The Season for Ginger Snaps

by Katie Carver

  “How old is she? Twelve?” Ginger asked.

  “She’ll be Thirteen in March,” Jake grimaced. Soon she’d be a teenager. Time had flown so quickly. It felt like she was just starting kindergarten last week. He hoped her high school years didn’t fly by so fast, but he knew they would.

  “I think I was more interested in boys at that age than horses.”

  “Bite your tongue.” Jake glared at her in mock anger. “Thanks for that. I’m not complaining about the horses ever again,” he said miserably.

  Ginger laughed. The sound caught Jake by surprise. He’d never heard her laugh before. In fact, this was probably the longest the two of them had ever been together without arguing. It wasn’t so bad talking to Ginger when they were civil, it was actually enjoyable. She tucked away a few stray strands of red hair behind her ear and uncovered a small streak of flour across her cheek that Jake found adorable.

  “She only had one cookie, so I’m sure she didn’t ruin her appetite.”

  Jake remembered the bag Ginger handed Kacie and reached for his wallet. “That reminds me, how much do I owe you for the stuff you gave her?”

  Ginger held up a hand in protest. “Nothing. That was a gift for my new friend. I’m curious as to what her favorite is. I have a hunch, but I’ll just have to wait and see.”

  “Do you usually guess people’s favorite?” he asked curiously.

  “Usually, but I am wrong sometimes.”

  “What do you think my favorite cookie would be?” he joked.

  “Hmmm.” She tilted her head from side to side pondering the question. “Sugar cookie.” She finally decided. “Am I right?”

  “Nope.”

  “Really? I was sure it was a sugar cookie,” she said disappointedly. “What is it then?” She waited a moment for the answer and then narrowed her eyes at him in frustration. “You aren’t going to tell me, are you?”

  “Nope,” he said and smirked.

  “Fine. I’ll figure it out, I always do,” she teased and laughed again.

  “We’ll see about that,” he said coyly. “I better get back to Kacie. She’s going to start wondering what’s taking so long.” Jake found that he regretted having to leave.

  Ginger nodded. “Tell Kacie that as long as she tells you first, she can stop by any time she’d like.” Then looked at Jake thoughtfully, “I know you and I aren’t on the best of terms, but I promise you that she’s always welcome here and I hope you’ll let her come by if she wants to visit. I mean that, Jake. I think she’s amazing and it’d be fun to have her around again.”

  “I’ll let her know,” he said sincerely. “She seems to like you. Besides, I doubt I could keep her away if I tried.” He gave a small laugh. “Thank you, Ginger.”

  Ginger smiled but didn’t say another word and Jake turned slowly to the door.

  “Also, thank you for turning off the music. I’m not sure why you did, but I really do appreciate it,” Ginger said.

  Jake turned and watched as Ginger headed to the kitchen. He walked slowly back to the bakery door. He knew he and Ginger would probably fall back into their old ways soon enough, but until then, he would enjoy the temporary cease-fire. When he got outside, the cold air hit him and he sucked in a quick breath. He hurried into the restaurant away from the bitterness.

  Jake smiled when he saw Kacie waiting for him at the table in the dining room. She was his world. He took Ginger at her word that she’d never let anything between the two of them be projected onto Kacie. Ginger had been kind to Kacie and in his book, that was worth more to him than anything else. Everything he’d done, giving up his job, moving to a new city and opening the restaurant, was to be closer to her. If Ginger could realize how amazing his kid was, then maybe she had at least one redeeming quality and that was at least something. He was certain he’d just experienced the side of Ginger that he’d always heard existed. She was everything that he’d been told she was; kind, generous, and thoughtful. She was also stunningly beautiful and adorable all at once. Something he’d never witnessed before now either. Now that he had, he had a feeling he may never be the same again.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Ginger pulled a pie out of the oven and turned off the timer. She was finally catching up on the orders, but with only two weeks to go until Christmas, she’d be busy until Christmas Eve. She knew she needed to focus more time on winning the Baxter house in order to even stand a chance, but finding the time was proving more difficult than she thought. When the list for the contest had been made public, Ginger hadn’t anticipated that so few people had entered their names for contention. Besides her and Jake, only two others had submitted their names for consideration; Mayor Curtis and Sheriff Sam. She wasn’t surprised by the Mayor’s name but the Sheriff was something of a shock. The most astonishing of all was that Franklin did not enter. Even though he was probably not interested in the house, the fact that he wouldn’t try to win just to donate the property to the town was interesting. He was forever trying to cozy up to Mayor Curtis and it seemed out of the ordinary for him to pass up an opportunity to further that connection. She was grateful for the lack of competition, but it would still be a difficult contest to win. Jake had support that she hadn’t expected and Sheriff Sam was respected and adored by the whole town. And if there was one thing Ginger knew to do, it was to never underestimate Mayor Curtis.

