White Trash Witch (2 page)

The whole place had a warm, welcoming feeling to it.
He chose a seat in the center of the room, and sat down, studying
the staff and patrons.

Two young, giggling women rushed in the front door,
and raced to the back, disappearing behind the kitchen door. The
middle aged woman at the cash stood there shaking her head at their
apparent tardiness. Moments later the women returned, wearing
sailor's hats and aprons.

"Sorry, Diana. That train! One of these days I'm
going to beat it, and be here on time, I promise!" said the
beautiful blonde.

Her delicate skin was white and splattered with
freckles that made her look impish and mischievous. She had deep
green eyes, and her face was oval shaped, her chin pointed. A
beauty mark rested on the right side of mouth. She had lips that
drew the eye. Kissable. That's how he would describe them.

Ryder shied away from even talking to her, unwilling
to speak to a beautiful woman. He wanted a real woman who would be
happy with a bald, unattractive man, who had little money to his
name.

Her friend had large, brown, innocent looking eyes,
and a heart-shaped face. She was about six inches shorter than the
blonde, standing a few inches above five-feet tall. Her hair was
blonde with black and red streaks that marked her as an individual
with a streak of rebellion.

To his dismay, the blonde was the one who drew his
eyes. He watched as she took a deep breath, and pulled out her pad
of paper and pencil. She smiled at the older woman, and then walked
over to him.

"Hello. Welcome to the S.O.B.," she said,
grinning.

"The what?" he asked, surprised at her strange
welcome.

"Salem On Buy," she said releasing an adorable
giggle. "Can I take your order?"

"Oh, ah, what do you recommend?" he asked, finding it
difficult to talk to her with her mischievous gaze focused on
his.

"Well, we have Salisbury steak on special,” lowered
her voice. “But I wouldn't order it. It's tough," she said under
her breath.

"How's the fish?"

"Good, if you like eating socks," she muttered.

"Hamburger?" Though he fought a grin, he was
unsuccessful.

"Not bad, but stay away from the special sauce," she
mumbled.

"Okay, then how about a cheeseburger, hold the
sauce."

"Good choice," she said, winking at him. "What would
you like to drink?"

"How about a beer?"

"Can't say much bad about beer," she said quietly,
laughing. "Coming right up."

Waltzing off to the kitchen, she stopped beside the
older woman.

"Still mad at me?" she asked with a wide grin on her
face, hugging the woman’s shoulder tight.

"Oh, go on with you," the woman growled, and then
grinned when the young woman left the room.

Chuckling, Ryder sat back and picked up a local
newspaper that was lying on the table. As soon as he lifted it up,
the men who were tailing him entered the restaurant. It was obvious
that they weren't focused on looking for him, though he did see
them study the clientele.

They sat three tables away, mumbling at first, and
then relaxing. Picking up their menus, they fell silent.

The waitress came back to the table. Ryder made note
of her nametag. Wiley, that suits her. Then he had an idea that he
hoped would work, since she was outrageous enough, he thought that
she'd be game to his plan.

"Thank you, Wiley," he said when she put his beer
down. Leaning closer, he said, "Did you notice those two men," he
said, nodding toward them.

She nodded, glancing over at them. "What about
them?"

"Well, the one guy looks like that bank robber the
police are looking for. Apparently, he belted a woman and shoved
her down when he stole money from a bank in Toronto. Did you see it
in the paper?"

"No," she whispered, her eyes filled with concern. "I
don't read the paper."

"Maybe we should call the cops?" he whispered,
relieved that she wouldn't know who he was.

Narrowing her eyes, she murmured, "Hurt a defenseless
woman, eh?"

"So I heard," he said quietly.

"No problem. I can take care of this."

Wiley walked over to her friend and whispered quickly
what she'd found out. Her friend's eyes widened, and she shook her
head. Wiley whispered again, and then nodded. Shaking her head, the
woman gave in and went to speak with the older lady, who groaned
and put her hand over her eyes. She picked up the phone and called
someone.

After loading up her tray with pie slices and ice
cream sundaes, loaded with whipped cream and sauce, she lifted it
up and walked toward the men, winking at Ryder on the way.

