Page 11 of Sugar & Shadows

“You’re not off the hook.”

Her lips curled into a smile.

“What were you thinking?” I huffed. “Setting me up with Gabe?”

She closed the door and turned completely, full mom face activated. “I was thinking that my hardworking, beautiful daughter is hurting and could use a fun distraction.”

“And you thought a dinner date with my childhood nemesis, a man who is my complete opposite in every way, would be a good distraction?”

She shrugged.

Annoyance rolled over me. How was she so unbothered?

“Covering the handsome mayor in pulled pork was probably a fun distraction.” She smiled. “Makes for a great story.”

I put my head on the table and groaned. I should have known I couldn’t lie low and relax in this town. Maplewood had a way of drawing people into its madness, no matter how hard they fought it.

“Just imagine,” Mom said, happily cracking eggs. “If people were throwing tacos at congressional hearings, CSPAN would get much higher ratings.”

“If all I’d done was throw food, I’d still have a job.” In my line of work, random acts of violence were more easily forgiven than what I’d done.

That voice in my head popped up again, reminding me that I’d made the right decision.

Whatever.

Right or not, it had gotten me fired.

Blacklisted.

Deemed unloyal and a liability.

Doing the right thing was rarely appreciated. It was rarely helpful.

And I’d learned that lesson the hard way.

Chapter 3

Gabe

My heart sank.

Today would not be a good day.

Yesterday’s encounter was only the beginning. I couldn’t even face my mom. Undoubtedly, she’d seen the videos of my epic blind date gone bad.

I was both amused and horrified by the incident.

On the one hand, half the town had seen that shitshow in person, and the rest had probably seen it online. It was embarrassing, sure, but more than that, that moment had cracked my mayor façade a little. I was in hot water as it was. Adding judgment regarding my image would not help.

On the other, it had been fun to let go a bit. To say what I really thought without worrying about the reaction.

Sabrina did that to me. She made me forget myself. The good guy. The mayor.

She turned me into a petty, nasty jerk.

It was nothing to be proud of.

Yet it was freeing.