The Pancake Club Anthology

by Jennifer Conner

  “Yes.” Dolan made a fist pump and then gave her a high-five. “Whoo hoo! Congrats.”

  “I think you might have put in quite a bit insider help to hire me on as a part time dispatcher. But I still think I aced the interview. Lola’s amazing. I can’t believe that she’s ready to retire next year. She’s been a police dispatcher for over twenty-five years.”

  “She’s really good at what she does. Lola might be in a small town, but she rivals any dispatcher from L.A. She keeps all of us in line,”

  “I know.” Tessa frowned. “I hope when she moves into semi-retirement I can keep up with all the duties that are required, and I don’t disappoint her or the station.”

  “I’ve known Lola most of my life,” Barb said. “She wouldn’t have hired you if she didn’t think you could do the job.”

  “I agree.” Jennifer tipped her pancake-filled fork in Tessa’s direction. “She knows that after talking to all those nut jobs on your daily radio show, you can deal with stressful situations and a few high-maintenance cops.”

  “Hey, I’m not high-maintenance,” Dolan protested.

  “That’s not what Tessa says,” Chad teased.

  Dolan looked over at her.

  “Hey, Chad. I never said any such thing. You’re trying to get me in trouble.”

  “You’re right.” Chad grinned. “She didn’t say that. You two are just so sappy and in love, I thought I’d stir up the bliss pot a bit.”

  “The extra income at the station will help along with what I make at the radio station.” Tessa ordered her breakfast and then said to Dolan. “I still have a few boxes and that small end table to move from the cabin. Can we do that tonight?”

  “Wait, did I miss something? Are you guys moving in together?” Barb asked.

  “Dolan asked me to move in. It only made sense. I’m always over there anyway, and the cabin is...well, it’s a cabin. Nice to hang out for a bit, but not easy to live in. It’s lovely to have a place which has heat and consistent hot water for showers.”

  “I guess you guys really are in love,” Chad said.

  “I guess we’d better be.” Tessa lifted her hand to flash a diamond on her left hand. “Dolan asked me to marry him last weekend when we were in Leavenworth.”

  Jennifer squealed and bounced up and down in the booth. “I love weddings! I guess I’ll have to enjoy yours since there’s no man on my horizon.”

  “There’s someone out there.” Tessa patted her arm. “I surely wasn’t looking for Mr. Right after just being stuck with Mr. Wrong. There’s someone out there for everyone. It will happen when you least expect it.”

  “I hope you’re right, but in this decade would be nice.” Jennifer sighed. “Can I help with some of the plans?”

  “You can do more than that. I hoped you and Barb would be my bridesmaids. What do you think?” Tessa looked at the two women expectantly.

  “I’ve never been in a wedding before,” Jennifer said and squealed again.

  “Do you think they make cowboy boots for bridesmaids?” Barb asked with a chuckle. “If I try and walk in heels, I’ll kill myself.”

  “I’m sure we can work something out. I want everyone happy and comfortable. The wedding will be in Dolan’s backyard.”

  “That sound like a great idea. Dolan has done so much work on the landscaping, the yard’s beautiful,” Jennifer said.

  “I agree, and we both wanted to keep it simple.” Tessa poured creamer into her coffee, and then asked Dolan, “Maybe after basketball practice, we can pick up those boxes while it’s still daylight ?”

  “That would work. Around seven-thirty?”

  “I haven’t heard about this either,” Barb said. “I must really be out of the loop. When did you start playing basketball?”

  “I’ve played for years. I just stopped for...a while.” Dolan took Tessa’s hand and squeezed it under the table. She knew what a big step it was to get back on the court after David’s death. She was very proud of his courage and resilience. “Tessa talked me into to getting off the couch, stop playing video games, and enjoy the sun. There are some kids she knows. Their dads are in the Navy and gone for the next six months. A few of us from the station decided to start an after school basketball practice so these kids will be ready for the JV team in junior high next year.”

  “That great,” Chad said. “Maybe I’ll come and shoot a few baskets with you.”

