Most Wonderful

by Bryce Oakley

  "You have a little," Cody said, leaning forward before she could think better of it, reaching out. Her thumb brushed the edge of Emilia’s mouth, pulling her bottom lip for a moment.

  Emilia stared wide-eyed at her, and Cody could hear her breath hitch as she leaned in, but instead of giving into her desire to kiss the woman, she sighed and leaned back in her chair.

  She was not going to take advantage of the fact that Emilia was hurt and seduced by a chocolate croissant. She had only hung up the paramedic uniform the week before, and now she was drifting without a solid life plan. Emilia didn’t need someone with so little planned out. When… if… she kissed Emilia, it was not going to be in a back-storage room of her uncle’s bakery.

  Emilia didn't say anything, but she did bite her lower lip. Those full, red lips.

  Cody swallowed. Couldn't Emilia see that she was trying to exhibit some self-control?

  "Where are you?" Frankie's sing-song voice floated in from the alley.

  And just like that, the spell was broken.

  Cody rose and busied herself at the sink with a dish to put some distance between herself and Emilia.

  Frankie smiled as she stuck her head in the doorway. "Figured I'd better see if she had chopped you up for a meat pie. Ooh, is that a chocolate croissant?”

  Cody watched Frankie grab the croissant out of Emilia's hand and take a large bite. She was cute, but she was not croissant-stealing cute.

  Frankie moaned. ”Oh wow, that's delicious, Cody."

  "Thanks," she said without looking over her shoulder, setting the dish in the drying rack.

  Frankie looked at Emilia's elevated leg, touching the swollen ankle gently. "Looks like we're going to have to amputate in the field. Cody, bring me the bluntest knife you have, and then hold her arms."

  Cody smiled, watching Emilia pretend-glare at Frankie and then reach out to playfully smack her.

  "Fine, fine, you can keep the leg," Frankie said, rolling her eyes melodramatically. "For now," she added in a low-pitched, sinister whisper.

  Cody watched the pair, smirking. They could have been sisters.

  ”Give me a ride home, you weirdo," Emilia said. "Can you grab my shoes? I think we left them out in the alley near the dumpster."

  Frankie walked out to the retrieve the shoes, and Cody could feel both Emilia and herself let out a deep breath. She laughed, inwardly cursing Frankie's timing.

  Emilia's cheeks were red, and her hair was a bit undone, something Cody guessed was a rare sight.

  "Thank you for your help," she said, avoiding Cody’s eye.

  Cody got the distinct feeling she didn't ask for help often.

  Cody held up her hands in defeat. "No worries, drive home safe," she said. "Do you need help getting out to the car or anything?"

  "No," Emilia said quickly. "I'm very capable."

  Cody nodded, but didn’t remark on it.

  "I'll see you tomorrow?" Cody asked.

  "Tomorrow?" Emilia tilted her head to the side.

  "For your… breakfast sandwich," Cody said, feeling embarrassed, suddenly. Seriously? Creep alert, dude.

  Emilia laughed. “Yeah, of course,” she said, shaking her head. She smiled, and Frankie walked in, holding her shoes.

  The next day dragged on. Cody stared down at the bread she had been kneading, grimacing when she realized she had over-kneaded it in her distraction.

  Emilia hadn't come in for breakfast that morning. That wasn't a good sign.

  Sure, she had said yesterday that she was busy planning some event. But was it a coincidence that she had skipped breakfast the morning after it felt as though maybe some sparks were happening between them?

  Was she overthinking the entire thing?

  Maybe Emilia wasn’t interested.

  Maybe she just needed an excuse to see Emilia again?

  It wasn’t creepy if she had an excuse.

  She could hear John Lennon through the wall.

  She looked over at the overflowing case of cinnamon rolls as a light bulb went off above her head. Grabbing a box, she piled the rolls into it, tying it up with twine. She called out to Henry to tell him she’d be right back, and then walked next door to Between the Covers.

  The door bells jingled above her head, and she walked in, seeing Nico, who had come into the bakery a few times and was introduced by Henry as "the heartbreaking, wild one" — definitely someone she wanted to steer clear of.

