The alarm jolts me out of a very deep sleep and I slap it into submission. I slide out of bed, bleary-eyed, desperately needing coffee, and stagger to the kitchen.

And then I get shocked wide awake.

Beckett!

And here I am in my bra and panties, having forgotten he’s staying here.

“Oh my God!” I turn and run back to my bedroom, grab a bathrobe and quickly put it on. One look in the mirror shows my face matches a tomato. I take a deep breath and head back to the kitchen.

Beckett slides an empty coffee cup in my direction. “Good morning.”

“Beckett, I completely forgot you’re here. I’m so sorry you had to see me like that.”

“I’m not.” He shoots me a grin.

“Very funny.”

“I wasn’t trying to be. I believe in brutal honesty, don’t you?”

“Can we change the subject?”

“No, this is too much fun. I had no idea mornings could be so enjoyable.”

“What are you doing up before me?”

“I have a lot to do. Grand opening is in two days, remember?” He grabs the coffee pot. “I assume you’d like a cup. I made a pot. Hope it’s to your liking since tea is my specialty.”

“I’m sure it’s fine.” He pours me a cup, I add cream and sugar, then take a sip. “It’s perfect. Maybe I need a pot in my bedroom so I’ll be awake before parading around in my underwear.”

“In that case, I forbid you to put one in your bedroom.”

“I’m glad you’re enjoying this so much. But it’s nice to see you smile.”

“By the way, I seem to have misplaced my wristwatch. I could swear I placed it on the dresser, but I can’t find it.”

“Have you checked Gypsy’s bed?”

“Why would I look there?”

“Because she steals stuff. That’s why I named her Gypsy. C’mon.” We head down the hall to Gypsy’s bed which is placed next to a heating vent, and sure enough, there’s Beckett’s watch. I pick it up and hand it to him. “You need to lock up the important stuff. She’s a furry little klepto. If I didn’t check her bed every day she’d be able to open a jewelry store.”

***

I HEAD ACROSS THE STREET after the lunch rush to see how things are going and find Beckett and his sister busy hanging a menu board. “Looks like you’re about ready to go.”

They finish hanging the sign and Beckett helps his sister down from the step stool. “Almost. A lot of little things still to take care of. We could probably open tomorrow if we wanted to. But we’ve already promoted a specific day.”

“Yeah, and I need a good day of rest,” adds Charlotte. “We both do. Besides, without any extra help we’ll be exhausted by the end of the week.”

Beckett gestures toward a table. “You two have a seat and I’ll make some tea.”

I grab a chair and sit down. “You’re going to run this place by yourselves?”

Charlotte sits next to me and nods. “For now. We don’t have any money to hire anyone. When I said we lost everything, I wasn’t kidding. We really need this place to take off quickly.”

I think for a minute, considering the hours they’re open compared to the deli. “Tell you what, I can spare my brother a couple hours in the afternoon. He’s a great baker. I’ll send him over so you can teach him about scones. I’m sure he’d be happy to help and he’s been asking about scones anyway.”

“That would be wonderful, A.J.”

“And I’ve got a teenage cousin who’s in the doghouse with her parents and they’ve been working her to death around the house. She needs a major attitude adjustment and could work for you washing dishes. That would get her head on straight.”

“Thank you, that would help.” She suddenly looks over her shoulder, then turns back to me and lowers her voice. “I have to tell you something.”

“What?”

“You must swear to never tell my brother I told you this.”

“Hey, I’m a vault. What is it?”

“Well...” she bites her lower lip and her eyebrows do a little jump. “You certainly impressed my brother this morning.”

“Hey, happy to make him breakfast—”

“I’m talking about your... attire... when you first got up.”

I roll my eyes. “Yeah, talk about embarrassing.”

“Well, you certainly got his attention.” She looks over her shoulder again. “He said, and I quote, I had no idea that a woman who is always buttoned up with such class has a truly amazing body.”

My eyes widen a bit as I keep an eye on the kitchen. “Oh, really. He said that?”