He bit back a smile and pretended to read the
paper.

A shout and a loud crash brought the restaurant to a
halt as all eyes flew to the two men who were now covered head to
toe in desserts.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I just don't know what happened. I
think I slipped on something," Wiley cried, holding her hand over
her mouth.

"You crazy witch! Look what you did!" one man
shouted.

"Brad, keep it down. It was an accident!"

"Like hell it was!" he cried, his expression
murderous.

"Well, I like that! Here I go and apologize to you,
and you yell at me," Wiley cried, dropping the tray and covering
her face.

"Stop that blubbering, and get something to clean up
this mess!" he yelled.

"Brad! Get a hold of yourself," his friend cried,
standing there dripping chocolate sauce.

Brad wiped at his face and hair, shaking with
fury.

Wiley's eyes must have given her away because he
suddenly lunged, grabbing her arms and shaking her.

Ryder raced over, and shoved the man away.

"Get your hands off of her. How dare you attack this
poor woman! I heard her apologize to you, now back off!" he
shouted, furious that the man had dared to lay a hand on her.

"Listen here, little man. You'd better mind your own
damn business or I'll..."

"Or you'll what?" came a voice from the doorway.

"I'll…nothing. There's no problem here," Brad said,
stepping back as the new arrival stepped into the room.

A tall, good looking cop entered the restaurant.

"What is it this time, Wiley?" he asked.

"I tripped, and he started screaming at me," she
said, moving backwards.

"I saw him grab her arms, and shake her. It was just
like she said, an accident," Ryder said, stepping forward.

Eyes narrowed, the cop looked at Brad. "I guess that
means that you're are coming with me. Damn, I just cleaned the car
out," he said, shaking his head as he noted the mess of ice cream,
syrup, and pies on the men.

After giving Wiley and assessing gaze, he cuffed the
man and led him out of the restaurant, his friend following.

"Wiley, you get that mess cleaned up. Nat can pick up
your orders."

"Sure, Diana. No problem." She winked at Ryder.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

"Sure. Happens all the time," she said,
chuckling.

"Did he hurt you?"

"Maybe a bruise or two. Nothing serious," she said,
shrugging. "I have to get a cloth and the mop. Nat will serve your
meal."

"I didn't mean to get you in trouble, Wiley. I
thought you'd simply call the police."

"What's your name?"

"It's D…Ryder."

"Well, Mr. D…Ryder, everything is just fine."

"Just call me Ryder."

"Okay, Ryder," she said and went into the kitchen for
a few minutes, coming back out with a mop, a pail, and a few cloths
to wipe the table.

Smiling at him as she passed by, Wiley began cleaning
up the mess, humming while she worked. He watched her, eating his
dinner slowly. She fascinated him, though he wasn't sure why.

Finally, she lifted the large tray filled with globs
of cream, and started back toward the kitchen. When she grinned at
him, she slipped and the tray flew up but somehow righted itself
without spilling a drop. She continued walking to the kitchen
without missing a beat.

That was the moment that he realized that Wiley was a
witch!

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The next morning Ryder lay in bed staring at the
ceiling. He had nowhere to go, and nothing to do. The sense of
freedom was like ambrosia to him after ten years of building his
business, working from dawn ‘til dusk. For some reason he couldn't
get Wiley out of his mind.

After marrying Lisa, the conniving, money grubbing
wench, he had parted with a good chunk of his fortune to pay her
off in alimony. Since they'd had no children, he'd offered her a
lump sum and closed the deal, washing her out of his life. After
that, he remained wary of women, protecting his fortune, and his
heart equally.

Wiley was beautiful, smart, and funny, which in his
eyes was a dangerous combination. He thought it best that he
steered clear of her for the duration of his stay, and stay he
would, though not because of her, he assured himself.

"Watch the timing, Zan. It has to be just right,"
Serafina said and wiggled her finger, grinning."

"I'm watching. This is so much fun!" Zan said as
events unfolded.

Nigel appeared, his expression furious.

"What are you two doing with Ryder?"

Zan smiled. "I won't tell you a thing so you might as
well give up and move onto your next victim."

