“No problem at all,” Melanie said. “I’m sorry I wasn’t available to take your call earlier. I’ve reviewed your application, and while your portfolio is impressive, we’re looking for someone with more experience in the field.”
Hallie’s heart sank. “Oh. Of course. I understand.”
“However, one of our servers will be leaving for a summer internship out of state. If you’re still looking then, we’d love to have you apply for that position.”
Hallie’s experience in Mom’s café made her fully qualified for the job, though serving only customers didn’t thrill her. She already felt like she was giving up her dream by applying to work for someone else. Would she really have to sink even further from her goal?
“Thank you. I’ll consider it.”
She hung up and set her phone on the table, slumping into one ofthe kitchen chairs. Why couldn’t she go back to four years ago when she first started Hallie’s Cakes? Back when she had nothing but optimism and excitement in this new entrepreneurial endeavor. Owning a home bakery was a fun side project as she made her way through school.
But turning it into a sustainable career was starting to feel downright impossible.
“What’s wrong?” Isla’s blonde eyebrows turned down toward her nose.
The last thing Hallie wanted was to alarm the girls. Not when they’d started to feel comfortable with her in charge. “Nothing. I just received some disappointing news.”
“Don’t be sad.” Penelope climbed onto Hallie’s lap, wrapping her small arms around her neck. “I make you feel better now.”
Oh, this sweet child.She was quickly claiming a place in Hallie’s heart. Even Isla had come a little closer as though her nearness was meant as a comfort.
For a moment, they all sat in silence while Hallie worked through her disappointment. Then she steeled her composure and forced herself to smile. “Who wants pizza for dinner?”
Both girls cheered.
Hallie slid Penelope off her lap and picked up her phone again. “That settles it. I’ll order it now.” Normally, she would’ve made it herself but if they waited for the dough to rise, they wouldn’t be eating dinner until tomorrow. And eventually, the girls did need to go to bed.
Focusing on dinner, she made a conscious effort to let her disappointment go for now. Her dilemma would still be here when she chose to address it. But tonight, she knew exactly where she needed to be.
Eight-thirty had come and gone by the time Christian pulled up next to Hallie’s sedan in the driveway. He leaned his head against the headrest for a minute to let his frustration ease before going inside.
The conference with the Lawson Group ran excruciatingly long. It hadn’t taken more than a few minutes to realize that every point the representative addressed—in painfully monotonous tones—could have been outlined by email. But pointless meetings were Jim’s bread and butter. Why take care of things in writing when he could waste everyone’s time by hashing it out in person?
And after they’d wrapped up, Jim insisted that Christian get a jump on the project. By the time he’d left the office, traffic on the 110 was so congested, it took him thirty minutes to go half a mile. He spent that time listing all the reasons not to quit on the spot.
There were only two. And they waited for him inside the house.
The girls depended on his steady income, and he didn’t have the time or energy to go through the effort of finding another job.
Christian snatched his bag from the passenger seat before pushing the door open. He unfolded himself from the car and headed up the walk.
No one had thought to turn on the porch light. Using his phone’s flashlight, he punched the code into the keypad at the door. The lights on the thing had burned out last week, and he never remembered to switch the battery except for the times like now.
The faint aroma punctuating the air hit him first when he stepped inside. Like sugar and vanilla with a hint of cinnamon. Some of the weight of the day lifted from his shoulders with that comforting smell.
When was the last time his house smelled like cookies? Probablythe time Dani spilled that liquid air freshener on the carpet in Penelope’s room. The whole upstairs reeked of vanilla for weeks.
He set his bag by the door, freezing when he flipped on the inside light.It’s so clean in here.
The living room hadn’t been a complete disaster when he’d left this morning, but he could’ve sworn there’d been a few toys lying around. As well as a pile of picture books on the coffee table.
They weren’t there now. Someone had arranged the throw pillows immaculately on both ends of the couch too. Was this really his house?
A giggle from upstairs captured his attention.Yep, definitely my house.He’d worry about the state of it later. Taking the stairs two at a time, he headed toward Isla’s room.
His gut clenched at what he found inside. Hallie sat in between the girls on Isla’s bed, a picture book propped against her bent legs. She had one arm around Penelope, who slouched against her side, completely passed-out. Isla, though not quite touching, leaned toward her, fully invested in the story. Pumpkin lay across the end of the bed, part of her head wedged between Hallie’s feet.
Christian’s heart thumped hard against his chest. The warm glow of Isla’s lamp bathed Hallie in a radiant light, somehow making her even lovelier than ever. Like the angel she was.
