelped. I hadn't noticed the intricate webbing laced above the dining area.
"So sorry to interrupt, but you really think so?" she asked.
Silver glanced up at her, as though spider fae dropped in on his dates all the time. For all I knew, maybe they did. "I'd need to talk to my sister, but I'm certain she'd agree. We would love to collaborate with you on these croissants."
Laurie spun overhead until she was upright and pulled a pen from her apron pocket. "Here's my number." She jotted it down on an old-fashioned order pad, ripped it off, and handed it to Silver. "I have a part-time employee to help on the weekends, if you want to meet in person." She hid her eyes with her front four legs. "I mean … thank you for the opportunity. How are you all enjoying your croissants?" She turned to the man beside us and then spun around to face the other three people seated at our table. The whole time, it felt like she was still watching us.
Someone rang the bell for service, and she scurried back to her place behind the counter. Only then did I laugh. "What was all that?"
Silver took another bite of his croissant, ignoring my question. "So good."
Once we were backon the train, our bags of chocolate tucked into our coat pockets and another croissant and a dipping-sized container of chocolate sauce in a bag for Gold between us on the bench seat, I tried again. "I don't understand. Gold was ready to go to war with the chocolatier when we left, and now you want to do business with her?"
