Puffy & Precious

by Mary E Thompson

  “Well, she was probably hungry. If she was that tiny maybe she hasn’t been eating enough,” Mandy teased. “Reminds me of Melody.”

  “Let’s not go there,” Claire said before I could ask who Melody was. “She’s not worth our time.”

  “Agreed. Riles, you’re the only one left. What do you want?”

  “I have a coffee cake and a hot chocolate cake that I thought you might like. Of course I have more stuff too, but I thought those might be right for you.”

  “Sounds great. Can I have both?”

  “Yeah, of course,” I told her, pulling out slices of each. “I cut all my slices small but if you guys want more there’s plenty of everything. Well, except the flourless cake. You guys have the last of it.”

  “What are you having?” Mandy asked as she carried Riley’s plate over. She came back for her own plate of red velvet and waited for me.

  “I was going to have some of the sangria cake. I tried it last night when I made it, but I hadn’t iced it yet.”

  “It’s so good,” Sam moaned around a mouthful. “I mean, no. It’s horrible. You should just send the rest home with me. I’ll get rid of it for you.”

  We all laughed. “I was going to send it home with you guys if you wanted it, but don’t feel like you have to take it. I’m sure I can sell it if you don’t want it.”

  Sam and Carrie exchanged a look and both yelled, “Dibs!”

  Everyone laughed again. Mandy and I joined them with our cake before I realized I hadn’t grabbed any drinks. There was a fresh pot of decaf coffee on and a pot of regular. I filled a tray with the white mugs I used when people ate in the cafe and brought it over. After I set both coffee pots on the table I went back for Mandy’s hot chocolate and a few bottles of water.

  When I finally sat down I realized they were all watching me.

  “What?”

  “You really need to start dating again. Any man would be crazy not to want you,” Claire said with a gleam in her Emerald green eyes. A gleam I knew meant I was in trouble.

  Chapter 2

  “Guys, I appreciate it, but I don’t think I’m ready to date.”

  “No one is ever ready to date,” Carrie argued. “Dating sucks. When you get married you thank your lucky stars he carried his ass to church so you don’t have to start over. You got the best part and the worst. Married and divorced. He showed up, but now you’re at it again. It sucks. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t date ever again.”

  I sighed. A part of me wanted to date. I liked men, or at least I liked Brett. When he wasn’t screwing someone else. My experience with sex was limited, but good. Before Brett there’d been two others. Since Brett… no one.

  “I clearly can’t choose a decent man.”

  “One failed marriage does not mean you can’t choose men. I can’t tell you how many failed relationships I had before I met Brady,” Sam argued. “Right before Brady I dated a guy who dumped me because I was too fat for him.”

  “What! You’re joking, right?”

  “I wish. He was an ass. But I picked him. He was cute and made me think he was a decent guy. I didn’t realize he was waiting for someone better to come along.”

  “You ended up with Brady,” Addi said gently. “And Brady made sure he’ll never talk to you again.”

  “I know,” Sam said with a smile that told me she was remembering something I didn’t know. “He’s amazing. But if I hadn’t dated Cade, Brady and I never would have met. I went to Dave’s Gym because I wanted to prove to him that I wasn’t fat. I met Brady my first day there.”

  “I’m glad it worked out for you, but I just don’t know. Even if I could pick a decent guy, I’m not ready.”

  I didn’t want them to know I didn’t think I’d ever be ready. Sitting around a table with seven happily married women when I’d recently ended my marriage was not a very comfortable position. They all believed love was perfect and relationships were forever. I didn’t want to burst their beautiful little bubbles, but I hadn’t known that same bliss.

  “What do you look for in a guy? Start with that. Maybe we can find someone for you. Lexi already had one suggestion,” Claire teased.

  “As long as he doesn’t break into my place to ask stupid questions, I think I’m open to anyone,” I slipped.

  “Wait, what? Brett broke into your house?” Sam asked, her eyes turning fiery behind her red-framed glasses.

