The Icing on the Cake

by Rosemarie Naramore

  Maeve sighed along with her. “Well, I hope everything works out for you. Lord knows, I do miss that cake.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Kristine readied for bed in the upstairs guest bathroom in Joe’s home. She hadn’t had a tour of the entire home and decided to have a quick look. She doubted Joe would mind, since she was currently staying at the house.

  After finishing up in the bathroom, Kristine embarked upon a tour of the upper level. She found three bedrooms, and a bath, as well as an exquisitely-appointed master bedroom. Though the room had a masculine feel, she realized it was a room in which a woman could feel comfortable, as well. The comforter was gray with burgundy accents. Several plump pillows in several hues of both were tossed at the top of the bed. The curtains were a rich shade of gray and the floors a lovely hardwood.

  She stepped into the master bath and gasped. The shower was huge and luxurious, the soaker tub large and deep, and the double vanity extended the length of the large bathroom. It was a bathroom out of a magazine.

  Detecting that her feet felt oddly warm, she glanced down and realized the floor was heated. She couldn’t help smiling and resisted the urge to curl up on the floor. She was surprised Gracie hadn’t laid claim to it.

  Thinking of Gracie, where was she? She’d just been walking alongside her a moment ago.

  She left the bathroom behind and found Gracie sprawled out on Joe’s king-sized bed. The bedspread was a tangled mass and currently formed around Gracie like a nest. She had moved the pillows to assure her additional comfort and was gnawing on one of Joe’s slippers.

  “Gracie!” Kristine cried. “What do you think you’re doing? Get off that bed! And give me that slipper!”

  The dog obliged, as she slowly rose and dropped off the bed. Kristine realized her compliance had been a ruse when Gracie took off like a shot out of the bedroom and bolted down the stairs with the slipper still in her mouth.

  Kristine took off after her, shouting all the way. She spotted Gracie at the foot of the stairs, rump in the air, front legs splayed out in front of her. “Gra … cie!”

  Her tail began to wag, just before she leapt up and took off toward the family room.

  “Good grief,” Kristine moaned as she followed.

  She found the dog lying on the couch, still chewing on the slipper. She approached slowly, hands out in front. “Okay, girl. Let go … of … the … slipper!” She launched forward and grabbed it out of Gracie’s mouth before the dog knew what had happened.

  Gracie now watched Kristine, seemingly dismayed she’d stolen her prized toy.

  “It’s not yours,” Kristine told her, and put the slipper on the nearby fireplace mantle. “Off the couch!” she commanded.

  To her surprise, Gracie complied and slowly climbed off. Head down, she ambled to her own bed on the floor and lay down.

  “Good girl,” she praised her.

  The dog lifted her head, gave a thump of her tail, and then dropped her head on her front paws. She watched Kristine thoughtfully.

  “I wish I could read your mind,” Kristine uttered, as she glanced around, considering her own sleeping arrangements. She felt uncomfortable at the idea of claiming one of the beds in the upstairs bedrooms, and certainly didn’t feel right about sleeping in Joe’s bed.

  With a sigh, she opted for the couch. She adjusted the throw pillows, sat down, and swung her legs up and lay back against the arm. She pulled a throw blanker over her. “Night, Gracie,” she said.

  She closed her eyes and in the span of a blink, felt a wet tongue slathering her face. She opened her eyes and issued a command to the dog. “Gracie! Go to sleep.”

  Once again, she walked dejectedly to her doggie bed and lay down. Satisfied, Kristine closed her eyes again and soon, drifted off to sleep.

  She woke with a start. Some noise had awakened her. She glanced around and over to Gracie. The dog’s head was raised, her ears perked.

  “What is it, girl?”

  Suddenly, Gracie jumped out of her bed and flung herself toward Kristine. To her surprise, she leapt over her and plied herself against the back of the couch. She lifted her head for a split second, but then shoved it under Kristine’s pillow.

  Kristine, forced to the front of the couch, turned with difficulty and stared at the dog. “Gracie! What is it?”

