Daffodils and Danger Read Free

before reaching for the silver pizza pan and the basket of garlic knots her father had placed alongside. Anchovies were not a favorite of hers. It was the only food in the restaurant she couldn’t stomach. The smell alone nauseated her, even after years viewing the poor little fish lying like wounded soldiers in a mass of tangy sauce and melted mozzarella.
    Ugh…She crossed the tile floor, making quick delivery of the pizza before moving on to refill Mrs. Baker’s coffee. She added a healthy splash to Mr. Baker’s cup, as well, and dropped a handful of creamer cups on the table along with the knots.
    “How’s that?” She offered her best smile.
    “Perfect.” Mrs. Baker lifted her soup bowl and tipped it to her lips, draining the last drop before she reached for a garlic knot and wiped the ceramic basin clean. “Thank you.”
    “Um…so glad to see you’re enjoying your meal.” Kami backed away, taking the carafe with her. She supposed her dad should consider it the highest compliment that the bowl now looked as clean as it had before he’d filled it. “You’re welcome. If there’s anything else you need, just let me know.”
    “Oh, I will. Don’t you worry your pretty little head about that, sweetie.”
    A bell over the front door chimed, signaling another customer had arrived. Conflict bit at Kami’s belly. She was thankful for the business that would help them stay afloat another week, but dragging on her feet. She prayed for the strength to make it to closing time. She couldn’t let her dad see how exhausted she felt. It would just add more worry to his already overflowing plate. She drew a deep, cleansing breath and turned toward the door. Philippians 4:13 washed over her, ‘ I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’
    The breath whooshed out.
    “Hi, Kami. How are you today, my dear?” Hattie Cutler’s grin was contagious, but that wasn’t what stopped Kami in her tracks. It was the man at Hattie’s side—her eldest son, Wyatt. Dark and mysterious…that’s how Kami always thought of him; the most elusive of the Cutler clan and so different from his three younger siblings.
    “I’m…fine.” Kami found it hard to speak while Wyatt’s eyes, like two pieces of polished bronze, scanned the length of her. A scowl formed as a single furrow along his forehead deepened into a thin line. Dark hair tumbled over the collar of his navy shirt in mussed waves of rich russet. How was it possible for any human to possess such impossible good looks? Suddenly, the carafe she held weighed fifty pounds. Her hands felt weak as globs of gelatin. She swallowed hard and managed a raspy, “Hello, Wyatt.”
    “Kami?” His gaze narrowed and the scowl widened as he wrestled the wobbling carafe from her. “Don’t drop this. You’ll burn yourself. Are you OK?”
    “Yes, of course I’m OK.” She smoothed her French braid, grimacing at the flyaway strands that had escaped an elastic band to dance around her heated face. Dad must have turned up the thermostat against the rainy chill, because suddenly she was sweltering. The palms of her hands were slick as she snatched the carafe back from him. “And give me this. I’m perfectly capable of handling it. What’s wrong with you, Wyatt? You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Do I look so different from the last time you saw me?”
    “It’s been a long time, so yes…I mean, no.” He jammed his hands into the pockets of his jeans, his gaze capturing hers and holding tight. “It’s just…you’ve grown up.”
    “Well, that’s a real shocker.” Frazzled nerves sizzled and popped as she swiped her free hand along the thigh of her jeans and adjusted her apron, splattered with a full day’s worth of preparing and serving meals. Her feet screamed in worn tennis shoes and her lower back cried out through a tangle of nerves. “Time does that to a person, you know.”
    “Right. Of course…” He shook his head and turned toward the closest booth.