by Ciara Knight
Jaqueline didn’t appear to like where the conversation was going, based on her sliding back in the chair and holding her purse to her chest. Funny how she changed her entire posture to face a woman. Is that how she’d won over Carissa’s ex? The man had to be a fool to fall for this routine.
“Ms. Lori, I assure you that I am the right person for Knox.” Jacqueline didn’t even look at Lori. Instead, she eyed the cat and pressed a finger to her nose.
“You mean for Knox’s segment?” Lori asked with a librarian stare.
“Right.” Jacqueline shifted and rested the strap of her purse on the crook of her arm. “Trust me when I say Carissa is not organized enough for this opportunity. On the other hand, I’ve already brought designs, images that will be perfect for test shots.”
“I handle the test shots.” Drew heard the militaristic tone in his voice he thought he’d lost years ago.
“Here, I’ll show you.” She opened her bag and retrieved a tablet. Her brightly colored nails tapped a code in, and the screen illuminated with fancy dresses on thin girls who looked like runway models in New York City. “As you can see, these are perfect.”
Drew tugged Roxy’s nails out of his skin and set her on his lap again. “They’re good, but—”
“Great, so you’ll call Knox and tell him you’ll be doing the segment on my fashion line.”
“No,” Drew said with no further explanation. That’s when Lori chimed in to help.
“As Mr. Lancaster mentioned, Knox has a strong position on this, so we’ll need to get some test shots with you both. Your best option is to make sure that you’re the one who stands out in the test shots. With two of you, he might decide to do a program with both or one of you. We won’t know until we do the shoot in a few days.”
Jacqueline’s eyes glimmered with what could only be described as a sailor disembarking for shore leave after a year at sea. “This sounds perfect. I’ll get to work. If I know Carissa, she won’t even have anything to photograph by then. Don’t get me wrong. She is a sweet, small-town girl who can bake, but she wouldn’t even have a store if it wasn’t for Stella. The girl is too disorganized.”
“They say the disorganized types are actually creative geniuses.” Drew looked down his own nose at her, and this time she took the hint.
Roxy raised a paw and hissed at Jacqueline, forcing her to lean away from them.
“I look forward to our photo shoot. Please send me time and place. If you hand me your phone, I can put my number in it for you.”
Lori chuckled. That was the first time Drew ever heard her less than professional with a client. “I assure you that we’re organized, and I already have your contact information.”
“Fantastic.” She clapped her hands together and twirled from her seat. How she spun in those heels was a mystery he didn’t care to investigate. “Good day.”
When she’d exited Maple Grounds, Drew buried himself in the aroma of his coffee. It smelled a little like the cupcake Carissa had made that reminded him of home.
“Wow,” Lori said.
Drew nodded and retrieved his laptop from his bag while balancing Roxy in his other arm. “I know. She’s something.”
“She is, but you’re the one who shocked me.”
“Me?” Drew set his laptop down and opened it. “Listen, if you’re going to give me grief for being rude, she had it coming. I don’t like people who put others down to get ahead.”
“Nope. Although, I will remind the old Drew Lancaster that this is a job and emotions are left at the door.” She retrieved her own laptop. “I’m talking about the fact that binary Drew defended a girl for being disorganized.”
He couldn’t remember the pin to his computer, the one he’d used for six months. “As I said, I don’t like people putting others down. That’s all. Don’t read too much into it.”
“Militant Drew Lancaster who can’t stand dust saved a kitten and ended up covered in soot.”
He didn’t like the way she smiled at him. He didn’t like what she said. He didn’t like the truth of it all. Thank goodness this project would be moving forward in a few days, which meant he could move on in a few weeks, leaving these crazy townspeople behind.
“I have one question.” Lori didn’t wait for his answer. “Are you spending so much time with Carissa, rescuing kittens and cooking for town elders, because you want to win our bet? Or because I was right and you really like her?”
