When Sam got his back, he happily took a big bite, almost taking off the entire leg of the Gingerbread Beach Boy. “I can live with that,” he said. “You?” He looked over at Emmie.
She laughed and nodded. “So it’s a tie.”
Sam took another bite and motioned for her to do the same.
Emmie shook her head. “Oh no. She’s too pretty to eat.”
Betty gave her a look. “I’m afraid we have rules at Betty’s Bakery.”
“Rules?” Emmie asked, not sure if Betty was kidding or not.
“Whatever we bake here needs to be eaten. No matter how pretty it is. Baked goods are to be enjoyed. You eat with your eyes first, so you can take it all in and enjoy it, but then you must eat it.”
“Yeah,” Sam said with enthusiasm. “What she said.” Sam walked over and took Emmie’s cookie from her and held it out so she could take a bite.
Emmie shook her head, laughing. “I can’t!”
“Either you take a bite or I will,” Sam said, pretending he was going to take a bite of her cookie.
“No!” Emmie exclaimed, grabbing her cookie from him and quickly biting off the foot.
Sam laughed. “See, was that so bad?”
Betty and Sam waited for her to answer. She smiled slowly. “No, that wasn’t bad at all.” She joyfully took another bite, this one much bigger.
“Good girl,” Betty said.
When Emmie handed the cookie to Betty, Betty also took a bite.
Sam hurried to hand his cookie to Betty. “Try mine, too.”
They all laughed as they continued to eat their cookies.
“Betty? Are you back here?”
Betty looked at the door. “Uh-oh.”
“What?” Emmie asked.
“Here comes trouble,” Betty said as the door swung open.
Chapter Eighteen
When a handsome man in his sixties walked into the kitchen, Emmie saw Betty’s face brighten.
“Mayor Thomas, you’re late,” Betty said as she dusted off her apron.
“Oh, I’m not here for the class,” Mayor Thomas said. “I’m here as the official cookie tester.”
Emmie laughed.
Sam gave him the side-eye. “Wait—is that a real thing? Because if it is, I want in.”
Mayor Thomas walked over and admired one of Emmie’s cookies. He gave Betty a questioning look.
Betty laughed. “Don’t look at me. Those are Emmie’s cookies. Emmie and Sam, this is Christmas Point’s esteemed mayor, Thomas Bailey.”
The mayor smiled at them. “But everyone calls me Mayor Thomas.”
Emmie smiled back at him. “Nice to meet you, Mayor, and please go ahead and have a cookie. I wouldn’t want to keep you from your official cookie-tasting job.”
Mayor Thomas pointed at Emmie. “I like this one, Betty.”
Betty smiled at Emmie. “I do too.”
Mayor Thomas picked up one of Emmie’s cookies and took a bite and shut his eyes, enjoying the flavor. “Mmmm . . . just as good as always. Betty, you’re an excellent teacher.”
“She sure is,” Emmie said.
“And I like how these are decorated. You did these?” Mayor Thomas asked Emmie.
“I did.” Emmie smiled back at him. “But you also have to try one of Sam’s.”
Sam held his hand out to Mayor Thomas, and they shook. “Nice to meet you,” Sam said and then offered the mayor one of his Gingerbread Beach Boys.
Mayor Thomas laughed. “This is great. My grandson lives in Hawaii. I bet he’d get a kick out of these. But you know I still have to test it to make sure.”
Betty laughed. “Of course you do.”
When Mayor Thomas took another big bite, this time of Sam’s cookie, he looked extremely pleased. “Another winner! Great job, young man.”
Sam laughed. “Thank you, and if you ever need an assistant for your cookie-tasting duties, I’d love to help.”
Mayor Thomas nodded. “I will keep that in mind.”
When Sam’s phone rang, interrupting the moment, Emmie saw a woman’s face pop up when Sam answered, using FaceTime.
“Hey, Candace, what’s up?”
Candace did not look happy.
“Sam, where are you?” she demanded. “I’ve been trying to get ahold of you all day.”
When Sam picked up another cookie and took a bite, Candace pointed at the screen and looked even more upset.