  When she walked up front and was surprised to see Matty waiting for her near the counter. She must’ve been too deep in thought to hear the door chime. A visit from Matty was rare. She never liked to leave her antique store during regular business hours. Matty also didn’t like to be kept waiting.

  “I didn’t hear you come in, Matty. Is everything okay?” Ginger asked.

  “Well, that depends on your definition of everything being okay, doesn’t it?” she asked quickly.

  Ginger was used to Matty’s hurried and forceful nature and learned to never take offense to it. “I guess it does,” Ginger said and smiled.

  “I came by to tell you that you have my vote for the Baxter House. I can’t for the life of me figure out what you want to do with a big old house like that, but that’s your prerogative.”

  “I really appreciate that, Matty. I have a feeling I’ll need all the votes I can get,” Ginger said glumly.

  “No one will vote for Mayor Curtis. Everyone knows he just wants the house to use as his Mayoral Office and that isn’t what Carol Baxter would have wanted. She had just about as much patience for him as I do. Now, Sheriff Sam, his running might cost you a couple of votes. I’m still trying to find out why he wants it. He’s lived in his home for thirty years and there has to be more to that story than he’s letting on. I’m going to get to the bottom of it. I think your only real competition is going to be that Jake person.” Matty looked at her intently. “You need to do something about him and you need to do it quickly. What’s your plan?”

  “My plan is to just try to prove to everyone that I’m worthy of the home.” If Matty had asked her the same question a few days ago, her answer might have been different. Ever since she saw Jake with his daughter, her feelings towards him had softened. Seeing Jake with Kacie made her see him in a different light. There was no question of his dedication to his daughter. It made Ginger realize that he came to Spruce Valley with an intention to make a life for himself close to her and had given up everything he had known to do so. She could cut him a little slack about the conversation she had overheard. So, he hadn’t been ecstatic moving to the town, his intentions were that of a devoted father and she couldn’t fault him for that. Besides, it wouldn’t only harm Jake if she told the town about the call, his words would harm the people who began to accept their new neighbor. She could only imagine how Andy would feel upon hearing his thoughts about the people in town. Ginger didn’t want to hurt anyone she cared about, even if it meant giving her an edge with the contest. She decided winning that way wasn’t the answer.

  “I really want the Baxter House, but I’m not g
oing to hurt anyone on the way to get it,” Ginger told Matty.

  Matty clucked her tongue with dismay. “I thought you were smarter than that, Ginger. The people in town don’t care if the person who wins is worthy. They want to be entertained. They want a little healthy mudslinging. It’s good for them. Heck, everyone on that list is worthy in some way or another. Except for Jake. I don’t much care for him.”

  Ginger chuckled. “You put him higher on the list than Mayor Curtis? What is that all about?”

  “Oh, Mayor Curtis is on a whole different list, if you know what I mean.” Matty raised her eyebrows. “I’m sure you hadn’t heard, but Jake came over to my home the other night. He brought me over a meal. Said he was checking in on the older folks in town. I mean can you believe that? Me? One of the older folks. Jake said he had gotten the list from Mayor Curtis, so believe you me, I will be making sure that the mayor gets what is coming to him, but Jake was the one who showed up. He knows I’m not elderly. I’m in my prime. If he can’t figure out that Mayor Curtis is a nitwit and he shouldn’t be asking him for help, then I will do everything I can to make sure he doesn’t get that house.” Matty finished her tirade with a stern nod.