Chapter Fourteen
Carissa stretched the kinks from her back, turned the sign to open, and unlocked the front door. The morning sun peered through the clouds outside, but another cold front meant that it would be gray for days.
She slipped the apron over her head and tied it at her waist. The door flew open, sending a cold breeze through the bakery.
“Good morning. Oh my goodness, I’m so glad you’re open. I’m in a pickle. Can we send some people to you for warmth, coffee, and some food? Our tour bus broke down. That friendly girl across the street already took some of our clients in, but there's no more room in the coffee shop.”
Carissa lit up at the thought of having some patrons. “Sure. Please invite them inside.”
The woman turned and held up a flag, waving it like a call to battle. “Great. Listen, the company will pick up all expenses. Keep track, and give me the bill at the end.”
“I can do that.” Carissa pulled out her notepad from behind the counter.
Two older couples entered. Poor people were clinging together for warmth.
“Please, come in. You can check out what I have in the display case. There is plenty to choose from since you’re here early.” Who was she kidding? They could’ve arrived at four in the afternoon and there would still be tons left over.
A dozen people flooded in of all ages, with five more behind them. Her pulse quickened as more and more people filled the room. She’d never seen her place with wall-to-wall people. There weren’t enough seats for them all.
With a deep breath, she formulated a plan. “Why don’t I set out tastings at each of the tables and you can all share.” She retrieved large platers from her catering closet, plated ten of them, and set them at each table. Her hand didn’t even clear the area before people dug in to the food.
A young woman with two kids handed each a croissant. “Thank you so much. We’re starving.”
“No worries. I can have more out in less than fifteen minutes.” Carissa handed them each a napkin.
“You don’t know how much this means to us. We’ve been stuck without food since late last night.”
“Oh, my. That’s terrible.” Carissa would give these people food for free if the touring company wasn’t going to pick up the tab. “Relax and enjoy. You’re welcome here as long as you would like.”
Someone tapped her on her shoulder, and she turned to find Drew and Lori with bags. “What’s going on? I thought we had a meeting set for eight?”
“Yes, but we’ll have to reschedule. I’m so sorry.” Carissa brushed past them and headed for the kitchen, waving Drew to follow. “These poor people have been stuck all night and need food.” She bit her lip, trying to think of how to explain why she couldn’t turn them away without offending him for prioritizing these people over his job.
“How can we help?”
She stopped in her tracks and turned to find Drew tying an apron around his perfect waist. He’d never looked so good.
“Seriously, these people need to eat.”
“Um…that’s so nice of you. I guess you could man the front and keep people calm.”
Lori tied her hair back. “I’ve got that. You two stay back here and cook.” She disappeared from the kitchen, leaving her and Drew alone to bake.
“I can make Southern Man Bars.” He winked.
She threw her arms around him. “Thank you so much! I didn’t know what I was going to do with all these people. You and Lori are life savers.”
“If I’d known I’d get this much attention, I would’ve disabled the bus myself.�
�� He winked.
She slid away, heat rising to her cheeks. “Sorry. I was just—”
“Don’t apologize. Promise me you’ll tell me what I did so I can do it again.”
She shook her head. “You’re impossible. Wait… I didn’t mention a bus.”
Drew retrieved the mixing bowl and ingredients as if he’d been in her kitchen more than once before. “Nope. We heard you might need help, so Lori and I headed over here. Mary-Beth had Felicia and Stella working on the bus.”
“Where’s Roxy?” she asked.
“Ms. Melba is kitten sitting along with the other elders. Thelma even told them they could take her to the center if I was running late. Apparently, she’s never enjoyed that much quiet and thinks the kitten is the best therapeutic tool ever.” He chuckled. “I offered for them to keep the kitten, but Thelma said Roxy was like a new toy. Ms. Melba and the rest of them would think she’s cute and cuddly for a while, but when it came to cleaning up after it, that would fall on her and she has too much to do already.”
