Read The Tea Shop on Lavender Lane (Life in Icicle Falls) for Free Online Page A

underlying hypnotic pulse of a bass. “Feel free to find something you like.”
    “I’m surprised you’re not listening to country music,” she said, searching for a pop station.
    “I listen to that, too. I like just about everything.”
    “Well, that makes you easy to please.” The words were barely out of her mouth before she realized she’d handed him yet another opening for a double entendre.
    His smile was positively sly. “I am.”
    “I thought you said you had a serious side.”
    “I do.”
    “I’m not convinced. Tell me one thing you can be serious about.”
    “Taxes. How’s that?”
    “Impressive. That’s it?”
    “Death and taxes.”
    “How about relationships?”
    “Those are pretty serious things, too.” He pulled up in front of Zelda’s, shut off the engine and turned to her. “You think I’m just looking for a hookup, don’t you?”
    “That did cross my mind.”
    “I don’t know where this is going, but I want to find out. Don’t you?”
    “I’m not sure,” she said honestly. Did she really want to risk a third heartbreak?
    “Don’t worry. We’ll take it one kiss at a time,” he said and opened his door. She started to open hers. “Uh-uh,” he cautioned, reaching across the seat and stopping her. “My mama raised me to be a gentleman.”
    “What happened?” Cecily retorted, but she waited for him to walk around and open the door for her.
    “See,” he said, “I’m not a total Philistine.”
    “How do you even know what a Philistine is?”
    “Hey, I told you. My mama raised me right. I went to Sunday school.”
    Cecily rolled her eyes and slipped out of the car.
    Zelda’s was one of the most popular restaurants in Icicle Falls, specializing in Northwest cuisine. As with all the shops and restaurants in town, it boasted hanging baskets overflowing with petunias and geraniums. The glass door had the restaurant’s name scrawled across it in gold script and featured the image of a flapper.
    Inside, the place was packed with people in town for the weekend to celebrate the Maifest festival, as well as locals. At one table she caught sight of Gerhardt Geissel, who owned Gerhardt’s Gasthaus, out with his wife and another couple. The women were dressed in dirndls and the men in lederhosen, an obvious sign that they’d taken part in the late-afternoon performance by their folk-dancing troupe in the town square. Pat Wilder and Ed York occupied another table. It was only a matter of time before those two made their relationship official, and Cecily had a feeling that by Christmas Pat would be sporting a diamond on her left hand. And there, by the window... Her heart rate picked up, and she looked away quickly, trying to pretend she hadn’t seen Luke Goodman with his mother and his daughter.
    There was no need to feel self-conscious. She’d made it clear to both Luke and herself that she wanted to be only friends.
    Still, whenever she ran into him, at the office or anywhere else, she was aware of something between them. She knew it was attraction on his part. What was it for her? Luke didn’t hit her zing-o-meter the way Todd did. But she still felt a pull, and that was what bothered her because it wasn’t strong enough to encourage him.
    It wouldn’t be fair. Not when Todd had the effect on her that he had. What she felt for Luke was like the pull of the tide. What she felt when she was with Todd was more like a tidal wave. And she wanted that. She wanted romance with a capital R. She wanted to be crazy in love with a man who was crazy in love with her.
    But she also wanted someone she could trust. Could she trust Todd Black?
    The smile he was giving her as they waited for their table certainly looked genuine.
    Still, looks could be deceiving. She’d learned that the hard way, and she had two diamond rings to prove it.
    Reg, Fiancé Number One, had pursued her with everything from flowers to wine-country jaunts, but six months into their engagement she’d learned that