“I don’t play when it comes to business. The job is yours, if you want it.”
He had been in prison for assault and battery, and I was familiar with the case because it made local headlines. He had stumbled upon a man mugging a woman, and he had intervened. Where it had gone wrong was that he had beaten the man so badly that the man’s face was unrecognizable. He hadn’t stopped at just stopping the man’s assault on the woman, and that was what had gotten him sentenced to prison. With good behavior, he had been released early.
“Thank you so much, Ms. Tegan. I promise that you won’t regret your decision.”
I went over a few things with him and then rushed over to Palmer. “Hey, boo.”
“Hey, Baby. How’s putting your dream team together going?” My best friend greeted me by the nickname that everyone called me. I had been called Baby instead of Tegan by all my family and friends since I was a baby.
It started when my oldest brother, Eric Jr., whom we called EJ, couldn’t pronounce my name when I was born. He was three going on four, and he started calling me “Baby” instead of Tegan because I was a baby. Ethan, the youngest of my two brothers, was two going on three, and he already had a speech impediment. It was easier for him to call me “Baby,” too, and even after they could speak well, they continued with “Baby.” It kind of stuck with my parents and other relatives, and I became known as “Baby” to all our family and friends, even my childhood and now adult friends referred to me as “Baby.”
“I have everyone in place except for my cake decorator.”
“Including your baker?”
“That’s who you just saw walk out the door. I haven’t officially hired the others, but I know that I will.”
“Niiicee. Do you have any applicants for the cake decorator?”
“I’ve interviewed a few, but there’s one who I’m supposed to be interviewing in a little while that has me torn. I know her work, so I want to automatically offer the position to her. Unfortunately, it’s because I know her that has me on the fence.”
“I’m not following, friend. You’re talking in riddles.”
“Thérèse was the cake decorator at Seasoned.”
“Eww, messy, Baby.”
“Exactly, but she’s good at what she does. I mean, the woman has defined the game, been on several shows, and won awards. I know she would be the shit.”
“Except there’s that little messy situation of the past.”
“Exactly.”
The last place that I worked at, Seasoned, an upscale restaurant inside of a prestigious hotel, became uncomfortable and hostile. The head chef made several unwanted passes at me. I turned him down repeatedly, but he never seemed to get the hint. When he finally did, he made life a living hell for me by constantly downplaying my talents, sending my desserts back to redo, and just generally humiliating me in front of others. He gave me all the crappy shifts. I would go home in tears after working a shift underneath his vigilant gaze.
Someone started a rumor that the chef and I were messing around. Most of them didn’t care for me anyway because they always thought Chef Richard, pronounced with the French pronunciation, ree-Shar, favored me over everyone else. Eventually, the restaurant manager caught wind of it, and he fired me for one too many screwups, according to Chef Richard, and for bringing too much negative attention to his restaurant.
“So, what are you gonna do?”
“I’m going to interview her. I’m just not sure that I should hire her.”
“Then why give her a chance at all?”
“Because she’s just that damn good, and to do anything else would be me acting funny.”
“Was she a part of the rumor mill back then?”
“I don’t know. For the most part, Thérèse stayed to herself as much as possible.”
“Well, I’m proud of how far you’ve come since that incident. Even when you were fired, you were strong and started your online baking shop. Now look at you with a whole bakery in these streets. You’re doing amazing, friend.”
She hugged me, and I hugged her back and kissed her cheek. “Thank you, friend. It’s by the grace of God that I survivedand am now opening my own bakery. I am worried about what would happen if things don’t go well and the community doesn’t support it, though.”
Palmer swatted my hands and scowled at me. “Stop worrying about things like that. You can’t afford to put negative energy in the air.”
“I know. Hey, why don’t you sit in on the interview and give me your opinion on Thérèse?”
“Got you, boo.”