A part of her loved the fact this man knew all her friends’ names and what was going on in the town. He seemed different today, a little more relaxed and interested in the people around them instead of just his show.
The crowd was loud and boisterous with relief from the cold and hunger. Her heart filled with the feeling of providing for others again. “If I could have crowds like this, I’d be able to expand into the shop next door that closed down.”
“Is that something you want?” Drew put the pan on the top of the stove while she concentrated on some more scones.
“I’ve always dreamed of expanding into specialty cakes, seasonal pie club, and even breakfast sandwich items on homemade bread. I know, I know, there aren’t enough clients in the area to necessitate such things. Stella mentioned that I could offer an online service for the pie club, but I don’t know.”
“There are plenty of patrons in Los Angeles. I know they’d flock to a shop like this.”
“Maybe, but I doubt those healthy, seaweed-eating types would put real sugar in their bodies.” She winked at him.
“Despite elder small-town belief, not all city folk eat salads three times a day.” He brushed hair from her eyes and tucked it behind her ear. “There, now you can see.”
“You mean that my hair out of place bothered you.” She chuckled. “I jumped into full-on cooking before I even took a second to tie my hair back.”
He took her arm, slid the hair band from her wrist, and then stepped behind her. His fingers raked through her hair, sending ripples of shivers down her back. With a determination to focus on the task at hand instead of some man who would be gone in a few days, she picked up the cinnamon to add to his Southern Man Bars.
“You sure you want to put that in?” Drew placed a hand over hers to stop her movement, causing an eruption of pulse-thumping music in her ears.
“Boy, you have one success and you think you’re a baker.”
“I have no delusions about being good in the kitchen, but even I don’t think there’s supposed to be cayenne pepper in the bars.”
Heat flooded her cheeks, neck, arms. “Right.” She forced a long breath and capped the cayenne pepper before any damage could be done. “I’ll get the cinnamon.”
She rushed to the pantry and fell against the wall. One breath. Two breaths. Her hands shook and her chest tightened. She hadn’t felt this way since…well, never. The butterflies, sweaty palms, over-energized love mythology she’d seen on television and read in fairy tales that she’d thought was a lie. Until now. And now wasn’t a good time.
“Reinforcements are here.” Felicia’s voice was like water at the end of a marathon. Cool, refreshing medicine to keep her from collapsing. “I brought in chairs from the church. Where’s Carissa?”
“Pantry. You might want to check on her. I think all these people were a shock.”
Shock to her? No, not the people. Him. His touch.
Felicia rounded the corner and her eyes shot wide. She shuffled inside and shut the door behind her. “What’s wrong? Did that man upset you? I can get Stella to take care of him.”
Carissa shook her head. “No. It’s not that. He didn’t do anything, not intentionally.”
Felicia rubbed her arms the way she did the time that she’d overheard her parents talking about leaving Sugar Maple. “I don’t understand. Is this project too much? Did we push you too hard to make this work?”
“I don’t know.” Carissa felt like the pantry tilted under her feet. “No way I want to feel this way. I need it to stop. To go away. Far away.”
“What to go far away?” Felicia took a step back and eyed her and then the door. “Drew?”
Carissa couldn’t talk or even form a thought. “I never wanted to meet a man who made me feel anything. Not after. I mean, I don’t have room in my life right now. And not him.”
“Stop. Take a breath, hon. Are you saying you like Drew Lancaster?”
“No.” Carissa threw her hands up in the air. “I don’t know. It’s different than it was with Mark. I’m overreacting. There isn’t anything between us. Drew was right. I’m overwhelmed with everyone being here. That’s why I reacted to his touch that way.”
“He touched you?”
Carissa’s heart slowed and the tightness in her chest relaxed. “I overreacted. He only pulled my hair back from my face so it wouldn’t get into the food. And my body did this crazy, overloaded circuit thing. Like I was running the stove, mixer, and microwave before Stella helped redo the electrical in here.”