“Is that a cookie?” she asked, her voice climbing higher.
“Yup.” Sam smiled widely. “It’s a Gingerbread Beach Boy. My new creation. Check it out.” Sam cheerfully held up the cookie to the phone so Candace could see.
Candace’s eyes narrowed. “What happened to the fruit basket I sent you so you could stop eating all that sugar and start eating healthier?” Candace put her face closer to the screen. “That’s not your kitchen. Where in the world are you?”
“I’m at Betty’s Bakery,” Sam said. He held out the phone and moved it around so she could see everyone. Betty and the mayor waved. “I’m up at Christmas Point.”
“What? Where?” Candace asked then took a deep breath. “You know what? I don’t even care. But if you care about your future, you’ll get back here to Seattle and get a book outline done. Now!”
Emmie and Betty both cringed when Candace hung up.
Sam, stone-faced, put down the cookie. He took off his apron and handed it to Betty. “Sorry about that. My agent, Candace, can get a little . . . intense. Thank you for a great afternoon, Betty. You really are the best teacher, and I’m still going to figure out that secret ingredient of yours. But right now I have to get back to the city.”
Betty started putting some of Sam’s cookies in a box. “Just give me a minute, and I can pack these up for you to take with you.”
“It’s okay,” Sam said. “You keep them. I don’t need any.”
Emmie and Betty exchanged a worried look. Emmie already knew it wasn’t like Sam to pass up cookies. If he didn’t want cookies, something must be really wrong.
“Thanks for bringing me along, Emmie,” Sam said. “This has been a lot of fun.” When he headed for the door, Emmie followed him.
“Wait, Sam, I’ll go with you. I need to go back to the inn and grab my phone charger.”
“But don’t you want your cookies, Emmie?” Betty asked, holding up a box.
“It’s okay, Betty,” Emmie said. “I think I’ve had enough gingerbread boys, beach boys, girls, you name it, for a while.”
Mayor Thomas stepped forward. “I can always take them back to Town Hall and share them with the staff if you don’t want them.” He gave Betty a hopeful look.
Betty reached out and touched his arm. “Yes, I think that would be a great idea.”
The mayor and Betty smiled at each other.
“But,” Betty said, “you just make sure you share them.”
Mayor Thomas laughed. “Of course, you can trust me.”
When Betty gave him a skeptical look, he laughed.
Emmie could tell Sam was anxious to go, so she hurried to join him. “Thank you again for everything, Betty.”
“Thank you,” Betty said. “You two did a really great job today. You make a great team.”
Emmie and Sam smiled back at her.
“Merry Christmas,” Sam said.
“Merry Christmas,” Betty answered back.
Emmie and Sam left the bakery in silence. Emmie wasn’t sure what to say. She could tell Sam was a million miles away. Instead of his usual irresistible smile, he had a slight furrow in his brow and his jaw was clenched. Emmie could practically feel the stress radiating off him. After they’d walked half a block, she couldn’t stay silent anymore. “So you’re really going back to Seattle?” she asked.
Sam’s jaw clenched tighter. “You heard Candace. Everyone in Christmas Point probably heard Candace. I need to get back and get an outline done.”
“But I thought you said you didn’t have anything to write?” Emmie asked.
&n
bsp; Sam sighed. “I don’t.”
“Then why are you rushing back?” Emmie asked. “I mean, I get it. I heard her saying, loud and clear—more loud than clear—that you had to come back right now, but don’t you need to do what is best for you so you can actually get an outline done?” They walked a few more steps before Emmie continued. “You said you haven’t been getting anywhere on the outline while you were in the city, so maybe being up here is a good way to get some fresh air and clear your head. Then some new ideas will come to you.”
Sam kept staring straight ahead. He was walking so fast, Emmie had to practically run to keep up with him. “I appreciate you trying to help, but—”
Emmie jumped in front of him so he had to stop. “But when I was upset that Grant was delayed, you cheered me up by coming and making cookies with me.”
“So what are you saying?” Sam asked.
