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Chapter Twenty Two
‘It’s your wedding daytomorrow!’ Diane clapped her hands together as Elsie placed two trays of freshly baked pastries on the counter. ‘I feel you should be relaxing or having your nails done or something, not baking croissants.’
‘And if I get my nails done, they’ll only get ruined the moment I step back in this place. No, this is my happy place. I’m glad to be here. Besides, we’re closing early to transform it into the reception venue, aren’t we?’
‘Yes, I guess so.’ Diane nodded. ‘At least promise us you’ll relax tonight? We can do all the running around and decorating and that.’
‘Umm, maybe.’ Shaking her head, Elsie touched Diane’s forearm before disappearing back into the kitchen.
‘I can’t believe she’s not getting pampered or even just having a day to lounge around and do nothing but eat chocolate and drink copious amounts of champagne. That’s what I’ll be doing when I get married, I can promise you that.’ Diane blew a strand of hair from her face and slipped the warm trays beneath the counter.
Evie waved goodbye to her customer and pulled her phone from her pocket. Yep, she had an email. She’d thought she’d heard a notification. She clicked through to her inbox and began reading. What? It was from Steven. She could see that from his email address without the need for him to sign off as partner. She rolled her eyes as she read his list of requirements from ‘his staff’. He required ‘his staff’ to arrive at the office fifteen minutes early so that ‘tasks can begin promptly at the beginning of the working day’.
She snorted. The majority of people at the firm went above and beyond their job requirements, starting work early and staying late. This was just spoon-feeding. The whole email was. There was even a whole section discussing stationary, yes, stationary.
‘Is everything okay?’ Brooke glanced across at her.
‘The new partner at work has just sent an email stating how he wants ‘his staff’...’ She hooked her index fingers around the words, ‘...to behave, such as arriving in the office early, which everyone does anyway. Not that he would have noticed because it was always him getting in late.’ She rolled her eyes.
‘That’s really annoying. People don’t need that. They need to feel valued, not just told what to do, especially if they’re doing it already.’ Brooke turned to the next customer.
‘Exactly. He’s only been there a year, almost everyone else has worked there for years, he doesn’t have a clue how things work. He hasn’t even bothered to get to know anyone.’ She looked up from her phone and stepped forward. ‘Sorry, what can I get you today?’
––––––––
‘THERE’S SOMEONE ATthe door for you.’ Laughing, Brooke pointed to the door of the bakery.
Passing the cake box to the customer in front of her, Evie looked up and grinned. Jack was standing just outside the door, holding up two cones of chips.
‘Go on, you’d best go on your lunch break before they get cold.’ Smiling, Brooke nodded towards Jack.
‘Are you sure?’
‘Yes, it’s time for your lunch break, anyway.’
‘Okay, thanks.’ Slipping her apron over her head, she grabbed her coat, shrugging into it as she walked towards the door. ‘Please tell me one of those is for me? I’m starving.’
‘It is.’ Passing her a cone, he grinned.
‘Thank you.’ Popping a chip into her mouth, she savoured the hot, salty, vinegary taste. ‘You remembered the vinegar. Thank you. How’s your morning been?’
‘Good fun, thanks. I’ve been up at the church testing the lighting and the best positions for the photos.’
‘It’s crazy that it’s Elsie and Ian’s big day tomorrow. When I arrived in the bay, it seemed so far off.’
‘Time has a funny way of sneaking up on you like that. How was your morning?’
‘The bakery was good. As usual. The customers were all lovely, and it’s so much fun working with Diane and Brooke behind the counter. Although, I received an email from the new partner at work, Steven, which just outlined a load of rubbish he expects from everyone.’ She shrugged. ‘It wouldn’t be so bad, but the only person not doing each and every one of his stated requirements is himself. It’s ridiculous.’
‘Was the email just to you or to everyone?’
‘To everyone. It’s just insulting. I can imagine the morale is plummeting and the atmosphere must be awful.’ She shook her head. ‘The stories Jennifer, my legal secretary, has been telling me about are just plain stupid. Apparently, he’s been asking people to do silly things which they shouldn’t be doing like fetching him a newspaper, things like that, and when they refuse, he’s been dropping in that he’s their boss and giving them dates for their staff appraisals.’