  “Max’s house, but yeah. The night of the wedding.”

  “Why?”

  I shook my head. “Everything is life and death with him. His assistant, the one I caught him with, left to go work for someone else. A bigger lawyer. Brett has no one to work for him since she left without notice and threatened to file a sexual harassment suit against him if he tried to make her stay until someone else came. He thought I’d drop everything and work for him.”

  “What did you tell him?” Claire asked.

  “I told him to get out. When he wouldn’t I told him I was going to call the cops.”

  “Why did he think you’d work for him?”

  I shrugged, hating myself for the words I had to confess. “I always did. When we were married, he didn’t want me working unless it was for him. He’d have me in the office for a few months, pick a fight with me, and tell me he’d hire someone. I never realized what he was doing.”

  “You thought you loved him,” Riley said gently. “You can’t blame yourself for what he did.”

  I nodded. “I know, but it feels like I should have known better. Like maybe I could have left him earlier.”

  “How old were you when you got married?” Carrie asked.

  “22. I’d just graduated college. He finished up law school the same year I graduated. He made it sound so natural to just get married. Of course he was also trying to get his own firm set up so he wanted me to work for him. It made sense, you know?”

  “That’s how Drew and I got together. I started working for them at XD during start-up.”

  “Yeah, but Drew’s not a cheating son of a bitch,” I said.

  Carrie laughed softly. “No, thankfully he’s not. You’ll find someone who’s not also. You just have to be open to it.”

  I nodded but didn’t really feel it. Maybe I was just one of those women who were destined to be alone. I’d be the Crazy Cake Lady instead of the Crazy Cat Lady. I was allergic to cats anyway. I could almost see it. Baking cakes for the rest of my life. Barely able to stand, but still in the kitchen baking. Alone. With no one to bother me. Plenty of nieces and nephews to spoil. I didn’t need a man to complete my life. Especially not if he was going to tell me how to live it.

  * * *

  The next morning I unlocked the doors to SkinnyCakes with a smile. Girls’ night had been fun. Everyone seemed comfortable and we talked and laughed. By the end I was more comfortable with my place in the group. I didn’t know all their secrets or their history, but I felt more like I was a solid part of the group. Especially, I hated to admit, when they all agreed they’d be on the lookout for men they could set me up with. I knew it was easier not to argue so I went along with it.

  I went around the shop, wiping down counters and tables for the morning. I had a pretty steady stream of breakfast customers most days and wanted to be ready for them.

  When I opened the doors at nine I’d finished baking strawberry, raspberry, and cinnamon sugar doughnuts. Scones, too. And cinnamon rolls. Apple, blueberry, and cherry pies were in the oven with cakes up next. Fresh coffee was brewing and hot water was ready for tea. I propped the doors open so the scents would travel and entice customers inside. I didn’t have to wait long.

  “Welcome to SkinnyCakes. How can I help you today?”

  “Is that doughnuts I smell?”

  I nodded and smiled to myself. “It is. I baked them fresh this morning. I have strawberry, raspberry, and cinnamon sugar. I also have a few cakes ready and scones that are pretty popular in the morning.”

  “Wow,” the lady said. “That’s a
lot to choose from.”

  I smiled. “Yeah. I like a lot of variety. You can always find something you like here.”

  “I think that’s the problem. There’s too much I like.”

  I laughed with her. “Yes, that’s my problem too. How about this? Since the doughnuts brought you in this morning you can try one for free. If you like it, come back for more. And tell your friends.”

  “Oh, I couldn’t take something without buying anything.”

  I waved away her concern. “If you like it I know you’ll be back.”

  “If it tastes anything like it smells, I’ll be back every day.”

  Bingo. That was exactly what I was after. After almost four months, I was still trying to get a steady stream of loyal customers. It was easy for people to grab a box of doughnuts from the grocery store, but I knew mine were better. Most people came in once a week and grabbed breakfast or dessert for later and sometimes added a few extra doughnuts for the next day.