  "Hey, Cody," Nico called out. "What brings you to our humble little bookshop?"

  Small children squealed from above, and when Cody looked up, she was surprised to find the loft teeming with toddlers.

  "Children's reading time," Nico said, pointing up.

  "Yeah, seems like a lot of reading is going on," Cody said, raising a brow.

  Nico winked. ”Yeah, but the moms buy a ton of books, so we let them read as much or as little as they so choose," she said with a smirk.

  Cody grinned, understanding that conundrum completely. It was like the ladies bridge club that came into the bakery and stayed for hours, but they bought more than their fair share of scones and flirted with Henry, so he always let them stay.

  ”What have you got in the box? Please say it's food.” She leaned over the counter.

  Cody laughed, handing over the box.

  "Sorry, just starving. The powers that be won't let me leave my post while they're off planning this big event thing on Friday," Nico said, rolling her eyes. She untied the box, lifting the lid, and grabbed a roll without a plate.

  Cody rubbed the back of her neck, watching Nico make a mess. She tried to look casual while looking around for Emilia.

  “There is no way you are real,” Nico said, licking her thumb. "You can visit our shop anytime. Bribes are strongly encouraged."

  "Well, Emilia mentioned the event and I imagine she and Frankie are probably working hard getting that in order. Thought everyone could use reserves. She and Frankie aren't here, then?" Cody tried to maintain any chill.

  After all, she wasn’t desperate or anything. She had known these women for about three days, but her uncle had known these women for nearly three years since they had opened Between the Covers next to the bakery.

  She was only bringing the cinnamon rolls because she wanted to be kind to the neighbors, of course.

  She’d just as soon have taken cinnamon rolls to the other neighbor, a hip couple who owned some kind of fitness franchise. Spin? Yoga? Yellow something? She had no idea, but it looked expensive. And they looked like the sort who'd tell her just how bad for the body those cinnamon rolls were. No, it was a clear and much better choice to treat the employees of Between the Covers, of course.

  "Well, well, speak of the devils," Nico said.

  Emilia walked into the room, not looking up from a notebook in her hands, which she was reading to herself, moving her lips silently. She wore dress slacks and inconspicuous sneakers — she had listened to the heels advice, after all — and looked downright stunning in a form-fitting top.

  Cody absently brushed some flour from her shirt, thankful that she had at least had the common sense to remove her apron.

  She watched as Emilia saw the box of cinnamon rolls and smiled to herself. Then, Emilia saw her. Her expression changed immediately to genuine surprise, as though she had seen a ghost.

  "What are you doing here?" She said.

  Nico gave her a strange look.

  "I was just treating your hardworking employees to some cinnamon rolls. You know, I hear employee morale counts for a lot these days, what with places installing nap corners and snack bars and the like.” Cody tried to recover quickly, though Emilia's strange mood had set her nerves on edge.

  Maybe the thing last night had been one-sided?

  Had she imagined it?

  "Where's our nap bar?" Frankie teased, popping out from behind Emilia. She grabbed a cinnamon roll, shoving too large of a bite into her mouth, then handed a small piece to a burly little dog beside her.

  �
��It seems like you’re lying and trying to tell me you don't nap in those bean bags upstairs," Cody joked, pointing to the children's loft, trying to lighten the mood.

  "I haven't ‘napped' there, per se." Frankie winked comically, and Emilia went pink from the tip of her forehead down into her blouse before smacking Frankie on the arm.

  Cody tried to casually cover her mouth to hide her amusement.

  "I'm joking!" Frankie said, rubbing her arm dramatically where Emilia had smacked her.

  "Well," Emilia said, holding up her notebook and turning on her heel to leave the room quickly.

  Cody stared after her, confused, seeing that Emilia was avoiding her.

  The night before, she could have sworn there was a spark.

  ”Did I just do something?" Cody whispered to Nico and Frankie, standing around to pick at the frosting in the cinnamon roll box.

  "You mean, did you piss off Emilia?" Nico asked.

