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

his old girlfriend had come back on the scene. It would have been nice if he’d shared that information with her instead of seeing the other woman on the side. She’d set Reg free to continue stoking the fires with his old flame and dedicated herself to her business.
    Then along came Fiancé Number Two, a charming insurance salesman who liked to salsa dance and was an amazingly good listener. This time she was sure she’d made a wise choice. But her insurance salesman, who’d seemed so stable on the outside, turned out to be as stable as a three-legged chair. Marcus had money problems. He was constantly borrowing from Cecily, promising that he’d pay her back and then conveniently forgetting the entire conversation. Marcus finally declared bankruptcy and left for greener pastures, where he found a rich cougar who wanted to buy more than a whole-life policy.
    Her matchmaking business hadn’t done much for her faith in men, either. It sure would have been refreshing (no, make that a shock) to meet just one man who didn’t have specific requests regarding his dream woman’s appearance. One man who, instead of asking her to introduce him to a woman with boobs the size of watermelons or a nice, tight ass, had said, “Find me my soul mate.”
    No wonder that when she returned to Icicle Falls she’d had it with men, lost her confidence in Cupid. But with her sister Samantha a living testimonial for happily-ever-after and Todd Black chipping away at her defenses, here she was, caving and giving the brat with the bow and arrow one last chance. And hoping her famous matchmaking instincts finally kicked in on her own behalf.
    Charlene Masters (Charley to her friends), who owned Zelda’s, was at her regular post at the reservation podium, greeting her customers. She was another ambassador for true love. After divorcing her cheating husband, who’d then returned, just to bring her more misery, she’d met her Mr. Perfect and was now enjoying newlywed bliss. It could be done.
    The question for Cecily was who to do it with. If only she could put Todd Black and Luke Goodman in some giant machine and meld them into one. Todd’s sexiness coupled with Luke’s dependability—now that would be her perfect man.
    You don’t know that Todd’s undependable, she reminded herself. Heck, he owned a business and a house. That required a certain level of dependability. But there was no getting around those bad-boy vibes he gave off. Todd Black, the pirate. Pirates didn’t settle down and raise families. And she was ready to get married, wanted to start a family. So, what the heck was she doing going out with him?
    Charley greeted her with a surprised “Cec?” then recovered enough to greet Todd. “We’ve got a nice corner table for you,” she told him and led the way to the far end of the dining area.
    Which meant they had to pass Luke’s table. Cecily was very aware of Todd’s hand on her back as they approached, and of Luke’s assessing and not-so-happy gaze. She felt an uncomfortable warmth creeping over her cheeks and tried to cool it by telling herself she had nothing to feel awkward about. To prove it, she stopped to say a quick hello and introduced her date. The men shook hands, but it was far from a hearty handshake. They reminded her of boxers touching gloves before a match.
    “Todd owns The Man Cave,” Cecily said to Luke.
    He gave Todd a brief nod. “I’ve seen it.”
    With the giant Neanderthal in lederhosen painted on the outside, it was hard to miss. “Luke’s our production manager at Sweet Dreams,” she said to Todd.
    “Great place to work,” Todd said, giving Cecily one of his killer smiles.
    “Yeah, it is,” Luke agreed. “The Sterling family means a lot to me.” It was said pleasantly enough but, judging by Luke’s stiff posture and narrowed eyes, it was a warning of sorts.
    Luke’s family was already on dessert, wild huckleberry pie for him, coffee for his mom and a strawberry sundae for his