Union Street Bakery (9781101619292)

by Taylor, Mary Ellen

  “No. You sounded fine.” He watched the heat rise and color my cheeks.

  “Then why are you staring?”

  Grinning, he dropped his gaze to his feet before lifting it again. This time, there was no trace of sadness or regret swirling his gaze. “I think you’ve just told me more about yourself in the last few minutes than you did in the entire year we were together. I never knew about Terry. It fits, though. When I saw your sisters . . . well, they look alike and you look different. And I don’t mean different in a bad way. Different in a really good way.”

  “Don’t worry, you’re not the first to notice that I don’t exactly look Irish.” My lips flattened. “I never told anyone in D.C. that I’m adopted.”

  “Why not?”

  “I’ve spent my whole life being different so I don’t go out of my way to be different.”

  “You always stood out as a ballbuster at work.”

  I laughed. “Work is different somehow. It’s not personal. Or so I thought.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  More silence fell between us and I wished he’d say something to fill it. “I know I could . . . can be aloof, at times. I’m not an easy person.”

  He nodded. “You live behind a wall of ice, Daisy. The only time we ever came close to connecting was in bed.”

  It was my turn to lower my gaze. “I remember. And I’m sorry. I just kinda expect people to leave me and so I invest as little as possible and then do the leaving before they can.”

  He nodded as if I’d told him what he knew all along. “This Terry woman has really shaken you.”

  “My life turned upside down when I was fired but I thought I was dealing okay. It’s only since I’ve been back at the bakery that all the emotions have started to churn.”

  “I’m sorry about that.” He drew in a breath. “My deal with management was that none of the investment team would be fired. I left hoping you, and the others, would keep their jobs.”

  I’d blamed Gordon for the screwups. He’d been CFO. He’d made the decisions that had led to the catastrophic losses and eventual firings. “I didn’t realize you’d tried to save our jobs.”

  Pain deepened the lines around his eyes and mouth. “I should have tried harder.”

  The fact that he’d tried at all meant something to me. I’d always thought he’d walked away without a backward glance toward anyone.

  “In the end we were all adults, Gordon. We knew that investments could go south and that the red-hot market of the last decade could not last forever.”

  “I should have seen it coming, but I was in so deep.” His last words were little more than a hoarse whisper.

  I shoved out a sigh. “Honestly, that job seems a million miles away right now. And as much as I missed it a month ago, I’m not so stressed about it now.”

  His gaze telegraphed skepticism. “Just like that?”

  “Not just like that. But it’s where I’m slowly heading.”

  We meandered down the brick streets. To our left the Potomac drifted past. The stars twinkled above and a cool breeze drifted off the water.

  The tension in his shoulders eased. “So what are you going to do about Terry?”

  “Dad says to rip the bandage off and be done with it. He told me to call her.” I hesitated. “What do you think?”

  He shook his head. “A year ago, I was black-and-white on most subjects. Now, after seeing too many dollars vanish, I realize I don’t know much.”

  “The words are humble. You get points for that. But I know you. Even if you got hit by a Mack truck, you’d have an opinion.”

  He grinned. “I am trying to embrace shades of gray.”

  That prompted a smirk. “Okay. Sure. Whatever you say.”

  His smile deepened the creases at the edges of his eyes. “I’m trying to be more open.”

  “That’s a lovely thought but right now I need black-and-white. What would you do if it were you?”

  “Call her. Get your answers and put the deal to rest.” The crisp, direct words were from the Gordon I’d known.

  Nervous laughter bubbled. “Just like that.”

  “Answers. I’d want to know why the hell she bolted on a three-year-old. I’d want medical information. I’d want every detail I could squeeze out of her.”

  “Yeah, but . . .”

  His eyes gleamed with the old intensity. “But what? Just do it, Daisy. You might have been a lot of things but wishy-washy was never one of them.”

  “You’re right. You’re right.”

  He cocked his head. “So why the wait?”

  I stared up at the sky. I felt so lost. “I’m scared.”

  “Of?” He’d softened the edge in his voice.

  Tears tightened my throat. For a moment I couldn’t speak. “That she’ll worm her way into my heart and dump me again.”

  He laid warm fingers on my shoulder. Strength radiated from him to me. “You’re an adult now. She can’t hurt you.”

  “Oh, she sure can. A part of me that’s not so small wants her to love me just as much as three-year-old Daisy.”

  “You aren’t three. You’re thirty-four. You’re educated. You can take care of yourself.”

  “Logic, Gordon, you are hitting me with logic. None of what I’m feeling is logical.”

  “You want me to contact her? I’ve got no skin in the game and I could be like an intermediary.”

  “You’d do that for me?” I’d left him. Hurt him. And he was willing to be my knight. I was humbled more than I’d ever been in my life.

  A wave of his hand dismissed the suggestion as no big deal. “Consider me Switzerland or your emissary.”

  “My sisters have offered the same.”

  “Your sisters and parents can’t be unemotional about it. But I can be. I can talk to her. Feel her out and make sure she is on the up-and-up.”

