by King, Sarah
Within a few seconds, the door swung open, and an entirely too chipper Debra emerged, wiping her hands on her apron. “Good morning! Is it too early for you?”
Yawning, Lisa said, “I think it’s too early to tell.”
Debra laughed. “Well don’t you worry. You’ll get used to it if you decide to stay, and you can have all the coffee you want.”
That alone would cement their friendship in Lisa’s mind. Leading her to the back, Deb showed Lisa where to stash her purse while tossing her an apron. Debra ran her kitchen with the efficiency of a drill sergeant. She showed Lisa how to operate the largest mixer she had ever seen all while explaining to her where the ingredients were stored. There was even a recipe box that was alphabetized and color coded. Debra threw out a lot of information, but surprisingly, Lisa didn’t feel as overwhelmed as she’d feared.
Batters and dough were mixed, kneaded, and formed. Muffins, doughnuts, cookies, and pastries were baked, fried, and displayed faster than Lisa had thought possible. There was a lot to do before the doors opened. When they did open, Lisa had never seen anything like it. It was like the entire town was standing outside waiting. Most of them, she learned, were regulars and came every morning.
Lisa filled bags with muffins, scones, donuts, and bagels. She recognized a lot of people from Jake’s party, and a few stopped to chat with her for a moment before making way for the next person in line. Around ten o’clock the crowd finally died down, and Lisa paused to take a breath.
Debra came up behind her. “So, what’d you think?”
Leaning back on the counter, Lisa considered things. “That was crazy…but fun. It’s really like this every day?”
“Most days, but I think some of them just wanted a peek at my new hire.” With a wink, she asked, “So, you think you want to stick around?”
Lisa smiled. “As long as you’ll have me…and as long as there’s always coffee.”
Laughing loudly, Deb smacked Lisa’s shoulder. “You and I will be great friends, sugar. Now, enough dawdling. Let’s start getting ready for lunch.”
Debra’s bakery, Lisa learned, was not only the place for breakfast, but also served sandwiches, soups, and salads at lunchtime. Debra showed her how to make her “world famous” chicken salad. “Now, don’t you be going and telling anyone,” she’d joked. At least, Lisa thought Debra was joking, but wasn’t willing to chance finding out the hard way. Soup was brought to a simmer, and specials were written on a small chalkboard. By the time they had finished prepping sandwiches, a few of Debra’s other employees had arrived.
Debra quickly introduced Lisa to them and then patted her on the back. “Well, you’re officially off the hook and you passed your first day with flying colors.”
Glancing around her, Lisa fiddled with her apron strings. “Thanks…but are you sure you don’t want me to hang around a bit longer? I could help you clean up.”
“Nah, honey, I’ve got it. You get going. It looks like you’ve got plans anyway,” she said, waving at someone outside.
Lisa turned and saw Jake standing on the sidewalk wearing a big smile and holding a sunflower. Blushing, she busied herself with untying her apron. After asking Deb where to put it, she motioned to Jake that she’d only be a moment and ducked in back to clean up and grab her things.
***
As he waited on Lisa to finish up, Jake saw Debra marching his way.
She pulled him in for a hug. “Hiya, handsome. How’d the meeting go?”
Picking Debra up, he spun her in a little circle before setting her back down. “It was amazing! They loved all of my ideas, and we’re aiming for the first of the year.” He still couldn’t believe how well it had gone. Riding the high afterward, he’d damn near skipped down the street. Now that would’ve been a sight…
“I just knew they’d love it. How could they not? I’m so proud of you,” Deb said, interrupting his thoughts. She cleared her throat and added, “But you remember what we talked about last night, right?” She eyed the flower he quickly tried to hide behind his back.
“I know, I know,” he sighed. “I was just so happy after the meeting…” Debra gave Jake the look. The one that said he wasn’t fooling anyone, especially not her. Rubbing the back of his neck, he promised, “I’ll be careful.”
“You do that. She’s a sweet girl and doesn’t need to be hurt, Jake.”