  They always came back for more.

  I slid a cinnamon sugar doughnut into a small purple bag and handed it over. She didn’t even wait until she was outside to try it, pulling it out of the bag as she stood to the side of the counter so I could help the next customer. The delicate woman tore through the doughnut with her teeth like a starving animal, then groaned, her eyes rolling back in her head. She immediately got back in line.

  I helped the next two customers with their breakfast then smiled at the woman who’d been first through the door. “I can’t walk away without buying more of those.”

  “It’s good, isn’t it?” I asked with a laugh. “I told you you’d be back.”

  “Back?” she laughed. “I can’t even leave. You said you have other flavors?”

  I nodded. “Strawberry, raspberry, and the cinnamon sugar you just had.”

  “Can I get two of each? My coworkers are going to go nuts over these.”

  I boxed the doughnuts and taped the lid closed. “Is there anything else I can get you?”

  She eyed the case, looking right at the scones. “Do you have any blueberry scones?” I nodded. “Can I have one of those as well?”

  “Of course. I have chocolate, cinnamon, and apple also. Just for future reference.”

  “So good,” she murmured. “Thank you.”

  I handed her the bag and collected her money. She carried her box of doughnuts and bag with the scone outside but I saw her pull out the scone before she got to her car. I smiled to myself and headed back to the kitchen while the front was empty. I finished up the lemon-blueberry and banana cakes while the pies finished baking and had just slid the cakes into the oven when I heard the bell next to the register.

  As I wiped my hands on my apron, I pushed through the swinging door to the front and plastered a grin on my face. When I saw who was up front, I paused.

  Graham Hall tormented me for a month when I was getting SkinnyCakes ready to open. He was my contractor and all around handyman, taking care of all the jobs Max couldn’t handle, or didn’t have time for. Every day I would come in and find Graham, a sweat soaked t-shirt clinging to his tight body. The man did things to me that no man ever had. His muscles had muscles. He was big, from his shoulders to his feet. Broad shoulders, biceps the size of a small child, a chest the rippled with his every move, not that I was looking.

  That’s not true. Graham was a man who demanded you look at him.

  And then there was the kind, gentle man beneath that made-for-awesome-sex body.

  Any woman with a pulse would have been tormented by him.

  “Hey Graham,” I said, hoping my voice sounded normal. “How’s it going?”

  Graham had been one of my first customers. Really he’d been my first customer. The only people who’d beat him in the door were obligated by blood to support me. Graham, though, Graham was just a sweet guy.

  “Morning, Abby,” he drawled in a voice that made my pulse kick. He came in every morning, but never ordered the same thing so I waited for him to tell me what he wanted. As he scanned the case, my brain pretended his eyes were roaming my body.

  When did it get so hot?

  “I’ll try one of those chocolate scones and a raspberry doughnut. Do you have any banana cake today?”

  I set his scone on a gray plate then added the doughnut as I answered him. “Banana cake is in the oven. I’ll have some out in about thirty minutes. It won’t be cool for about an hour after that.”

  Graham shrugged. “I’ve got an easy day today. If it’s okay with you, I’ll hang around.”

  Graham. In SkinnyCakes. For over an hour. It sounded like the worst and best days ever, rolled into one.

  “Of course I don’t mind,” I forced out. “You’re welcome to stay as long as you want.”

  He eyed the wall behind me. “I thought you were going to have Max put some shelves up there. It was one of those jobs you told me he’d handle.”

  I spun and looked at the spot he was examining, right next to the large menu behind me. He was right. I did tell him that. Of course, I never asked Max to hang the shelves because I ran out of money long before I got to the little finishing touches I wanted to add to SkinnyCakes.

  No one would know what I wanted to do, not the whole big picture. Customers came in and saw a completed cafe, just like I’d always intended. The steel blue walls, the rich purple chairs, and the white washed hardwood floors gave the place a comfortable feel. I hoped it would be a place customers could relax in, read, meet with friends. I wanted the same feel I always had at Bite Me! but at my own place. The shelves Graham was asking about, along with about fifteen other relatively minor things, were all on the list of nice-to-have’s. The first things that got eliminated when money got tight.

