Six Rules: Book Two in the SIX Series

by Kennedy, Randileigh

  Chapter 19

  “Good morning, sunshine,” Greyson said, kissing my forehead. “You wanted to be to work by six, right?”

  I glanced over at the clock, both grateful and annoyed to see it read five-thirty.

  “Why are you up? I thought you didn’t have anything to do today,” I replied, rolling over in his sheets, stretching out my arms and legs.

  “I had something really important this morning, actually. I made you breakfast,” he said smiling.

  “You’re crazy,” I responded, climbing out of his bed and throwing on the same cotton dress I had on the night before.

  “You know you can leave some clothes here if you want. I hope you know that,” he said, taking my hand and leading me into the kitchen.

  I sat down at his kitchen table as he set down a plate of eggs, hash browns, and thick sliced bacon. “You know I would be fine with a cold pop tart, right?” I said, smiling. “I mean, this is wonderful, but if you ever want to sleep in.”

  “I have the whole day for that. Besides, you need the nutrition. That was a sorry excuse for a dinner last night.”

  I smiled. Last night was amazing. We hung out with some of his friends, all of whom I liked and got along with, and then came back to lie in his hammock on his patio. We stared at the stars for what seemed like hours, and then moved inside. We laughed, told stories, and kept ourselves entertained until almost two in the morning.

  I quickly finished my breakfast and we discussed our plans for the week. I had a big proposal due for the downtown art festival by Thursday, so I knew I wouldn’t have much time to spend with him. We agreed to make our ‘us’ day for Thursday afternoon. My proposal would be submitted by nine in the morning, so we would have the entire day after that and I would be much less stressed.

  The week flew by, and Greyson and I spent time together every day. I still had a lot of work to do, but for the first time since I could remember, I was comfortable missing some time at the bakery to hang out with him instead. Addie was happy to pull some extra shifts anyway since she was saving up for her wedding, so I felt less stressed out about having to be there all the time when I knew she could handle things.

  Every moment Greyson and I were together, I felt like a teenager all over again. One night we stayed in, getting take-out and watching movies all night. The other evening we spent outside, heading out to the hot springs about an hour away. I finally felt like I was getting to know who he really was, and I liked him more and more with each passing day. He talked a lot about his father, and how much he still thought about him, or the made up version he had of him anyway. I loved hearing him talk to me about that kind of thing, because it was raw and emotional and I felt as though he didn’t talk about that kind of thing often.

  We also talked about my time studying abroad, and how I longed to go back to Europe and Australia. It was as if we were making very generalized plans to do that some day, without the awkward talk of making plans to specifically do it together in the future. It was something I thought about, sure. But it was so much easier to be in the moment with him, rather than thinking ahead. I no longer worried about the three week mark of our relationship. I had reservations about the whole thing in the beginning, because I didn’t trust this guy enough to know whether or not he would see this relationship through. But after spending all of this time with him, things were different. He promised me with certainty he would be there, and I finally knew in those moments that I could trust him.

  The downtown art festival gig was a big deal for me. Greyson had catered some of these events in the past, so he already had his proposal in. He didn’t seem phased by the fact that other people would be competing for the same job he wanted. He had a very ‘if it’s meant to be, it will be’ outlook on the whole thing. For me, on the other hand, I wanted it bad. These huge community events were exactly what I needed to build up my business.

  Addie and I had been busy working with some new recipes, trying a few more unique things that could separate us from some of the other bakeries in the area. There were only a couple others throwing in their dessert proposals. The real rat race was with the catering companies. Greyson had worked well with a lot of the community leaders in the past though, so he wasn’t worried about being selected to handle at least fifty percent of the food order.

