Angel's Hero

Chapter 2

Pulling up in front of the building that housed her bakery, and the adjoining coffee shop, Angel parked quickly, ignoring the car behind her as it honked its horn at her. She waved her hand over her shoulder telling them in no uncertain terms to bugger off.
Her 1977 Jeep CJ, painted a bright yellow, was an absolute beast, and she loved it.
It handled all weather, and all terrains, and she loved the freedom of the open top and sides. On hot days like this one had been, driving through the small town of Boothbay Harbor in Maine, Angel loved the fresh air that blew in from the ocean.
It was mid-May and the temperatures were already soaring in what was no doubt just a taste of the scorcher of a summer ahead.

Angel switched off the engine, grabbed her canvas bag, and jumped from her vehicle, already planning what to grab from her store.
She took a quick moment to look up at the sign, her stomach still flipping to see her dream come true.
It was real! Angel's Kiss, Baked goods & more.
Stepping into the shadow of the building, she was momentarily blinded, and in her haste she barreled into the person standing on the pavement.
"Ohmygod, I'm so sorry!" She'd shot her arms out to steady them, and her fingers wrapped around cool, soft skin.
"Don't touch me," came the reply. Groaning internally, Angel lifted her sunglasses onto the top of her head. The woman she'd almost flattened glared up at her.
"Hello Jenna," Angel pulled a smile over her mouth, hoping it passed as some semblance of sincerity. "I didn't see you there."
"That's a lie. You intended to hurt me," Jenna pushed her chin out, and raised her eyebrows. Her hands held a cup of coffee and a bag of goodies from Winters' Brew, the coffee shop next door to Angel's bakery. The coffee lid had popped off under Jenna's grip, the sides caving slightly, and had spilled over the rim onto the ground. Thankfully, none seemed to have spilled onto Jenna herself, or else Angel was sure the woman would have made a bigger scene.
Remaining calm, so as not to get into an argument out here on the street for the world to see, Angel bent to pick up the lost coffee lid.
"That's not true. I do apologize. I was rushing, and I wasn't looking where I was going," not giving her a chance to try start a fight, as was the standard with Jenna, Angel barreled on, speaking louder over whatever Jenna tried to say. "I see you aren't too badly hurt, as you can walk, and I don't see any blood. I'd love to catch up, but I have somewhere to be, so if you'll excuse me?"
With that, she stepped around Jenna and walked quickly into the coffee shop, huffing a breath as soon as she was out of earshot. She heard the other woman released a sound of frustration.
Angel didn't need to look back to know Jenna had stomped her foot in time with the sound. She'd seen and heard it too many times since the opening of her bakery, and her all too frequent run-ins with her competitor.
The bell at the door jingled overhead, and she visibly relaxed as the comforting aroma of coffee and delicious treats closed around her.
The shop was due to close soon, and the woman behind the counter was handling the typical end-of-day-after-work rush with ease.
Blonde-haired and blue-eyed, Sienna Winters was a beautiful woman in her early fifties.
An older version of Michelle, Sienna mirrored her daughter down to the laugh both women heartily shared.
She wore faded jeans, cuffed above blue converse trainers, and a maroon and white striped T-shirt.
The color of her top reminded Angel of a rugby team back in England, and more specifically it reminded her of a certain boy on that team who'd had the privilege of being Angel's first kiss.
The unexpected memory brought a small smile to Angel's face as she made her way past the queue, and ducked under the folding hatch in the counter that spanned the back of the store.
One large room, with tables placed cafeteria-style interspersed by sculptures, free standing bookcases, large potted plants, and one weird looking horse statue that had been created to look like the horse was about to charge you; arched neck, front legs lifted right as it reared up, the curved metal piece made quite the conversation starter in a space designed to attract all sorts of people. Angel supposed that was the point.
"What are you doing back here?" Sienna said over her shoulder while she counted out change to the customer at the front of the line.
Without missing a beat she grabbed a large chocolate chip cookie with the tongs at hand, popped it into a paper bag with Winters' Brew stamped on the front, before she took the hot drink from the barista behind her.
April Quentin, a high-school student who worked there on weekends to save for a car, was manning the large copper coffee machine taking up the entire back wall with its many pipes and nozzles and gauges.
The contraption intimidated Angel, and watching anyone work it fascinated her.