This is the conclusion to yesterday’s post. Taking a Detour
Amanda tried to see if someone was sitting in the brown Chevy Cruze, but couldn’t see through the tinted windows. She decided that she was just going to try to act like normal. Surely no one would try anything in broad daylight in the middle of town. Trying to be braver than she felt, she started walking towards the florist shop.
Mason decided to walk down to Tippner’s bike shop while he was on his break. He could use a new bike and a new helmet. The air was a little brisk, but it felt good to get outside. He walked down the sidewalk thinking of bikes and on whether or not he was going to ask Sarah out for dinner some night. Perhaps he would swing by the flower shop too, if he had time. Oh, what was he doing, did he really want a woman to complicate his life? She really was nice though, and according to Cara, she was interested in him. Who could blame her, he thought. He laughed. He had said that to Cara when she told him and she said nothing, just rolled her eyes. The next day, the old Country station that he listened to played the song, “Hard to be Humble”, and he turned it up as he sang along. There were no customers to hear him, for they were closed, so he could sing as loudly as he wanted.
Tippner’s bike shop was just a few steps away, and Mason was about to walk in when he noticed something. That looked like Amanda ahead of him, but who was the guy with her? She had been alone when she came into the coffee shop earlier and she hadn’t mentioned being with anyone. The guy had a hold of her arm and something didn’t seem right to Mason, as he walked towards them.
“Hi Amanda! Where are you headed?” Mason said, as he walked up behind her.
Amanda and the man turned around. The man didn’t look too happy, but Mason was more concerned about how Amanda looked. Her face was ashen. This was not the same girl who had been smiling and laughing earlier in his coffee shop. Something was wrong.
“We are just taking a nice walk, thought I would show my friend around. ” Amanda replied.
Showing her friend around, thought Mason, she just arrived here, she doesn’t know her way around. He could see the pleading look in Amanda’s eyes and he knew he had to think fast!
“Well enjoy, I best be getting back to work”, said Mason and he turned around.
He waited a few moments and then turned back around and attacked the man with Amanda. Catching him by surprise, he gave him a karate kick and the man fell to his knees. Mason gave him a blow to the jaw and the man fell backwards knocking himself out.
Amanda stood there with her mouth agape and then she gave Mason a hug. “Thank you so much! I was so scared!”
A small crowd had gathered around them and some of them were patting Mason on the back and others were wondering what was going on.
Tippner had seen everything and was shaking his head. “I never realized that you knew karate! I am impressed.”
The town of Bittersweet Creek was soon filled with police as the story came out of who this man was. Amanda had to go down to the station and tell everything she knew, and she turned over the packages that were in her car. Derek had been involved in smuggling rare jewels and very expensive antiques into several other countries. The jewels were hidden in toys, the most popular toy that Derek used was the Mr. Potato Head, take him apart and the jewels were inside.
Derek had become suspicious of Amanda and that’s why he wanted his one client to follow her. He had put a tracking device in her car.
Amanda was too tired to go home, by the time everything was finished with the police, so Sarah invited her to spend the night at her house. Amanda was so grateful as she sat on Sarah’s couch relaxing with some tea. When they at last said goodnight, Sarah wondered if Mason’s ears were itching, for his name had come up a lot in their conversation. Sarah went to bed with a smile on her face.
Tippner, Fuzzywhistle and Mason were at Mason’s house talking about the events of the day.
“This is the most excitement that this town has seen in awhile!” said Tippner.
“Who knew that you would become known as the Hero of the day!”
Mason shook his head. “I knew I had to do something!”
“Well I would say that you will have all the ladies of this town lined up at your shop tomorrow and it won’t be to just buy coffee!” Tippner said with a chuckle.
Mason smiled at the thought of Sarah being jealous, if a line of women really did show up at the coffee shop tomorrow. Perhaps this could work to his advantage, he started thinking and thought of a great idea. He would tell Cara tomorrow and let her organize it. Later he went to bed that night with a smug smile on his face, looking forward to the days ahead.
The day had finally come, this was going to be good thought Mason. Tippner had told him that he was a genius for the idea that he had.
A week ago he had told Cara about his idea. He thought she should have a contest for all the ladies. The prize would be a date with him. At first she had told him he was crazy but later that day she came back to him saying she thought she could pull it off. As Tippner had said, there were several ladies in the coffee shop the day after Mason had saved Amanda. Some had left their phone numbers on slips of paper for him, and others were bold enough to ask him straight out for a date. Mason was floating high and Cara was afraid his head may explode from being so puffed up.
