Hardheaded Brunette (34 page)

The door pushed open, and standing on the other side was my best friend since third grade, Tara Fielding. Her straight black hair hung loose. She wore her usual garb of black leggings, black sneakers, and a yellow hoodie. She looked like a bumblebee.

I giggled in my relief that she wasn't an ax-wielding serial killer. Not that there were any serial killers in Danger Cove, Washington, ax-wielding or not.

Joe groaned, but I saw the relief on his face. He went back to rolling out the dough for cinnamon buns.

"Did I miss something?" Tara asked after stepping inside and shutting and locking the door behind her.

I shook my head. No sense in reminding her of my flaws. "What are you doing here so early?"

Tara ran the only dance school in town. She taught some afternoon classes, but most were held in the evening and night. She was not a morning person.

"I wanted to wish you good luck on your first day as boss lady," she said with a tight smile. As much as I believed her words, she was biting the inside of her cheek. This was only half the reason she was here.

I closed the distance between us, in case she didn't want Joe to overhear. "And?"

She glanced away. Something was definitely going on. Tara never shied away from anything. She was my brave rock. The one who held my hand during so many insecure moments. And there had been plenty. What if this was something serious? Oh my gosh, was she sick? She looked healthy. She got plenty of exercise and mostly ate right. Her skin was her normal tanned color, no jaundice or peculiar looking moles, from what I could tell.

The buzzer went off, jerking me out of my train of panic. Joe opened the oven with the oatmeal cookie bars, and I kept my attention on my best friend.

Somehow, in these few short seconds, I'd taken Tara's hesitation and turned it into a ginormous, life-altering problem that would require radiation, chemotherapy, countless cherry-chocolate cupcakes, romantic comedies, and an endless supply of tissues.

I swallowed hard and squeezed her shoulder. "Hey, whatever it is, we can get through it."

She stared me straight in the eye and whispered, "Duncan has a ring."

I blinked repeatedly, allowing my brain time to process her words. Unless he had a fatal case of ringworm, I realized my flair of drama had reared its ugly head. I was so glad I hadn't uttered any of my crazy thoughts.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"I spent the night at Duncan's. When he got up to shower this morning, I was rummaging through his dresser…" She pointed a finger in my face. "No judgments."

I smirked and shook my head.

"And I found a small, red velvet box. The kind that house engagement rings."

My heart began to swell but in the opposite way from before. "Well, how many carats? Is it round, square, or ooh, oval?"

She took a step back and scoffed. "How the hell should I know? I didn't open it. I saw the box, slammed the drawer shut, and then hightailed it out of there."

Of course she did. Tara didn't do serious. She preferred her relationships light and fluffy, like meringue. She and Grams were the same in the romance department. I, however, wanted the fantasy. The white picket fence, the dog, and the two-point-five children. Well, actually three, 'cause half a child would be gross.

Duncan Pickles was a journalist for the
Cove Chronicles
, and in stereotypical reporter form, he was one of the more unscrupulous ones. He had a killer nose for news and didn't care how he gathered his information. But he was six feet of blond, blue-eyed, bulging, bronzed perfection, so Tara overlooked his lack of humanity. But they'd only been seeing one another for a month. As far as I knew, it wasn't serious enough for a ring, and Duncan hadn't seemed like a picket fence guy either.

"How would you feel if Will got down on bended knee this afternoon?" she asked.

Will Hendrickson and I had only been on four dates, so I immediately got her point.

I pulled her farther into the room and pulled out a stool at one of the steel counters. Then I went to the coffeemaker and poured her a cup. Joe glanced at me from the corner of his eye. He was too much of a gentleman to act like he'd heard our conversation, but I believed otherwise. I was certain he'd collected and stored bits of gossip over the years. All the times Tara and I cheered or cried over boys, college, and just life. But not once had he ever mentioned any of it to Grams.

Joe had been with Cinnamon Sugar Bakery since the first day, and despite never sharing holidays together, Grams and I considered him family.

I set the mug and a pint of half-and-half in front of Tara. She drank the stuff without sugar. I wasn't sure how. It was too bitter that way for me. I sat beside her. "So now what are you going to do?"