“I’m saying,” Emmie continued and then looked around, because she wasn’t sure what she was saying. She just felt bad that Sam was so upset and wanted to try to help. When she spotted Frosty’s Café, she got an idea. She pointed to the café. “Even if you go back to Seattle, you have to eat, right? It’s lunchtime, and man cannot live on cookies alone.”
Sam gave her a look.
“Okay,” Emmie rushed on. “Maybe you can live off cookies, but you didn’t take any for your drive, so it looks like Frosty’s Café is your best bet for lunch. Plus, you said you wanted to do something off my schedule.” She held up her phone. “And Frosty’s isn’t in my On Track app to do right now. So . . .”
Sam looked over at Frosty’s. “I did hear Frosty’s has the best burgers and snow cones around.”
“And who doesn’t love a good snow cone, right?” Emmie said.
When she saw Sam slowly start to smile, she took his arm before he could change his mind and led him toward Frosty’s.
“I guess I should get something to eat before I head down the mountain,” Sam said.
“Exactly,” Emmie agreed. “And I don’t like eating alone, so you’ll be keeping me company.”
“And it’s not on your app to do,” Sam said. “So yeah, let’s do it. Let’s go crazy and do something not on your schedule.”
Emmie laughed. “Now you’re talking!”
They were both smiling when they entered Frosty’s. The café was a throwback to a fifties diner with a black-and-white-checked floor, red leather booths lining the wall, and cute tables with red chairs and black tabletops. There was also a jukebox in the corner and an antique soda fountain. It was decked out with all kinds of classic Christmas decorations, with several Christmas trees that had red, green, gold, and blue blinking lights.
Sam picked the booth in the corner by the jukebox, and they both ordered the famous burger and fries and snow cone special. After ordering, Sam got up and checked out the jukebox.
“What kind of songs do they have?” Emmie asked.
“All Christmas,” Sam said, smiling. “This is so cool.”
Excited, Emmie jumped up and joined him. She pointed at the Bing Crosby version of “Twelve Days of Christmas.” “Play this one! It is one of my favorites.”
Sam laughed. “Really?”
Emmie nodded. “It was one of my parents’ favorites. I guess I just grew up listening to all his songs, and they bring back so many good memories.”
“That’s the great thing about music,” Sam said. “It can always take you back to a time when you listened to it before. It can bring back so many memories and feelings, giving you a chance to relive that moment.”
Emmie looked into his eyes and smiled. “Exactly.”
Sam put some money into the jukebox and picked the song for her. “What else do we want?”
Emmie pointed to another Bing Crosby song. “We have to have ‘White Christmas.’”
Sam laughed as he picked it. “Of course, and ‘Silent Night.’”
Emmie nodded enthusiastically and leaned in closer to get a better look at the selection. When she went to point to another song, Sam pointed at the same song at the same time and their hands touched. When Sam looked into her eyes, she was confused by the way her heart raced and quickly pulled her hand away.
Sam looked down at the song they had both picked. “So we agree on ‘I’ll be Home for Christmas’?” Sam asked.
Emmie nodded as she sat back down in their booth. “We do.” She was relieved to see the waitress coming their way with their food.
They spent the next hour eating and debating the best Christmas songs. They polished off their red and green snow cones while still bantering back and forth about who did the best version of “Silent Night,” with the top contenders being Bing Crosby, Josh Groban, and Michael Bublé.
In the end, they both agreed it was Bing.
Just as she was finishing the last of her snow cone, some of the syrup from the bottom of the cone dripped onto her face.
Sam quickly grabbed a napkin and gently wiped it away. “There you go.”
Emmie laughed. “Thank you. I forgot how messy these are to eat.”
“That’s the best part,” Sam said, looking at his own sticky fingers.
Emmie self-consciously wiped her chin again with her napkin. “Do I have any more all over me?”
Sam stopped her hand, looked into her eyes, and smiled. “No. You’re perfect.”
Something about the way Sam looked at her made her heart beat a little faster. Nervous, and not knowing why, she looked away. She put the rest of her snow cone down on her plate and stood up.
“You know,” she said, “I really should be getting back to the inn to check on Grant.”