“Oh.” Felicia broke out in an I-see-what-you’re-not-saying grin. “Well, you’re probably right. I mean, you barely know the guy.”
“Right.”
“And he isn’t even a nice guy.”
“He is. I mean, more than I would’ve thought. Did you know he rescued a kitten?”
“I heard, but it was only to win the town over.”
“No, actually, he’s totally attached to Roxy. He plays with her despite the fur.”
“Despite the fur?”
“Yeah, he doesn’t like lint and dust and stuff. He’s kind of…obsessed.”
“One of those, huh? Jacqueline told me he could be rude.”
“Jackie is rude, not Drew. He’s always polite. I mean, he just jumped in here to help, despite the fact I’d promised to meet with him and Lori.”
Knock. Knock.
“Is everything okay in there, ladies? Do I need to call Charlie? Are you locked in there?”
He’d even remembered the fire chief’s name. “Be right out. Felicia’s helping me figure out what I did with the cinnamon.”
Footsteps padded away, so Carissa straightened her apron and tightened the band in her hair, remembering what his fingers felt like on her neck. “I better get out there. Thanks for bringing the chairs.”
“Sure. I’m glad I could help you figure out it was just an overloaded circuit thing.”
Carissa turned the knob. “Right, and that, too. Just keep my crazy meltdown between us, okay?”
“Sure. I won’t tell anyone, not even if it’s an I-have-feelings-for-a-guy-but-I’m-too-scared-to-admit-it thing.”
Chapter Fifteen
The morning flew by faster than Drew had planned, and they were running out of time to discuss the shoot, but no matter how hard he tried to focus on the job, he found himself focusing on Carissa. She was passionate and unpredictable and distant.
Lori tapped her watch. “We’ve got the call with Knox. I’ll go back and take it at the inn while you stay here and review the details for Friday.”
Drew nodded, but this entire project had gotten out of hand. If only he could put it back on track and show Carissa that she was the woman for the job. Unfortunately, he got the sense that she wasn’t even happy he was in the room.
“Talk to her,” Lori whispered. She slid on her coat and patted him on the back. “If you did something wrong, apologize. You know, for the sake of the project and all,” sh
e said with a dip in her voice and an exaggerated double thumbs up.
“Don’t you have a call to take?” he asked.
“Don’t you have a girl to win over?” She grabbed her stuff and left along with the last of the patrons.
The tour guide returned to settle the bill, and Drew listened in while he wiped down some tables until every last sticky spot had been scrubbed clean and the crumbs were in the trash.
“This disaster turned into such a treat. My company wanted me to tell you that this town is going to be a stop on our way to Nashville. We’ll want to work out a deal to have those delicious treats and coffee waiting once a month. Our clients are raving, saying this is the best place they’ve visited in the south. The mayor even greeted them, and all the townspeople made them feel like family.”
“That’s what we’re all about in our town. Family.” Carissa shook her hand. “I look forward to working with you.”
Drew draped the rag over the sink and cornered Carissa before she had a chance to get away. “Can we talk?”
“Sure. Let’s talk while we clean up. I need to get the dishes done.” She put two feet between them and wrung her hands.
“Lori and I did them while you were settling the bill with the tour guide.” He took a step toward her, just to test the waters. She darted around the corner. The water was frigid.
“Okay, well, I need to get all the ingredients sealed up and put away.”
“Done. I may have alphabetized your spices so you wouldn’t have another oops with the cinnamon. I hope that’s okay. If I overstepped, I can put it back the way it was.”
“No, that’s fine. I’ll just put away the food.”
“Done.” He cornered her behind the counter and touched her forearm, but she reached up and pulled her hair free. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” She blinked at him.
“For whatever I did to make you want me to leave.”
“I didn’t say I wanted you to leave.” Carissa untied her apron and hung it on the hook.
He followed suit. “You didn’t have to. You’ve been staying two steps out of my reach for the last two hours. I know I offended you, but I don’t know how. If you could tell me, then I could make sure I don’t do it again.”