She unlocked the back door of the bakery and let herself in. She grabbed a cup of French roast from the Keurig machine and got started on the Danish dough. But that didn’t distract her because she could do the morning baking on autopilot and all she could think of was last night and Jay.
It didn’t matter that she thought she’d made a huge mistake. A part of her wanted to see him again and only regretted that she hadn’t stayed and slept in his arms.
She groaned out loud. What was wrong with her? Was she destined to be a fool forever where Jay was concerned?
“You okay?”
Alysse jumped and turned to face the doorway where Staci stood. The other woman looked just as sleepy as Alysse felt. But she went straight to work on her morning baking.
“Yes. Why?” Alysse asked. She was having lunch with her mom later today and if she couldn’t fool Staci into thinking nothing was up, then she didn’t stand a chance with her mom.
“You have been staring at the flour for about five minutes, and unless you are trying to use your mind power to make the Danishes this morning...”
Alysse dumped the flour into the mixer and then added the other dry ingredients. She cursed under her breath as she realized she hadn’t sifted the dry stuff together. She had to get her head into baking and off a certain good-looking Marine.
“Sorry. I’m notmyself today.”
“Are you getting sick?” Staci said. “If you are, I can handle this and you can head back home.”
“No, I’m fine. I’m just a little off my game.”
“Good. Because I want to hear about the guy last night,” Staci said. She started pulling things from the pantry area and bringing them to her own station. “Was he the big romantic you thought he’d be?”
“Ha, no,” Alysse replied.
“Sorry he was a dud. Did he pay you?” Staci asked.
Given everything that had happened last night she’d forgotten about charging Jay for the cupcake. She included that on his list of offenses.
“It was a setup, Staci. I never told you but I’m divorced. And the guy was my ex-husband. I never thought I’d see him again.”
Staci was staring at her as if she’d grown a second head or maybe really had created Danishes with just her mind power. She should have kept that special nugget to herself, Alysse thought. But Jay had rattled her. She had no idea if using him was going to help her out or if she was out for revenge, even though that wasn’t her style.
“Sorry. Forget I said that. Let’s get the baking done,” she said, eyeing the butter she’d need next.
“Oh, hell, no,” Staci said, coming over to Alysse’s station. “You can’t drop a bombshell like that and then say never mind. I want details.”
Alysse paused and leaned back against the counter. Maybe talking to Staci would help. Although logically, she already knew what she should do—never see Jay again. “Like what?”
“Let’s start with your marriage,” Staci said. “But we have to work while we talk or we won’t be able to open on time.”
Her friend returned to her station and picked up where she’d left off. That she was being so matter-of-fact enabled Alysse to regain her equilibrium. She knew she had to work,the bakery’s fate rested on the two of them getting their products made each morning.
“We met and married in Vegas and spent a fabulous week in the honeymoon suite of the Golden Dream Hotel. When I woke up on the day we were supposed to go home, he was gone. No note, nothing. Just disappeared.”
“Oh, my God. That’s... How did you cope with it?” Staci asked. “I would have hunted his ass down and reamed him a new one.”
“He’s a Marine...a warrior. He’d be hard to take in a fight.” To be honest, that had been part of what had drawn her to Jay. Being athletic she was hard-pressed to find a guy much better than her at most sports and one who didn’t treat her like one of the guys. From the beginning Jay had treated her as though she was special—a lady.
“I don’t care. What did you do?” Staci asked again. She had all of her ingredients assembled.
“I channeled that anger into baking and beating you at regional competitions,” Alysse said. She flipped on her mixer to combine the wet and dry ingredients. Staci did the same, but came over to her.
“Because you are in pain I’m going to let you get away with saying you always beat me,” she said, giving Alysse a quick hug before going back to her station.
Alysse realized then that she hadn’t shut out everyone when Jay had hurt her. Just men. She’d formed this bond with Staci and she was close to her brother’s girlfriend, too.
She and Staci removed their dough from the mixers and started rolling it out. One of the things that Alysse loved most about baking was how she could take a bunch of separate things and make them into something whole. Something good. She liked seeing the dough form.