"Seraphina will, won't you, sweetheart?"

Nigel appeared to be sure of his conquest. Seraphina
seldom kept her thoughts to herself.

"For once, I'm not talking. You can't stop us either,
Nigel."

His grin widened. "You’re afraid that I'll win this
time."

"You can't possibly stop us from making them fall in
love," she snapped, realizing her mistake right away. "Darn it all,
Nigel, you back off."

He laughed then disappeared. He had his answer.

The next morning, Ryder quickly dressed and headed
downstairs for breakfast. He'd decided that he was going to do some
sight-seeing, since it was a tourist area.

As he rounded the corner at the bottom of the stairs,
a body slammed into his chest, knocking the wind out of him.

"Oh!"

Grabbing automatically for her arms to steady her,
Ryder found himself face-to-face with none other than Wiley.

"Hey! It's kismet!" she said, smiling.

"What?"

"Kismet, fate, meant to be, and all that. Things
happen for a reason, Ryder. Good morning," she said, changing the
subject.

"Were you looking for me? Why are you here?" he asked
with a great deal of suspicion, forgetting that his appearance was
altered.

"Just dealing with pastry, and no, I wasn't looking
for you, but I found you anyway."

"Really?"

"Ah, yeah, I do it every day. Only the best for their
guests. I have to go. It was nice seeing you again."

"Yeah, you, too. Bye," he said, watching her waltz
out the house, the screen door closing behind her with a loud
thump.

"Good morning, Ryder. I see you ran into Wiley. She's
quite a girl, if a little clumsy," Jeffrey said, smiling.
"Breakfast is served if you'd care to join us in the dining room.
You have good timing."

"Great. I'll be right there," he said, still staring
after Wiley.

"She's reeled in another one. He's completely
smitten," Jeffrey murmured to Walter, grinning.

"She has a way about her, there's no doubt. Sweetest
girl I've ever met," Walter said, pouring a cup of coffee.

"I wonder if he'll get his heart broken like the rest
of them. She seems to collect them since her marriage failed. She
won't commit to anyone." Jeffrey sighed, serving himself a
pastry.

"Victor Gillman will have a fit if he finds another
one drooling over her. He's had her pegged as his for years, yet
she keeps refusing him."

"Victor has no right to run off prospective dates for
her, but he refuses to take no for an answer. She could care less
that he's a very large, extremely gorgeous cop. Her ex was handsome
and look what that got her."

Sighing, Walter said, "She could do worse than
Victor. At least he's kind to her."

"I'd like to see her with someone like Ryder. He's a
nice man. She said he tried to protect her when the two ruffians
gave her a hard time."

The object of their conversation walked into the
room.

Ryder smiled at his hosts.

"Good morning. Wow, something smells good."

"Help yourself to a coffee and whatever interests you
at the food bar. Wiley just brought the pastries, and they're still
warm from the oven," Jeffrey said, studying Ryder.

After pouring his coffee and selecting a blueberry
Danish, Ryder sat down and took a bite, closing his eyes in bliss
as the fluffy, light delicacy danced on his tongue.

"That is the tastiest pastry I've ever eaten. I could
die and go to heaven right now," Ryder said, smiling.

Walter chuckled.

"You are not the first to say so. Wiley is a great
cook. It's her recipe."

"Wiley is amazing." Ryder murmured.

"Yes. Diana lets her use the kitchen to bake goods to
sell to us, and a few local businesses. She's quite an
entrepreneur," Walter said.

"I'm impressed—Oh, I wanted to do some sight-seeing.
Can you recommend a few places?"

Sure we can, but I can do one better. Why don't you
ask Wiley to take you? She knows every tourist attraction we have.
She often takes guests on tours. That's her other side job,"
Jeffrey said.

"She is a waitress, has her own pastry business, and
takes out tours? When does she have time to breathe?" he joked.

"Wiley is an amazing woman."

"Really? One would think so." Ryder became distracted
as he thought about her.

It appeared that he was going to have to be with
Wiley, and watch his heart. As sweet as the Danishes she made,
she'd be trouble with a capitol 'T', in the love department. Ryder
braced himself, hoping he could keep his love life empty.