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Shannon

“Are you sure it’s all right that I’ uninvited, Mara?”

I showed up in Pilgrio and the only person I knew in toas Mara, she ran the bakery I owned, Bread Box Thanks to her reluctant kindness and generosity, I had a place to stay, even if it was seles And now I even had weekend plans A backyard barbecue

How quaint

Mara sighed in that put upon way that she’d perfected in the years I’ve known her “Of course, it’s fine The people in this town are unbearably nice and live by the ood way for you to meet people, Shannon”

I let out a laugh as we turned onto the block where Olive and Liaot a glies

“You just wantto you”

Mara shrugged “You’re not so bad, actually But this is a stress-free way toaccosted at the bakery” She made an excellent point In the rim, the lines at the bakery moved a lot slower because everyone wanted to know my life story as they waited for cronuts and cheesecake

“If it’s not all right, I’ll just leave”

Mara groaned and gave h the tall wooden door that led to the backyard “Be rassy backyard in those ridiculous shoes”

“Ridiculous? You mean fabulous, don’t you?” I stopped just inside the fence to show off ”

Mara stared with a blank expression before a small smile turned the corners of her reat, but they won’t be by the tiaze slid to her red Chuck Taylors and then es and back “At least you can afford to replace them”

“Thanks to you”

Mara gave me what I called, the look, the one where she arched one eyebrow and pursed her lips The look was filled with a mix of e the other person was a duh to buy the bakery, Shannon”

“Yes, but you’ve made the Bread Box a success,my trust money every quarter” Mara and Bread Box hy I’d packed up and carim in the first place I owned several small businesses in the south and southwest, but the bakery was the only consistent performer I needed to find out why