  Ginger had seen Matty get worked up before and she could tell she meant her words. “I’m sure he was just trying to be polite,” Ginger said hoping to placate her.

  “Polite my foot. He’s got a head start on you, Ginger. Once word gets out he’s helping the older folks in town, he’ll start gaining momentum. If you don’t get a move on, you are going to lose. Don’t you get it? No one is being polite. They want to win. You better figure out if that’s what you want before it’s too late,” Matty said forcefully.

  “I do want to win,” Ginger said passionately.

  Matty stared at Ginger intently. “Then do it,” she said flatly and shuffled quickly out the door.

  Ginger sighed heavily. Matty did have a point. Ginger was letting time go by without any thought as to how she would pull ahead of everyone. She wasn’t sure what she could do that would make a difference. A smile spread across her lips when the answer came to her. She picked up the phone and dialed the town gazette’s number.

  “Spruce Valley Gazette,” the person on the other line said quickly.

  “Hi, this Ginger. I need to place an ad for tomorrow’s paper.”

  “Hey Ginger, it’s Eva. What do you want it to say?” Eva asked happily.

  “Stop by Ginger’s Bakery on Thursday for a free ginger snap or sugar cookie. For every cookie that is given away, one dollar will be donated to the library’s renovation fund.”

  “That’s very generous, Ginger. Hey, you know what? I bet I can find a way to get you a full-page ad for the regular ad rate. Since it’s for a good cause, I don’t think it’ll be a problem. What do you think?” Eva offered.

  “That would be fantastic, Eva. Thanks.”

  “Sure, Ginger. I guess I’ll see you on Thursday for a cookie.”

  “You get me that full-page ad and I’ll give you two.” Ginger chuckled.

  “Consider it done. I’m rooting for you, Ginger. Give me a call if there is anything I can do to help. I really want you to win.”

  “I will and I appreciate it. See you, Thursday, kid.”

  Ginger was grateful for Eva’s vote of confidence. Ginger had babysat Eva when she was a kid and normally, she would have figured her a lock-in vote for her, but it seemed that nothing was normal right now.

  If the town lighting event was any indication, people would stop by in droves for a free cookie. If she was lucky, she’d break even by any miscellaneous orders she received by people stopping in on Thursday. Donating to the library was a good way to not only rally support, but she genuinely enjoyed the library and didn’t mind if she didn’t break even completely. She went to the kitchen to start a pot of coffee. It was going to be a long night of baking and she needed to prepare. She had a decent amount of ginger snaps already, so that alleviated some of the burden. There was no way to tell if this would help set her over the top, but it was at least a start. She didn’t intend to fight dirty as Matty suggested, but she could try to beat Jake fair and square.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Jake stared out the restaurant window at the crowd gathered in front of Ginger’s Bakery. People in town had been lining up all day and his curiosity was starting to get the better of him. What was so fascinating at Ginger’s that would draw most of the town residents to her bakery? He needed to find out in a way that didn’t involve him looking like a spy. He glanced over at Kacie who was seated in a booth in the back of the dining room. She had been engrossed in a book most of the morning and had failed to even notice the line outside the restaurant.

  “Kacie, come here for a second,” Jake called out.

  She dutifully closed her book and slid out of the booth and bounded towards him. “What’s up, Dad? Is it time to make the salads?” Kacie asked.

  He had been so preoccupied with what was going on outside of the restaurant that he forgot about prepping the salads entirely. “No, we’ll do that later. Right now, I need a favor from you.”

  “Sure,” she said happily.

  “I need you to go next door to Ginger’s and find out what is going on over there. Do you see that line outside?” he asked and pointed to the window. “Would you mind going out there and seeing why people are so excited to go to the bakery today?”

