liked the harried woman and approved of the women’s soccer team wall calendar in her cramped office. Anyone who supported girls in professional sports was okay in her book.
Eager to make a friend, Summer smiled. “Since I’ve already got the job and don’t have to sell myself, would now be the time to admit how much I love Italian food?”
“When I started working here, I didn’t know what gnocchi was much less cannoli.” Selene grinned. “An uncle and my eldest brother both have food trucks. Tacos and tamales. It was quite the learning curve for me coming from a different culinary background.”
“Food trucks? Can we be best friends?”
Selene laughed. “Brick and mortar restaurants for start-ups are too pricey nowadays. I see a real future for trucks with creative chefs.”
“Me too! I’m a big fan of the truck foodie craze.”
“We’re going to get along fine.”
Summer left the interview on a high. She would have taken the temp gig regardless of the numbers, but once Selene presented her with a spreadsheet showing the average earnings for Frannie’s shift, the decision was easy. One weeknight dinner shift and Sunday brunch would give her pocket cash and help stop the hemorrhaging in her finances.
Using the hands-free Bluetooth connector in her car, she got Lynda on the phone while leapfrogging through traffic.
“I got the job! Woot, woot!”
“That’s great, Summer. What a relief, huh?”
“You don’t even know. Hey listen, I’m on my way home and thought I’d stop at Gelson’s Market. Do you need anything? What’s Ari doing?”
Lynda laughed. “The baby is fine. She’s in her seat enjoying the sunflower mobile you found on Etsy. As for Gelson’s, we could use a couple of avocados. Nothing too green, though. Bud has no patience and won’t wait for them to ripen.”
Putting on the turn signal, she slipped into the left turn lane and waited for the arrow behind three other cars. In a playful voice, she cooed, “I’m getting ice cream, and since I’ll be in the freezer section, I’d be happy to get you a pint of Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Swiss Almond. I’ll even store it in my freezer so you have easy access without inviting trouble.”
“I like the way you think.” Lynda chuckled. “Häagen-Dazs it is!”
“Great! I’m pulling into the parking lot now. The store doesn’t look crowded, so hopefully, this’ll be quick. My boobs are complaining, so believe me, Imma hurry.”
Knowing the layout of the market like the back of her hand, Summer wheeled one of the smaller carts up and down the aisles to quickly gather the supplies she needed. Distracted by the urgency of nursing boobs, she eyed the lines at each checkout and headed for the one with the least number of customers.
Operating in her own little bubble, she almost picked the snacks and candy display clean when a sale tag justified the ridiculous amount of chocolate and munchies she tossed into the cart.
“I’ll trade you a giant Kit Kat for that jumbo bag of Twizzlers.”
The overly sycophantic tone and understated shade came from the mouth of none other than her neighbor Todd.
She mentally recoiled and shuddered. Maybe he’d leave her alone if she was dismissive.
“Hello, Todd,” she said in a frosty voice. “Sorry. No swapsies. The licorice is for a friend.”
His eyes momentarily flashed with hostility. Taken aback, she went into safety mode and visualized a circle of white protective light surrounding her physical being.
All signs pointed to caution. The subtle threat wasn’t her imagination. People were crazy these days, and as a woman, Summer knew to be super cautious about how she dealt with some people. Todd fell into the yellow alert category. He was smarmy and his cringeworthy manner felt natural. Acting like a douche was his normal setting. His barefaced hostility gave her cause for concern.
As an awkward silence worked on her composure, she inched forward until a sliver of room on the conveyor belt gave her a chance to unload her cart and appear busy. The whole time she stacked and organized her purchases for the cashier, she could feel Todd’s angry glare.
Why’s it gotta be this way? Toxic men were exhausting. The last thing she needed was a creepy neighbor with her in his sights.
The customer in front of her was almost through checking out when Todd bumped her cart. The attention-getting ploy couldn’t be ignored, so she rather reluctantly looked in his direction.
“Where’s the kid?” he asked in a less than friendly tone.
Turning to face him, Summer downshifted her facial expression into neutral, figuratively gunned