  The night before my proposal was due, Addie and I stayed up until two in the morning. Greyson had come by the bakery sometime around ten that evening to bring us some coffee, but respectfully left after a few minutes so he wouldn’t be a distraction. We were really meshing well with each other, appreciative for the time we had together, but respectful of the time when the other person had an obligation. We had plans for an ‘us’ day after my proposal was submitted, and I finally decided I would invite him out the following night with all of my friends for some drinks. It would be the first time he met the whole group, Steve, Johnny, Griffin, and Megan. The only one he knew so far was Addie, but only because she was already at the bakery the few times he stopped by. I was a little nervous for them all to meet, but at the same time, I knew they would like him. And I was pretty sure by now that I did too.

  Thursday morning rolled around, far too early if you ask me. This lack of sleep lately, between Greyson and trying to finish the proposal, was really draining. I was really looking forward to another ‘us’ day of boating and laying out in the sun. September was almost here, so I knew our outdoor sun catching days were limited.

  I dropped off my proposal at eight-thirty, anxious and excited all at the same time. I wouldn’t find out anything until later that day or possibly even the next morning, after everything had been reviewed. I was nervous for the call, but I knew spending the entire day with Greyson would calm any fears I had about my bid.

  I made my way over to Greyson’s apartment around nine. I knocked softly on the door, happy to see Greyson as he opened the door in gym shorts and no shirt. He wrapped his arms around me and the world felt good.

  We had so much fun boating on our last ‘us’ day that we decided to head out for a repeat day. The sun was warm and the sky was perfectly clear, and it was another day without a care in the world.

  We spent the day eating on the boat, laying out in the sun, and swimming around some of the various coves around the lake. Somehow I finally began feeling really comfortable around Greyson. This whole relationship finally felt a little less temporary and a lot more real. He was more considerate and thoughtful than I ever would have imagined in the beginning, and I had to admit he was certainly making an amazing effort. He was genuinely trying to be a wonderful boyfriend, and I couldn’t fault him for that.

  “So tomorrow night I have a proposition for you,” I said as we drove the boat back to the docks around five o’clock.

  “I’m listening,” he said curiously. “Although I think we both know I would agree to anything you ask me.”

  “Well tomorrow night my best friends and I are all going out to dinner at the Fish Bowl on Madison Drive,” I began, almost feeling somewhat nervous to bring it up. “I just thought maybe it would be nice for you to come meet them.”

  “Whoa, the ‘meet the friends’ invite? You’ve come a long way, Mallory,” he said with a smile. “Are they all going to be sizing me up to make sure I’m good enough for you?”

  “Of course. And whatever their opinion is will probably be right,” I snickered. “So you’d better wear your charming persona.”

  Greyson guided the boat up to the dock and some young teenage boys came around to help tie it up. They helped me exit the boat gracefully and Greyson unloaded all of our stuff.

  “So what’s the plan from here? Want to grab some dinner?” I asked, helping him carry our towels up to the car.

  “Actually I thought we could spend the rest of the night in. I have a new recipe I want to make you for dinner. I also borrowed eight melodramatic awful chick flicks too from my friend’s wife. You can pick one and I’ll suffer through it,” he said, gently kissing the side of my
face. I playfully swatted at him, and he grabbed me around my waist and tipped me backwards. He kissed me deeply and my entire body tingled. “I’m really glad you’re still giving me a chance,” he said softly.

  “I’m already hooked, so I can only blame myself for whatever happens from here on out,” I replied.

  “So you’re saying you’re going to show up at La Luna in a week and a half?” he asked with a raised brow.

  “I’ll have to check my schedule, but I may be able to swing that,” I said mockingly. “Will I be eating alone?”

  “There is nothing in the world that would keep me from showing up,” he responded sincerely. “I promise you, Mallory. Even if something goes terribly wrong before then, I will be there no matter what.”

  “Oh come on. When it comes to you things are easy, aren’t they?” I added sarcastically.

  “Hey, I am going to watch you cry for two hours tonight to some sappy movie. If that doesn’t show my commitment to this relationship, nothing will.”

