“Real witch.” Raquel rolled her eyes. “Please. Did you or did you not brew a tea in middle school that made Annabelle Bennet tell the whole student body the truth about how she stuffed her bra?”
“She was a bully! She deserved it for teasing all of us for not ‘blooming early’ like her.”
“Uh-huh. That’s why she still hates you. And did you or did you not bake a quiche that helped poor, zit-faced Phillip Lee conquer his fear and ask that very same Annabelle to the high school winter formal?” she asked as she held the door open to the diner.
“How could I not help him? I was duty bound.” Sadie laughed, the feeling starting to come back into her fingers. The smell of diner coffee and fried potatoes made her stomach growl, even though it felt too twisted up to eat.
“That’s why your customers always come back. It’s not just food. It’s magic. It’s hopes and promise and love and all that stuff. You don’t call that witchcraft?”
“I plead the fifth.”
“Which means I’m right.” Raquel grinned as they walked into the diner.
They both laughed as they slid into their favorite booth in the corner, along the windows that overlooked the street. The cracked leather depressed with a creak as they slid in. A few moments later, Janie sidled over. Only a few years older, she’d been working there since the girls were in middle school and seemed almost as permanent a fixture as the diner itself.
“How are my two favorite customers?” she asked with a smile, pulling out her ticket pad.
“I bet you say that to everyone who walks through those doors,” Raquel said, smirking.
“Only the ones who tip as good as you do.” Janie winked. “What can I get you ladies?” Sadie noticed the way her hand held the pen over her notepad and made a mental note to bring her some Cat’s Claw salve for her arthritis.
“Gold Rush scramble with egg whites, please,” Raquel said without glancing at the menu.
“Just coffee, thanks,” Sadie said.
“She’ll have the Gold Rush scramble too. But the biscuit instead of toast.”
“I will?”
“I know you’ve probably had four cups of coffee and two cups of tea already, with nothing to eat, so yes, you will.”
Janie laughed and wrote their order down, flexing her fingers as she slipped the pen into her apron pocket.
“You’re bossy,” Sadie said as she closed her eyes and listened to the chatter of the diner. Water being poured from pitcher to glass, the clink of knives and forks against plates.
“Part of my charm.” Raquel grinned. “Plus, you told me to remind you not to drink so much caffeine.”
“Well, that was before I found out you-know-who was back in town!” Sadie shot back.
“What, Voldemort?” Raquel asked with an arched eyebrow.
“Funny. Hilarious,” Sadie deadpanned with an evil glare and pursed lips.
“You know, that’s actually what I came in to tell you. But your stupid sixth sense got the better of me. Apparently, he’s a firefighter now. Wonder how he looks in that uniform … I hope he’s gotten fat.”
Sadie knew Raquel was trying to get a reaction out of her, which was exactly why she didn’t answer. She had to keep the last shred of control before she lost it completely. Her heart hadn’t stopped beating erratically since she’d seen Jake standing on the sidewalk. But she couldn’t let it show, or her best friend would pounce like a ravenous lion. Already, Raquel’s eyes kept finding themselves plastered to Sadie’s face, watching for any sign of emotion.
“Stop staring at me like that.” Sadie threw a dirty look across the table.
“Don’t tell me what to do with my eyes.” Raquel’s voice was as imperious as her pointed expression. “Anyway, I guess he was at a big station in southern California but wanted something a little more relaxed, so he decided to move back home.”
“How do you even know all of this?” Sadie demanded, curiosity getting the better of her.
“I ran into Nancy at the gas station this morning, who heard it from Katie Sutherland.”
“Great,” Sadie groaned. If Cindy McGillicuddy was the town busybody, Katie Sutherland was the town gossip. Her mantra was, “It’s not gossip if it’s true.” No consideration given as to who she hurt in the process. She once caught Sadie kissing a boy behind the pastor’s house during junior high youth group, and told anyone who would listen that Sadie was using her “devilish ways” to lure innocent boys into sin. Of course, then Gigi had shown up at her door with a cake soaked in misfortune, telling her that if she spread any more nasty rumors, Gigi would return with a shotgun.