  "Impossible. She doesn't have any feelings to begin with," Frankie said, laughing. "She's the nicest robot I ever did meet, but feelings? Not her thing."

  Well, Cody didn’t believe that for one second.

  Chapter 5

  Emilia

  Emilia stood inside her office against the door, her heart pounding in her ears. She tried to remember the breathing technique that some guided meditation had taught her. Focus on your breathing. Let your mind go blank, and if it wanders, gently bring it back and focus on the feelings inside your body. She inhaled deeply through her nose, exhaling loudly out of her mouth.

  Was she feeling calmer yet? She put a hand to her chest, feeling her heart thumping wildly. Nope, not much calmer.

  It was no use. It was exactly as she feared. She had seen Cody, and her body had gone rogue. Her stomach did a flip and her heart had beat so loudly in her chest she thought it might be audible to others. Her entire body longed to walk over to Cody, just to be near to her again. What was wrong with her?

  She put her hands to her lips, remembering Cody’s touch as she wiped chocolate off of Emilia’s mouth.

  Even just the thought of a touch sent her reeling?

  She shook her head from side to side. She was losing her grip, and she’d just have to get back to Sanityville, population one. Quickly. Like as in past tense. Like should be vacationing on the beaches of Sanityville. Sanityville definitely had beaches. Nice ones.

  She had known Cody for only a handful of days, and although anyone had to be blind not to see the woman was mind-blowingly and unfairly gorgeous, she had never wanted to rip off a stranger's clothes before. In fact, she couldn't think of the last woman to have made her feel that way. Sure, she had been set up on dates and had even met some nice women, but most bailed the second they realized they would always fall second to her work.

  What had happened over the last 24 hours to make her feel so intense around Cody, in particular?

  Emilia, cool your jets.

  She inhaled and exhaled. In through the nose and out through the mouth.

  The door budged open behind her, and she yelped in surprise, jumping to the side. For a second, she found that she was hoping it was Cody.

  Instead, it was Frankie, or at least Frankie's face.

  Why had she expected Cody to come into her office unannounced? She shook her head.

  "Sorry, I'm just—" Emilia started.

  "Yeah, you're acting super weird, dude," Frankie said with a nod, squeezing in the door and shutting it behind her.

  "It’s…" Emilia paused for a moment, trying to think of an excuse. "It's just the event. There's not enough room in this place, and it's getting to me," she said, putting on a quick smile and raising her hands in exasperation.

  Frankie nodded with her eyes closed and her brow furrowed in what Emilia could only assume was her best Sage Wisdom impression. "Why don't you email the landlord and talk to her about expanding? We could move somewhere else, or maybe lease the place next door."

  "The bakery?" Emilia asked, frowning.

  "No, the bougie glass place. That lady gives me the creeps anyway,” Frankie said, crossing her arms.

  Emilia nodded, considering the thought. "That's actually a great idea," she said, envisioning the added space.

  "I do have them sometimes," Frankie rolled her eyes. "Now tell me the real reason you're being weird. Did something happen with Cody?"

  "What, no, of course not," Emilia said, shaking her head and shrugging her shoulders and crossing and uncrossing her arms and leaning against the desk and standing back straight again.

  Frankie's jaw dropped in surprise. "You’re the world’s worst liar, Em.”

  Emilia turned, adjusting a pile of papers on the desk to avoid eye contact with Frankie. She shrugged noncommittally, as if her heart wasn't still racing. "We kind of had a moment last night, maybe? Or maybe I’m reading into it?”

  Frankie's jaw dropped, and she began playfully smacking Emilia’s arm in what she could only assume was overwhelming excitement. "You didn't tell me any of that! Oh my god, my little Emilia has her first crush," she said, holding a hand to her chest and dramatically looking like she might cry.

  Emilia swatted away Frankie's hands and crossed her arms over her chest firmly. "No. Absolutely not.” She paused for a moment, then inhaled. “But if I did... Isn’t it terrible? I don't know what's wrong with me."

