The Icing on the Cake (15 page)

“Kristine Branton.  I’m watching Gracie,
and the house, while Joe is away.”

“Is it is father?” the woman asked
fearfully.

“Yes.  He’s in a hospital in Norton.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.  I’ll be
sure to keep him in my prayers.”  The woman eyed her speculatively.  “Don’t you
work at Branton’s?”

Kristine nodded.  “My family owns it.” 
Or
should she have said ‘owned’ it?

“I’m so sorry to hear about the fire.  I
have to tell you, I’m already having sugar withdrawals.  If I don’t have a
slice of your strawberry cream cake with my dinner every evening…”

“I thought I recognized you!” Kristine
said.  “You’re fairly new to Cooper Glenn, aren’t you?”

She nodded.  “My husband Ken and I built
our home here six months ago.  Ken retired a year ago.  Unfortunately, he
received a cancer diagnosis soon after we moved here.  It all happened so
fast,” she added with a mournful sigh.  “I lost him three months ago.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss,” Kristine
said. 

“It’s difficult,” Maeve said, forcing a
smile.  “Sometimes I still can’t believe he’s gone.”

“It hasn’t been long,” Kristine said
with sympathy.  “I lost my dad a year ago.  It was sudden.  I still pick up the
phone to call him.”

Maeve nodded.  “I never expected to be
on my own,” she said.  “It just goes to show that we should treasure every
moment we have with our loved ones.”

Kristine nodded, remembering that her
loved ones were currently furious with her.  She shook off the thought.  “Well,
welcome to Cooper Glenn, Maeve.  If you ever need anything, I’m here.”

“Thank you.  I really appreciate that. 
I don’t know many people here.  I have a good friend who owns a shop downtown,
and of course, I’ve gotten to know Joe.”  She smiled.  “He’s been a godsend. 
He’s a sweet, sweet young man.”  Her eyes twinkled.  “And he’s certainly a fan
of Branton’s—or maybe it’s a certain baker there he’s enamored with…”

Kristine smiled self-consciously,
uncertain how to respond.  Maeve obligingly changed the subject.     

“You do intend to rebuild Branton’s,
don’t you?” she asked.  “Surely you’re going to bring it back?”

Kristine sighed.  “I’m afraid it’s
complicated.  The bakery belongs to my mother, sister, and I, and
unfortunately, my mom and sister may be ready to move on.”

“I don’t believe I’ve met them,” Maeve
said. 

“Neither has been working at the bakery
much lately.”

Maeve digested the information.  “But
you’re not ready to move on,” she said, eyeing her speculatively.

Kristine smiled softly.  “I’ve worked at
the bakery since I was a kid.  It’s been such a part of my life—and a part of
this community,” she added.  “So no, I guess I’m not ready to move on.”  She
sighed sadly.  “Unfortunately, the future of Branton’s isn’t really up to me
anymore.”

Maeve sighed along with her.  “Well, I
hope everything works out for you.  Lord knows, I do miss that cake.”

Kristine readied for bed in the upstairs
guest bathroom in Joe’s home.  She hadn’t had a tour of the entire home and
decided to have a quick look.  She doubted Joe would mind, since she was
currently staying at the house.

After finishing up in the bathroom,
Kristine embarked upon a tour of the upper level.  She found three bedrooms,
and a bath, as well as an exquisitely-appointed master bedroom.  Though the
room had a masculine feel, she realized it was a room in which a woman could
feel comfortable, as well.  The comforter was gray with burgundy accents. 
Several plump pillows in several hues of both were tossed at the top of the
bed.  The curtains were a rich shade of gray and the floors a lovely hardwood.

She stepped into the master bath and gasped. 
The shower was huge and luxurious, the soaker tub large and deep, and the
double vanity extended the length of the large bathroom.  It was a bathroom out
of a magazine. 

Detecting that her feet felt oddly warm,
she glanced down and realized the floor was heated.  She couldn’t help smiling
and resisted the urge to curl up on the floor.  She was surprised Gracie hadn’t
laid claim to it.

Thinking of Gracie, where was she? 
She’d just been walking alongside her a moment ago.

She left the bathroom behind and found
Gracie sprawled out on Joe’s king-sized bed.  The bedspread was a tangled mass
and currently formed around Gracie like a nest.  She had moved the pillows to
assure her additional comfort and was gnawing on one of Joe’s slippers.

“Gracie!” Kristine cried.  “What do you
think you’re doing?  Get off that bed!  And give me that slipper!”

The dog obliged, as she slowly rose and
dropped off the bed.  Kristine realized her compliance had been a ruse when
Gracie took off like a shot out of the bedroom and bolted down the stairs with
the slipper still in her mouth.

Kristine took off after her, shouting
all the way.  She spotted Gracie at the foot of the stairs, rump in the air,
front legs splayed out in front of her.  “Gra … cie!”

Her tail began to wag, just before she
leapt up and took off toward the family room.

“Good grief,” Kristine moaned as she
followed.

