Sweet Heat Rising (Thoroughbred Men Series) (2 page)

Tyler appreciated the smile she gave him. “Sure, five sounds good. Make the coffee strong tomorrow please. I am just not the morning person you must be.” Tyler groaned dramatically. But then smiled, waved and left, locking the rear door behind him. He would try asking her out again some other time.

Sarah signed with a frustrated huff as the door closed behind Tyler, “Oh, thank goodness…” she said aloud. Tyler was great around the shop but the attempted flirty stuff had gotten old fast. He was nice, but just not her type. Not that she really had much of a type anymore. She was wary and liked her independence.

Tyler was the first adult that she had been able to hire, and realized it may have been a huge mistake. The only other applicants just were not interested in the hours the small bakery was open. Sarah was desperate for help and hiring after-school help was not doing much to alleviate the workload for her. They came in, texted, chatted, and left quickly when the shop closed. Only working two to three hours in the afternoon just wasn't cutting it for her. She needed much more help than that. Which was why she jumped on hiring Tyler Randall quickly when he applied for the position.

He seemed to be a dream come true for her: new to town, needed work, front counter experience from working at another shop and available the hours she was looking for.  Tyler was easy on the eyes, smart and funny to be around.

Except, seeing now he was interested in her too and it was plainly obvious. In the last three months he had work there, Tyler had asked her out three times and had ‘bumped’ into her in the kitchen a few times, given her long lingering looks, it was just making and uncomfortable situation. He was nice enough, but the chemistry was not present at all.

Work-wise, Tyler was great. He covered so much for her that she was able to work on new recipes, he made suggestions for the shop regarding how to promote and sell older products instead of trashing them, such as ‘day old loaves for a dollar’ or turning into croutons or bread pudding (which were a hit).
 

Tyler had a lot of great suggestions and always available on the hours she needed him, but it was getting to the point that Sarah just didn't want to be there with him. It was uncomfortable to say the least. She felt guilty to keep turning him down or reinforcing the fact that he was an employee.

Sarah wiped down the counters with a bleach/soap solution, ran a mop over the floor and grabbed the deposit bag. Sarah locked the door behind her and ran to her car in the dark lot. Nervous and paranoid, Sarah hopped in and slammed the door behind her, locking it quickly. She lived in a safe, tiny town but it still made her extremely nervous to be in the darkening lot behind the building with her precious earnings from the shop. She could not help but watch over her shoulder still, even though it had been years since she had left Josh or had even heard from him.

Most days they were able to close up shop around three o’clock,  so it wasn't too bad in the parking lot.  Some nights, when she was working on a project or a new recipe, it was definitely creepy out back. The shop barely made ends meet some weeks, and Saturdays really bailed them out and made things work out financially.

Sarah drove by the bank night depository, dropped in the envelope and drove home quietly to unwind. She was ready for some down time, to relax and get to bed early for the rush in the morning.

2

“BEEP, BEEP, BEEP.” 

Sarah started to slap the alarm but decided against it and just hopped in the shower. She threw her hair into a loose pony tail. As she headed in to the bakery from the parking lot, she saw Tyler was already there. He awaited her with two Starbucks cups and a goofy grin on his face. Sarah had to give him props, he was persistent and some woman would be lucky one day to have him. I was just not her though.

Tyler smiled at Sarah’s appearance. He really appreciated her wearing her hair pulled back. It gave him an excellent view of her lovely profile. “Good morning, sunshine, ready to do this?” Tyler asked and passed her a steaming cup of coffee.

Sarah replied grumpily, “Good morning... and I am not your sunshine, Tyler.” She did, however, gratefully accept the cup of coffee. This was getting to be too much. Just the other day he referred to her bakery as “ours” and she had to correct him on that note too. As much as he annoyed her, the customer’s seemed to adore him.

She had worked long and hard to make something of the tiny bakery. She struggled for over a year at odd jobs to save the money to start it up. She was not about to let him imply that it was ‘theirs.’ BatterUp! was hers, and hers alone.

Tyler grinned from ear to ear at her waspish attitude. “My! My! Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Is everything okay?” He circled around her and opened the door. “Anything I can help with? Maybe it's the lonely bed thing,” he said boldly and attempted to brush it off when she choked on her coffee. “I’m teasing you,” he said coyly and waited patiently for her to unlock the deadbolt.

