She swallowed past the lump in her throat. The contestants and their families were milling around the set, the noise level high with growing excitement. Alice had met everyone’s families save one. She’d been avoiding Niko out of pure cowardice. Given the lateness of the hour, she needed to bite the bullet and do her job.
Niko stood in his station talking to Hallie and a petite woman. From the curve of her jaw and the shape of her nose, she had to be his mother. Alice rubbed damp hands over her black skirt, squared her shoulders, and strode across the floor. This would be the first time she’d talked to him since yesterday. Brooke worked with him earlier while Alice was busy with the show’s production crew. Would he be cool or act as if nothing had happened? Right, like you’re acting as if nothing happened. They’d stepped over the bounds of colleagues and although they were friendly, they weren’t friends in the true sense.
He turned his head and watched her approach. Her heart skipped a beat, stomach tied in knots. If circumstances had been different, she might have pursued whatever this was between them. But they weren’t. He raised a questioning eyebrow, his expression giving nothing away. She flashed a polite smile and averted her gaze. If she were smart, she’d have Brooke take over as his handler, but Mitchell tasked her with the job, so she had no choice.
Yeah, right.
“How’s everybody this afternoon?” she asked with a bit too much enthusiasm.
Tone it down, Alice.
“I’m a nervous wreck.” Hallie looped her thumbs into the waistband of her jeans. “Alice, this is my mother, Sarah.”
Alice held out her hand to the older woman and met familiar grey eyes a shade darker than her son’s. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Niko’s mother accepted her hand and then laid her palm over their joined hands. “It is such a pleasure to meet you. Chloe binge watches 3Square and talks nonstop about the show. You’ve made a lasting impression.”
Gazing into her earnest face, Alice tried to suppress the familiar rush of shame. This woman was Chloe’s grandmother. Would she react with such warmth if she found out the truth? She has no idea who you are and she never will. Once she donated the marrow, Alice would be on the road again.
New city. New contestants. And without Richard, an empty life.
“Chloe is a wonderful girl. I’m glad we were able to grant her wish and have Niko compete on our very first holiday show,” Alice said.
Sarah’s expression dimmed and lines formed around her downturned lips. Eyes glistening with unshed tears met Alice’s. “Yes, it’s Chloe’s greatest wish. Thank you for doing this for us.”
“It’s my pleasure.” She squeezed Sarah’s hand and blinked back the rush of moisture that filled her eyes. Alice couldn’t allow herself to become emotional. She had a show to put on and a wish to fulfill. “We’ve never done a show exclusively with desserts, and having a chocolatier is a first.”
“My son is very talented and I’m not saying that because he’s my son.”
Sarah dropped Alice’s hand as Niko wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
“Of course not. That would make you biased,” Niko said, pulling Sarah closer to his side. She glanced up at him, love in every nuance of her being.
Alice envied their closeness. Over the years, she and her mother had come to a truce of sorts. They were polite to one another, and after one particularly nasty fight right before she left for college, they never stirred up the past. It brought up too many painful memories for both of them and it seemed easier to let it go than to dredge up old hurts.
Chloe skipped onto the set, followed by a tall man with greying brown hair. From the dimple in his cheek, he was Niko’s dad Marc. “Alice, where are the kittens? I want to show Grandpa.”
“Sorry, we won’t have the kittens until the live show. For tonight, everybody will be sitting on the bleachers.”
“Ahhh, man,” Chloe wrinkled her nose and adjusted the purple beret that matched her dress. “Sorry, Grandpa.”
“Maybe next time.” He rested his hands on her shoulders. “So this is the infamous Alice who’s taken over CG.”
“I don’t know about infamous.” She shook his large hand and tried to keep the blush from rising to her cheeks. Like his son, he exuded assurance, and a roguish charm lingered in his grin.
The alarm on her phone sounded and she dropped his hand. “Excuse me for a moment,” she said, moving to the side. She pressed a button at her waist for the mic and the speakers emitted a slight popping sound before she spoke. “Hello everyone, welcome to 3Square. Audience, please take your seats. Judges, be at the table in five. Handlers, let’s get the contestants to their marks.” She clicked off the mic and returned to Niko’s side. “It was a pleasure to meet everyone. Niko, you’ll need to follow me.”
“Good luck, Son,” Marc and Sarah said in tandem.
“Break a leg, Uncle Niko,” Chloe threw her arms around his waist and he bent to kiss the top of her head.
“Thanks, kiddo. See you after the show,” Niko said, releasing her.
He fell into step beside Alice and she tried to ignore the tense silence between them. What to say? What could she say? She’d spurned his request to discuss the explosive episode between them. Her fault for taking the cowardly way out.
Grace walked on set wearing a red dress with white faux fur trim and Santa hat. She leaned across the desk and laughed at something one of the judges said.
Niko placed his toe on the green tape and slanted his head, inspecting Grace. “Where’s yours?”