She found the dog lying on the couch,
still chewing on the slipper.  She approached slowly, hands out in front. 
“Okay, girl.  Let go … of … the … slipper!”  She launched forward and grabbed
it out of Gracie’s mouth before the dog knew what had happened. 

Gracie now watched Kristine, seemingly
dismayed she’d stolen her prized toy.

“It’s not yours,” Kristine told her, and
put the slipper on the nearby fireplace mantle.  “Off the couch!” she
commanded.

To her surprise, Gracie complied and
slowly climbed off.  Head down, she ambled to her own bed on the floor and lay
down. 

“Good girl,” she praised her.

The dog lifted her head, gave a thump of
her tail, and then dropped her head on her front paws.  She watched Kristine
thoughtfully.

“I wish I could read your mind,”
Kristine uttered, as she glanced around, considering her own sleeping
arrangements.  She felt uncomfortable at the idea of claiming one of the beds
in the upstairs bedrooms, and certainly didn’t feel right about sleeping in
Joe’s bed. 

With a sigh, she opted for the couch. 
She adjusted the throw pillows, sat down, and swung her legs up and lay back
against the arm.  She pulled a throw blanker over her.  “Night, Gracie,” she
said.

She closed her eyes and in the span of a
blink, felt a wet tongue slathering her face.  She opened her eyes and issued a
command to the dog.  “Gracie!  Go to sleep.”

Once again, she walked dejectedly to her
doggie bed and lay down.  Satisfied, Kristine closed her eyes again and soon,
drifted off to sleep.

She woke with a start.  Some noise had
awakened her.  She glanced around and over to Gracie.  The dog’s head was
raised, her ears perked. 

“What is it, girl?”

Suddenly, Gracie jumped out of her bed
and flung herself toward Kristine.  To her surprise, she leapt over her and
plied herself against the back of the couch.  She lifted her head for a split
second, but then shoved it under Kristine’s pillow.

Kristine, forced to the front of the
couch, turned with difficulty and stared at the dog.  “Gracie!  What is it?”

The dog didn’t even do her the courtesy
of lifting her head.  She did wag her tail briefly, but then seemed to think
better of exposing her tail to whatever threat she believed loomed nearby.  She
attempted to disappear under Kristine’s blanket as she struggled to tuck her
entire body beneath it.   

“Yeah, okay, Gracie.  I’ll protect you,”
Kristine said with a rueful shake of her head.

She rose and flipped on a lamp on an end
table beside the couch.  She did a visual search of the room, spotted nothing
amiss, and rose to turn on the light out back.  She looked out over the entire
back yard and saw nothing suspicious.  “I don’t see anything,” she told Gracie,
who was still cowering on the couch.  “Would you like to take a look?”

Gracie did thump her tail, as evidenced
by the movement under the blanket, but she refused to join her.  Shaking her
head, Kristine opted to leave the back light on and padded back to the couch. 
This time, she chose the other end of the sectional, since Gracie currently
occupied her former space.

She found another throw blanket folded
on the back of the couch and snapped it out.  She lay down, draped the blanket
over her, and closed her eyes.  She heard a strange sound.  Her eyelids flew
open.  She smiled ruefully.  Gracie was crawling on her belly along the couch,
moving toward her.  “No way.  You’re not foisting me off the couch,” she told
the frightened dog.

Gracie would not be deterred and
inserted herself between Kristine and the back of the couch.  Since she was so
big—had grown quite a bit in a short time—and was all muscle, Kristine was
hardpressed to move her.  Finally, in frustration, she said, “Fine.  You can
sleep with me.”  She rolled over, facing away from the back of the couch, while
Gracie snuggled against her back.  “It’s a good thing you
look
intimidating,” Kristine said with a yawn.

When Kristine woke next, it was again to
strange sounds emanating from the … garage?  She lifted her head and perked her
ears.  She felt stiff and sore and realized she was lying in an unnatural
position, her torso twisted, one leg off the couch, the other stiffened beneath
it, apparently a means for her subconscious to assure she didn’t fall off the
couch.  One arm was dangling, the other caught beneath her.  “Owwww,” she
moaned, as she struggled to unfold her extremities that now felt like pretzels.

She heard another sound. 
What was
that?
  She glanced at Gracie, who opened one eye briefly, but then abruptly
closed it.  Kristine knew she too had heard the noise, since her ear was
perked.

With a frustrated sigh, she tried to
rise from the couch.  Her body simply wouldn’t cooperate. 

“Need any help?” Joe asked, towering
over her.  “I see Gracie insisted on sleeping with you.”

Kristine nearly fell off the couch. 
Fortunately, Joe grasped one of her arms and helped her to sit up.  “Yeah,
Gracie’s a bed hog,” he informed, unnecessarily.

Gracie suddenly leapt up and hurled
herself off the couch.  She was so excited to see Joe again.  She wagged her
tail so swiftly, it appeared she might go into orbit.  She circled his legs,
determined to be close to him. 

After loving on Gracie for a moment, Joe
glanced at Kristine.  “Hi.”

“Hi,” she said, watching him bemusedly. 
“What are…?”

