What's Cooking? by Sherryl Woods

dispensing every tidbit she knew about Maggie's anonymous suitor.
    "No problem, but maybe you should bring me that pie now," he suggested gently.
    Willa-Dean looked completely rattled. "The pie, of course. I'm so sorry. I'd stuff some in my mouth, but there's no room with my foot in there."
    He laughed. How could you be mad at someone who was as bouncy and friendly as a puppy? Maggie, however, was not going to be overjoyed to learn that her love life was the hottest topic in the local gossip mill. Maybe he wouldn't share this tidbit with her.
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    Willa-Dean brought his warm apple pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream melting on top. "It's on the house," she said. "Consider it an apology."
    "You don't owe me an apology," he insisted, then took a bite of the pie. The distinctive combination of tart and sweet flavors burst in his mouth. The crust practically melted on his tongue. As soon as he'd swallowed, he said, "Willa-Dean, will you marry me?"
    She stared at him, clearly shocked. "What?"
    "This pie is amazing," he explained. "Please tell me you'll marry me."
    She laughed. "You wouldn't be getting what you're bargaining for," she said. "I didn't bake it. We buy 'em from a lady over toward Reedville."
    "Then I'll marry her."
    "She's eighty."
    "I don't care."
    He was barely exaggerating. Apple pie was a dessert staple and one of his favorites, but this woman had raised it to an art form. If he could have this pie every day, he could live here and be content.
    "Does she bring in pies every day?" he asked. "I'd like to meet her."
    "Actually, she's never here. She sends the pies over on Tuesdays and Fridays. Her husband brings them."
    "Then consider me a new Tuesday and Friday regular," he told Willa-Dean. "Can I buy a whole pie to take home? Maggie has to taste this."
    "Sure you can. I'll get one for you." When she returned with the pie in a box, she asked, "So, since you're going to become a regular in here, does that mean you and Mrs. Lindsey's granddaughter are staying here for
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    good?" She was clearly eager to have a fresh tidbit for the gossip mill.
    Since his plans with Maggie seemed to change on a day-by-day basis, Rick opted for an evasive reply that covered what he knew at this moment. "For the foreseeable future," he told her.
    No need to explain that he couldn't predict a future with Maggie much beyond tonight. Usually that wouldn't have bothered him one bit, but for some reason he left the restaurant feeling oddly restless and uneasy. Not even the prospect of sharing the incredible pie with Maggie cheered him.
    Rick sighed heavily. When in the heck had the promise of an evening with an incredible woman ceased to be enough? When had he started wanting more?
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    Chapter Six
    Y ou're doing what?" Ashley asked, her tone incredulous.
    "Playing Monopoly," Maggie said, her gaze never leaving Rick. She had to watch the man like a hawk. "And unless you called for something specific, sis, I need to get back to it. Rick cheats."
    "I do not," he protested indignantly, even as Maggie caught him trying to unobtrusively slide a hotel onto one of his properties.
    Maggie snatched the hotel out of his hand. "Stop that," she commanded, then tried to focus on her sister. "Ashley, did you want something?"
    "I just called to check on you, but I don't even have to ask how you are. I think it's obvious you've lost your mind," Ashley muttered.
    "How is that obvious?"
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    "You are tucked away in a cozy seaside cottage with a man most women would kill to spend time with, and you're playing board games with him. I'm no shrink, but I'm pretty sure that translates into insanity."
    Keeping her gaze fixed on the game board and Rick's sneaky hands, Maggie tried to come up with a response that would satisfy her sister. "Games are fun. You should try them sometime, Ms. Workaholic."
    "Look who's talking," Ashley retorted. "You weren't exactly a slouch in the work department before you ran away. And speaking of