  “We’d love that. We need all the help we can get. I got pretty out of shape not playing and those kids are kicking our butts every night. Starting the practice nights was all Tessa’s idea. I wouldn’t have done it on my own.”

  “Tessa’s pretty smart for a guardian angel,” Jennifer added.

  “She’s perfect.” Dolan looked at her with so much love in his eyes it was clear exactly how he felt. He grinned. It made a dimple crease in his cheek and her heart melt. “So, I’ll see you tonight when practice is over?”

  “How about seeing me tonight...and then tomorrow, and for the next fifty years or so.” Tessa kissed him.

  “You’ve got a date,” Dolan said and kissed her again. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” Tessa held the happiness of knowing that he was hers for a lifetime.

  “Oh...gag,” Chad said, but laughed.

  Tessa took the warm syrup and poured some over Dolan’s pancake stack and then hers. She took a big bite.

  Life was good. And even better with love...and pancakes.

  Damage Control

  JW Stacks

  Chapter One

  “Did you hear that Michael Harrison is back in town?”

  The delicious sourdough taste in Jennifer Defoe’s mouth turned to cardboard.

  She quickly glanced around the table at the other three members of their little breakfast ritual to make sure that the comment had not been aimed at her. Officer Dolan Nash, attractive even after an evening of duty, with his tie loosened; Barb Sessions, tour guide at the Saddle-Up dude ranch and born-and-bred cowgirl; and Chad, son of the Granger clan. Despite their disparate lives they all found companionship with each other after an especially busy morning in the diner forced them to share a table. It had become a regular thing ever since.

  “Yeah,” Dolan continued, oblivious to her efforts to maintain calm, “I saw him working on old Ms. Adele’s clunker over at Leroy’s shop.” He took a sip of coffee

  Chad chimed in. “I remember, back when I was a sophomore, that ’72 Trans Am he rebuilt. That was one hot set of wheels.”

  Chad’s admiration of that old car threatened to bring back memories she’d rather not think about. Memories of Mike and his decision to join the Navy. She had everything planned, a beautiful wedding in a field of wildflowers on a sunny June day and a happily-ever-after. The only problem being that it had all been in her mind.

  Jennifer concentrated on cutting her pancakes into small bite-sized pieces as she let the hum of conversation about Mike wash over her. She hadn’t been the most attractive girl in school and kept her nose buried in a book. Even through high school she hadn’t outgrown the appearance of a younger girl. She liked to call it the “curse of cuteness.”

  Her friends told her she had plenty of personality, when she chose to show it, but Jennifer knew she had a chest that wouldn’t make a speed bump jealous.

  She couldn’t even remember exactly how she and Mike became friends in the first place. They’d fallen into conversation after school one day when she missed the bus and he’d just finished football practice.

  “Weren’t you two close, Jen?”

  “Huh?” She looked up, confused, before realizing that Barb—who just landed the local veterinarian, probably the last most-eligible man in town—was talking to her.

  “Oh, yeah,” Jennifer said, hoping to inflict an air of distraction into her voice. “I’ll catch up with him if I can spare the time.”

  “Honey, you spend way too much time at that paper,” Barb said.

  “You know how Mercy Ridge is,” she s
aid. “Busy, busy, busy.”

  Chad, to his credit, snorted.

  It was no secret that Jennifer rode herd over the two other reporters as Chief—and only—Editor at the Mercy Ridge Crier. It was also an easy job. Outside of the various church happenings, school events, and birth, death, and wedding notices, there wasn’t much to the paper. The Crier, however, was a local institution that everyone bought and read, which allowed it to survive while so many other media conglomerate-owned newspapers were going under.

  “Well, you know I have to get out all the lurid news coming out of the Saddle-Up.” Jennifer grinned across at Barb who looked like she was about to choke on her glass of milk.

  “Lies! Damned lies!” Barb shot back in mock indignation as the two men at the table laughed.

  “Seriously though, I really do have to go.” Jennifer slid out of the booth and fished a ten out of her purse. “Chad, would you mind putting mine on yours?”

  “No problem. I’ll add the change to the tip,” he said.

