Ruby
“Oh, my God, Ruby. These are incredible,” my new friend, Lia, claimed as she took a bite of my pastry.
The last week had been the happiest and most exciting of my life. After a few days of study and tutoring from Pete, I’d taken my driver’s test and passed, so I now had a valid driver’s license.
I had just spent a grueling day of testing for my GED, and I was hoping I’d done well enough to start taking some college courses.
And I’d met two new friends, the owners of Indulgent Brews, Lia and Zeke. I’d stopped by the coffee place across the street from Jett’s condo the day after Jett and I had started the new chapter in our relationship, and struck up a conversation with Lia as I was getting a latte. Although the shop was well-known for their coffee, they’d recently tried adding pastries and it had been an epic fail, according to Lia. I told her I could try to help her find something better, and I’d brought her some of my own pastries to try to get a feel for what she liked.
Lia had just demolished the frosted orange and poppy seed buns, and was starting on the chocolate caramel brownies.
I’d tried to bring her a few things I thought would pair well with coffee, and do well in her store.
What she was carrying now was bite-sized pastries that didn’t really hold all that well throughout the day. And in my opinion, they just weren’t big enough. When I had coffee, I wanted a pastry to hold me over until my next meal. I wanted something more satisfying than tiny bites.
“I need these,” Lia groaned as she licked her fingers and then went to wash her hands after totally killing off the large brownie.
“I think I can help you find the right vendor,” I said. I might not know all of the bakeries in Seattle, but I could browse through them until I found the right products.
She tossed her paper towel in the trash and turned to me as she said, “I’m looking at her. I need your pastries.”
Lia was a pretty, petite, and curvy blonde who loved to chat with customers. Normally, I wasn’t very social because I hadn’t had much of a social life, but Lia made everybody feel comfortable when she was around.
As a teenager, I’d loved talking to vendors and helping my mom get the products she needed.
“I’m not really a professional,” I said in a rush.
“Your talent says otherwise,” she said as she stared steadily at me. “I ate a lot of pastries when I was looking for the right ones, and none of them were this good.”
“I had a good teacher,” I told her. “But I haven’t gone to pastry school.”
“There’s something to be said for natural talent and experience,” she said. “Let’s make a deal,” she said persuasively.
“Making deals without me?” a male voice said from the door of the small kitchen and storage area.
“Zeke!” Lia squealed. “I found our pastries.”
I watched as Lia’s partner and friend entered the serving area. Zeke was incredibly attractive in a dark suit and tie that made his hair look lighter than its usual light brown.
It was hard to believe that Zeke and Lia weren’t a couple. They squabbled and joked like they’d been together forever. But Lia was getting married to somebody else, so there was nothing romantic happening, even though I noticed that Zeke looked at Lia like he adored her.
He strolled over and peeked into the box I’d brought. “Two spots are empty,” he observed as he took out a cinnamon roll, the only thing left in the box.
“You’re lucky I don’t care for cinnamon,” she told him. “Or that one would be gone, too.”
Zeke took a huge bite and swallowed before he said, “I’m on board. Where can we get these?”
“Ruby made them. I’m trying to talk her into making our pastries for us.”
“These are really good, Ruby. I hope you agree,” Zeke said with a charming smile.
“I was just telling Lia that I’m not a professional.”
“All that matters is the quality of the product that comes out of the oven,” Zeke said as he finished off the cinnamon roll. “And this is perfect.”
“They were all perfect,” Lia added.
“Knowing you, Ruby’s not leaving until she agrees,” Zeke teased his partner.
“You know it,” Lia told him.
“I can’t stay,” Zeke said as he headed for the kitchen. “I just came by to pick up my phone. I left it here this morning.”
I saw disappointment in Lia’s expression. She was obviously fond of her business partner. But Zeke had a career, and Lia had told me that he was the silent partner who had put up the capital while she ran the store.
But for a silent partner, Zeke seemed to be in the shop a lot.
“Nice seeing you, Ruby,” Zeke called. “Keep making the cinnamon rolls for me.”