Sunday afternoon the town was abuzz, all the ladies were so excited about the contest. Mason was too, though he still didn’t know yet what kind of contest it would be, he just knew that the prize was a date with him! What better prize could there be, he thought.
Sarah and Cara were huddled together laughing as they watched Mason shaking all the ladies hands that were lined up and flashing them his charming smile.
“Look at him strutting like a proud peacock!” Sarah said.
“Oh yes! He is in his glory. If he only knew!” Cara said, and they both laughed again.
AT 2pm they walked over to Mason and the ladies. They were in the park in the center of the town and lots of townspeople had come out to watch, for the contest was the talk of the town. There was something in the middle of the park, with a big tarp over it. No one except Sara and Cara knew what was under it. Now it was time for the big reveal!
“May I have your attention everyone!” said Cara as she stood in front of the tarp. “Thank you all for coming out today to this big event. A fun contest to win a date for our charming hero of Bittersweet Creek!” Cheers went up from the crowd.
Cara and Sarah pulled off the tarp and everyone started laughing as it dawned on them what the contest would be.
“Line up ladies and get your arms ready to throw! Hit the target and give our hero a little swim! You get 3 tries and if you send him for a swim you get a date. Mason, everyone is waiting, climb up the ladder and take a seat on the chair please.” Sarah said, with a twinkle in her eye.
Mason looked at Cara and she gave him a wink, “Good idea, eh, look at all these ladies lined up for you!”
They knew they had him, he couldn’t back out and let the whole line of ladies disappointed. Knowing he would be a good sport they laughed at the look on his face, and Sarah was beaming, as she got in line.
If Sarah had just done her job and not tried to elude the brown Cruze, she’d still be making big bucks, and everything would be okay. What a doolally, to mess up a gig like that.
And I suspect Picklefoot will have to use his karate skills some more, to fight off all the women who are after him. He’d better go down to Tippner’s bike shop, and buy one of those racing bikes, or he’ll be caught and married very soon.
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Sarah?? Who is the one messing up names now? Haha! 😛
Amanda has a clear conscience now!
Yes, the handsome Picklefoot may need a racing bike for sure! Poor guy! 🙂
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I can’t help it if Sarah changed her name to Amanda. But what kind of clear conscience can she have, after double-crossing her employer? Where is her work ethic?
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Oh gosh! Amanda did not change her name, you doolally! And didn’t you say before that Amanda should give herself up and turn herself into the police. Turn her employer in! Now you want to opposite! …mmm…!!
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Well, now that I know it wasn’t the FBI following her, I realize she was in no danger of going to jail. So she would have been better off to keep doing her job, and making the big bucks.
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Oooh there is no pleasing some people! She was in danger of this guy who Derek had sent after her! Her employer turned against her, I think thats a good reason to turn him in.
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All that guy was going to do was probably give her an employee reprimand, and remind her of the duties of her job. So she might get a Letter of Warning in her file. No big deal.
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I think Derek’s client was planning more than just a verbal reprimand for Amanda. She hadn’t delivered some very important packages!
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Okay, so perhaps he was planning to cut off her pinky finger. Just as a reminder to do her job. So what’s a little finger?
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I am sure glad that Amanda’s fate wasn’t left up to you!
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Right. She put her fate in the hands of the police. I’ll bet that after a few years of investigating, they’ll come knocking on her door, out of the blue, and arrest her. And then it’s off to jail for a few years.
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No, I don’t think so. She may just decide to move to go work at a B&B. Sarah told her about the really nice one that she was at for awhile. She said Lisette would probably be glad to have her. 🙂
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I think she’d be better off moving to Brazil, or some other country where they don’t extradite.
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Ooh I give up! 😜
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Ah, the old smuggle the jewels in Mr. Potato Head trick.🤣
Wow! I was way off. I predicted Derek would turn out to be a good guy.
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Thats right! People think that Mr. Potato head is just an innocent toy! What they don’t know! 🙂
I wasn’t sure how I was going to make Derek be at first. There was part of me that wanted him to be innocent but…. a lot of my characters are good people so sometimes you just have to have someone bad! LOL!
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Stories would be awfully dull without villains. The most interesting characters to me are the multi-layered ones, as that’s how people are in real life.
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You are right! Ooh you would have liked Tonya, she was rather mutli–layered! She used to be Anna. But some villians just have to die and her luck ran out. 🙂
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Sounds like a soap opera. Did she have amnesia? 🤣🤣🤣
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LOL! Oh it did kind of become a soap opera. It got crazy! 😂
No, she didn’t have amnesia, she committed a crime and ran, so she had to change her name to protect herself.