  A few minutes later she was in her old Honda on the way to work. Almost unconsciously she found herself slowing down as she drove past Leroy’s. There was no mistaking the long legs and rear in dirty jeans that bent over the open hood of a rusty pickup truck. Jennifer fought down the sudden urge to confront him, to find out why. With tightly pursed lips she drove on. The past needed to stay in the past.

  Work was the usual rush to get everything finalized and into the clunky old layout software, which meant that her workday was done slightly after lunch. Jennifer spent the rest of the day as she normally did, checking out some of her favorite websites. She looked up from her desk to observe the other two reporters. Claire was playing solitaire and Marcy was looking at some celebrity gossip site. The next edition was set to go to press and there was nothing on the town’s social calendar so she didn’t mind if there was some goofing off going on. Lord knows the paper didn’t pay enough for them to bust their butts so there had to be some small perks here and there.

  When Jennifer and Marcy got ready to go home, Claire claimed she still had some work to do. Jennifer grinned. More than once when she came in early to work, she found Claire’s computer still logged onto one of those online dating sites. Her humor evaporated when she turned the key in her car’s ignition and it didn’t do anything other than emit a mechanical groaning noise. After the third twist with no better result, she let out a groan of frustration. She really couldn’t afford an expensive repair bill right now.

  “I already called,” Claire called out as Jennifer came back into the paper’s office.

  “How’d you—” Jennifer began.

  “I could hear the death rattle from here. This isn’t the first time that old thing has broken down on you at work,” Claire said. “You really ought to get a new one.”

  “Yeah, soon as I win the lottery,” Jennifer replied and flopped down in one of the cheap plastic chairs in the lobby to wait for her tow.

  Jennifer was already through the door and out into the parking lot before she noticed the word “Leroy’s” on the side of the truck or the familiar brown flyaway hair on the driver. A brick, that felt like it weighed the same as Mount Elbert, quickly formed in her stomach.

  She watched him pause as he stepped down from the truck. Even in his grease-stained T-shirt and dirty pants he looked sexy. His arms had gotten bigger, more muscular, and the shirt formed nicely enough to prove that his arms weren’t alone in attention spent on them. It might be her imagination but Jennifer could swear that those brown eyes she adored so much took a moment to look her over.

  “Hi,” he said with a grin that threatened to melt her on the spot.

  “Um...hi,” Jennifer managed before she gained control. “It won’t start.”

  “All right,” he said. “Pop the hood and let me take a look.”

  The solid weight of the car door between the two of them allowed Jennifer to feel a bit better protected from his manliness and the upraised hood blocked him from her sight. It didn’t do a thing for her suddenly out of control hormones.

  “You work here at the paper?” he called out.

  “I’m the editor,” she said. “Any idea what’s wrong with it?”

  “I’m good but not that good,” he joked. “Get in and try to crank it for me.”

  Once again her engine failed to start and she stepped out of her car.

  “Sounds like it might be your ignition but I’m pretty sure it isn’t anything I’ll be able to fix here on the spot.”

  “Great,” Jennifer moaned.

  “Happens to the best of us,” he remarked. “Give you a lift home?”

  “What?” she asked, caught unprepared for the question.

  “A ride home, like old times? You won’t get far in those heels.”

  “Don’t you have to get the truck back?” She tried to avoid the opportunity while noting that he’d paid attention to her shoes.

  “Sure, but I can drop you off and come back here for your car. Nothing will get done on it until tomorrow morning anyway.”

  Jennifer hesitated.

  “Oh, come on, Jen! This is me we’re talking about. I’m not some kind of creep.”

  Her emotions trembled at the familiar use of her name. He remembered. Jennifer aped his own lightness. “Fine, but, if you try to get fresh with me, they’ll never find the body,” she joked to cover up the flutters in her stomach.

  “Duly noted, Miss Defoe. It is still Miss, right?” he asked as she sat down in the cab. She saw his eyes take in her legs and she cursed her skirt that rode up when she sat down.

  “It is,” she said and decided to take control of the twenty questions game. “What brings you back? I though you wanted out of here for good?”

