How Sweet It Is (21 page)

After a moment, several links appeared.
“Hmmm, there’s a Brad Larsen who is apparently a surfer. It’s on a
site about surfing competitions. Let’s try that one.”

Clicking on the link, Stephan gave a
victorious hoot when an image of Brad appeared on the screen.
“First attempt and he scores!”

Minnie ignored his outburst and leaned closer
to the screen. She read about Brad’s past history as a surfer,
along with his competitions. In the shop, she’d thought him cute.
Seeing him glistening with water, tanned, and in bright colored
shorts, she let out a low whistle.

“Quit slobbering all over the screen, if you
please,” Stephan huffed.

Minnie tore her gaze away from the photo and
looked at Stephan. Tall, skinny and pale, Stephan was probably a
closet nerd despite his show of bravado—but she still preferred him
over the beach bum her boss was hung up on.

She gave him a pitying smile, and continued
to read the information on the screen.

“This doesn’t say much about him currently.
Is there another site that mentions him?” she asked.

Stephan clicked on another link provided by
the search engine. “This one here says he’s from Redondo
Beach.”

“Well, that narrows the field. Back to the
phone book. The South Bay one, I think.”

It turned out that there were twenty-five
possibilities, so Minnie decided to call all the Bradley’s first.
After five calls, she hit pay dirt. She only had to mention
Delphine’s name when the woman on the other end began to babble
incoherently. After a moment she was able to decipher the fact that
the woman was Brad’s mother.

“I’ve been so worried about Delphine. You
say you work for her? How is she? She never answers her phone
anymore.”

“She’s doing okay, Mrs. Larsen. I was really
hoping to talk to Brad.”

“He’s not here.”

Minnie furrowed her brows in consternation.
To come so far only to fail! “Can you get a message to him tonight
for me?”

“Yes, he has his cell phone.”

Minnie looked at Stephan while she spoke.
“Tell him that Delphine will be at the shop late tonight.”

“Oh, okay, I’ll let him know. Thank you,
dear.”

After saying good-bye, Minnie hung up the
phone and gave Stephan a smug smile. Folding her arms behind her
head, she sighed. “I feel quite like Cupid, I must admit.”

“More like a Machiavelli. You’ll probably be
responsible for their break up.”

“They already are broken up, you dolt.”

“You don’t have to get nasty about it.”

She opened her eyes to their
widest. “
Moi?
Nasty? You must have me confused with your other
girlfriend.”

Stephan’s face turned red. “I don’t have any
girlfriends!”

Minnie walked over to him. “Good. That means
they won’t get jealous when I do this.” Acting quickly, before she
lost her nerve, she bent down and kissed him on the lips.

If Stephan seemed surprised, he rallied
quickly. To Minnie’s delight, he pulled her into his arms and
kissed her right back.

****

The tweetering of a cell phone jolted Brad
awake. He uncoiled himself from his cramped position behind the
wheel of the car and reached for his phone. As he answered, he
glanced at his watch. He’d only been asleep for a few minutes, but
it felt like hours.

“Brad, this is your mother.”

Brad managed a groggy smile.
“Oh, I
wondered
who
this was.”

Not missing a beat, Elaine continued. “When I
went to your room to check your messages like you asked, the phone
rang. I picked it up. Someone named Minnie was asking for you.
Apparently, she’s one of Delphine’s employees. She wanted you to
know Delphine will be working late tonight.”

Brad pulled the phone away from his ear and
looked at it quizzically. Putting it back, he said, “Why would she
call to tell me that?”

“Well, I didn’t ask, but presumably so you
could see Delphine. And when you see her, could you have her give
me a call? I’d like to have her over again soon. Oh, and bring her
to Bible study tonight. Don’t forget it’s Wednesday.”

He shook his head at her
stream-of-consciousness speech. “Sure thing, Mom.”

After his mother hung up, Brad stretched. He
looked around Delphine’s neighborhood, noticing the early evening
sunset. He wasn’t overly surprised that he’d fallen asleep.
Romantic distress didn’t do much for regular slumber.

