indicating the painted letters on the glass door of the nearest business.
Cinnamon + Sugar Bakery & Café
Open 5:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Tuesday – Sunday
Maggie laughed. "I thought we could have lunch here. Annabeth, the owner, is an old friend of mine. She used to be my wedding cake baker and decorator at Cacao San Francisco. When she decided to leave the Bay Area and start her own business, I pointed her to this place. When I was a kid, it used to be called Frank's Bakery. When I heard that the owner wanted to retire and move to Arizona, I thought this might be the perfect place for Annabeth to make a fresh start."
At the time, her friend had really needed to get away from her abusive asshole fiancé Roger.
"She's done really well here," Maggie continued as she took Steve's hand and laced her fingers through his, for the benefit of anyone who might be watching—and gossiping.
She led him to the bakery's entrance and added, "Thor's oldest brother fell head over heels for her on grand opening day, and they've been mated for about seven years now."
She pulled open the door. An old-fashioned bell fastened to the top of the door tinkled as the two of them stepped inside the bakery and were greeted by the rich scents of freshly ground coffee, cinnamon, vanilla, sugar, and yeast.
In contrast with Cacao's modern-rustic style, the interior of Cinnamon + Sugar was filled with retro European charm. The café area had black-and-white floor tiles, a scattering of marble-topped tables with sleek black chairs, and several comfortably worn leather armchairs near the large storefront windows. The walls were lined with framed posters of vintage advertisements for chocolate, baking powder, and other baking-related items.
A long row of glass bakery cases filled with a delectable-looking set of cookies, tarts, cakes, croissants, and gourmet sandwiches stretched on either side of a marble counter that held the cash register and a large, chrome-plated Italian espresso machine. A large chalkboard behind the register listed the prices for the various coffee drinks, pastries, gourmet sandwiches, and salads.
There were several customers at the tables as Maggie and Steve entered, still holding hands, but no one that Maggie recognized.
Probably tourists, she thought. Summer vacation was over, but steelhead fishing season drew a lot of autumn visitors to the town.
"Welcome to Cinnamon + Sugar," greeted the tall, dark-haired, hazel-eyed athletic-looking young woman standing behind the counter. She was wearing a pink apron embroidered with the café's teddy bear logo. "Oh, hi, Maggie! What are you doing in town?"
"Hi, Hannah, great to see you again," Maggie said. She turned to Steve. "Hannah is Thor's cousin." She turned back to the counter. "Hannah, this is Steve Lopez, one of the smokejumpers who works with Thor."
Hannah's eyes widened as she looked him up and down. Maggie wondered if Hannah thought he was as hot as she did.
Then Hannah's smile widened. "Oh, you're Maggie's fiancé! Wonderful to meet you!"
Yep, news sure does get around in a small town like this, thought Maggie.
"Hey, Hannah, great to meet you too," Steve said with his easy charm. "We're in town for the weekend so that I can meet Maggie's family."
"Is Annabeth in the back?" Maggie asked, surprised that her friend hadn't yet made an appearance.
Hannah's face fell. "Oh, sorry, she's not here right now. The school called a little while ago because Matt threw up and started running a fever, so she left to go pick him up and take him home."
Matt was Annabeth's six-year-old son and already a spitting image of his dad.
"Oh, that's too bad," Maggie said. "I hope he's going to be okay. If I can, I'll stop by tomorrow or Sunday and catch up with her."
They ordered sandwiches, pastries, and drinks, then seated themselves at one of the available tables to eat.
Maggie had gotten her favorite, a prosciutto, Gorgonzola cheese, and sliced pear sandwich on a fresh-baked crusty sourdough roll. Steve opted for locally smoked pastrami and Ornelas Organic Dairy's Swiss cheese heaped high on house-made rye.
Both of them ordered the lemon tarts.
From experience, Maggie knew that these would have a sweet, perfectly crumbly crust and a pleasantly tangy filling under a blanket of sweet piped meringue baked to browned perfection.
"I thought your parents were really nice," Steve ventured, after they'd taken a few bites. "Other than your grandmother, do you get along with your family?"
"Well, right now, Manny's on my shit list for not telling me the truth about that loan," she answered, feeling