The girl giggled and ran back to her group as Janet herded them to the door. “Oh, by the way, Mr. Rivers, you should know the BGCA is looking to nominate you for a local hero award for your efforts.”
As soon as the door shut behind them, Lexi turned to me and grinned. “I told you she’d out you if you didn’t do something.”
Then my traitorous temptress disappeared into the kitchen again, laughing. Everyone who witnessed the scene fawned over my commitment to helping today’s youth and how selfless I was. I couldn’t even refute them publicly without looking like an asshole. It had only started because I didn’t want to leave perfectly good food sitting overnight.
Though Lexi had probably figured out by now I intentionally made extra so there would be enough to go around.
I was counting down the minutes ‘til closing time, and with a fresh irritation under my skin, I wondered if I could convince her to stay late. Stress had been building up under my human skin ever since her hulking messenger stopped by, and I needed adequate release.
Joanna squeezed my hand as I handed her bag over. She was a bank teller who regularly incited violence online, but was in church every Sunday—my favorite kind, a hypocrite. “You are such a good soul, Sam. Making sure all those kids get fed.”
“It was supposed to stay a secret,” I replied with a wink. I gestured to the décor. “I have a sinful image to maintain.”
“Oh.” She tittered, covering her mouth. “Well, it just makes it even more special that you’re not out for credit.”
The last half hour before closing, it calmed enough for me to step away for a moment. Lexi was wiping the counters down while one last batch of cookies counted down. There was almost always a last minute rush before six.
“You wanna stay over tonight?”
She peeked at me over her shoulder. “Stay over, as in…”
“As in, I have some seasonal recipes I want to test. You up for it? I’ll pay the overtime.”
Grinning, she nodded. “I’d love to.”
I huffed a laugh under my breath. Of course she wouldn’t turn that down. If it involved baking, Lexi was there. “Just leave the center oven on when we close and go ahead and make a batch of plain brownies.”
At two minutes past six, after I’d herded the last of my loyal customers out, I turned the sign off and locked the door. While Lexi did a cursory clean-up in the back, I went through and wiped down the front. The little girl’s comment had stuck with me since they left. It meant nothing, I was sure, but it still hit me oddly.
Ms. Janet says you’re an angel.
A fucking angel. No, kid, not anymore. I won my freedom from Heaven, such as it was. The wonderful person they all described today wasn’t me. I was just here putting on a song and dance while I gathered information to take back my throne.
It was all an act.
Right?
“Brownies are done.” Lexi leaned against the counter, watching me put the last of the chairs up. “So what was up with your weird reaction to Anna earlier? You feed the little monsters. Do you not like kids?”
I raised an eyebrow, wondering if she also had telepathic powers I wasn’t aware of. “It’s not that I don’t like them, per say. They just make me uncomfortable.”
She looked at the pictures on the walls, my devilish pastries. “Because they’re innocent and pure? Too much for a sinful man like yourself?”
I shrugged and walked past her into the kitchen, grabbing my chef coat from its hook. “Do you think a man like me has any business being around children?”
“I think they like you and wish you’d come around more often,” she said as she followed me. “They like me well enough, but they were devastated when they realized I would be doing most of the deliveries from now on.”
Deliberately switching subjects, I started pulling down flour, powdered sugar, and white chocolate chips. “I’ve got some ideas for non-dessert recipes, but I figured you’d have more fun with the sweet stuff.”
“Damn right! Whatcha got?”
If the abrupt change bothered her, she didn’t show it. “Peppermint bark brownies and shortbread cookies.”
“Oh, the shortbread should be no problem. What goes into the brownies?”
“They’re plain brownies with a seasonal topping. The only thing I didn’t have here was peppermint extract and the candy canes.” I ran over the recipe with her as she started measuring the flour and powdered sugar for the shortbread.
She was borderline hyper-focused when she baked, and she was a natural. I worked alongside her, prepping the peppermint topping for the cooling brownies. Lexi glanced at me and grinned, then sprinkled flour on the counter and dumped her dough on top. Instead of using a rolling pin, Lexi held her hands out and the dough flattened itself into a near-perfect square, then she used a knife to even the edges.