At the same time, he began to wonder if
anyone had taken note of his car. If he weren’t careful, a local
resident would be calling the police, complaining of a neighborhood
stalker. Brad started the car and after looking over his shoulder,
he pulled away from the curb and made his way to Delphine’s
shop.

While he negotiated traffic, he wondered why
her employee would make that call. It didn’t add up. Then again, it
didn’t really need to. He wanted to see Delphine, and he hadn’t
considered she might stay at the shop late.

A few blocks from the shop, Brad saw a flower
vendor. Deciding to walk to the shop and gather his thoughts before
he faced her, he parked and decided to purchase a bouquet of
lilies. When he went inside, he saw an assortment of stuffed
animals. Next to a blue teddy bear sat a shaggy rabbit wearing an
old-fashioned plaid shirt and overalls. He forgot about the lilies
as a new idea came to him.

After paying for the toy, he
headed toward the shop. As he came abreast of it, he noticed for
the first time a blue neon sign glowing in the
window—
C
hez
Chocolates
.

Brad smiled a little. That was one of the
names he’d mentioned some time back when they were still speaking.
She’d laughed at his pronunciation, saying his accent sounded more
Hispanic than French.

He came to a full stop in front of the shop.
The windows were covered by shades. He assumed they would be there
until her grand opening. The neon sign cast a blue glow onto the
sidewalk as the sun continued to sink behind the building.

All his insecurities regarding Delphine
washed over him in a depressing wave. He closed his eyes for a
moment, shaken by an overwhelming longing for her. Would she speak
to him? What could he say to erase his blunder?

Taking a deep breath, Brad walked up to the
door and knocked hard. He was dimly aware of the constant traffic
behind him, of passersby, and the bark of a dog somewhere in the
near distance. When Delphine didn’t answer right away, Brad felt
hollow and despondent. How long would she avoid him? How long would
he keep trying? “Del-phine!”

Brad leaned his forehead against the glass
and swallowed back a choking sense of desperation. When he focused
his eyes, he suddenly realized he could see through a gap in the
shade covering the window. A thin sliver of light shone from under
the door in the back room.

His heart hammered against
his ribcage.
She’s here!
He knocked again.

With his head still pressed against the
glass, he took a shuddering breath. “Open up, please! I love you!
I’m miserable without you!”

“Well!” wheezed a shocked voice behind
him.

Brad whirled around and saw an elderly man
staring at him with a keen gaze.

The man looked at him, at
the sign, and back at him again. “That must be
some
candy!” He cackled and continued
on his way.

Brad heaved a beleaguered sigh and turned
back toward the window, letting his head fall forward until it
plunked against the glass.

****

Delphine lifted the shade away from the
window a spare inch and gazed hungrily at the sight of Brad. It
reminded her of the first time she’d seen him. He’d had his face up
against a chocolate shop window then, too.

Do I open the door and possibly open myself
to more hurt? What can he say to erase his terrible words?

Delphine peered at him, at his slumped
shoulders and downcast gaze. To have him so close without being
able to touch him tortured her—while her brain told her to be firm
against a man who uttered such heartless things.

She quickly turned and walked to the glass
cases. She saw her wavy reflection in the glass—tired eyes in a
drawn face pinched with stress, worry, and anger.

Pathetic
.

Brad was nuts to waste any time with her.
Worse, her stupid fury may have driven him away for good. What if
she was throwing away her relationship with him based on a
misunderstanding? Thinking of what she’d been talking to Pastor
Manning about lately, she knew she was holding onto something
worthless instead of taking hold of what was truly precious.

Delphine darted for the door. She fumbled
with the latch, opened the door, and plunged out onto the sidewalk.
His retreating form grew dim in the fading light.

“Brad!”

He turned. Delphine saw his questioning
expression. She ran to him and threw her arms around him. When his
arms slid around her, pulling her tighter, she squeezed her eyes
closed, relishing his embrace. “I’m so sorry, Brad,” she whispered,
afraid to look him in the eye.