“He did. He added that you could put a twenty year old swimsuit model to shame. My brother has always considered you to be attractive, but let’s just say your stock went up considerably in the physical attraction department.”

“Good to know. And I’m very attracted to him as well.” And maybe I won’t have to deal with a ghost forever...

“Of course, your stock was already pretty high. He’s not only attracted to you, he admires you a great deal, A.J.”

“The feeling is mutual.”

She reaches over and takes my hand. “Seriously, what you’re doing for us speaks volumes about your character. I certainly hope—” She stops as we hear footsteps.

Beckett arrives with a teapot and pours three cups. “Are you two ladies plotting against me?”

His sister pats him on the shoulder. “But of course. Oh, some good news. A.J. is going to send some extra kitchen help to get us started. Her brother and cousin.”

“How wonderful. We can certainly use it. Thank you so much.”

“You’re very welcome. Speaking of keeping you two out of the kitchen and out front, that will really help sales.”

He furrows his brow. “Not sure I understand.”

“Look, Americans can’t resist a British accent and the charm that goes with it. It will be part of the whole experience. It wouldn’t be the same if you had a waitress who sounded like me taking orders. So, youse guys wanna scone or what?”

They both laugh. “I suppose you may be right,” he says.

“And one more thing. Beckett, you need to wait on the women while Charlotte takes care of the men.”

Charlotte shrugs. “What difference does it make?”

“What difference does it make? Beckett, you’re cute as hell. And Charlotte, you’re stunning.”

She blushes a bit. “I’m nothing special.”

“You should have seen the men in the restaurant when we had lunch. Girl, you can stop time.”

Beckett nods. “I’ve always told her she’s beautiful, but she says I’m biased. The best thing about my sister is that she actually has no clue how gorgeous she is.”

She blushes a bit and playfully slaps his shoulder. “Stop it, you’re embarrassing me.”

I take a sip of tea. “Hey, it’s true. You’d better pad the walls in this place because men will be walking into them once they get a look at you. Anyway, Beckett, it’s like the time you took me to the dinner theater. The actors who were waiting tables added to the experience a great deal. It wouldn’t have been as much fun for us with a regular waitress. It’s the same principle here. People will feel like they’re actually across the pond.”

He slowly nods. “I hadn’t thought about that. Being served British fare by actual Brits does lend the food credibility.”

“The hell with credibility. When you guys are together, you two look like the top of a wedding cake. Trust me, customers will love you guys. Oh, one more thing. I think you guys should open at noon instead of one. You’ll get some of my lunch customers wanting dessert and they might come over here.”

Beckett furrows his brow. “But you sell plenty of desserts in your deli.”

“They might not want Italian pastry.”

He slowly nods and smiles. “You’re not fooling anyone. I see what you’re doing.”

“What?”

“You’re going to send your customers over here.”

“I said no such thing. Hey, if someone gets a sweet tooth after lunch and wants something different than what I’ve got, why not have your doors open?”

Charlotte turns to her brother. “You’re right about her, Beckett. She is quite the accomplished liar.”

***

IT’S SEVEN O’CLOCK and I keep peeking out the window, waiting for Beckett to come home for dinner.

Wait, did I just say that?

Fine, you got me.

I also wish it was ninety degrees and the air conditioner was broken, so I could “impress” him a bit more with a crop top and cutoffs.

Alas, I must play it cool and let things be his decision.

But what Charlotte told me does sound promising.

I suddenly hear him walking up the stairs and head to the door to open it for him.

His face is drawn. “You look beat.”

“I am, but everything is done.”

“Good, you can rest tomorrow and be fresh for the grand opening. Hungry?”

“Starving.”

I open the oven and pull out a foil covered plate of pasta. “I kept dinner warm for you.”

“You’re amazing. You talk about us being butlers for Gypsy, and I feel like you’ve been waiting on me hand and foot.”

“Trust me, I’ll find a way for you to repay me.”