  Kacie gave him an odd look, which Jake deemed fair since it was an odd request. “Can I get something when I’m there?”

  Jake reached for his wallet and handed her some money. “I want change back. Don’t be hanging around there, either. I want you back as soon as you find out what is going on,” he said sternly.

  Kacie nodded and hurried out the door. He watched her as she took her place in line. As soon as she did, a few more people lined up behind her. He kept an eye on her until she walked into the bakery. The line was at least moving quickly. He’d never seen such a commotion on Main Street in the time he had been there. If she was able to draw such a gathering, there had to be something going on above her usual business. He had a sinking feeling it had to do with the contest and if that was the case, whatever it was, she was doing it well.

  He saw Kacie leave the bakery and head back towards the restaurant. When she entered, she was still chewing and had a bag of goodies in her hand. She handed Jake back his change and he shoved it in his pocket.

  “So, what did you find out?” he asked impatiently.

  Kacie finished chewing and swallowed quickly. “She’s giving out free cookies,” she said happily. “Isn’t that great?”

  Jake blinked at Kacie. There had to be more to the story than just free cookies. “Why? Did you find out why?”

  Kacie nodded. “She’s donating to the Library. She’s giving a dollar for every cookie she gives away today. You should have heard the people in line talking about how great Ginger is for donating. The person behind me said she’s going to win. Is there a prize for donating to the library?” Kacie asked innocently.

  “Something like that,” Jake said miserably.

  “I like Ginger. You should ask her out.”

  “I’m not asking out Ginger,” Jake said firmly.

  “Why not? You think she’s cute. I can tell,” Kacie said and smiled slyly.

  Jake rolled his eyes. “Kacie, she’s not my type. She’s entirely too bossy and we don’t get along very well.”

  “It’s not nice to call people bossy.”

  “Fine. Strong-willed, then,” Jake conceded. Kacie always had taken his warnings of not calling people names to heart.

  “Aren’t you the one who is always telling me to be smart and strong? You said that strong people are much more interesting.”

  “I’m not sure Ginger was what I had in mind,” Jake said flippantly. He did have to admit though, he found Ginger infinitely interesting.

  “You haven’t dated anyone since you and mom divorced. You should really get out there. Mom remarried. I�
�m okay with you dating someone, you know.”

  Jake had dated since the divorce, but no relationship had ever progressed to the point where he was comfortable introducing them to Kacie. She may have been ready for him to have a relationship, but he’d never been ready for her to get attached to anyone if there was a chance it wouldn’t work out. “I’m quite happy with how things are. I don’t need to date anyone.”

  “Can you at least think about it?” Kacie asked.

  “Fine. I’ll think about it.” As far as Jake was concerned, there was nothing to think about.

  Kacie smiled happily thinking she’d won the battle. “I almost forgot, I got you something,” she said and handed him a cookie.

  Jake shook his head. “I don’t want one,” he said trying to hand it back.

  She held a hand up, refusing to take it back. “Try it, Dad. It’s really good.”

  “I don’t want it. You eat it.”

  “I got this one for you. Please, Dad?” Kacie begged.

  Jake sighed and looked at the cookie. It was just a cookie. What was the harm in trying it? He took a generous bite and the moment it touched his tongue, he was in heaven. He could taste the vanilla but no one flavor overpowered the cookie. It was crisp, yet soft and chewy. He was sure he’d never had anything like it before. Jake realized that he’d closed his eyes as he chewed in his bliss. He opened them to find Kacie staring at him with a look of delight, her hand covering her mouth to muffle her laughter.

  “I told you it was good,” she said and laughed.

  Jake smiled. “It’s amazing. What kind of cookie was that?” he asked popping the rest of the cookie in his mouth.

  “A sugar cookie. Ginger said they were your favorite. I didn’t know that.”

  “I didn’t either,” Jake said with a mouth full of cookie. He had never liked sugar cookies. They were bland and crunchy and he’d never cared for any he’d had before. If that was what a sugar cookie was supposed to taste like, he was now a huge fan.