  We got into his car and drove back to his condo. Sure enough, he had an elaborate dinner planned. We dined on chicken carbonara and homemade garlic bread. We ate out on the patio and gazed at the stars, and I was pretty sure my world never felt so right. As promised, he picked out a plethora of romance movies, and although I tried not to cry in front of him, I couldn’t help it. The sad part of the movie came and I couldn’t hold my tears back. Greyson held me as tears slowly rolled down my face. He was smiling though as he did it, which was somehow endearing to me, even if he was silently mocking me for my emotion. It was a simple day and a simple night, but I knew in that moment things had changed. It was that moment when you realize you really click with someone. The way their body fits around yours, the way you’re still deliriously happy when you’re in a sad moment. Greyson was right from the beginning, he sure was unexpected. I just never imagined it was in the best way possible.

  Chapter 20

  I woke up to the sound of my phone buzzing at seven-thirty in the morning. It was Addie, and for a moment I thought something was terribly wrong.

  “Did you get the news yet?” she said hurriedly.

  “What? What news? What’s going on?” I said, slowly sitting up.

  “The bids for the art festival were announced. They left a message on the bakery phone last night. I didn’t get it until I came in this morning. I thought they would have called your cell phone as well, but I haven’t heard from you yet. When are you coming in?” she asked anxiously.

  “I can be there in less than twenty minutes. What did the message say? It’s good news at least, right?” I asked, a little confused by Addie’s tone.

  “Well, just get here when you can and I’ll play you the message,” she said hesitantly.

  “What happened? They didn’t choose me?” I said, completely caught off guard. I honestly thought my spot was virtually guaranteed. I had done so many orders recently for most of the board members and other businesses involved, so I never imagined I would be cut out of the event. Not completely anyway.

  “Well we’re still in it, but I guess, well…” Addie’s voice trailed off and I knew she wouldn’t say much more over the phone.

  I quickly got dressed and hurried out to the kitchen, where I wasn’t too surprised to find Greyson making strawberry waffles.

  “I’m really sorry, but I just got a call from Addie. I have to go,” I said, kissing him quickly and grabbing my purse off the kitchen table.

  “I thought you didn’t have to be into the bakery until eight-thirty? Is everything okay?” he asked, concerned by my worried face.

  “I don’t know, something about the bid. Did you get a call last night?” I asked, wondering why he didn’t say anything if he received a call about it.

  “I don’t know. I was with you all night, remember? I didn’t even check,” he said politely, motioning to his phone resting on the counter across the kitchen.

  “Well I’m really sorry about breakfast. Can you save it and we can have it for dinner or something? I really have to get going,” I said, frantically looking for my keys.

  “I thought we were meeting your friends for dinner tonight?” he asked, calmly grabbing my keys off his living room side table and handing them over to me.

  “Crap, yes. Okay, sorry, I’m a little frazzled. Addie sounded worried, which is completely unlike her. I’ll just call you later, okay?” I said, kissing him quickly and walking towards the front door. “It smells amazing. I’m really sorry. I owe you for breaking your rule,” I said sincerely.

  “I’ll give you a pass on this one, so long as you make it up to me later,” he said, turning off the stove.

  I genuinely felt bad, but the pit in my stomach about Addie’s phone call felt even worse.

  I drove over to the bakery as fast as I could, rushing in through the back door as soon as I arrived.

  “Addie, what happened?” I asked hurriedly, hoping she would finally explain it to me.

  “Well, listen to the message,” she said, pushing a red button on the answering machine.

  “Hi Mallory, this is Al from the Chamber of Commerce. I’m just calling to let you know that we’ve reviewed all of the bids, and we’ve made some modifications to your dessert bid. We’re still planning to use your services for the art festival, but we’re only in need of about twenty percent of your proposal. You can pick up the finalized outline of our food plan any time after ten a.m. tomorrow morning. Thanks so much.” The message machine beeped loudly and that was the end of the recording.