  The dog didn’t even do her the courtesy of lifting her head. She did wag her tail briefly, but then seemed to think better of exposing her tail to whatever threat she believed loomed nearby. She attempted to disappear under Kristine’s blanket as she struggled to tuck her entire body beneath it.

  “Yeah, okay, Gracie. I’ll protect you,” Kristine said with a rueful shake of her head.

  She rose and flipped on a lamp on an end table beside the couch. She did a visual search of the room, spotted nothing amiss, and rose to turn on the light out back. She looked out over the entire back yard and saw nothing suspicious. “I don’t see anything,” she told Gracie, who was still cowering on the couch. “Would you like to take a look?”

  Gracie did thump her tail, as evidenced by the movement under the blanket, but she refused to join her. Shaking her head, Kristine opted to leave the back light on and padded back to the couch. This time, she chose the other end of the sectional, since Gracie currently occupied her former space.

  She found another throw blanket folded on the back of the couch and snapped it out. She lay down, draped the blanket over her, and closed her eyes. She heard a strange sound. Her eyelids flew open. She smiled ruefully. Gracie was crawling on her belly along the couch, moving toward her. “No way. You’re not foisting me off the couch,” she told the frightened dog.

  Gracie would not be deterred and inserted herself between Kristine and the back of the couch. Since she was so big—had grown quite a bit in a short time—and was all muscle, Kristine was hardpressed to move her. Finally, in frustration, she said, “Fine. You can sleep with me.” She rolled over, facing away from the back of the couch, while Gracie snuggled against her back. “It’s a good thing you look intimidating,” Kristine said with a yawn.

  When Kristine woke next, it was again to strange sounds emanating from the … garage? She lifted her head and perked her ears. She felt stiff and sore and realized she was lying in an unnatural position, her torso twisted, one leg off the couch, the other stiffened beneath it, apparently a means for her subconscious to assure she didn’t fall off the couch. One arm was dangling, the other caught beneath her. “Owwww,” she moaned, as she struggled to unfold her extremities that now felt like pretzels.

  She heard another sound. What was that? She glanced at Gracie, who opened one eye briefly, but then abruptly closed it. Kristine knew she too had heard the noise, since her ear was perked.

  With a frustrated sigh, she tried to rise from the couch. Her body simply wouldn’t cooperate.

  “Need any help?” Joe asked, towering over her. “I see Gracie insisted on sleeping with you.”

  Kristine nearly fell off the couch. Fortunately, Joe grasped one of her arms and helped her to sit up. “Yeah, Gracie’s a bed hog,” he informed, unnecessarily.

  Gracie suddenly leapt up and hurled herself off the couch. She was so excited to see Joe again. She wagged her tail so swiftly, it appeared she might go into orbit. She circled his legs, determined to be close to him.

  After loving on Gracie for a moment, Joe glanced at Kristine. “Hi.”

  “Hi,” she said, watching him bemusedly. “What are…?”

  “In my haste to get to my dad, I realized I forgot to pack many essentials, including a list of his medications. He unfortunately, forgot a couple of his dosages so…”

  “You should have called me,” she yawned. “I could have brought everything to you.”

  “You would have driven three hours…?”

  “Sure,” she said, now smiling self-consciously. She could only imagine how she looked at the moment. She was sure her hair was in disarray and her eyes puffy with sleep.

  Joe held
her gaze and she shifted uncomfortably under his scrutiny. Lord, she must look awful.

  “Can I help you with anything now?” she asked.

  He shook his head. “No. I’d better get busy, however.” He started off, but stopped and pinned her with his eyes. “Uh, regarding what Devon said at the school… We really need to talk.” He sighed dejectedly. “Unfortunately, I don’t have time right now.” He checked his watch. “I have to be back to Norton by eleven, in time to meet with Dad’s cardiologist.”

  “You’d better hurry,” she agreed, glad they wouldn’t have time to discuss her nephew’s verbal bombshell to Joe. “I hope everything goes well.”

  He smiled. “Me, too. Hey, I’ll be right back to say goodbye.” He started off again and Gracie followed.

