Just Desserts (Sweet Temptation, Book 3)

by Ashley Lister

  The Sweet Temptation kitchens were the perfect hiding place. The surfaces were so shiny, Trudy felt able to lose herself in the patterns of glossy light and the reflections that stared back at her. The layout of the room had been designed for ease of use. With a substantial stack of ingredients and utensils at her disposal, Trudy felt sure she could stay in the kitchen for the remainder of the day.

  ‘You started early this morning, didn’t you?’ Charlotte grinned, stepping into the kitchen. She looked perfectly prepared for the day in a business suit and stylishly understated make-up.

  Inwardly, Trudy groaned. She had locked the doors to the kitchen but had forgotten that her business partner had a spare key. She quietly cursed the idiocy that had made her think the kitchen was a good place to hide and avoid the world.

  ‘Are you OK?’ Charlotte pressed.

  ‘I’m OK,’ Trudy said tonelessly. She spoke whilst measuring spices. She made no attempt to stop her work and talk with her friend. ‘I made an early start because I wanted to make some progress on trying out this recipe.’

  ‘How did your meeting with Bill go last night?’

  Trudy shook her head. She wouldn’t meet her friend’s gaze. ‘There’s not much to say. Are we OK to talk about it later?’

  ‘Of course.’ Charlotte put a reassuring hand on Trudy’s arm. The contact was embarrassingly tender. ‘You know where I am if you need me for anything.’

  Trudy spent a long and industrious day in the kitchen. She was conscientiously not thinking about Bill and deliberately not thinking about the sordid stories that Donny would be trying to sell to the media.

  Of course, it didn’t help that Donny’s sordid story was true. Bill was technically a married man, which made Trudy’s sexual relationship with him adulterous. And yet, even though the revelation was not fabricated, Trudy didn’t want it exposed through the media. It wasn’t that she cared about her status as a minor celebrity. The thing that worried her most was that she had told her closest friends that she was no longer involved with Bill and they would be scandalised to learn that she had been deceiving them.

  ‘Are you OK?’ Daryl asked.

  Trudy glanced at the key in Daryl’s hand and realised it was Charlotte’s.

  ‘I’m golden.’ Trudy said the word without enthusiasm.

  Daryl gave a dry chuckle. ‘You forgot your mobile when you left this morning,’ she said. She reached into her purse and pulled out Trudy’s smartphone.

  ‘Thanks.’ Trudy frowned as she accepted the phone and tried to think what circumstances would have made Daryl go exploring in her bedside cabinet.

  ‘Bill called the landline wanting to talk with you,’ Daryl explained. ‘He said he’d tried your mobile but you weren’t picking up. I figured you might have forgotten your phone so I went through your drawers. You don’t have many sex toys, do you?’

  ‘Did Bill say anything else?’

  ‘He asked if you could call him when you have a minute.’

  Trudy didn’t bother switching the phone on. She pushed it into her pocket and returned to the process of baking and perfecting the first batch of mini carrot cakes.

  She had shredded the carrots, coarsely ground the pecans and added a fistful of sun-ripened sultanas. As well as flour and a soft, dark sugar, Trudy had been measuring spices into the mix from the suggested notes that Finlay had provided: cardamom, mixed spice, cinnamon and nutmeg. The range of powerful flavours was going to make the mini carrot cakes irresistible.

  ‘Are you going to tell me what’s troubling you?’ Daryl asked.

  Trudy glanced up, surprised her friend was still there.

  ‘There’s nothing troubling me.’

  Daryl shrugged at this but then nodded as though accepting the lie. ‘Fair enough, golden girl,’ she said easily. She headed towards the door, seemingly aware that she was being dismissed. As a parting shot she added, ‘I just hope you’re in a better mood for your date tonight.’

  ‘Shit,’ thought Trudy. She’d forgotten she was supposed to be seeing Mark. She opened her mouth to ask Daryl how she could conveniently get out of the date.

  But Daryl had already closed the door behind herself.

