"She's nuts," Nina said.
"Speaking of nuts," I said and showed her a picture someone had sent me early in the morning. "Check out this crazy picture." It was of Santa wearing only his hat, a fake beard, and sunglasses.
"Goodness gracious!" Nina said and crossed herself.
I sent out another message to let my fans know that the first episode ofTheGreat Christmas Bake-Offwas going to be uploaded that evening, and then it was time for shopping.
"Too bad we don't have Jack's big, thick credit card," Nina said, giggling.
"He gave you his credit card?" Hartleigh screeched.
"Just to buy decorations," I said. "Calm down."
That woman irritated me. I couldn't believe she and Jack had a history. If she was his type, then I didn't want anything to do with him. I shook my head. As if that was even a possibility. He wouldn't even admit he liked my cookies, though he didn't deny it.
The grocery store was a few subway stops away. When we walked in, I felt immediately relaxed. This was my happy place. I smelled the different fruits, inspected ingredients, and tasted the spices.
As I browsed through the shelves, I thought about what I would make. Victorian desserts tended to be a little more basic. You didn't want to overly excite people—they might getideas. The Victorians were fond of trifles and puddings, which weren't that impressive. I wondered if the Victorians were trying to distinguish themselves from the sinful excess of the Renaissance period with their marzipan animals and molded ice creams and such. Still, Victorian desserts were sugar intensive, and I knew Jack wouldn't like that.
I was leaning towards a twist on a Victorian pudding, which could be sweet or savory. However, I was a bit wary because I didn't want to be yelled at again for doing something too simple and basic.
As I gathered my ingredients, the hair on the back of my neck stood up. It felt like I was being watched. I whirled around, and sure enough, there was a man in a Santa Claus suit staring at me from the other end of the aisle. I gasped and dropped my basket in shock as he advanced towards me.
"What is your problem?" I yelled.
One of the cameramen came into my aisle, and the Santa ran out of the store when he saw him.
"Do you know that Santa?" Zane asked in concern.
"No, I don't know him!" I snapped, picking up the ingredients that had rolled out of my basket when I dropped it.
"You should have a security detail," Zane said.
"I don't need a security detail. I'm not that high maintenance. He was probably just a homeless dude," I said.
But what if he was the same Santa from the mall? No, it couldn't be. It was probably just my imagination. Even if it was the same Santa, it wasn't as if the show had any money to deal with him.
My shopping high was ruined. One of the production assistants swiped a credit card, then we took our purchases back to the tower. I was still slightly rattled as we stored our ingredients. Part of me wished Jack had been there. I hadn't felt unsafe at all with him the night before.
"You guys done?" I asked Dana when we left the storage area. She and Gunnar were stretched out on a couch in the studio lobby.
She flashed a thumbs up. "Done! It's so good. Don't forget, tonight we upload the first episode!"
"I already told my followers," I told her.
"Oh, before I forget, another box came for you. The security guard was wandering around looking for you. I think he put the package in your apartment."
"A present!" I said.
The box was waiting for me when Nina and I walked into the apartment. I opened it up. It was another cute outfit.
"It's a gingerbread girl costume," I said, putting it on. "It’s a little snug."
"Are you sure you want to put that on Instagram?" Nina asked.
"Someone went to the trouble to send me a gift," I said. "It's not food or anything, so what's the harm? Plus I look hot in this outfit. Come help me take pictures! I want to do it in the studio with all the Christmas decorations."
Nina followed me down to the kitchens.
