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I thought about the state of the shop’s finances while I scrolled through the photos again.
“I’m assuming you can bake and prep the cake? All I would have to do is the painting part?” I asked. “I mean, don’t get excited. I probably can’t do as well as she did… But I can sure take a stab at it. When do they need to know by?”
Her face broke into a big grin. “The event is in about a week, and they’re buying the cake from us regardless. If we can’t do the specialty cake, they said they’ll just buy a plain one and decorate it with fresh flowers. But they’d really prefer the painted cake. Apparently, it’s for some guy who’s retiring from Clyde’s Garage. His wife is throwing a huge retirement party for him. She fell in love with a painted cake Adriana did for her bridge group luncheon.”
“What does she want painted on it?” I asked.
Rox’s eyes lit up. “Motorcycle shit.”
I felt my heart kick up a notch. “No way.”
“I swear. She said he’s retiring so he can finally take all the trips he’s been wanting to take on his bike. He’s in the club that meets up. There’s a bunch of guys who ride together, so they’ll all be at the party.”
“Cool. I’ll give it a try. Can you get a cake ready tonight and leave it for me in the fridge? I’ll come in early and try to work on it while Pippa takes her morning nap in the car seat. I can stash her in the office, right?”
Rox stood up and took our mugs around the counter to wash them. “Sure. Or you can come after lunch when it’s slower and I can watch her while you work. Morning is busy around here since we’re as close as it comes to a coffee shop.”
“Good point. Okay. Sounds like a plan. Let me get those time sheets and make out some checks before I have to bolt.”
Rox smiled at me and led me to a small room in the back off the commercial kitchen where it was obvious Adriana kept a desk and all her paperwork. She showed me where everything was, and I quickly got to work.
Just as I was finishing up and tidying Adriana’s files back the way I’d found them, Stevie wandered in.
“So, Nico,” he began with a grin. I could tell he was waving his flirt flag pretty high, and part of me perked up in response. I knew I was in dire need of some stress relief, and a blow job would have been just the thing.
“Yes, Stevie. What’s up?” I offered him a dish of hard candies sitting on the desk while I waited for him to speak. He took one and fiddled with it between slim fingers before slipping it between those candy-red lips.
“So listen. There’s this big bonfire party tomorrow night out at a place called Walnut Farm. It’s not really a farm anymore but more of a giant vacant plot of land where people congregate this time of year and put on a big bonfire. Tons of people our age will be there with burgers and beer and shit. I was hoping you might come join us. Have a little fun and get out of the house, you know?”
“Well, I have the baby… but maybe I could ask Doc if he could watch her again.” I smiled up at him, noticing a blush sweep across his cheeks.
“Yeah, that’d be cool. Can I pick you up?”
“No, I’m sure I’ll have to duck out early regardless, so let me give you my number and you can text me directions. I’ll just meet you there, if that’s okay.”
“Sure, sounds good,” he said, stepping forward and waiting for me to scribble my number on a scratch piece of paper. “Got it. Looking forward to it.”
“Thanks for including me, Stevie. I really appreciate it,” I told him. And I meant it. I’d had so many sideways looks and whisperings going on behind my back around town since I’d arrived, it felt nice to be included for once.
“Well, Sassy’s probably ready for a coffee refill, so I’d better go back out there. Thanks for this,” he said, deliberately rolling the candy around on his tongue where I could see it. Suggestive little shit. He shot me a wink before turning and waving over his shoulder. “See you tomorrow night.”
Thank fuck. After seeing that mouth and tongue, I decided tomorrow night couldn’t come soon enough.
By the time I passed out the paychecks and made my way to the grocery store down the street, part of me was itching to get back to Pippa. Maybe I was nervous about leaving her for so long with strangers. What if Grandpa Wilde and Doc weren’t who they said they were? What if they were older than I thought and had fallen asleep on the job?