Any reply that he could have come up with was forgotten as Lisa emerged from the bakery. She’d pulled her hair down, and the afternoon sun glistened off her long, chestnut strands. He was struck dumb by the site of her.
Debra simply shook her head and walked away muttering something that sounded like, “Why do I bother?” Giving Lisa’s arm a passing squeeze, she promised to see her in the morning.
Lisa tucked her hair behind her ear and gave him a small smile. “I’m all set.”
Chapter 9
Lisa secretly checked Jake out while they walked to the nearby restaurant. Dressed in dark jeans and a dress shirt, he managed to look cool despite the humidity. His sleeves were rolled to the elbow and showcased his tan, muscled arms. The cowboy hat sitting low on his head did nothing to draw attention away from his sparkling, green eyes or high cheekbones. Mercy. It wasn’t fair one man should look so good. A quick glance down at herself left her feeling less than adequate. Her khakis had small stains scattered about, and her hair was doing a weird wavy thing after being up all morning. Twirling the sunflower in her hand, she nervously wondered what she was doing with someone like him.
“Penny for your thoughts?”
Startled, she glanced up at Jake. “What?”
“You looked like you were thinking about something pretty hard. Is everything okay?”
With a frown, she pulled her gaze from his and studied her shoes. “Yes, I’m fine.”
Jake stopped walking and tucked his finger under her chin. He lifted it until she was looking into his emerald eyes. “Have I said or done something wrong?”
Squinting into the sun, Lisa swallowed hard as she studied Jake’s worried expression. “What? No. Why would you ask that?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. I just get the feeling you’re waiting for me to let you down somehow.”
Lisa was dumbfounded. In a lot of ways, he was right. She did not have a good track record with men. They all hurt her in some way or another. As much as she was beginning to like him, maybe it would just be better if she stopped this now. “Jake, listen, I—”
“I won’t hurt you.”
He’d said it so quietly she wasn’t even sure she’d heard it at first. Shutting her eyes, she tried to tell herself it didn’t make a difference. She couldn’t get involved with Jake, or anyone else, for that matter. Touching his hand softly, she said, “I know you want to believe that, and I’m sure you’re a nice guy—”
“Ouch,” he interrupted, putting his hand over his heart. “Let’s just stop right there. I’m just trying to get to know you, Lisa. I’m not asking you to marry me. Can’t we just have lunch?”
Blowing her hair out of her face, she considered it. It’s not like anything was going to happen. She pointedly ignored the way her heartbeat sped up at the mention of marriage. One meal. She could handle that…couldn’t she? Before she could second guess herself any more, she agreed with a huff. “Okay, let’s go.”
***
The hostess sat them at an outside table that overlooked the river. Frowning, Lisa watched as the girl seemed to laugh a little too loud and let her hand linger far too long on Jake’s arm. Not that she cared. She didn’t. When the girl finally disentangled herself from Jake, Lisa watched her walk away with an extra swing in her hips. Hussy. Snorting quietly, she glanced out at the water and tried to calm her crazy, jaded thoughts.
Jake placed his hat on the table. Giving her his full attention, he said, “So, tell me about your first day baking.”
Lisa shifted uncomfortably under his gaze and studied the specials to avoid looking at him. “It was interesting
. I never knew how much work went into it.” When she finally looked up a minute later, she noticed Jake still studying her intently and quickly looked away. “So, what do you recommend here?”
Sighing, Jake tapped his menu. “The chicken salad is excellent, but don’t tell Deb I said that. If you like seafood, the black bass is caught local and very good. I could go on and on here.”
After studying the menu again, Lisa finally decided and lay her menu down. “I’m going with the cheeseburger.”
Jake smiled and placed a hand on his chest. “A girl after my own heart.”
Lisa grinned as their waitress came to take their orders and brought back two lemonades. A hush fell over their table as she struggled with what to say. As the silence lingered, she began tracing the rim of her glass with her pinky.
Clearing his throat, Jake said, “So, tell me about yourself.”
Surprised, she almost knocked her glass over. “What do you want to know?”