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When Mason heard about the line of women that would be at his coffee shop, his eyes would have lit up dreaming about all of the beautiful profit he would make selling sweetened up coffees to all of these hens.
After being dunked in the tank for the fifth time and resulting in the fifth date, Mason had to strip off his shirt which was thoroughly soaked. At the site of all of the rippling muscles, all of the ladies fainted. Well, all the ladies except for Cara who was far too busy talking to notice any of this. Mason quickly extricated himself from the dunk tank and ran. He purchased as disguise kit from the local novelty shop and set about creating an alternate persona.
The next day, Cara and many others came to the coffee shop wondering where Mason was and who the strange man running his coffee shop was. “I’m Grayson, Mason’s older distinguished brother.” the man with the graying sideburns, mustache, and goatee said. “Mason was called out of town for, umm, a job with the secret service. Yeah, that’s it.” he said. “I agreed to tend his coffee shop until his return.”
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Oooh I….yeah, I have no words! LOL! 😂
But…how long can Mason keep up his disguise?
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He hasn’t figured that out completely but it may involve a a cowbell.
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😶🤚
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🙄 Peacock indeed. Everyone in line should definitely try to dunk him but then refuse to go out with him.
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Haha!! Did you see Jason’s comment on how Mason reacted? 🙂
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I did…I kind of rolled my eyes again. LOL Secret Service…puleez-maybe in HIS dreams. He’s a businessman…nothing more.
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Oh gosh, you are hard! 🙂
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Well, I prefer to think it’s because I’ve seen a few things around the block. 😏
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You have seen the “peacocks” eh? 😉
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It appears I’m a peacock magnet. ☺️
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LOL! Sorry!
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No worries. I’d stand in line to dunk one any day and then use the disguise to avoid a date. Totally worth it! 😈
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😄😄
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Now, I have to defend Mason here. He didn’t want this dating contest. He didn’t want the line of women in his store. This was all Cara’s doing to have fun with him. Mason actually is trying to duck out on all of this and go back to his simple life of a coffee-monger.
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Uh-huh. Just an innocent coffee shop barista, eh. Right. ☕️
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Yeah, he made up the secret agent story to throw people off so he could just be coffee shop guy though now he has to do it as Grayson until he can figure something out.
In spite of women like Sarah nearly throwing themselves at his feet, Mason has been very polite and unassuming. Cara just can’t stand that he is single and she has this uncontrollable urge to get him trapped, er I mean entangled, er I mean involved in a relationship.
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Decaf might be a good choice on your next coffee shop run. 🙂
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You’re going to make me write something to set the record straight I see.
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🤣
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But…but….the record is straight! Mason should be grateful to Cara for lining up all these dates for him! 😄
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Blaming sweet, innocent Cara! She was just munching on popcorn, enjoying the show! 😉
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She set up the show and now everyone blames poor Mason. He may have to rent a billboard near town and have them put up a certain photo that he took.
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Whoa, wait! Mason is too nice a guy for that, remember! 😉
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Yes, he is too nice to do that.
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Thought so but I still sense his wheels turning!
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My wheels are turning now and you, I mean Cara may be in trouble.
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…mmm…!
I am thinking that you, I mean Mason isn’t exactly going to be showering Cara with gratitude for what she did for him?? Its the hair, isn’t it? The dunk tank got that handsome, thick, wavy hair wet ..Oh the poor guy! LOL! Yeah, I am just “digging the hole” deeper now, aren’t I.
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It turns out he is even more attractive when his hair gets all wet.
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Oh Help!
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But wait, so then he should be grateful to Cara! Ha! She made him look even more appealing to all those ladies, its no wonder they fainted. Cara was the only sensible one of course. 🙂
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I sent you a little something silly.
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Replied. Cara just never knows what Mason will do! I will post it Thursday, since that is my sleepy day. Thanks. 🙂
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I think that you’d change your tune after one look from his deep piercing eyes.
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🙄
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Ooooh its getting deep! LOL!
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Mason reminds me of Gaston from Beauty and the Beast; my kind of guy…
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Hahaha!
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But ummm….Gaston didn’t meet a very good end! 🙂
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I’m not sure Mason will either…
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Poor Mason!
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Are suggesting that Mason is eventually elected to congress and is indicted in an insider trading scandal?
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either that or for not following mask-wearing protocols; he seems kind of vain…
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