Sarah coughed again and tried to regain her posture. “No, lets just get the rolls and donuts started this morning. Thank you for the coffee,” Sarah replied quietly, trying to be polite. She could not believe he had just said that! Some mornings it was easy to get along with Tyler, other mornings? Not so much. When he was tried to be subtle and showed interest in her, it was like she watched a sleazy salesman come onto her. She could practically picture him in a tweed jacket and cologne that overwhelmed. Both would have the same effect: a huge turn off.

Sarah unlocked the back door to the bakery, walked inside, and the rich smell of yeast and dough always made her take a deep breath in. She sighed in contentment. There was just something that invigorated her about the smell of rising dough and rolls. Sarah flipped on the deep fryers to get them started warming up for the five thirty opening.

She stayed quiet on her side of the metal prep table. Sarah dumped the dough and proceeded to beat it down again for the final rising. Tyler had the mixer started in the corner, in order to begin the next batch of donuts.  They both fell into a quiet routine as they prepared the bakery for opening.  A short while later, the first set of headlights pulled in front of the shop.  The bright lights reflected off the glass case back into the kitchen. “Almost ready?” Sarah asked, as Tyler fished out another batch of the crispy batter from the fryer.

Tyler dunked the hot confections into the icing bath, and pulled them up to drain off the excess. He dropped several more into the glistening deep fryer and said over his shoulder, “Yep! I am good! I am on the last batch now.”

Sarah said with a grin, “Okay, let’s do this” and flipped on the neon open sign in the window. She turned the door lock to the open position. She got a thrill each time she opened the shop for business, and that had not changed over the years. It still amazed her that she was able to make it on her own and thrive.

3

“Ouch! Damn fire ants!”  she yelped, as Sarah swatted at another on her leg, while she attempted to plant a few flowers in the flowerbed out front of her condo. It was already muggy outside. Headphones on, she listened to pop music loudly and continued to attack the ground with the trowel. She put each bulb in a hole, as lined up as possible in the small bed. She stood, pushed her sunglasses back up the bridge of her nose and ran the back of her arm across her forehead. As she hummed along with the beat of the music, she noticed the mail was already running and she walked two doors down to get it from the communal mail box stand with her key.

Sarah glanced down the street and saw a small gathering of joggers coming down the road. She leisurely continued to flip through her mail as she walked back to her yard. Sarah felt a tap on her shoulder, as she looked over a mailer regarding the bakery and jumped.

She glanced up from the paperwork… and swung around wildly as a shadow stood over her. She almost screamed until she realized it was not who she thought it was. In that blinding moment, she could feel Josh’s hands on her throat again. He still terrified her. She was not sure she would ever be over the apprehension he caused in her.

Matt was surprised at the defensive mode the pretty brunette seemed to be in. He had simply thought to say hello and maybe make a new acquaintance in town. “Hey, there....Whoa...” he smiled broadly. “I had tried to tell you hello and that you have a smudge on your forehead. I guess you did not hear me? I didn't mean to scare you. I’m Matt. Matt Geary,” he introduced.

Sarah yanked out one earbud and stuck out her hand sheepishly. She felt embarrassed about being so nervous. “I’m Sarah - and sorry. I didn't hear you and you scared me.” She could not help but ogle the handsome, sweaty, tanned stranger that was grinning at her.

Matt smiled at her introduction. He could understand her being caught unawares. “Sorry again about that - I called out and thought I would just say hi, catch my breath and maybe see you soon, if you are on this route we take on Sundays.” Matt knew it was forward, but reached up and started to brush his thumb across her forehead. Matt grinned from ear to ear at the pink heat that rose in her cheeks. “It was nice to meet you, Sarah, see you next week on my run?” and without an answer he started to jog off to catch up with the guys who jogged in place at the stop sign down the block. They made cat calls at him as he grew closer.

Sarah stood there, dumbfounded for a moment on the sidewalk and looked after the group down the street. She saw him wave and returned the wave, much to her surprise. She was a very open people person and easily chatted with everyone at the bakery (except Tyler) but this man had certainly made her tongue tied. She had not been speechless in forever, and it was an odd sensation. One that made her feel almost giddy deep down inside.