“In my haste to get to my dad, I
realized I forgot to pack many essentials, including a list of his medications. 
He unfortunately, forgot a couple of his dosages so…”

“You should have called me,” she
yawned.  “I could have brought everything to you.”

“You would have driven three hours…?”

“Sure,” she said, now smiling
self-consciously.  She could only imagine how she looked at the moment.  She
was sure her hair was in disarray and her eyes puffy with sleep.

Joe held her gaze and she shifted
uncomfortably under his scrutiny.  Lord, she must look awful.

“Can I help you with anything now?” she
asked.

He shook his head.  “No.  I’d better get
busy, however.”  He started off, but stopped and pinned her with his eyes. 
“Uh, regarding what Devon said at the school…  We really need to talk.”  He
sighed dejectedly.  “Unfortunately, I don’t have time right now.”  He checked
his watch.  “I have to be back to Norton by eleven, in time to meet with Dad’s
cardiologist.”

“You’d better hurry,” she agreed, glad
they wouldn’t have time to discuss her nephew’s verbal bombshell to Joe.  “I
hope everything goes well.”

He smiled.  “Me, too.  Hey, I’ll be
right back to say goodbye.”  He started off again and Gracie followed.

“Stay, girl,” he told her. 

Kristine wanted nothing more than to
disappear into the guest bathroom and make herself presentable, but Joe had
already seen her at her morning worst.  But what did it matter?  He’d said they
needed to talk and she’d detected the seriousness to his tone.  She had little
doubt what he was going to tell her.  He and Lori were going to try to rekindle
their romance.  Why wouldn’t they?

Gracie seemed to sense her melancholy
and jumped onto the couch beside her.  She sat, almost-human like, and leaned
against Kristine.  She pressed her face against Kristine’s cheek.  “Thanks,
girl,” she said, reaching up to pat her face in return.  “I appreciate your
support.”

Gracie leaned even closer and Kristine
chuckled and turned to eye her ruefully.  “I could have used your support last
night when we heard the scary noise.  You do know you’re a pit bull, right?”
Kristine said.  “Girl, do you hear me?  You’re a pit, er, part anyway.  Your
breed has a reputation for toughness.”

Gracie watched her, her lower jaw
dropped open, giving her an expectant look. 

“You’re a noble breed, Gracie girl,” she
continued.  “You fear no one.  Do you hear me?”

Gracie thumped her tail as if she liked
the sound of that.

“That’s right.  You cower to no one and
you certainly don’t dive under the covers when you hear a strange noise.” 
Kristine stroked her side.  “We’ll work on that, okay?”

Gracie whined softly.  “I know.  It
won’t be easy, but you can do it.  So, the next time you hear a noise, I want
you to bark.  Like this.”  She demonstrated for the dog, but Gracie only cocked
her head, as if confused.  “
Gracie
…  Okay, it’s like this,” Kristine
continued, “when someone breaches the perimeter—of your property, that is—you
bark.  If they try to come in through a window, or break in through a door, you
bark.  Announce your presence.  Send that intruder packing.  Show ‘em who’s
boss.”

Gracie watched her, as if considering
her words. 

“Well?” Kristine said.

The dog promptly kissed her on the face.

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes.’”

Joe, behind her, laughed. 

Kristine abruptly swiveled toward him. 
“Oh, uh…  You heard me giving Gracie a pep talk?”

“Yes.  And I hope you got through to
her.  Lord knows, I haven’t been able to.”

Kristine laughed.  “Turns out, she’s not
much of a watchdog, is she?”

“When she hears a strange sound, she
drops to her belly and tries to blend in with the rug.”

“Or, goes under the covers.  Oh, shoot,
speaking of covers…  I found Gracie in your bed last night.  She’d made herself
quite comfortable.  I meant to straighten it back up, but didn’t have a chance
because…”

“Because
Gracie
…?” he prompted
with a chuckle.

She laughed.  “Yes, because she had your
slipper and took off with it.”  Her eyes widened when she remembered Gracie’s
leap over the fence.  “Oh, and yesterday, she took off running and went right
over the fence.  I found her visiting with Maeve Johnson.”

He nodded.  “Nice lady.  Gracie loves
her.”

“Clearly.”

He caught her gaze again, his eyes
twinkling with humor.  She wanted to drown in those gorgeous blue eyes…  She
wanted to feel his arms around her, his lips on her lips…

“Krissy…”

“Oh, yes?” she said dreamily.

Joe laughed.  “Hey, tonight, why don’t
you plan on sleeping in my bed?”  He grinned.  “You might actually get a
night’s sleep, even if Gracie insists on joining you.  Sheets and blankets are
freshly washed,” he added.  “Well, were…”

“I just might,” she said.

“Thanks again for all your help,” he
said, as he walked into the kitchen and pulled open a drawer.  He rifled around
until he found the list of his father’s medications.  He closed the drawer and
returned to her.  He watched her briefly, smiled, and to her surprise, reached
for her hand and pulled her up and against him in one easy movement.