  “Oh, yeah,” I said, not facing Graham. “We just never got around to grabbing the materials. We’ll do it eventually.”

  Rent, utilities, and a measly check for me was all I could handle paying for at the moment. I’d promised myself I’d look into a new place to live while Max and Charlie were gone, but even that was going to be tight. I’d been living rent free with Max. Paying was going to challenge my budget even more.

  “Why don’t I do them while I’m here? I’ve got more than enough extra wood in the back of my truck. Tools, too. If you’re okay with moving that stuff out of the way, I’ll get them up today.”

  “Oh, you don’t have to do that,” I said, trying to get out of it. I didn’t have the money to pay Graham. He was worth every penny I’d paid him, but I was out of pennies.

  “It’s no trouble really. I know I’ve got stuff. You can look at it first though, if you don’t think you’ll like what I have.”

  He sounded so disheartened it made me pause. He thought I was trying to get out of it because I didn’t trust his opinion, not because I was broke.

  Damn.

  I had to tell him the truth. I shook my head. “It’s not that, Graham. I’m sure whatever you have is amazing and anything you hang would be the same. Honestly, I just don’t have the cash to pay you right now.”

  I was ashamed to admit I wasn’t swimming in money. Not that I knew anyone who was, but I was a business owner. I was supposed to be doing well enough to get by without an issue. I should have enough money to buy a few pieces of wood and hang up some shelves.

  But I didn’t, and I couldn’t change that immediately.

  “I’ll take care of it. You don’t have to pay me.”

  I shook my head. “No. I can’t do that. You do excellent work. You don’t need to work for me for free when you could be out there earning money on any other job you picked up.”

  He shrugged, his black t-shirt moving with his shoulders and stretching even tighter across his pecs. My mouth watered and I forgot what we were talking about.

  “How about I hang the shelves and you give me my breakfast?”

  “A trade?”

  He shrugged again, stalling my brain a second time. The man was lethal. I didn’t know if I could handle him working
behind the counter for an hour. Hell, a conversation with him was turning me into a puddle of need. I’d never needed a man in my life. Through my marriage, Brett was always the one who needed me. I took care of myself. Even in the bedroom, dammit.

  “We both get what we want, and neither of us is out any money. What do you say, Abby?”

  He leaned closer when he talked to me. His massive frame towered over me, even from the opposite side of the counter. He smiled down at me, but his eyes stayed on my face, searching, studying. I wondered what he saw when he looked at me. Did he like my new blonde hair? Did he care that I had a few too many curves? Were my breasts big enough for his large hands?

  His voice dropped when he spoke again. “Let me help you, Abby. I’m here and I’m not doing anything. Let me help.”

  “Okay,” I whispered, unable to do anything but agree with the man who turned my insides out whenever he was around. If I had any inclination to date, he’d be at the top of my list. It was a good thing I wasn’t dating anyone again, ever, because Graham had the power to make me do anything he wanted.

  Been there, done that, had the divorce papers to prove it.

  Never again.

  Chapter 3

  By the time Graham finally left I was pretty sure my panties had caught fire. When he carried the shelves into the shop his muscles bulged and flexed, but he looked like the beams he’d chosen were weightless. They were stunning. I couldn’t believe he had scrap pieces of wood that looked like the shelves he hung behind my cash register, but I was grateful as hell for it.

  The whole time he worked we brushed against each other. At first it was on accident, but every time his hard body touched mine I craved it again. After a few minutes I found excuses to brush against him. Thankfully he didn’t seem to mind.

  Or notice, really.

  He was so huge compared to me that if I ran into him at full speed he wouldn’t budge. The man was a block of concrete, a perfect block, but still. I was lucky if I came up to his shoulders, in heels, and even my size 16 hips were small compared to him.