Fries Before Guys: Cupid's Cafe, #5

By Ashley Lauren

In downtown Berkeley, California there’s a small diner where big things are happening. The locals gossip that at Cupid’s Café love is on the menu… and they would be right!

Katy Cupid has put more than just her heart and soul into her 50’s style diner. She’s also added a bit of her magical touch into spicing up the love lives of her patrons. Katy’s always had a ‘gift’ for knowing who would be perfect together and she just can’t help doing a little matchmaking. From obvious introductions to sly schemes, Katy is always looking to put two hearts together so that they find a sweet romance that blossoms into true love.

In Fries Before Guys, Tammy Kratz has just been on a nightmare date. A regular at Cupid's Cafe, she came in to get some comfort food and advice from Katy. While telling Katy about her date and munching on some fries, Tammy decides it's time to worry more about herself and ignore guys. Her new motto is Fries Before Guys. Katy isn't about to let Tammy give up on love. She knows just the right guy for Tammy and invites her back for the early bird special the next day. 

Jack Ferguson is in trouble. He's a single father with a five-year-old girl who looks like an angel but is all mischief underneath. It's the first day of school, and within an hour he has to pick Dixie up from the principal's office. He decides to take Dixie for a late breakfast at Cupid's Cafe and meets Tammy Kratz. The kindergarten teacher has some special power over Dixie to get her to behave and power over him as well. Can he convince her to give up her new motto?

Each novella in the Cupid's Café series is a complete story and can be read in any order. This is a clean and wholesome romance.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dashland Books
• Release date: Dec 30, 2016
• ISBN: 9781524202415

Ashley Lauren

My motto is Live Your Adventure! I try to abide by that philosophy and live my life to the fullest every second. I've jumped out of planes, flown in the backseat of an F-15, gone to pilot training, been an engineer in the Air Force, studied satellites and radars, live all over the US and in England, and survived the greatest adventure of all, motherhood. Other than my wonderful husband and four beautiful daughters, the highlight of my life was hanging out of the back of a Black Hawk helicopter flying 100ft over the treetops at night.  Writing provides its own kind of adventure where I can mix my life experiences with my own imagination and create whole new worlds. Come step out of your world and into mine to see what adventures I have waiting for you.

Book preview

Chapter 1

What will it be? Katy Cupid asked with a pleasant smile and eyes that twinkled with mischief. Tammy was a regular and always made Katy laugh.

I don’t know... I need some comfort food. I just had the worst date of my life last night, Tammy Kratz answered with a loud sigh. Her usually round and youthful face radiated fatigue.

Oh no, what happened honey? Kathy asked, genuinely concerned. Even though she was the owner of the very successful diner Cupid’s Café, she always made it a priority to treat her customers like family. And Tammy deserved her full attention. You love our fries, right? How about a basket?

Yeah. Fries sound great. Much better than guys.

Tammy gave a halfhearted laugh before sighing again, her mind reeling back to the awful experience that she had to deal with last night. She watched as Katy made her way to the kitchen to give the cooks her order. Tammy smiled, appreciating the cute, 50s themed diner with its faux, blue leather booths and matching stools at the counter. The signs plastered all over the walls were also a fantastic touch but what brought it all together were the vintage Coke machine and jukebox settled in the far corner. Anyone who stepped into Cupid’s felt like they had just traveled back in time and Tammy was no different. I love it here.

After a few minutes, Katy came back with a fresh basket of fries. Careful, they’re hot. She warned as she started to wipe down the countertop. If you feel the need to rant, I’m all ears, honey.

Katy’s green eyes were sincere as her short, black hair framed her face. Just being around Katy and Cupid’s made Tammy feel better, more grounded. And that was just what she needed about now. She needed someone to listen to her plight and reassure her.

Well... it’s sort of a long story. She sat up on her stool and popped a fry into her mouth. Mmm, Katy, these are as excellent as always.

Thanks. You can thank Richard for that. Best fries in town if you ask him.

He just might be right about that... Tammy smiled and nodded again, grabbing another fry and nibbling on its edge. "As I was saying, it was one of the worst dates I’ve ever been on. No, it was the worst. By far. It was awful."