  “Wow, only twenty percent? Did I over-propose? I thought I was within the quantity of desserts they were looking for. I wonder what could have happened. I mean at least we got in, that’s good. But there weren’t that many contenders. Who else would they have gone with for the rest? Maybe it’s just an error or something,” I explained to Addie, pacing back and forth behind the counter.

  “Well, I called them first thing this morning. I only got through to a secretary because no one else was in, but…” Addie’s voice trailed off and I knew she had bad news. “I mean, maybe you already know about this and it won’t be a surprise to you. But I don’t know, it kind of caught me off guard. I didn’t know Greyson had put in a dessert bid.”

  “What do you mean? Greyson only put in an appetizer and main course bid,” I said, completely confused by her reference to Greyson.

  “Yeah, that’s why I’m not sure why he got fifty percent of the dessert bid,” Addie said reluctantly.

  “What?” I said, completely exasperated by what she was saying. "Fifty percent? That's impossible."

  “So you didn’t know anything about it?” she asked cautiously.

  “No, of course not. Greyson doesn’t even cater desserts, why would he have put in a dessert bid? And he knew I was going for this, so why wouldn’t he have said anything? What the hell is going on, Addie?” I exclaimed. None of this was making sense. “Are you sure the secretary wasn’t reading it all wrong? Something isn’t right here. That doesn’t seem possible.” I racked my brain trying to figure out what happened. A timer went off in the back room and I knew I had to get to work. I helped Addie pull out the trays of cupcakes and cinnamon rolls she made earlier this morning.

  The bakery was really busy, which was a nice distraction from the anger festering in me. How could I have lost business to Greyson? We don’t even make the same kind of food, so we shouldn’t be considered in any of the same groups. It just didn’t add up.

  As soon as ten o’clock neared, I quickly left the bakery and jogged the eight blocks to the Chamber of Commerce building. It felt more refreshing that popping in my car for the short drive, and I thought the fresh air would clear my head. Surely there was just some kind of misunderstanding here. I expected this to be one of my biggest jobs of the year, and now someone was telling me that I was undercut by an Italian catering restaurant? Oh yeah, one that was owned by the guy I was sharing a bed with most nights.

  I quickly took the elevator up
to the second floor and found the information desk. A perky woman in her early forties smiled as I approached her, and she handed me a packet of papers in a brown manila envelope.

  “You must be Mallory from Sweet Cheeks,” she said happily. “I absolutely love your tiramisu. You make amazing food.”

  “Thank you. Just out of curiosity, I didn’t think there were too many other dessert bids. I mean I knew some of it would go to the snow cone booths and some of those specialty items, but when I turned in my proposal I thought I was one of the few bakeries to be submitting a proposal. I was just wondering who is handling all the other desserts,” I said politely, trying to sound genuinely curious more than angry.

  “Oh, you’re going to love them. Luca’s is actually branching out into doing desserts too. Have you ever had their pie?” she asked, her face lighting up as she spoke.

  “As a matter of fact, I have,” I said with a fake smile.

  “I don’t know if you’ve ever worked with him before, but you’ll like him. He’s a very young, handsome guy. You’ll have to make sure you meet him at the event,” she said, a little too bubbly.

  “I can’t wait to meet him, he sounds charming. Thanks for the packet. I appreciate your help.” As I turned to walk back to the elevator, I could feel the heat on my cheeks. Greyson submitted a dessert bid directly against me? Why didn’t he say anything? I was fuming, and as much as I wanted to call him that instant, I knew I needed some time to calm down first.

  As soon as I got back to the bakery, Addie already had a very sympathetic look on her face. “I’m scared to ask,” she said quietly.

  “You were right. Luca’s is handling fifty percent of the dessert bid,” I said shaking my head. “He never even brought it up. Not once. I asked if he got a call about the bid last night, and he was so blasé about it. No wonder he didn’t take the call while I was there.”

  Addie tucked her long blonde hair back behind her ears and looked as though she was deep in thought. “There has to be an explanation, Mallory. That doesn’t make sense.”