And now I felt bad for lying to Toby. But instead of backing up, I kept going. “Amy’s worried about him. It will do her good to get out of town for a few hours today.”
He picked up the menu card and tapped it on the counter. “What time should I send in reinforcements if you don’t call?”
I calculated the drive time and a few stops in town, like maybe a mani-pedi appointment. “I’ll call you before nine. Does that work? Or do you have plans tonight?”
“Nine’s fine. I’m heading back to the apartment tonight to do some laundry and grocery shopping for the week. You know, bachelor stuff.”
A woman who’d just entered the store approached the counter. I recognized her as one of Toby’s cosmetology school regulars. “You know you don’t have to be a bachelor, Toby darling. I’m sure I’m not the only woman who’d be glad to do your laundry for a few concessions on your part.”
Toby started making the woman’s drink. “Now, Debbie, you know I’m dating someone right now. I can’t be playing the field if I’m going to get anyone to take me seriously.”
“Who says it has to be serious?” The woman winked at me. “I’d settle for a few one-night stands.”
I decided it was time for me to leave. “I’ll call you later. Have a good shift.”
As I walked out the door, I heard Debbie laughing at Toby’s response. Toby had a way of making every woman who walked into the shop feel special. Even if he was off the dating market.
I walked home and got ready for our secret agent outing. I took the laptop and printed off a copy of the Facebook page, writing down the Bakerses’ information from the local phone book. I grabbed a few bottles of water, put them and an ice pack into a minicooler, and grabbed Emma’s leash. She could at least lick the attacker to death if we were put into a difficult position.
I packed it all up in my Jeep, put Emma in the backseat, and headed back into town. I parked on the street in front of the bike rental shop where Amy rented the top floor apartment, right behind Sadie’s Pies on the Fly tiny car. The PT Cruiser was hard to miss with the dark purple color and the big slice of pie logo applied to each door, including the hatchback in the rear. I rolled down the windows for Emma, told my dog I’d be a few minutes, and headed toward Amy’s door.
Sadie left the bike rental shop at the same time, her face turning a bright pink as soon as she saw me. “Oh, Jill, I didn’t expect to see you here. Isn’t today your day off?”
I felt my lips curl upward into a large grin. “I bet you didn’t. And yes, typically, this is the start of my weekend, but Aunt Jackie took the day off. What are you doing? Planning a bike trip?”
Sadie slapped me on the arm. She looked around and, lowering her voice, she muttered, “You know what I’m doing here. I just don’t want the whole town or Darla to find out.”
“You’re right about that. If Darla knew you were dating Dustin Austin, it would be front-page news.” I gave her a quick hug. “Don’t worry, your sex life isn’t the most interesting thing going on in South Cove these days.”
Sadie’s face turned a brighter shade of red. “Don’t say ‘sex life.’ It’s trashy. I don’t want to be seen as a wanton woman.”
Honest to God, I broke out into giggles. When I could catch my breath, I wiped my eyes and focused on the now-frowning Sadie. “There is no one in town who would ever call you wanton. You’re the most churchgoing, friendly, helpful, caring, and utterly awesome woman in town.”
Sadie inched toward her car. “Well, that being said, I still don’t want to be a subject of gossip. I’ll see you Tuesday morning with your shop order.”
And with that, she put the car into gear and almost burned rubber getting away from me. I turned and found Amy standing next to me, watching Sadie leave.
“What’s got into her? She’s been acting weird lately.” Amy went over to the car and gave Emma a pat on the head, before ordering her to return to the backseat. She waited for my dog to settle on the backseat before opening the passenger door. Emma liked Amy and listened to her. Not like me. Sometimes I can talk till I’m blue in the face, and my dog will still ignore my commands.
I climbed into the driver’s seat and wondered what I should say. Amy was my best friend. But I considered Sadie a friend, too. Finally, I went with a shrug. “Beats me.”
Fortunately Amy had already moved on to the next topic: Justin and his issues. As I drove, Amy listed off all the positive and negative qualities of the man. As we pulled into Bakerstown, I realized she was doing a pros and cons list. “Are you thinking about breaking up with him over this Kent thing?”