Jake chuckled and gestured with his hand. “Everything. Where’d you go to school? Do you have any siblings? Tell me about your parents.”
Lisa considered his questions as she sipped her lemonade. “I tried community college, but it wasn’t for me. They didn’t really have the program I was interested in. I’m an only child, and my mom still lives in Annapolis with her boyfriend, Richard.”
There was a long pause as he seemed to wait for her to continue. When she didn’t, he asked, “What did you want to study at school?”
Lisa grew uncomfortable. She didn’t want to tell him about her writing skills. It was far too personal. But as he continued to hold her gaze, she knew she couldn’t get out of it without answering. “English, I guess. I couldn’t really figure it out.”
“And what about your father?”
His question was innocent enough. He couldn’t possibly know. Even as Lisa told herself this, she could feel her body tense and her walls slamming down. “I haven’t seen my father since I was twelve.” She could hear how icy her voice had become, but couldn’t seem to help it.
Jake covered her hand with his. “I’m sorry.”
Snatching her hand back, Lisa placed it in her lap. The last thing she needed, or wanted, was his pity. “I’m not.”
After that, their food arrived and Lisa picked at her burger in silence. Amazing, how after all this time, just the mention of her father could still affect her this way. It made it easier for her to remember why she needed to keep guys at a distance. Even ones who seemed as sweet as Jake.
He pushed his plate away after finishing the last few bites of his sandwich. “Listen, I’m sorry if I upset you. I didn’t mean to bring up a sore subject for you.”
Leaning back, she crossed her arms. “It’s fine,” she insisted. “Ancient history.”
Jake sighed and placed his hat back on. Reaching across the table, he grabbed her hand again. “I’m trying to get to know you. But if you won’t give me a chance, let me in- even a little, how do you know this couldn’t be something great?”
Lisa opened her mouth to argue, but was interrupted when the waitress suddenly appeared with the check. She reached for it, but he was faster.
“Just think about it,” he said standing and pushing his chair in. “And let me know if you ever change your mind.” Kissing her hand, he took the bill, and with a tip of his hat, was gone.
Chapter 10
As Lisa drove home, she alternated between anger and tears. But she wasn’t even sure she was angry at Jake. He hadn’t really done anything wrong. Could she truly blame him for her screwed-up past? She knew she was furious with herself. Why was she letting her past dictate her present? Her father had been out of her life for twelve years and Eric for three. How much longer was she going to allow them to rule her life? Sighing, she pulled into the driveway and parked her car before letting herself inside. Lisa kicked off her shoes and dropped her purse by the couch, deciding what she really needed to do was take a nap. She stretched out on the sofa and felt herself start to drift off. No sooner than she had shut her eyes, she heard her phone ringing in her purse.
With a groan, she reached for her bag and pulled it out. “Hello?” she answered with a yawn.
“It’s a bit late in the day for a nap, don’t you think?”
She smiled at the familiar voice and sat up to cradle the phone. “Hi, mom. I actually just got home from work.”
“You found something already? That’s wonderful, Sweets. I’ve been worried about you, though. You haven’t called me since you stopped in Raleigh,” her mom scolded.
Lisa shut her eyes as the guilt hit her. “I know, Mom, I’m sorry. I’ve just been busy getting the house set up, and then I was lucky enough to find a job and it started today…”
Her mom interrupted with a laugh. “It seems like you have been busy. So, tell me everything! How’s the house? What’s the town like? Where are you working?”
Grinning at her mom’s enthusiasm, she launched into an account of the past few days. She told her mom about the hidden studio, the bakery, and finally, about Jake.
“Well, he sounds wonderful, Sweets. So what’s the problem?”
Lisa fiddled with the buttons on her shirt and considered that. What was the problem? Was she so hung up on her own issues that she was willing to let a perfectly nice guy walk away? She knew she’d have to take a chance again someday, but after dating Eric for two years and then having him tell her she just “wasn’t what he wanted”, she was scared. What if no one ever wanted her again?