  She watched a torrent of emotions flit across his face before he managed to get himself centered. “I needed to find myself.” His voice held a flatness that helped to telegraph to her that there was far more to it than he let on.

  Jennifer fell quiet hoping that he’d elaborate more but he lapsed into silence as he drove and she gave instructions. “Have a good evening” was all he said as she hopped out at the driveway to her home. She glanced back when she reached her door to see him raise his head from the steering wheel before he drove away.

  Her usual evening of whatever leftovers were in the fridge and TV was now completely shot. Why was Mike being so evasive? What’d he have to hide? His mistake. There wasn’t anything that got her girl reporter instincts going more than someone trying to cover something up. She had an Internet connection and wasn’t afraid to use it but...why did she care? He made his lack of interest in her clear years ago. With a growl of frustration, she passed on booting up her laptop and reached for the television remote. It was none of her dang business.

  Jennifer had just finished checking her “to do” list on her phone over her first cup of morning coffee. She was about to call Marcy and bum a ride when the blare of a horn outside interrupted her. She looked out the window and was surprised to see Leroy’s tow truck idling in front of her driveway. Jennifer stepped out on her front porch.

  “C’mon slowpoke! I even cleaned out the floorboard for you!” Mike shouted from the cab.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” she yelled back.

  “Offering you a ride to work, just another service provided by Leroy’s Body and Paint.”

  Jennifer gripped the porch railing. She wasn’t sure if she could handle another ride in close proximity to Mike. “I’ve got a ride coming,” she lied.

  He held up a paper bag. “Complimentary sausage biscuits.”

  Her stomach betrayed her. It was only fifteen minutes to her job. Surely she could avoid any meaningful talk for that short of a drive. A woman can’t live on coffee alone, she reminded herself. “Fine,” she said with an exasperated sigh. “Let me get my things.”

  Mike obviously made an effort to clean up the truck. The rubber floor mats were largely free of dirt and any trash had been disposed of or tossed beh
ind the seats. The tree-shaped air freshener on the rear view mirror even looked new. Jennifer put her laptop bag against her knees as Mike handed her a warm biscuit wrapped in greasy wax paper.

  “You look ready to take on the world today,” he said. Jennifer did a quick check on her choices for the day and realized she’d dressed a bit more formally than usual, in a knee-length skirt, jacket, and a button-up blouse. She didn’t even remember taking the outfit out of her closet last night. Well, it at least didn’t offer Mike any encouragement to look. A suit of armor against his charm. Charm she was finding out still worked after all this time.

  She unwrapped the paper and bit into the buttery biscuit. If she ate, she wouldn’t have to talk. It still didn’t help her against his looks. He looked sexy enough yesterday all dirty but the boy cleaned up nice. He’d shaved and she could see his strong jaw and cheekbones. She could smell the mint-scented shampoo he used on his hair and it, in combination, with whatever he used as an aftershave, smelled good. The tight-fitting shirt and jeans wouldn’t survive the grime of his day but she could still appreciate how he filled them out.

  Jennifer realized he was looking at her as though waiting for a response. “Huh?” she asked and mentally kicked herself for getting distracted and behaving like a dolt.

  “I said ‘good morning’.” He grinned. “That’s all right, I’m not much of a morning person either. I’m more used to working nights, and still getting used to this crack of dawn thing.”

  “You were on a ship right?” Jennifer asked.

  “Yeah, the Ronald Reagan, an aircraft carrier. I...well, those days are probably behind me.”

  “Probably?” So much for avoiding conversation when he was offering up information so readily.

  He laughed. “Leave it to you to catch my words. I’m at the end of my initial enlistment and I’m using some R&R time. I need to decide if I’m going to re-up or not.”

  “Wait,” Jennifer said. “Let me get this straight. You’re spending your vacation time here, in Mercy Ridge, fixing cars? Did you get dropped on your head or something?”

  Mike frowned and looked out the window. He didn’t speak again until they pulled up in the Crier’s parking lot. “Here we are,” was his only comment. He drove away without another word leaving Jennifer to wonder what she said to bring on such an attitude.