  12

  In the cinema, she and Mark shared a box of popcorn. Wearing oversized 3D glasses and watching a dumb Hollywood romance, Trudy heard herself laugh for what seemed like the first time in weeks. The sound was almost lost beneath the roar of everyone else’s laughter, but she heard it, and it reminded her that she’d spent too long being unhappy.

  She was wearing comfy jeans and an old, wash-weary T-shirt. She had on a pair of cherished trainers with scuff marks and tattered laces. All she had done to prepare for her date was shower and apply a thin layer of lip gloss.

  Mark had told her she looked ravishing.

  The movie itself was cheesy and unrealistic. The characters were too attractive. The plot was too simplistic to be credible. But there were a handful of witty lines that had her laughing, and each time she laughed she found herself clutching Mark’s arm tight as they shared their amusement.

  She liked holding his arm. It was strong and firm.

  Because Mark knew so little about her, and because a trip to the cinema allowed so few opportunities for him to find out more, Trudy felt as though she could simply relax and enjoy this part of the evening.

  When the credits began to roll, they walked out of the cinema into the splendour of a warm night. A gaggle of people were queueing to see the next performance. It had been dusk when they entered the cinema. Now the night was in full dark bloom. Streetlamps and headlights stood stark against the inky blackness. Trudy only noticed her arm was still linked with Mark’s when he slowed slightly and pointed at the pizzeria opposite the cinema.

  ‘Is pizza OK for you?’

  Reluctantly, she took her arm out of his as she nodded.

  His smile seemed to go a little sad when she moved her arm away but Trudy said nothing. She had told Mark that she wasn’t yet ready to start a relationship with anyone. In truth, she wasn’t sure if she had finished her relationship with Bill, or it was still ongoing, or it was in limbo until they decided to continue at some point in the future. She wasn’t even sure if their relationship was about to explode across the gossip pages in lurid, tawdry detail. That worry still lurked at the back of her mind, annoying and unrelenting.

  She shook her head to clear it. Throughout the day, while she had been trying to work at Sweet Temptation, Trudy had been unable to think of anything but Bill and the problems that had come into her life since their relationship began. She didn’t want him intruding in her thoughts while she was having a date with someone as pleasant and undemanding as Mark.

  Mark took her into the pizzeria and they were shown to a discreet corner booth. After consulting the menu they decided to share a Hawaiian.

  It was a busy restaurant with a TV set in one corner and a clatter of boisterous customers excitedly talking about the films they had just seen and the ones they now wanted to experience.

  A mobile phone rang shrilly from another booth. Mark started guiltily. He pulled his own from his pocket and said, ‘I’d put it on vibrate while we watched the film.’ He fumbled with the settings and added, ‘Is yours on silent?’

  Trudy didn’t bother looking. ‘Mine’s switched off,’ she said.

  When Daryl had given her the phone at Sweet Temptation that morning Trudy hadn’t bothered turning it on. It remained stuffed into the bottom of her bag and she guessed it was building up a substantial collection of unread text messages and ever more desperate voicemail recordings. Considering the only people who seemed to bother contacting her were Bill and Donny, Trudy didn’t think that she was missing anything by avoiding their messages.

  Mark put his phone away with a grin.

  ‘Ordinarily I wouldn’t be so rude as to turn it on while we’re eating,’ he said. ‘But there’s a chance the hospital might encounter an emergency that needs my specialism.’

  ‘How co
me you turned it off for the film?’

  He shook his head. ‘I didn’t turn it off. I had it on vibrate. If anyone had called I’d have been able to take the call without upsetting everyone else in the cinema.’

  Trudy nodded. ‘I don’t get many emergencies being a baker. There are very few emergency buns required.’

  Mark grinned and suggested she was selling herself short. They were still arguing the point when the waitress arrived at their table and placed the huge pizza between them. She smiled awkwardly at Trudy and asked, ‘Are you Trudy McLaughlin?’

  Trudy nodded warily.

  ‘I watch you on Master Baker every week,’ the waitress explained. ‘I think you’re the best judge. You’re so fair to the contestants.’

  Trudy grinned and thanked her. When the waitress asked if she could have an autograph Trudy signed the back of one of the pizzeria’s menus.

