He cleared his throat and glanced back toward the door. “No. This is it. I’d better go. Jake’s in the truck.”
“Yeah. I was standing right here when you told him to go wait in it two minutes ago.”
He gave me that confused expression again, but I don’t know why. He was the one stating the obvious.
“Right.” He turned and marched for the door.
I followed him toward the exit. “Did you want to pay for that? Or were you planning on stealing it?”
“Huh?” he turned near the door.
I was used to flustering people, particularly men, so this didn’t surprise me.
“You already paid Kayla?” I pointed to the jar in his hand.
“Oh, hell.” He shook his head and met me at the register.
I glanced out the window to check on Jake. He was sitting in the passenger seat of a big Chevy next to my Ford-150. After ringing Wade up, I gave him his change then bagged his jar of moonshine.
“You sure you don’t want me to pay for that broken jar?” he asked. “I don’t know why, but I feel like you’re covering for Jake. Kids gotta learn to pay when they make mistakes.”
“I’m sure you’re absolutely correct and know much more about parenting than I do, seeing as I am not a parent. But don’t you worry your pretty little head about it. It’s all good.”
Again, he gave me that blank-faced, puzzled expression as I handed over his moonshine in a paper bag and beamed brightly up at him.
“You’re a funny kind of woman, Marly.”
“You better believe it. I put the fun in funny.” I winked.
He shook his head and took the bag, but I swear I saw him actually crack a smile before he ducked his chin and strolled out to his truck.
Kayla joined me behind the counter while we both watched him walk across the parking lot. Though I was not a fan of Wade Kelley—the grouchy man hated country music, for Pete’s sake—I had to admit he looked awfully good walking away.
“Why’d you make up a story for the kid?”
I shrugged. “Just wanted to. He’s a cute kid who looked like he was about to cry. I wanted him to smile.”
“His daddy is more than cute. Good gracious alive.”
I watched Wade slide into the driver’s seat and say something to his son. He didn’t seem angry as he started the truck, braced his arm across the backseat and looked back as he reversed.
“You think so?”
“Hell, girl. Are you kidding me? That man is a full-on smoke-show.”
“I don’t see it.” Not entirely.
As Wade’s truck reversed, I could make out that deep frown of his through the window. His dark eyes caught mine for a split second. Or two. Then he turned around and drove out of the parking lot.
“Fine by me,” added Kayla, heading toward the breakroom. “You let me tend to his every need next time he comes in.”
Frowning, I headed back to the boxes of Peppermint Patty and the display I needed to finish, wondering why Kayla was annoying me so much today