  “Stay, girl,” he told her.

  Kristine wanted nothing more than to disappear into the guest bathroom and make herself presentable, but Joe had already seen her at her morning worst. But what did it matter? He’d said they needed to talk and she’d detected the seriousness to his tone. She had little doubt what he was going to tell her. He and Lori were going to try to rekindle their romance. Why wouldn’t they?

  Gracie seemed to sense her melancholy and jumped onto the couch beside her. She sat, almost-human like, and leaned against Kristine. She pressed her face against Kristine’s cheek. “Thanks, girl,” she said, reaching up to pat her face in return. “I appreciate your support.”

  Gracie leaned even closer and Kristine chuckled and turned to eye her ruefully. “I could have used your support last night when we heard the scary noise. You do know you’re a pit bull, right?” Kristine said. “Girl, do you hear me? You’re a pit, er, part anyway. Your breed has a reputation for toughness.”

  Gracie watched her, her lower jaw dropped open, giving her an expectant look.

  “You’re a noble breed, Gracie girl,” she continued. “You fear no one. Do you hear me?”

  Gracie thumped her tail as if she liked the sound of that.

  “That’s right. You cower to no one and you certainly don’t dive under the covers when you hear a strange noise.” Kristine stroked her side. “We’ll work on that, okay?”

  Gracie whined softly. “I know. It won’t be easy, but you can do it. So, the next time you hear a noise, I want you to bark. Like this.” She demonstrated for the dog, but Gracie only cocked her head, as if confused. “Gracie… Okay, it’s like this,” Kristine continued, “when someone breaches the perimeter—of your property, that is—you bark. If they try to come in through a window, or break in through a door, you bark. Announce your presence. Send that intruder packing. Show ‘em who’s boss.”

  Gracie watched her, as if considering her words.

  “Well?” Kristine said.

  The dog promptly kissed her on the face.

  “I’ll take that as a ‘yes.’”

  Joe, behind her, laughed.

  Kristine abruptly swiveled toward him. “Oh, uh… You heard me giving Gracie a pep talk?”

  “Yes. And I hope you got through to her. Lord knows, I haven’t been able to.”

  Kristine laughed. “Turns out, she’s not much of a watchdog, is she?”

  “When she hears a strange sound, she drops to her belly and tries to blend in with the rug.”

  “Or, goes under the covers. Oh, shoot, speaking of covers… I found Gracie in your bed last night. She’d made herself quite comfortable. I meant to straighten it back up, but didn’t have a chance because…”

  “Because Gracie…?” he prompted with a chuckle.

  She laughed. “Yes, because she had your slipper and took off with it.” Her eyes widened when she remembered Gracie’s leap over the fence. “Oh, and yesterday, she took off running and went right over the fence. I found her visiting with Maeve Johnson.”

  He nodded. “Nice lady. Gracie loves her.”

  “Clearly.”

  He caught her gaze again, his eyes twinkling with humor. She wanted to drown in those gorgeous blue eyes… She wanted to feel his arms around her, his lips on her lips…

  “Krissy…”

  “Oh, yes?” she said dreamily.

  Joe laughed. “Hey, tonight, why don’t you plan on sleeping in my bed?” He grinned. “You might actually get a night’s sleep, even if Gracie insists on joining you. Sheets and blankets are freshly washed,” he added. “Well, were…”

  “I just might,” she said.

  “Thanks again for all your help,” he said, as he walked into the kitchen and pulled open a drawer. He rifled around until he found the list of his father’s medications. He closed the drawer and returned to her. He watched her briefly, smiled, and to her surprise, reached for her hand and pulled her up and against him in one easy movement.

  He held her for a long moment, stroking her back. “Are you okay? I’m so sorry about the bakery. I wish I could be here to help out right now, but…”

  “No, no,” she murmured. “Your dad’s health is far more important than a building.”

  He seemed reluctant to let her go, but time was passing and he had a three-hour drive ahead of him. “I’ll call you,” he said. “And please call me if you need me.” He finally pulled back and sought her gaze. “I know Gracie’s a handful. I’m sorry to impose like this…”

  “You’re not imposing,” she assured him. “The truth is, I sort of needed a place to go.”