"Not see him anymore, of course."

Duncan was slimy, and Tara deserved better, commitment or no commitment, but I wondered if she was reacting too harshly. Plus, a tiny part of me felt sad for Duncan. Slimy or not, getting dumped sucked.

"Maybe it's an empty box," I said and waited for her to scoff.

She didn't though. She just stared into her cup. "We haven't been together long enough for him to propose."

There was my level-headed friend.

"Exactly. It was probably a misunderstanding. I mean, it's not like he got down on one knee."

She lifted the right side of her top lip. "What if he has someone on the side, and it's for her?"

Oh gosh, that wasn't any better. And technically, if this other supposed woman was the one he planned to marry, then wouldn't that have made Tara "the one on the side"? But I had no plans to voice that.

"I wouldn't worry about that," I said.

She stared at the wall across the room and had a faraway look in her eye. "Yeah, you're right. I won't."

I considered leaning forward to check her forehead for a fever. Tara never let go of a situation that quickly. Being a Virgo, she tended to become obsessive about some things. It usually started out from concern or analyzing something, and before you knew it, she couldn't let it go.

She sipped her coffee and changed the subject. "So what new concoction have you created?" She knew me well too. "Don't try to deny it. You wouldn't be here so early if your brain wasn't buzzing with a new recipe."

I chuckled and glanced at the timer. Eight minutes to go. "Lemon pesto muffins."

She grimaced. "Why on earth?"

"What? They'll be delish. I know my flavor profiles. You'll see."

She continued looking skeptical.

Grams never understood my desire to blend unconventional ingredients. It started a few years back while watching
Cupcake Wars
on the Food Network. Something about adding oysters to a cupcake really inspired me. Although that was bizarre, even for me.

Tara clapped her hands together. "So how are we celebrating your re-grand opening tonight? Where do you and Grams want to go? My treat."

Joe slid a tray of cinnamon buns into the oven and set the timer.

"Grams won't be joining us," I said.

"Why not?"

"She went to visit a friend in Seattle last night."

Tara's eyebrows shot up. "Last night? She couldn't wait one more day?"

I shrugged, not wanting to get sentimental, but the truth was that part of me wanted to cry. Grams didn't see today as a big deal like I did. I'd been working here since high school, so what was another Friday? But it was huge to me. Yeah, I knew it would be just a regular day, busy in the morning and then tapering off until a lunch crowd gathered. Some part of me, though, felt like it was my birthday, and I had the decorations to confirm that. Maybe I wouldn't be blowing out candles, but there was plenty of cake. And Grams not being here felt lonely.

After eating a muffin, which Tara admitted was tasty, I walked her out to her car. When I stepped back inside the kitchen, I got back to work. There was still tons I wanted done before we opened. This was going to be a long and awesome day.

*   *   *

The displays were stacked with gorgeous, mouth-watering cupcakes, muffins, and other delectable, single-served desserts. Grams had been adamant about selling items for one person. She said it was more tempting to buy a dozen mix-matched cupcakes than to buy a one-flavored cake. Not only did it offer more variety, but there were plenty of people who wanted just a slice and not the whole pie. I'd believed she'd been thinking about her love life when she'd concocted that plan, but it had worked all these years.

I straightened a tray of Vanilla Bean cupcakes with white pearls dotting their mountains of whipped frosting. All of the items always looked more like art than food. When I was a child, I'd lean against the display cases, press my face to the glass, and stare at the perfection.

Minus the face against the glass, I still did the same some days. And it took all of my willpower to slide the glass door shut and not swipe a fingertip across the frosting.

I continued surveying the room. The counters and four tables and chairs were dust and crumb free, and the ivory and dark-brown checkered floor looked clean enough to eat off of. I'd mopped it three times. If we had a surprise health inspection, we'd easily pass. When it came time to paint and design the store, Grams had asked for my opinion. It hadn't mattered that I was only ten. I had said the colors needed to be flavors, which was why she went with a vanilla-and-chocolate floor and muted strawberry walls. It was a Neapolitan bakery.

I had considered buying balloons in the same colors, but I'd decided these should pop, so I'd gone with white and silver.

