AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“No, I’m just freaking exhausted,” I say then smile. “What can I get ya? Sugar cookie with sprinkles?” I start reaching over to grab her usual.
“I would kill for a cookie,” she says with a smile as I hand over the treat wrapped in a sheet of bakery paper. “You know . . .” A small smile forms on her lips. “Ben’s looking rather exhausted this morning too.”
I’m sure she’s hoping for some scandal.
Instead, I look at her deadpanned and roll my eyes. “Good. He kept me up all fucking night with his music.” Her brows come together, confused.
“What? Really? There wasn't an event last night.”
“Oh, no, it was in his apartment.” I roll my eyes then wonder if I should continue. She’s quickly becoming a friend, but she also works for Ben . . . Oh, fuck it. I need someone to vent to about this crap. “I tried talking to him, knocking on his door and asking him to turn it down.”
“And?” she presses when I hesitate.
“He refused.”
“Oh my God, are you kidding me? What is hisdeal?” It feels good that this seems unjustified. “Seriously. He’s not usually like this. Grumpy and kind of a turd? Yeah. A full-on douche bag? No way.” She takes a bite of the cookie then dots her mouth with a napkin like a polite lady.
“Don’t worry, I got him back.” An eyebrow goes up and I sigh. It’s only fair to air out my own misguided actions as well. “I set my alarm for five. I’ve been trying to get to the bakery later, be quieter. But this morning . . . well . . . my music was loud. And so was my work.” I cringe because even though I feel it was warranted, it wasn’t the kindest thing to do.
I mean, did I need to hold that cookie sheet over my head and slam it to the ground?
No.
But it sure did make me feel good in the moment.
Hattie surprises me by tipping her head back to the ceiling and laughing a deep, whole-chested laugh. It’s the kind of laugh that makes you want to laugh too.
When she comes down from her laughing fit, she grabs a napkin and dabs at her eyes, her thick eye makeup magically staying put, and looks at me. “Oh my God, that’s amazing. You’re amazing. What happened?!” She looks around at the blissfully empty bakery before finding a chair and dragging it over to the counter, making herself comfortable. I sigh.
“He came downstairs.”
“And?”
“We . . . argued. He picked my lock.”
“Hebroke into your bakery?!”There’s a mix of laughter and shock in her tone. “Again!?”
“Scared the shit out of me.”
“Babe, you areunder his skin!” There is a level of joy in her voice, in her statement, that I do not reciprocate.
“No, I don’t think so,” I say. Then I sigh. If I’m going to tell her, I might as well go whole hog. “I ran into him yesterday. Well. He ran into me. He was running on the boardwalk; I had my headphones in and couldn’t hear him. Anyway, we argued because, apparently, that’s all I can do in his presence.” Another sigh. “I swear it feels like freaking middle school.” Hattie’s nose now scrunches in confusion.
“I just don’t get it. Like, sure, he is so not a morning person, but that’s not your fault that you have a bakery. What’s his issue with you?” I sigh again.
“I don’t . . . Look. I don’t want to gossip. You guys are friends. We probably just need to acclimate, or—” I’m cut off again and she gasps.
Shit.
“There’s something, isn’t there? He said something. Jesus Christ, Ben. What did he say?” I sigh again. It seems like it’s all I do these days. I bite my lip, trying to decide if I should tell her what happened.
Then I decide fuck it. If he can yell it on a crowded boardwalk, I can tell Hattie.
“He thinks I’m spoiled and privileged. That I didn’t earn the bakery, that my father bankrolled it.” Then I stumble over words trying to explain. “Which isn’t true at all. I swear. I saved up, got a loan, all the normal things. The only help I got from my dad was a busy first day and a bit of name recognition. But that’s it.” She’s staring at me, and she looks . . . confused. Shocked.
Disappointed.
“Are you kidding me?”