  In a hushed whisper, the waitress asked, ‘Why are you eating here?’

  ‘I don’t know what you mean,’ Trudy returned. ‘Why shouldn’t I eat here?’

  ‘This place is just a fast-food pizza joint,’ the waitress explained. She kept her voice low but there was obvious disdain in her tone. ‘You’re a judge on Master Baker. You’ve worked in a Michelin-starred restaurant. You own an online bakery. Why would you eat in this place?’

  Trudy shook her head. ‘This place is one of my favourite franchises,’ she said honestly. ‘I love the way the pizza base is made crunchy with polenta. I love the richness of the tomato sauce you use and I’ve never had a pizza here that’s been a disappointment. Why wouldn’t I eat here?’

  The waitress giggled and told Trudy she was ‘the coolest’. Then she pulled out a phone and asked Trudy if they could have a picture together.

  Mark volunteered to take the picture and Trudy feigned the most convincing grin she could muster as she stood next to the excited waitress and smiled for the camera.

  ‘You are so awesome,’ the waitress insisted. She was so sure that Trudy and her date were awesome that she upgraded their cold drinks to a bottle of house red.

  Trudy thanked her again and was finally able to pick up a slice of her pizza. Even though it was still piping hot and the flavours were fresh, vibrant and exciting, she was now no longer in the mood for pizza.

  Mark seemed oblivious to her sudden lack of interest in the food.

  ‘Does that happen often?’ he asked. ‘Autographs and pictures.’

  ‘It’s happened a few times since I started doing the TV show.’

  ‘Does it feel as good as it looks?’

  She laughed and nodded. ‘Yes,’ she said, lowering her voice. ‘It’s an unreal experience. I can’t believe strangers think I’m so cool they want to have a picture taken with me. It’s such an incredible ego boost.’

  ‘It sounds better than sex,’ he agreed.

  She considered this and wondered if she should say that the autographs and photos were good but they weren’t better than sex. She hadn’t yet encountered anything that was better than those nights she had spent being intimate with Bill.

  The thought made her blush as she realised her memories had returned to some of the delicious episodes she’d spent with him where he’d restrained her and punished her and taken her to vigorous, satisfying climax.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ Mark began. ‘That was rude of me.’

  She shook her head and lowered her gaze to the table. Trying to avoid a response, she snatched up a slice of pizza and forced herself to take a bite so she had an excuse not to respond. When she dared to glance up Mark was fixing her with a poignant stare.

  ‘Who is he?’

  She chewed, swallowed the mouthful of pizza and regarded him curiously. ‘Who is who?’

  ‘The guy you’re thinking about.’

  She could have denied it and she believed she would have been able to make her denial convincing. Trudy wasn’t a natural liar but she thought it was within her abilities to shrug and pretend ignorance.

  But she didn’t.

  She’d had a fun evening with Mark. They’d laughed together and, even though she wasn’t particularly hungry now, they were having a pleasant meal. She thought he deserved better than the untruths and fabrications she was doling out to everyone else.

  ‘Was it that obvious I was thinking about someone?’

  Mark shrugged. ‘You’ve been thinking about someone else all evening. You were getting pretty emotional during the movie’s love scenes. And just now, while you were pretending to eat your half of the pizza, you went quiet as though you were thinking about someone.’

  She smiled sadly. ‘I can’t believe I’m that obvious.’

  He nodded.

  She gave a small laugh and chewed on another morsel of pizza for a moment before continuing. ‘I was in a relationship with a great guy. It ended abruptly. It ended so abruptly there are still times when I’m not sure it’s over. And it’s him I was thinking about.’

  Mark nodded sympathetically. ‘You must think a lot of him.’

  ‘I do.’

  ‘I guess it’s hurting you to be out here with me this evening.’

  She shook her head, anxious to assure him that she was happy to be seeing him this evening and could think of no other place she would rather be. She saw something in his eyes that she recognised and placed a hand on his.

  ‘You’re in the same situation, aren’t you?’

  ‘Daryl forced me to do this blind date thing,’ Mark confessed. ‘And, while you’re delightful company, beautiful and charming, my thoughts keep going back to…’ His voice trailed off. His smile was tinged with embarrassment. ‘My thoughts keep going back to someone else.’