Sam stood up, too. “And I want to check with Ruby to see if my room is available for a few more nights.”
Emmie gave him a surprised look. “You’re not going back to Seattle? You’re staying?”
“I want to, if I can get a room,” Sam said. “I think you’re right. This might be just what I need to find my inspiration.”
When he smiled back at her, Emmie thought, There it is with that look again. She couldn’t define the way Sam was looking at her. She only knew how it made her feel, and even that was complicated. It made her jittery, nervous, and a little foolish, realizing it could all be in her head.
She had no idea what was wrong with her, but she did know one thing. She was glad to hear Sam was staying. She told herself it was because it was Christmas and everyone deserved to enjoy the magic of the season and find some peace of mind. Although she hardly knew him, to her, Sam seemed like a good guy. She knew he loved all things Christmas, and in her way of thinking, that said a lot.
They had just left the café and were heading back to the inn when Betty came rushing out of the bakery.
“Thank goodness you’re both here,” Betty said breathlessly.
“Betty, what is it?” Sam asked, concerned.
“I have a cookie crisis!” Betty exclaimed. She wasn’t kidding. She looked like her world had crumbled like one of her cookies.
“What’s wrong?” Emmie asked.
“Can you come with me?” Betty asked. She took Emmie’s hand.
Emmie looked at Sam, and they both looked back at Betty and spoke at the same time. “Of course.”
As Betty hustled them back into the bakery and into the kitchen, she started explaining her cookie crisis. “I just found out both of my assistants have the flu, and I have ten dozen cookies to decorate before the Christmas tree-lighting ceremony.”
Sam picked up the apron he had left behind and started putting it back on. Emmie followed his lead and put on her apron, too.
“Just tell us what you want us to do,” Sam said.
Betty gave him a grateful hug, and then she hugged Emmie, too. “Thank you. Thank you both so much!”
EMMIE AND SAM spent the next several hours decorating cookies as fast as they could while Betty ran the bakery out front. Betty had showed them both some of the cookies she’d already done to use as a model and encouraged Emmie to make som
e of her special designs, if there was enough time, because right now the number one goal was finishing all the cookies on time.
Betty told Sam they’d have to skip the Gingerbread Beach Boy designs this time, but promised him she would put some of his special designs on display at the bakery after the tree-lighting ceremony.
Emmie loved that Sam had gotten Betty to turn up the Christmas music and that Betty kept them both supplied with delicious hot chocolate and other treats as she periodically checked in on their progress.
Before they’d started, Emmie sent a quick text to Grant telling him what was going on only to get a text back that he hadn’t even left Seattle yet. For a moment, she felt disappointed, but then she refused to obsess about it. She knew it would just be a waste of time, and she was having fun, even if she wished Grant could be there with her.
Sam watched her put away her phone. “Everything okay?” Sam asked.
Emmie didn’t want to keep throwing Grant under the bus and complaining about him being late, so she smiled and nodded. “Everything’s fine.” She looked around. “But we better get moving if we’re going to get all these cookies done.”
“So just tell me what you need me to do,” Sam said.
Emmie looked surprised. “You’re putting me in charge?”
Sam laughed. “Oh yeah, with your skills, you’re definitely going to be the CCO. The chief cookie officer. I’m your humble assistant. Just give me my marching orders.”
Emmie laughed. “Okay. Deal. Let’s start with the frosting . . .”
“I’m all about the frosting,” Sam said. “It’s my favorite.”
Emmie gave him a look. “I’m talking about making it, not eating it.”
Sam’s smile faded a little. “Oh.”
“You ready?” Emmie asked as she picked up a bowl of white frosting.
Sam picked up a spoon, scooped some frosting from the bowl Emmie was holding, and popped it into his mouth. “Ready.”
Emmie couldn’t help but laugh.
To save time and be more efficient, Emmie set up a cookie-frosting assembly line. Working together as a team, they were decorating like pros in no time.
Emmie watched Sam decorate a cookie. She was impressed. “You’re really getting the hang of it.”
Finding Christmas Page 13