Violet smiled and I handed her a credit card. “I told her there was no rush. Wait until you see the arrangements that she ordered for your holiday party. Mmm-mmm. They are gonna be something.”
“You always have the prettiest flowers in town.” I tugged at Jett’s arm and led him toward the large glass case holding endless blooms. “Are you telling me these don’t put you in a good mood?”
He laughed. “I’m not big on flowers. But sure, Violet’s nice. I’ve always liked her.”
“She’s easy to love. And this place always puts me in a good mood for some reason.” I pointed to the peonies. “Peonies aren’t in season often, but they are my absolute favorite. Look at those colors.”
“Nice. You might be the only girl in Texas who doesn’t favor the azalea,” he said, staring at the peonies as if he were trying to memorize them. I was surprised he knew about the famed Texas azaleas.
“How do you know about azaleas?” I asked.
“They’re Gram’s favorite. Mom and I get her a bouquet every year on her birthday.”
He continued to study the flowers just as Violet came around the counter and handed my credit card back. “All set. You two have a nice afternoon. I’m honored that you stopped here first. Where are you off to next?”
“The Chocolate Fountain for the world’s best hot cocoa.” I tucked the credit card in my purse and gave Violet a hug goodbye.
She reached for Jett and pulled him in for a hug. “Tell your mama I said hello. I need to head over to The Rusty Pelican for that sweet potato soup I love. I swear she adds a little extra cinnamon for me.”
“Will do, Violet,” Jett said as he patted her on the shoulder.
Once we were outside, I peeked up at him. “Not a terrible start, right?”
“You get props for starting with Violet. But if you think that old grumpy ass named Ballsack is going to win you any points, you are dearly mistaken. I don’t like that dude.”
I gave him a little shove as I laughed. Lenny Balsalcki was famously grumpy, but tender-hearted underneath all that hostility.
“Do you know that Lenny’s wife ran off with his brother twenty-some years ago? And then Kyle Peters opened his donut shop right next door, which cost Lenny a lot of business. You can’t really blame the guy for being bitter.” I shrugged as I pulled the door open and the bells chimed.
Lenny looked up to see us walking in, just as he set down a cup of coffee for Old Lady Winters. I’m not making up her name. She actually introduced herself as Old Lady Winters and that’s what everyone in town called her. In her defense, the woman had to be in her nineties, and she’d been old since the day I was born.
“Adelaide Edington. Who’d you drag in today?” Lenny squinted at Jett. “Ah, the quarterback. Don’t be thinking I’m going to tolerate a bunch of rowdy football players in here now, kid.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Jett seethed sarcasm as he lifted a brow when he looked down at me.
On the surface, it would appear that coming here was a mistake. But he had no idea how awesome this was going to be. Lenny Balsalcki was one of my favorite people in Willow Springs.
“We’ll take two specials, extra sprinkles,” I said proudly, slapping Jett’s hand away when he reached for his money. “It’s my turn. Don’t even try it.”
“I wouldn’t even take your money, son. I don’t need your pity. Addy here is a loyal customer, so if she wants to pay, she gets to pay.”
Jett shook his head with disbelief. “Seems like a tough business plan, but okay. No sprinkles on mine.”
“Did he really say no sprinkles?” Lenny barked out, slapping his hand down hard on the counter.
I covered my mouth with my hand. “Saying you don’t like sprinkles is a real slap in the face to Lenny. No one in town adds those sprinkles. It makes him one of a kind.”
“So does the fact that he’s rude as hell,” Jett whispered in my ear and his warm breath tickled my cheek. Goose bumps covered my arms, and it wasn’t because there was a chill in the air today.
“He’ll take the sprinkles,” I said before leaning in close to him and whispering right back. “I’ll eat them, you big baby.”
I paused to greet Old Lady Winters, who had her nose in the newspaper, on our way to a table. “Good morning.”
“Good morning, young lady. And who do we have here? Ah… the football player. I’ve seen a few of your games and you’ve got a nice arm.”
Jett laughed now. “Uh, thanks. I appreciate it.”
“And you have a nice mama. She’s good people. Now skedaddle and let me read my paper in peace. I could die at any moment, and I’d like to know what’s happening in Willow Springs if that happens.”
We both chuckled before dropping to sit at a table in the back, and seeing as the place only had four tables, it wasn’t a far walk. “That woman creeps me out. You know there’re rumors that she murdered her husband.”
“Well, he apparently robbed the post office when he was young, so I think he had a lot of enemies,” I said, trying to cover my smile.
“Why the hell are we here?”
“Just wait. I drag the girls here every once in a while, but I come here alone most Saturdays when we finish eating at the diner. I find Lenny to be one of the most interesting characters in town. It’s part of the tour. Quit complaining and embrace it.”
He rolled his eyes for the millionth time today and pulled off his leather coat, placing it on the back of his chair. Lenny walked over and set down two hot chocolates covered in sprinkles.
My favorite.
Jett scrunched his nose and stared at the sweet monstrosity.
“Don’t make faces at it, boy. Eat it,” Lenny grumbled before pulling up an empty chair and joining us. Jett’s eyes widened and I shoved a spoonful of whipped cream in my mouth to keep from laughing.
“So, what’s been happening, Lenny?” I asked. He always sat with me when I visited his shop. I’d learned to love our lengthy conversations, even if they were a bit torturous at times.
“Well. For starters, that bastard, Kyle Peters is now serving dogs at his so-called donut shop. Did you hear me? Four-legged creatures are now customers of that fool. The damn scoundrel doesn’t know how to run a business.”
Jett cocked his head to the side, looking out the window to see the line forming next door. Kyle Peters’ donuts were famous in Willow Springs. Not that I’d ever tried one out of loyalty to Lenny. He’d never forgive me.