  ‘Jesus,’ Trudy whispered. She snatched the bottle of red the waitress had given them and poured a generous measure in each of their glasses. ‘What the hell is wrong with the world when a handsome doctor like you and a successful chef like me can’t be happy together?’

  He raised his glass in the promise of a toast.

  She chinked hers against the rim.

  ‘To unrequited love?’ he suggested.

  Trudy shook her head. ‘How about we toast the blindness of those two people who couldn’t see the good things they had?’ she suggested.

  He nodded. Still holding his glass against hers he added, ‘And here’s hoping that one day they see the error of their ways, or we see the error of ours.’

  ‘Amen,’ Trudy agreed.

  She tipped her glass and drained the contents in one long swig. The wine felt excessive on her near-empty stomach and it made her feel tipsy with surprising speed. She realised it was probably not a good idea to get drunk. But she was tired and, over the past few months, she knew her life had been made unhappy by bad ideas and good ideas in equal measure.

  ‘Do you want to talk about him?’ Mark asked.

  ‘Not particularly,’ she replied. ‘Do you want to talk about her?’

  He seemed to consider this for a moment and then shook his head. He pointed behind Trudy and laughed. ‘No,’ he decided. ‘I don’t want to waste the evening talking about someone who’s shut me out of her life. I’d be more excited to talk with my current date and ask her why her picture is on the news.’

  A bolt of unease shot through Trudy’s stomach.

  She turned and glanced at the TV screen on the wall beside the salad bar. The TV was set to a news channel and she recognised the Master Baker logo on the screen. She was surprised to see her own picture there, as well as images of Carlos and Tom. The screen was split into four with the pictures of the three judges occupying three quarters. In the top right-hand corner there was a black square with a white question mark.

  ‘The new judge,’ Trudy murmured to herself. ‘They’re announcing a new judge for the finals.’ It came as something of a relief to think that her picture was being shown on the news for something so innocuous. She had half-feared that Donny had leaked his scandalous revelations and they were about to break on TV.

  ‘Why is
this on the news?’ she asked herself softly.

  ‘What is it?’ Mark asked.

  ‘I think it’s the announcement of the new judge on Master Baker,’ she explained. ‘It’s important to the show, I guess. But I wouldn’t have thought it merited a slot on the news.’

  ‘Slow news day?’ he suggested. ‘Or are you honestly not aware of how many people watch and enjoy Master Baker?’

  She conceded it could be either, and squinted more ferociously at the TV screen. The identity of the fourth judge was something she had been speculating on for a week or more. There were rumours that they might bring back Kelly White, the disgraced judge that Trudy had replaced. But Trudy was sure those were merely rumours. In the moment before they revealed the picture of the new judge, she had a disquieting sense of knowing who it was going to be. It came as no surprise to her when the black square was replaced by a picture of Bill.

  ‘Fuck,’ she muttered.

  13

  She parted company with Mark outside the pizzeria. They hadn’t bothered finishing their meal. A call had come in from the hospital and he was needed immediately. Even though his mood was suddenly severe and professional as he considered the details of the medical emergency he was about to tackle, Trudy thought he still seemed pleased by the chaste goodnight kiss she planted on his cheek. She could also see the gleam of excitement in his smile when she suggested they should soon ‘do it again’.

  ‘It’s been a great evening,’ he told her. ‘The film was cool and the pizza was lovely. Better than that, though, I’ve never before been on a date with someone who was asked for autographs and then appeared on the news whilst we were eating.’

  ‘I can’t promise to do that every time we go the movies,’ Trudy told him.

  He laughed. Then his cab was pulling away from the rank. It disappeared into the night as the driver headed hastily to the hospital.

  Trudy didn’t bother thinking about her actions. She waited until Mark’s taxi was out of sight and then stepped into the next cab. She asked the driver to take her to Boui-Boui.

  ‘At this time of night?’ The driver sounded doubtful. ‘Normally they’re kicking customers out at this time. Are you sure you want to go there?’