  More sharp emotions tightened around my throat. For a moment I was just overcome by the generosity, and I couldn’t speak. Finally, I cleared my throat as a tear ran down my cheek. “That’s very kind of you.”

  “I care about you, Daisy. That has never changed. If I can help, let me.” The tenderness in his voice nearly was my undoing.

  “I appreciate the offer. I really do. But as much as I’d like to run and hide on this one or send you in to do the dirty work, I’m going to have to be the one to deal with Terry.”

  “So you will call her?” There was no missing the challenge in his voice.

  “I will.” My back straightened a little as if readying for attack.

  “When, Daisy?”

  “Soon.”

  He leaned toward me a fraction. “Which means?”

  I shifted back a step. “Why do you care about this so much?”

  “As private as you’ve been about your entire life and feelings and now you mention something like this to me. Let’s face it, it’s not only chewing on you, but it’s colored your entire adult life.”

  “You’re pushing.”

  “I know,” he said, with no hint of apology.

  I should have been offended that he was backing me into a corner. My family still tended to treat me as a fragile piece of crystal, whereas Gordon was treating me as just me. Other than the backing-into-a-corner thing, I appreciated feeling normal, if only for a few minutes.

  “Tomorrow.”

  He lifted his hand a fraction as if he wanted to take my hand in his but instead he slid long fingers into his pockets. A part of me was sorry he’d not taken my hand. I wanted him to touch me. But I was also relieved that he’d kept the distance. The very last thing I needed now was romance with a guy I’d never really stopped loving.

  “You’re going to call Terry tomorrow.”

  My stomach clenched into a tight knot. “Yes.”

  He arched a brow. “Yo
u’re gonna stick to that deadline?”

  “Like glue.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  If you had to guess whether I called Terry or not, what would you have guessed? I mean I had promised to Gordon and myself that I’d “take care of business.”

  I did take care of business. Bakery business. And I didn’t call Terry. I wanted to. In fact, a half-dozen times I picked up the phone and started to dial. But before I could get past her area code, I’d chicken out.

  Every time I entered a room now my family would study my expression as if searching for hints that I’d taken the plunge. When it was clear I’d not made a move, they’d quickly talk about something that had nothing to do with anything. And yet each time I looked at any one of them, I heard all the unspoken words from my family: Weak. Coward. Baby.

  By the following Saturday, the bakery and the business all but rolled over me like a steamroller. Bank statements, which had sort of recovered, had taken a hit when I’d paid quarterly taxes. Minutes after I’d mailed the check, the bakery’s water heater blew, and I had to find a plumber to install a new one. Did you know they charged triple time on Sundays?

  Monday morning brought in an irate patron who’d ordered a flag-draped cake filled with Bavarian cream from Rachel. My sister had warned the woman that the cake needed refrigeration. Rachel had even called the day of the event to check on the cake’s reception at the Army Officers Club. When she’d discovered the woman hadn’t cut the flag-shaped cake’s center and instead stowed it in the trunk of her car, Rachel had shouted Code Red and we’d all scrambled to find the woman and warn her the cake, if left unrefrigerated, would make people sick. The woman had turned her cell off, and we’d been forced to call her office, friends, and family. Three hours later we’d tracked down a friend of hers who’d told her about the problem before she’d served the center filled with cream. She’d been pissed. When she marched into the bakery and demanded a refund, I’d reminded her of Rachel’s warnings. She’d said it was not her fault that the cake had been too pretty to cut.

  Then there’d been Tuesday’s bride who’d ordered one hundred apple-shaped cakes to serve at her wedding. She and her fiancé had met in an apple orchard and the entire affair had an apple theme. Four days before the wedding, bridezilla had realized the wedding was too expensive and was forced to make cuts. She’d come by the shop, cancelled her order, and demanded her five-hundred-dollar deposit back.

  I wiped powdered sugar from my hand before I extended it to bridezilla. “There a problem here?”

  Rachel, her face flushed with anger, gave me a recap.

  I looked at bridezilla, a petite girl with large breasts and rounded hips. “I can’t afford the cake so I shouldn’t have to buy it. This woman here told me I could cancel at any time.”

  “Union Street Bakery contracts allow for cancellation up to one week before an event.” That was a clause I planned to change, but for now we honored the seven-day window.

  “She told me any time,” Bridezilla snapped.

  “I did not,” Rachel countered. “I told her about the seven-day policy.”

  “Let me get the contract.”

  Rachel looked at me, a little afraid. I knew what she was thinking: You’ll never find it. But any contract that had been on my desk had been filed in alphabetical order.

  “What name did you place the order under?”

  Bridezilla didn’t bat an eye. “Walker. Samantha Walker.”

  “Be right back, Ms. Walker.” I went to my office, dug out the contract, and came back out front. Rachel and Ms. Walker’s gazes remained locked in battle. I flipped to the back page of the contract. “Is this your signature, Ms. Walker?”

  She glanced down. “Yes.”

  “And your initials?”

  “Yes.”

  I nodded. “Well, your initials and Rachel’s are right next to the cancellation clause. You agreed in writing to cancel seven days before delivery. It’s three days before, therefore no refund.”