All I had to do now was wait for the first customer. We'd been open for thirty seconds. Any minute now we'd get a small crowd of business people on their way to work.

I turned to the far wall that led to the kitchen, to the collage of black-framed newspaper and magazine articles written about Cinnamon Sugar Bakery, a photo of Grams and Danger Cove's then mayor in front of the bakery on the day it opened, and a photo of Grams in her bunny costume. She'd spent a year working as a Playboy bunny in San Francisco before she married and had Mom. This was her wall of fame. One day I'd add my own proud moment of joy there. I often wondered what would top simply working here.

The bell above the door jingled, and I turned.

A man stood in the shadow of the doorway, so I couldn't make out his face. He held a bouquet of daisies, which meant he had great taste. Those were my favorite.

"Hey, gorgeous," he said, causing me to look behind me. Had someone else walked in? Most customers asked about the daily specials or if we used preservatives. They didn't dole out compliments.

He stepped further in, and I took note of his dark jeans, white button-down top, burgundy tie, and brown bomber jacket.

My heart skipped a beat. Oh my God, was I daydreaming? He couldn't be Jared Politano. My good friend and high school crush. Jared grew up in Danger Cove. We'd met in kindergarten class. In tenth grade, Mom had begged me to step out of the kitchen and join an activity at school. She'd suggested drama club, which was Jared's passion. That had been when our friendship blossomed.

A year later, Mom, Dad, and Aunt Sandra had been killed in a hit-and-run accident, and Jared went from great friend to rock, like Tara. A year after that, shortly before he left for college out of state, we kissed. It was brief and just the once, but super memorable.

Now he smiled. His brown eyes sparkled, and a lock of dark hair fell into them. "Don't I get a hug?"

That deep, sultry voice snapped me out of my trance. "Oh my God, it's really you." I flew around the counter and threw myself at him.

He wrapped his arms around my waist and lifted me off the floor. "Gosh, I missed you."

I hung on to his neck and shoulders and breathed in his fresh laundry scent. "What are you doing here?"

Instead of answering, he moaned into my neck. The vibrations caused my hair to ruffle and tickled me. I giggled and pressed into him more. Jittery feelings swam in my stomach. I pulled away only enough to look him in the eye. "I can't believe you're here."

Despite our once solid relationship, we'd drifted some over the years, like most people living long distance. I still considered him one of my best friends though.

"Your eyes still remind me of the blue depths of the ocean. Beautiful."

Warmth slapped my cheeks, and the blush shot down my body into my toes.

He kissed my forehead, then set me back on the tile. I'd worn black, cushioned flats today, and at my five-four height, I came up to his chin—perfect for forehead kisses. He held up the bouquet of daisies, handed them over, and bowed his head. "To the new queen of all things of deliciousness. I take it Grams finally retired?" He jutted his chin toward the re-grand opening banner.

I curtsied and breathed in their delicate fragrance. "They're beautiful. Thank you. And yes, she did. Yesterday."

The last time I spoke to Jared was when he'd come home for Christmas. I'd mentioned Grams' cruise plans then.

"So when did you get here, and how long are you staying?" I asked.

"Last night and forever." He winked at me.

I squealed. I may have jumped up and down once or twice too. "You're moving back?"

He chuckled. "Already done. I take it you approve?"

I widened my eyes. "Absolutely. But why?"

He sighed so deeply that his shoulders and chest rose and then crashed down. "It's a long story, and I don't want to be late for my first day of work."

"Excuse me?" I asked. "How did you get a job so fast?"

"I've been working on it for a while, and an opening emerged unexpectedly. I'm here this morning to gather sustenance for my day from my favorite bakery."

I hurried around the displays and set the daisies on the counter behind me. "What would you like?"

He cocked his head and smiled. "Do you really need to ask?"

I mentally smacked my forehead. "No." I chose the cinnamon muffin with the most crumble on top and placed it and a napkin into a brown paper bag with a clear plastic panel. Jared's sweet tooth was as big as mine, but his absolute favorite had always been the bakery's specialty. Then I took a large Styrofoam cup and filled it with black coffee.