I smiled as he disappeared through the back door. He seemed like such a nice guy.
“He’s such a good partner,” Lia said wistfully.
“He is,” I agreed. “I’m surprised you’re not a couple. What’s your fiancé like?”
“Oh, Stuart is nothing like Zeke,” she said as she leaned back against the counter. “Stuart is so organized. He never would have lost his phone. He’s perfect in every way.”
Honestly, I think I preferred somebody who was human, but Lia obviously appreciated her fiancé’s perfection. “Are they friends? Zeke and Stuart?”
“Oh, God, no. Stuart says Zeke is brash and annoying, but he doesn’t understand Zeke. Stuart doesn’t really have a sense of humor, and Zeke loves to joke.”
“I think you like that, too,” I commented.
“Only with Zeke,” she said hesitantly.
Lia was so upbeat that it was hard to believe that she didn’t like to trade amusing things with the man she loved, but I didn’t really know her well enough to say anything else.
“So about this pastry deal…” Lia said. “Zeke was right. I’m going to have to persuade you to give us those pastries.”
She started to talk, naming a price that seemed like a small fortune to me.
“Let me think about it,” I told her when she was done laying out her plan. “I’d really like to do it, but I want to talk to Jett about it first.”
“What are you talking to me about?” Jett’s voice sounded from the entrance. “Whatever you want, you know it’s always going to be a yes.”
I sighed as I turned around and saw Jett near the door. He was dressed in a pair of black jeans and a green button-down shirt that made his eyes look even sexier than they were already.
“Is everything okay?” I asked, wondering why he’d come to find me.
“It’s good now. I was just getting a little worried. It’s after seven.”
I’d told Jett that I’d be stopping here, but that I’d be home before six. “I’m sorry. Time got away from me.”
“Actually,” Lia chimed in. “I was holding her hostage until she agreed to make her pastries for us. They’re incredible.”
Jett stopped in front of me and kissed me on the forehead. “I couldn’t agree more. And did you get her to agree?”
“Not yet. But I’m working on it,” Lia replied.
“She doesn’t need my approval,” Jett told Lia. “So you’ll just have to convince her.”
Lia beamed at him as she folded her arms. “A trial run?” she suggested. “If everything goes well, then we can make the deal.”
I nodded. “Let’s do it.”
We decided to make the following week the trial, and I wasn’t about to argue about her price.
Jett waited patiently without speaking until we’d hammered out the details.
“I’m proud of you,” he said as we left the shop. People began pouring in as we were leaving, obviously the after-work crowd that Lia had warned me about earlier.
“For what?” I asked as I took his hand.
I still wasn’t used to Jett’s frequent compliments, but I was learning not to brush them off like I used to.
Counseling was assisting me to navigate through the real world, and helping me understand that my own negative thoughts and self-perception were sabotaging me. I was trying to do everything I could to change that.
“You don’t have any business experience, yet you’ve managed to get a contract with one of the most popular coffee shops in the city,” he explained.
“It was kind of a happy accident,” I replied.
“Don’t brush this off, Ruby,” Jett said sternly. “This was all you. You gave without expecting anything back. You were just trying to help Lia. But your pastries are so amazing that they sell themselves. That’s your work, your special skill. You should be proud of yourself.”
“I’m nervous,” I confessed as we waited for the light to cross the street.
“Understandable. But you don’t need to be. You make incredible things that everybody is going to want.”
“I’ll have to use your kitchen,” I warned him. “And I’ll need some equipment.”
“Since I don’t use the kitchen, it’s all yours,” he teased. “And you can either dip into your savings, or I’ll get all the equipment you want. In return, you can make extras of everything for me. I think I’m getting the good end of the deal.”
I smiled at him. I loved the way he always tried to make it seem like he was the lucky one. “I accept that deal,” I said with laughter in my voice.
The light turned and we started to walk across the street.
“How was the test?” he asked as we made it to the other side.
“I think I did good. It didn’t seem that bad. It was just a really long day.”