  “That’s bull.” Gold bracelets jangled on her wrists as she waved French manicured hands around. “I’m going to sue.”

  Business confrontations made Rachel want to weep. I loved them. “You go right ahead. We’ll see you in court. Though I can promise an attorney is going to cost you a couple of grand just to review the case. And then I’m going to countersue for court costs, time, and aggravation.”

  “This is bull!” She actually stamped her feet. “I want my five hundred back.”

  “We’ve already used the money to buy supplies for the cakes. No refund.”

  Ms. Walker cried. She stamped her feet again, but in the end, she had nothing to bargain with. She left, angry and deposit-less.

  When the bakery door slammed closed, Rachel shook her head. “She’s going to bad-mouth us.”

  “Let her. We may have the deposit but we’re out the one-thousand-dollar balance and we’re left with one hundred square cakes.”

  The disasters like bridezilla and the water heater kept dropping out of the sky and none could be ignored. I had to choose between the smoke on the horizon and the raging infernos at my feet.

  • • •

  Thankfully, by Thursday life had settled to a dull roar and Margaret and I were able to slip away and visit Florence. We arrived on Florence’s doorstep just after six P.M.

  “I got a friend coming to help with the heavy lifting,” Margaret said. “I figure since we don’t have much more time, if Hugo can get the big stuff out of the attic then we might be able to get to the good stuff faster.”

  I rang Florence’s front bell. “Margaret, I’ve never seen you so focused.”

  She all but glowed. “Never ever get between Margaret and her history.”

  “Speaking in the third person. You haven’t done that since middle school. This must be important.”

  She grinned. “Margaret thinks this is very serious.”

  We were both smiling when Florence opened the front door. The older woman wore her blue uniform, light-colored hose, and white orthopedic shoes. She smelled of Dial soap and oranges. “Well, you smiling girls are a sight for sore eyes. Glad you could come.”

  “We wouldn’t miss it,” Margaret said.

  Florence chuckled. “Don’t know what’s got you all riled up, honey. It’s just a pile of junk in the attic.”

  “Are you kidding?” Margaret said. “This is like the best treasure hunt I’ve ever been on. This is even better than the Greek ruins.”

  It was hard not to smile seeing Margaret so excited. “If you haven’t guessed, she loves history.”

  “Well, come on in. We got boxes and boxes of it in the attic.”

  We moved past Florence into the foyer. The house smelled of cooked green beans and fried steak. “I hope we haven’t come too late in the day.”

  “Oh, no. Timing is perfect. Fact, if you get hungry I can fry up a few steaks. Miss Mabel wasn’t eating so much toward the end and she couldn’t stand the smell of food so I didn’t cook so much. These last few days that’s all I’ve done. Even baked a couple of cakes this morning.”

  I’d eaten three bagels today and five cookies. Now fried steak and more cake. At the rate I was going, I was going to have to surrender my jeans and change into sweatpants. “That sounds good. You mind if we check the attic first?”

  “No, not at all. Steaks won’t take but a minute to cook.”

  “I invited a friend,” Margaret said. “His name is Hugo. He’s a big hairy dude and he looks rough but he’s a great guy and can lift anything. He’s a grad student looking for help on his thesis. I said I’d trade my vast knowledge and a bag of bagels for a little labor. He was all over it.”

  “So he’ll be hungry?” Florence said. There was no missing the hopeful hint. She was enjoying the excitement of company. No doubt the last years with Mabel had been quiet and a bit isolat
ed.

  “Hugo will be thrilled with any food you put in front of him,” Margaret said.

  The old woman grinned. “Then maybe I’ll whip up a batch of biscuits.”

  I shrugged off my jean jacket. “Sounds awesome. How about we see you about six.”

  Florence clapped her hands together. “Perfect.”

  The front doorbell rang and we all turned to see a tall man with broad, stooped shoulders hovering on the porch outside. Through the glass I could see a twentysomething-year-old guy who had shoulder-length hair and wore a leather jacket and jeans. A gold earring winked from his left year.

  “Hugo,” Margaret said. She moved to the door and opened it. “Hey, dude.”

  “Hey,” he said, his voice a deep baritone.

  After quick introductions and a promise to meet for dinner (which thrilled Hugo) the three of us left Florence to her biscuits and climbed into the attic. We moved up the wooden stairs and past the now familiar unfinished walls, where insulation was haphazardly stuffed between the wallboards. The steps moaned and creaked their complaints as we climbed to the landing. Just enough light leaked in through the slats in the eaves enabling me to spot the string dangling from the lone sixty-watt bulb on the ceiling.

  Margaret clicked on the overhead bulb. The attic was so full of boxes, clothes, and furniture, there was barely room to walk.

  “Whoa,” Hugo said. He pulled a flashlight from his back pocket and swept the light across the room. “Lots of stuff.”

  “I knew this would be so awesome,” Margaret said. She switched on her light and crossed her beam with his.

  “Totally,” he said.

  I felt a little out of sync because I’d not come with a flashlight. “Do all history buffs carry a flashlight?”

  Hugo nodded. “Always.”

  Margaret looked at me. “You didn’t bring one?”

  “Never crossed my mind.”