I’m sure it couldn’t have been that bad. Katy stood up and rested a hand on her hip.

Tammy raised an eyebrow at Katy and shoved another fry in her mouth.

It was really that bad? Katy moved around the bar and sat on the stool next to Tammy. What happened?

Well... he said he wanted to take me out to dinner, which was fine. Pretty typical. But, when we got into his car, he started driving like a lunatic. Honestly, I thought I was going to die. I kept clutching my seat, thinking we were going to flip over or something. Then, lo and behold, we got pulled over for speeding. Tammy’s words were quick and clear as she recounted the tale. It was still fresh in her mind as if she had experienced it just moments ago.

Oh no, then what happened? Katy asked.

Then, once the officer ran his license, he found that Mr. Hot Shot had too many outstanding tickets. Apparently, that meant that this ticket was going to be costly. Then, he grabbed the ticket from the police officer and turned to me. I thought he was going to apologize for this whole mess.

Did he? Katy asked, leaning forward.

"Oh, no! This guy had the audacity to blame me and complain that I should have to pay the fine because I was distracting him. I was just making small talk while he flew around the corners or else I would’ve gone insane with fear."

Tammy’s cheeks were getting red. Frustrated, she ran her fingers through her flame red hair and sighed. But that’s not all.

There’s more? Katy put her hand on Tammy’s shoulder.

Yes, Tammy admitted.

Why didn’t you just have him take you home?

Tammy rolled her eyes to the ceiling, staring at the white acoustic tiles wishing that she had asked her jerk of a date to take her home. I really don’t know. I think I was in a state of shock. I just couldn’t believe that he was serious about blaming me for his driving.

I can understand that. Tell me the rest. It will make you feel better to get it all out.

Okay. Tammy took a deep breath. Then, when we got to the restaurant, he tells me that he forgot his credit card and that he couldn’t pay. We had already ordered and went through all that trouble to get there, so I didn’t want to leave. The worst of it was that he had ordered the most expensive item on the menu. All I got was a lousy, wilted salad! Can you believe it? Tammy asked Katy, her usually soft blue eyes looking irritated.

I’m sorry, Tammy, that does sound horrible. Luckily, it was all over after dinner, right?

No... I know. I know. Tammy held out a hand to Katy, hoping to stop her protests. I should have made him take me home, but we were going to one of my favorite clubs, and I hoped I might see my friends there. That would have gone a long way to improving the evening.

I’m guessing from your expression that you didn’t see anyone, Katy stated.

Tammy sighed. No. My friends decided on a movie night instead. I wish I’d gone with them in the first place, but no... I went to the club with nightmare date. He actually wasted an hour of my life talking about all the girls he had taken to the club before me. I felt so disrespected. It was like he was just playing some silly game, but I didn’t find it funny at all. Her bright pink lips turned into a frown as she looked down and violently dunked one of her fries into her ketchup.

"It isn’t fair, you know. I’m already thirty-years-old, and all I’ve ever had is a string of bad dates. I keep waiting for the one, but I’m not sure he even exists anymore..." she whispered, looking gloomy and feeling her heart sag.

Katy felt a tug on her own heart looking into Tammy’s sad eyes. There had to be something she could do about that. No one should go through life thinking that there wasn’t any hope for love. Oh, don’t say that. Love is always lurking around the corner. It just appears when you least expect it. Keep trying, you’ll find him one day. Or maybe he’ll find you, who knows?

Katy offered Tammy a warm smile while considering what she could do to cheer her up. Suddenly, she noticed that Tammy was nearly halfway done with her fries and jumped to her feet. She’d been resting enough. It was time to get back to work. She straightened and adjusted the place settings near her.

Looks like you are enjoying the fries, Katy said.

They really are amazing. Almost addicting actually. She looked down. Wow, did I really already empty half the basket? She asked, her cheeks turning red.

Tammy shook her head and then popped another one into her mouth. Well, without guys in my life, I don’t have to worry about food going straight to my thighs and hips. She snickered