“Sweets? Are you there?”
Lisa tried to explain things. “Mom, it’s just that when Dad left, and then Eric…”
“You stop right there, Lisa Nicole.” Lisa cringed at hearing her middle name, and knew she was in for a lecture. “Your father just didn’t know how to be a dad. It had nothing to do with you. And Eric…he just wasn’t the one, sweetheart. It hurts. I know. But you have to pick yourself up and try again, baby girl. If I had never given Richard a chance, I wouldn’t be as happy as I am now. And, if I’d never given your father a chance all those years ago, I never would have gotten the very best thing in my life, and that’s you, Sweets. Give him a chance, Lisa. Give yourself a chance to be happy.”
After promising to give it some serious thought, she hung up with her mom. Lisa tried to go back to her nap, but sleep would not come. Pacing in the kitchen did nothing to help her, and she was too lost inside her own head to write. Finally, trying to drown out her thoughts, she switched the radio on and Landslide helped chase the last of her doubts away. She knew what she had to do.
***
Jake hung up with Hank and then changed into shorts and a t-shirt. Grabbing a beer, he went to sit on the back porch. His day started out as such a success. The meeting went beyond his expectation, and he was excited to start on his next project. But after his disaster of a lunch with Lisa, all he wanted to do was drown his sorrows for a while. It was ridiculous, really. He shouldn’t be this hung up over someone he’d just met. If she wasn’t interested, fine. There were plenty of other women who would gladly take her place. Sighing, he realized that even though that might be true, he wasn’t interested. He’d never been a “love-′em-and-leave-′em” kind of guy. Maybe I should be. Shaking his head, he gripped the bottle a little tighter and took a long pull before settling back in his chair. He had almost drifted off when he heard his phone beep.
Hank must have forgotten to tell him something. He fumbled for the phone, annoyed, and placed it to his ear. “What, man?”
“Jake? Umm, hi, it’s Lisa.”
Sitting up straighter, he asked, “Lisa?”
“Yeah, I hope you don’t mind, I got your number from Debra. Is this a bad time? I can call back.”
“No!” Taking a deep breath, he realized he sounded way too eager. “I mean, no, it’s not a bad time. What’s up?” Way to be cool, Jake.
“Well, I’ve been doing a little thinking, well actually, a lot of thinking, and…”
Jake waite
d a moment, but when she didn’t continue, he prompted “And?”
“Would you like to have dinner?” she blurted out.
Smiling, he could almost picture her blowing the hair out of her face, a gesture he was quickly learning meant she was really frustrated or nervous. He was just about to answer when she cut him off again.
“What am I doing? You’re probably busy. It’s no problem. I’ll just…yeah. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Lisa!” he shouted as he bit back a laugh. She was adorable when she was flustered.
“What?”
“How’s six tonight?”
A pause. “Six would be fine.”
Jake hung up after agreeing to pick her up. “Well, how do you like that?” he asked himself. Taking another sip of beer, he leaned back in his chair once more, smiling. It was a good day after all.
Chapter 11
After a short nap and a shower, Lisa stood in front of her closet as if facing the Spanish Inquisition. “It’s just a date,” she told herself. “You can do this.” She selected a pair of black linen pants and a gold tank. Sweeping her long hair back into a French braid and applying a small amount of makeup completed the look. With a final spritz of her favorite Jasmine body spray, she walked downstairs. She still had an hour and a half before Jake arrived, but she’d wanted to spend some time on her writing. Afraid she’d get too caught up in the studio, she set up at the kitchen table with her pencil and notebook. Biting on the eraser, she hummed a few notes before jotting down some ideas. However, it didn’t take long until she could no longer concentrate. Her thoughts kept straying to Jake. Laying her head on her arms, she wondered why dating had to be so hard. It wasn’t easy trying to get to know someone in the middle of a crowded restaurant… A sudden idea had her picking herself up. She questioned if it was the right move for a moment before remembering her promise to at least try. With a quick glance at the clock, she dashed out the door before she could change her mind.