His blue eyes were gorgeous and crinkled slightly at the edges when he grinned at her. When he smiled, his whole face lit up and she caught her breath. It was like something switched on inside of her. Sarah recognized a lot of people because they had come by the shop at one point or another... happy, complained, frustrated, in a rush, etc. She could typically place them again randomly throughout town. This man? She had never seen him.

Sarah shook her head and used her iPhone camera function to see the smudge and squeaked in horror. The ‘smudge’ turned out to be a massive run of dirt across her forehead streaked with sweat. Sheesh. No wonder he had smiled at her. She looked like she had rolled around in the flowerbed instead of just planting a few bulbs. She started back up towards the house, when she heard a honk and turned....

.... and groaned.

Tyler pulled his car over when he saw Sarah on the sidewalk nearby as he left the park. “Sarah! Small world! What are you doing here? Do you live here?” he asked curiously. He had no idea she lived out this way, maybe they would cross paths more often? He enjoyed spending time reading in the park and thought the drive was pretty. Seeing her out in the yard, in shorts and a T-shirt definitely made the scenic drive over even nicer, he thought.

Sarah could not believe her rotten luck. Could she not get a break? First, the dirt on her forehead when the first guy she had really shown interest in forever, shows up unexpectedly and now this. The guy she was not interested in, and really had no other reason than a lack of chemistry between them, could not seem to take a hint.

“Good morning, Tyler, I live in this neighborhood. What are you up to today?” Sarah replied politely while thinking all the while how she was going to get away from him and hoped he did not ask her out again.

Her friends told her that she should give him a try and go out with him, however, Sarah did not feel he needed any encouragement at all. If she went out once with him, he would never take no for an answer again.

Tyler pulled up and parked along the sidewalk, where she was standing. “Oh, you know.... I am just out. I read my book at the park for a bit and thought I might check out a yard sale in the area,” he said cheerfully, looking her over. She had the shapeliest legs that apparently were hidden away underneath her jeans she wore daily at the bakery.

Sarah raised an inquisitive eyebrow. “Really? A yard sale? The subdivision has a community yard sale twice a year...and that was two weeks ago,” she said wryly. Did he really think she fell off the proverbial ‘turnip truck’ last night? He just ‘happened’ to be coming by? Odd, she thought.

Tyler was not deterred at all, but replied smoothly “The park was getting a bit crowded, I was just headed out and saw the sign. It must have been an old sign, I guess...you have something on your face?” He casually leaned onto the sill of the car door, in no hurry whatsoever. He enjoyed her company immensely.

Sarah peevishly thought, “
Did everyone have to notice the dirt on her face? She might as well go to the store too, so more people could point it out.
” She stepped back and said dispassionately,  “Yes, I am just headed in. I will see you tomorrow and good luck on your yard sales today.”

Tyler took the hint and said, “See ya,” and drove down the road. He had to find a way to cross the boundary she had set up and find a way to bond with her. It was tough at work, because she always brought up the employee subject. When he saw her out in the yard, he felt it was a perfect opportunity to say hello away from work. Unfortunately, she was not receptive to him again. Maybe he would try to get her to look at him differently, maybe flowers would help?

Sarah waited until the car was out of sight before turning back to the condo and heading inside. The cool air was a welcome relief from the heat. Sarah headed back to the bathroom to get a quick shower, and groaned again at how nasty she was from the heat and from having dug out in the flower beds. No wonder she was single!

Worked a lot, worked odd hours some days and then when she had free time, she spent it doing things that appealed to her but made her unappealing (apparently) to men. That Matt guy she met must have had a good laugh with his buddies at her expense. He seemed nice, but the old doubts nagged her mind...and planted firmly in the amount of dirt on her forehead. She could not help but think of the arguments or things that Josh said to her while they were together. She shook her head to rid herself of the memory.

Sarah took a long hot shower and cleaned up from the work in the yard. She then cleaned the inside of the house. Sweeping, mopping, dusting, started a load of laundry and settled down with a cup of hot tea in her favorite chair. She swiped up her iPad, checked her emails and opened the app to her most recent book she was enjoying.  When the buzzer for the dryer went off, she realized she had spent over an hour reading and decided to fix an easy meal for herself. She emptied the dryer and went on about her afternoon doing little odds ands ends that had been put off for the week.