“How long for the results?”
“They said that they’d probably be entered by the end of the day. I’ll have to check the GED site.”
“We’ll check together when we get up to the condo, but I want you to come with me first,” he said mysteriously as we stepped into the elevator and he keyed in access for the underground parking.
“Where are we going?” I asked, willing to let him take me wherever he wanted to go.
“You’ll see,” he said with a devilish grin.
When we stepped into the parking garage, Jett led me forward and then stopped in front of a small SUV that looked brand-new. I admired the gorgeous BMW that was a deep red color that was almost burgundy, and had what looked like a luxurious beige leather interior.
Jett reached into his pocket and handed me a small black object.
I took it, but I was confused. “What is this?”
“The keys for your new vehicle. Happy birthday, sweetheart.”
I looked at the controller in my hand, and then at the beautiful BMW in front of us.
And my brain finally connected the dots.
“Mine?” I squeaked.
“All yours. I didn’t want to go expensive because I knew you wouldn’t like that. So I compromised. The X3 has a great safety rating.”
I opened my mouth but nothing came out, so I ended up flapping my lips like a fish out of water.
“Do you like it?” Jett asked.
I put my hand gingerly on the hood and stroked the beautiful vehicle. “It’s too much,” I finally said between my bouts of hyperventilation. “Oh, my God. It’s a BMW.”
“It’s not that expensive, Ruby. And I doubt you’re going to like driving my expensive Bugatti or the Escalade I have for going to the mountains. And I don’t think Pete is going to part with the sedan again after you used it for your driver’s test.”
I knew he was probably right. Pete had looked like a nervous wreck when he’d taken me to get my license, and had to part with his sedan while I used it to perform the required driving part of the exam.
I took some deep breaths to normalize my breathing and help my heart to slow down. “It’s so beautiful,” I said as I slowly made my way to the door and fumbled with the remote to open it.
“It’s safe,” Jett told me. “And reliable.”
I finally unlocked the driver’s door and slid inside.
The car smelled like leather and luxury, something that was so far beyond anything I knew that it was almost intoxicating.
I petted the smooth leather, marveling over every feature in the car.
“If you don’t like it, I’ll get you something else,” Jett said softly from the open door. “I should have asked you, but I wanted to surprise you for your birthday.”
I hadn’t even remembered it was my birthday. But it touched me that Jett had known, and had obviously planned for it.
I clambered out of the vehicle and threw myself into his arms. “It’s beautiful,” I said with a sob. “I love the red. I love the size. I love everything about it.”
“Then why are you crying?” he asked as he tightened his arms around me.
“I guess I was just…shocked.”
He stroked my hair as he explained, “You’re going to need a vehicle, and this is actually a compromise for me. It’s a reasonably priced vehicle.”
“A reasonably priced luxury vehicle,” I corrected, not knowing whether I wanted to laugh or cry.
“I’m a guy, Ruby, and I want to know my woman is safe. Don’t cut off my balls over a vehicle,” he teased.
I started to laugh against his shoulder.
He’d won.
There was no way I was going to cut his balls off. I wanted them for myself too much.
Jett and I had started sleeping together, but as of yet, he hadn’t gone beyond satisfying me with his touch. Although I coveted that intimate time with him, I wanted so much more.
“Thank you,” I murmured. “I haven’t really had a birthday since my parents died.”
“There will never be another one that isn’t a special day from now on,” he vowed.
I hugged him tight. There wasn’t a single day since I met Jett that didn’t feel like a very special day. He made everyday things important in their own way.
“Let the party begin upstairs,” he said lightly.
He’d obviously been waiting for me because it was my birthday, and he’d planned a celebration.
I swiped away the tears as I moved back and gave my beautiful transportation one more glance.
He pulled me back toward the elevator, and my soul felt lighter than it ever had before.
I knew it wasn’t about the gift. It was all about the fact that Jett had actually made it his business to find out and remember my birthday.
I was starting to really feel like I was part of a couple.
And it felt pretty damn good.