Two to Tangle (A Tangle Valley Romance #2) - Melissa Brayden Page 0,10

where she could lose herself in a throng of people, drinks, and loud music. She followed a woman to her apartment next door and had a little harmless fun before grabbing a cup of coffee and heading home in the wee hours.

Inside, she felt hollow. As the streetlights flew past and the road grew darker the farther she got from the city, that feeling only multiplied.

Nothing new for Ryan. Yet, at the same time, she felt it more intensely now. Would this always be her life? She sighed and turned up the volume on the radio, anything to drown out how much she disliked herself right now. There had to be more.

Chapter Three

The sun was taking its time today. Perhaps it had slept in.

Gabriella had been up a full hour before she watched it peek out from behind the hills in the distance while she nursed her second cup of black tea. She hadn’t slept much overnight. It felt like her own very personal Christmas morning, and she was bursting with anticipation. For now, she’d still work in the food truck and had a dynamite menu planned for the day, full of bites and dishes that had her eager to cook and use up some of this extra energy. Today was the true realization of something big, however. Tangled had been the reason she’d dropped everything and hightailed it to Oregon wine country. A quiet location to make her own food and have control over her own restaurant? Sign her up. At last, the kickoff to all of it had finally arrived.

“Well, look who’s bright-eyed and bushy tailed like a flashy little squirrel this morning,” Madison said, as she came down the path. Their cottages, while not next door, weren’t separated by too long a walk, and Madison passed Gabriella’s every day on her walk to work.

“The day is finally here, and it’s true, I’m a damned happy squirrel. I fully admit it.”

Madison squinted. “Specifics needed. Is it a moon landing? Santa Claus? The stork?”

“You know very well it’s restaurant day. We start construction. Well, the contractors do, and I think your parents should talk to you about where babies come from.”

Madison moved past it. “Maybe when I’m older.” She took a seat next to Gabriella on her porch steps. “Hey, I talked to someone about you in town yesterday.”

“Oh yeah? Who’s that?”

“Clementine from the Bacon and Biscuit. I stopped by for a butter biscuit.”

“Who doesn’t? They’re probably illegal. They’ll declare it any day now.”

“Right? God stamped Approved on those things personally. Anyway, she told me that her softball team is looking for a player. Steve-O from the garage broke his foot. I declined because—”

“Obviously.”

“Hey.” Madison accompanied this with a pained look.

“What?”

“Words ruin lives.”

Gabriella closed one eye. “I think we can both agree that you’re not the most athletic. Not a huge leap. But also don’t do any leaping because you’ll fall. I’ve seen it.” She frowned. “Ouch.”

“I was a mathlete once upon a time.” Madison leveled a stare.

“And it shows.”

They exchanged a smile and moved on to business. “So how about it?” Madison asked. “Want to be their missing player and complete the team? I told Clementine how much you loved your high school glory days, and she’s very interested.”

“I do miss it.” Gabriella felt lighter just thinking about those times as the nostalgia surfaced. She’d played third base for the Jasper High School Rockets, with her younger sister, Mariana, on shortstop. Those had been some of the best years of her life. They’d missed the state tournament by two runs and had their souls crushed like twigs, but she wouldn’t undo it. “You know what? Yeah. I think I’ll talk to Clem about the team. As long as it doesn’t take away from my gig here, I think that’d be a fun thing to add to my weekly schedule. Plus, I’d get to know more people around here.”

“Bam.” Madison stood. “I’m now the superhero matchmaker of the day and can go make wine with pride.”

“Make it real good, too. We need the best wine possible to pair with the amazing food I plan to whip up this summer once I open.”

“All right.” Madison sighed. “Because you said so.”

Ninety minutes later, Gabriella’s heart leaped at the sight of Ryan Jacks’s maroon truck pulling onto the property as she sliced zucchini strips inside Jolene. If she peered out the back window—and okay, she did—she could see the building that was soon to be Tangled and Ryan and Dale exiting the