Free What's Cooking? by Sherryl Woods

talking Northern Neck time here. The world's a little more laid-back than what you're probably used to." He gave Rick's shoulder a squeeze. "See you around. Try not to tick off Maggie. It'll have a ripple effect and land on me."
    Rick chuckled, but Mike's expression remained somber.
    "Not joking, pal. Trust me on this. The D'Angelo sisters stick together. It can be a bit daunting."
    "I'll keep that in mind," Rick promised.
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    "By the way," Mike added, "next time you come in here, you might prefer to avoid me if you're actually interested in eating. The owner?Brenda Chatham?has never quite forgiven me for marrying Melanie, so the service I get usually sucks."
    Sure enough, as soon as he and Jeff were gone, the elusive Brenda finally appeared. By then, though, his conversation with Mike and Jeff had cost Rick his appetite. He ordered coffee.
    She regarded him with disappointment. "Sure I can't get you anything else? The waffles are the best around."
    He shook his head. "I don't think so. And, come to think of it, make the coffee to go."
    He needed to hit the road and clear his head. The few minutes he'd spent with Mike and Jeff had been entirely too disconcerting. Rick had the uneasy feeling he'd just stumbled into a gigantic spider's web, and it was already tightening around him.
    Maggie was getting antsy. It was close to noon, and there had been no sign of Rick yet. She was doing precisely what she'd vowed not to do. She was obsessing over the man.
    To avoid falling into that trap, she grabbed her purse and headed for the door, only to run smack into her sister.
    "Going someplace?" Melanie asked. She seemed disgustingly cheerful this morning.
    "Out," Maggie said tightly. She was in no mood for a continuance of last night's cross-examination.
    "Where? If you're going to lunch, I'll join you."
    "I'm not going to lunch," Maggie said.
    Melanie gave her a sharp look. "Maybe you should.
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    Your blood sugar seems to be a little low. You're cranky."
    "Thanks for the observation, but my blood sugar's just fine."
    Her sister chuckled. "Then it must be Rick. Has he done something to upset you?"
    "Of course not."
    "Oh, I thought maybe you were starting to worry that he'd taken off," Melanie said mildly. "And if that was worrying you, I could put your mind at ease."
    Maggie scowled at her. "Oh?" she asked as if it didn't matter.
    "Mike saw him this morning."
    "Where?" she asked a little too eagerly, spoiling the whole indifferent effect she'd been going for.
    Melanie's expression turned triumphant. "Then it is Rick that has you in such a foul mood," she concluded. "Mike saw him at the diner. Rick joined him and Jeff for a bit."
    "What time was that?"
    "Seven-thirty or eight, I imagine. I didn't ask for a timetable."
    That was hours ago, Maggie realized. It didn't tell her a blessed thing about where Rick was now. It shouldn't matter, dammit, but apparently it did.
    "Where the hell is he now?" She didn't realize she'd spoken aloud until she saw the worried expression on Melanie's face. "Pretend you didn't hear me say that," she pleaded.
    "Did the two of you have plans this morning?" Melanie asked, sounding as if she would willingly gear up for battle if Maggie had been stood up.
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    "No, not exactly," Maggie moaned. "I'm being absurd, aren't I? This is precisely why I can't get involved with Rick Flannery. I start to fall for a man, and the next thing you know, he's all I think about. I obsess and ruin everything."
    "Then every time you start to obsess, do something else," her sister advised. "Rick's not going anywhere, Maggie. I meant what I said last night. It's obvious he's fascinated by you. Ashley thought the same thing. Otherwise I'd be over here helping you try to run him off."
    As much as she wanted to believe her sisters, Maggie wasn't so sure. She fully expected Rick to tire of her, to tire of the rules she'd laid down. He'd tired of more sophisticated women. Maybe with her it had just happened sooner