  His eyes narrowed with concern. “Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine. Mom and Lori aren’t particularly happy with me, but then, what else is new?”

  She saw a flash of anger in his eyes. “Stay here as long as you need,” he said, and watched her for a long moment. “Krissy, you remember the pep talk you just gave Gracie?”

  She nodded.

  “I think you should take your own advice.”

  With that, he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and left the house.

  Chapter Seventeen

  As much as Kristine was enjoying the comforts of Joe’s beautiful home, she was going stir crazy. She’d been working her entire life and wasn’t accustomed to a life of leisure. It had been three days since Joe had stopped by and she missed him terribly.

  It was odd. She hadn’t known him for long—well, she’d known him for years really—but hadn’t been around him for a long time. Yet, she felt as if there was a hole in her heart with him being out of town.

  Perhaps losing the bakery was the core reason for her melancholy, but she knew in her gut that losing Joe to Lori was far more painful. He had suddenly appeared in her world and she experienced a hopefulness she hadn’t felt before, as if the world were full of possibilities. He’d caused her to think about her future and to yearn for a family of her own.

  She tried to cast aside her thoughts, but just couldn’t get Joe off her mind. She remembered their conversation the other morning. His parting words to her were that she should take her own advice. Advice she’d given to a dog…

  She furrowed her brow, thinking. What exactly had she told Gracie? She turned to the dog, presently lying beside her on the couch. “Do you happen to remember the particular details of the pep talk I gave you the other morning?”

  Gracie barked in reply. “Good girl,” she cried. “You barked. You actually barked.” She wrapped her arms around the dog and gave her a hug.

  “Okay, so… Take my own advice?” She gave Gracie a squeeze. “Did Joe essentially tell me to learn to bark?”

  Gracie barked in reply.

  ***

  “Have you heard from Joe?” Minnie asked, as the two had lunch together in the café down the street from Branton’s.

  “Yes, he called this morning.”

  “Have you talked to your mother and sister?”

  Kristine shook her head, but her eyes widened when she happened to look toward the café’s entrance. Her mother and sister were presently walking into the establishment.

  She instinctively ducked behind her menu, but realized she was being ridiculous. The café was small and t
hey were sure to spot her soon enough.

  “What’s wrong, Kristine?” Minnie asked, following her gaze. “Oh.”

  “Oh, is right,” Kristine murmured. “I don’t know if I’m ready to talk to them.”

  “Well, get ready, because they’re headed our way.”

  Kristine braced for the encounter. When they reached her table, she turned and forced a smile.

  “Kristine, Minnie,” her mother said, her voice absent any inflection.

  “Mom” she replied.

  “Hello, Ruth, Lori,” Minnie said.

  “Minnie, Kristine,” Lori said, directing her attention to her sister. “How are you? Have you heard from the fire marshal yet?”

  Kristine watched her curiously. It seemed an odd segue from ‘hello’ to ‘fire marshal.’ But then, they were waiting to hear from the insurance adjustor in hopes of receiving a settlement for the damage.

  “I’m fine, and no, I haven’t heard anything,” Kristine answered. She looked intently at her sister’s face, attempting to read her—to no avail.

  “Will you let us know when you do?” her mother asked.

  Kristine nodded.

  Her mother watched her as intently as she’d been staring at Lori previously. “When are you coming home?”

  Kristine wasn’t prepared to have this particular conversation with her mother. She had decided she wasn’t going to return home to live, but would return at some point in order to retrieve her things. She was twenty-eight and should have moved out years ago. She’d only stayed because it really hadn’t occurred to her to move out. She hardly spent any time there anyway. It had simply been a place to sleep at night, since her days at the bakery had always been long and tiring.

  “And where are you staying?” Lori asked.

  “With me,” Minnie spoke up.

  Kristine gave her a startled look, but recovered quickly enough. She blanked her face and nodded. “Yes. Minnie was kind enough to let me stay with her.”