He eased away slightly and
gazed into her face, his features stern. “
What?
What are you sorry
for?”

She opened her mouth to speak. Brad put up
his hand.

“No way. I’m the one who needs to
apologize.” He swallowed. “I was worried you felt pressured to
stick with me because of the loan.” His expression darkened. “That
maybe you said you loved me because of it, because you felt you had
to.”

Delphine stared at him and
suddenly remembered what she’d said in anger.
I’m not part of the deal, Brad
. Was it
so hard to imagine he might take the thought to a logical
conclusion?

He blew out a breath. “It sounds ridiculous
now, but how could I be sure of your love with that big issue
hanging over our heads?”

She stared at him, wishing she’d never given
him reason to doubt. It really was a simple explanation—especially
as it was the type of thing she’d think herself.

“I’m so sorry for assuming the worst, Brad.
I shouldn’t have shut you out like I did. Can you forgive me?”

His eyebrows inched up his forehead. “You’re
kidding, right?”

Delphine felt her cheeks burn. “Love thinks
the best, not the worst.”

“Love doesn’t say such stupid things.” He
offered her a lop-sided smile. “And I do love you, Delphine. Never
doubt that.”

“I know you do,” she said in a low voice. “I
just got angry, I guess.”

He grinned. “I’m somewhat familiar with your,
um, temper.”

Pulling her back into his embrace, he rested
his cheek against her hair. “I was so worried about the loan
affecting our relationship, I couldn’t think straight.”

Delphine inhaled the sun-drenched scent of
his skin. You and me both.

Brad tilted her head back, kissing her
eyelids, her cheeks, and finally her lips, until she held onto him
for support, returning his kiss measure for measure.

He raised his lips a fraction of an inch.
“You smell good, Delphine. You smell like chocolate.”

Sliding her arms around his waist, she smiled
to herself. It was nice some things didn’t change.

“You know,” Brad said after a moment, “my
mom told me Minnie called her.”

She looked up, enjoying the play of
diminishing light on his features. “Why?”

“To apparently tell her to tell me you were
here tonight.”

Delphine let out a low groan and pressed her
face against his chest. “I have a feeling she and Stephan blamed my
grouchiness on love problems and probably wanted us to make
up.”

“They should get a raise.”

Delphine blushed. She’d been so mired in
gloom she never really stopped to consider how her employees were
doing during her sulks.

“My mom’s been worried about you, too,” he
said smoothing a lock of hair from her face. “She still hasn’t
shown you all the pictures in every single photo album we own.”

Delphine laughed. “She’s sweet.”

“Usually,” he drawled, “but I think she’s
worried I’m messing up with you. She even threatened me.”

“So you’re here because you’re afraid of
her?” she teased.

He nuzzled her cheek. “Only because I was
afraid of losing you.”

Delphine hugged him hard, fresh moisture
springing to her eyes.

A longing fulfilled is sweet
to the soul
.

The words filtered into her
heart, taking her by surprise.
Thank you,
Lord. I now know Brad is a gift from You
.

Brad eased from her arms and reached down for
a bag on the ground next to his foot. “I brought you a present.” He
held up a boy bunny, similar to the one he’d given to her
earlier.

She took it and smiled. “It’s adorable.”

“Um, it’s for your other rabbit. If she gets
lonely, she can hold onto him.” He blew out a sigh. “It sounds
silly when I say it out loud.”

Delphine looked up at him, trying to hold
back laughter.

“Seriously,” he said, his gaze anything but
serious. “Since you have me, you won’t need to hold onto her. See,
she might get lonely.”

“Well, thank you,” feeling rather guilty
about the poor girl bunny at the bottom of her closet and making a
mental note to rectify the situation as soon as possible. “That’s
very thoughtful of you.”

Brad laughed softly. “Okay, I know it’s
corny, but it made sense when I first thought of it.” He put his
arm around her and they walked back toward the shop.

Once they were inside, he pulled her close
again. “Why have you been working late so much?”