  Frankie laughed, sitting on the edge of the desk beside Emilia and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Ah, I remember my first crush, too. Second grade. Evan Donaldson. We made passionate love under the stars. And by passionate love, I mean he threw sand at me, and by stars, I mean monkey bars. What a time to be alive."

  Emilia rolled her eyes, groaning. "Stop making fun of me. We're under a ton of pressure with this Johanna Kissler thing, and now I can't speak or think straight when Cody is in the room."

  "Okay, okay, let's get a grip on reality," Frankie said, holding up her hands. "I know you're under a lot of pressure, and I'm doing all I can to help," she said, squeezing Emilia’s arm.

  "You've been helping a lot, don't worry," Emilia admitted, putting her hand over Frankie’s.

  "And there are worse women than Cody that you could have a little crush on," Frankie said, smiling.

  Emilia resisted the urge to roll her eyes again.

  "She’s stunning. She can bake, she's got like insane arm muscles, did we talk about how she can bake?" Frankie joked, touching her fingers with each point she made.

  "Did you know she used to be a paramedic?" Emilia added, grinning despite her best efforts not to.

  Frankie gasped. "Shut up, no, that puts her over the Too Perfect bar."

  "I know, it's disgusting," Emilia joked.

  "Never mind those dimples," Frankie continued, fanning herself with her hand.

  Emilia sighed. "I don't get crushes. I don't see women outside of this shop, and when I do, it’s because they're usually just buying some weird, rare book about Scottish stone circles.”

  Frankie beamed. "If anyone deserves to jump the bones of the hottest woman any of us have seen in a while, it’s you," she said.

  Emilia shook her head. "No bones, no jumping," She said, pointing her finger at Frankie. "Get those ideas out of your head."

  Frankie held up her hands in mock surrender. "What better time than the holidays?”

  The door opened again, and they both jumped in surprise. Austen popped her head in, a giant goofy smile on her face.

  "Did she just open—" Emilia pointed to the door, frowning.

  Frankie clutched a hand to her chest. "My daughter's a genius! She can open doors without opposable thumbs!" She slipped from the desk to lather Austen with attention and kisses.

  Emilia was grateful the conversation about her silly crush on Cody was over, but as she moved around the desk to open her laptop. She smiled to herself, holding her fingertips to her bottom lip as the computer turned on.

  The following three days went by in a blur. Emilia had successfully avoided Cody, sending Nico over to the b
akery to grab sandwiches each morning instead of going herself. The last thing she needed before the event was a distraction, and Cody was most certainly a distraction.

  It was finally the big Johanna Kissler night.

  She stood in the office in front of the mirror, smoothing out her dark green dress. It was modest but fit perfectly, skimming her body, showing off what were — in her opinion — her better assets.

  She had put on makeup, but only the basics, and let her hair fall around her shoulders. She longed for the beach-casual waves that Frankie was blessed with, but the straight hair would have to do. After applying one more coat of dark red lipstick and checking her teeth, she was ready to go.

  She heard a ding on the computer and looked to see an email pop up. "Leased Space Expansion" read the subject. She had emailed the landlord two days before, as Frankie had so brilliantly suggested, talking about either expanding or relocating.

  She really didn't want to relocate the store. She glanced at the first paragraph but knew she didn't have time to read it all.

  She checked the clock on the wall one more time. 5:23 pm. She had an hour and a half until the start of the event. The vendors would be arriving in approximately seven minutes, and then Johanna Kissler and her entourage in 37 minutes.

  She took a deep breath and moved back to the mirror. This was her time to shine. This was what she had dreamed of when starting the bookshop. She wanted, more than anything, for the shop to be successful.

  Not only that, she wanted to be perceived as successful.

  To prove that she was capable of building something on her own. When she had first talked about opening the bookshop and got Frankie on board, her parents had tried to persuade them against opening it. They didn't want Emilia and Frankie to be tied down so young in life.

  And sure, the bookshop had struggled at first, but they had found their niche, and she had spent every waking hour learning about online marketing and how to sell rare books. It took her awhile to understand how to list their titles successfully online without having to undercut their in-store prices.