Chapter 1
It never ceased to amaze Emily that the worst part of her day was also the best part of her day. Unlocking the door to her small bakery, she felt simultaneously exhausted and rejuvenated. It was an odd combination of feelings and she felt them every day. The moment that the lock clicked open, she would shed the fatigue that her morning job placed in her body and her soul would become lightened. Opening the door and looking around her tiny space, she was proud to call her little shop her own.
Most people probably wouldn’t think it was much just by looking at it, but she had sunk every dime that she had saved in her entire life to put her name on this place, and she was incredibly proud of it. At night she had dreams of expanding and becoming a world famous baker, of really being able to make a career out of her baking. But for the moment, those were only dreams that she kept secret in the dark while she lay awake at night. She knew that there would be very little chance that she could ever afford to even get a bigger place, let alone the dreams she had. But she worked hard at her morning job so that she could make the ends of her life meet.
Every day when she stepped into her bakery, she forgot her money troubles and her annoying job as a receptionist, and instead let herself breathe in her own happiness. It was in her bakery, while she mixed and frosted, experimented, and made her customers happy, that she truly lived her life. Emily threw on the lights and let her butter yellow bakery come alive. She couldn’t help but smile. She grabbed her apron off of the hook behind the counter and got herself ready for the day.
Her first task always was to check over the list that her night shift girl left for her. Kara was a sweet college girl who was hoping to own her own business someday even though she wasn’t exactly sure what she wanted that business to be. She was very responsible and the two got along great. It helped that Kara was only a few short years younger than Emily, but Emily’s past made her seem lightyears ahead. The list Kara had left wasn’t very great, a need for a new tub of buttercream frosting and she left a list of three cake batters that they were out of.
Turning on the radio, Emily went back into her open kitchen and got to work. When she first opened her shop, she was concerned that her customers being able to see into the kitchen and watch the girls work would be uncomfortable. But she had quickly learned to love it. It was fun being able to interact with the customers that came into her shop. Many were local to the area so she was familiar with them and would have friendly conversations while she prepared their orders. But since Miami is such a tourist hot spot, she would get customers from all over the country, and she loved that too. It gave her a chance to meet all kinds of people and learn about places all over the country.
Emily had never been one to travel. Even if she forgot the fact that she didn’t have the money to do so, she never felt much desire to leave Miami. The culture, the people, the weather, and her little shop were all she needed. It all made her as happy as she felt she could be. It had been a slow afternoon and Emily was singing loudly while she pulled out a couple trays from her ovens. Luscious smells of cupcakes wafted through the air and it made even her own mouth water. While she would routinely have cakes, pies, pastries, and almost any other sweet bakes good she could think of, cupcakes we always her favorite.
The bell above the door chimed, pulling her away from her singing and her growling stomach. Peeking through the cut out wall in the kitchen, she shouted out a welcome to her guest and told them she’d be right out. Immediately she knew that it wasn’t going to be one of her regular customers because they always would look into the kitchen, knowing that’s where they would find her. Wiping her frosting filled hands on her apron, she exited the kitchen and offered a friendly greeting to her guest.
“Hi! Welcome to Emily’s Kitchen! What can I do for you today?”
The woman who was standing at the door looked up from where she had been tapping away at her cellphone to take in the shop.
“Is this the place that I saw online? With the four star reviews?” Emily noticed the tone of disbelief that the woman held. As if something so tiny couldn’t possibly be significant.
But the truth was Emily’s baking spoke for itself. She didn’t need a fancy place or a lot of money, customers raved about her food and she knew that her tiny slice of heaven was a Miami hot spot for desserts. While most of the time she tried to be modest about her success, there were times, such as when someone came in acting like a snob, that she had no problem boasting about her accomplishments.
“Yes, as a matter of fact, it is. Can I get you something?”
The dark haired woman took off her sunglasses and did another sweep around the shop before she turned and opened the door. Believing that this woman was about to leave, Emily turned to walk back into the kitchen, feeling annoyed. But she turned back around when she realized the woman wasn’t leaving.
“Honey, this is the place. Come on already!”
Her customer’s heels clicked further into the shop and Emily couldn’t help but notice how posh the woman dressed. Her black blazer perfectly tailored over a red pencil skirt with pumps that Emily wondered how anyone could walk in. Emily looked down at her own clothes, loose fitting jeans, a black faded t-shirt with a frosting covered apron, and to complete the look, a pair of sneakers that had seen far better days. Immediately she could tell this woman was in a whole different class than her, and that she was going to be a pain.
Behind her the door opened again, this time a man stepped inside. Emily almost lost all thoughts, even the rude woman who was still standing in front of her. The man was drop dead gorgeous. Tall with dark hair and tanned skin that reminded her of caramel when it’s made just perfectly, smooth and rich. He was dressed as well as the woman, wearing a tailored black suit that fit his body perfectly. Even underneath she could tell that the man was toned and muscular. In short, he was easily the most gorgeous man she had ever seen.
“Hello, my name is Nora, and this is my fiancé Abdul,” the woman put out a delicately manicured hand for Emily to shake.
A small amount of disappointment hit when she heard the word fiancé, but she recovered quickly. “Hi, I’m Emily, the owner of the shop.” Emily shook both of their hands and watched as the woman took out a handkerchief to wipe her hand after Emily shook it.
It was all Emily could do to stifle an eye roll.
“This place has amazing reviews for making custom cakes and we were hoping that we could have a wedding cake tasting.”
“Absolutely!” Emily answered brightly. She walked over to her countertop organizer and flipped to some spaces where she had openings. Tastings took time and planning, having to make several types of flavors of test cakes for the couple to try. “How about next Saturday? I have a space open at 1:00,” Emily offered.
“Oh, well that’s not going to work. I’m here only visiting, Abdul is the one who lives here and I certainly can’t trust him to pick the right cake!” She laughed as if she thought her fiancé picking a cake flavor was the most absurd thing she’d ever heard. Emily noticed that even her laugh was high pitched and snobbish. “So can we do it today?”
“Well, there’s just no way I can get a tasting together on such short notice. We have to talk about the types of flavors you’re looking for and then of course I have to bake all of the samples, there’s just not enough time to do it all before I close for the day.”
She was vaguely aware that turning Nora down for the day would probably mean the loss of the wedding, but she refused to compromise her standards just to book a wedding.
“What if we do the consulting now and then come back around 9:00 tonight? That should give you plenty of time.”
It was already 4:00 in the afternoon and normal closing time for Thursday nights was 8:00 because Kara had night class and couldn’t close up the shop for her. Their hours were posted online and on the door so she was sure it was a fact that Nora hadn’t missed. So not only was she asking her to stay open late but also to whip up several batters, frostings, bake and complete these test cakes in a matter of five hours. It wasn’t as if it couldn’t be done. It was just that she still had a bakery to run on its own, and even more to the point, if this woman was already this demanding about a cake tasting, she wasn’t exactly sure she wanted to work with her as a bride.
Emily had a distinct feeling that Nora was going to be a bridezilla and she knew she didn’t have much patience for that. Or of course, she reasoned, it could just be sheer jealousy that Nora was engaged to the most gorgeous man she’d ever seen while she herself couldn’t even get a date with someone decent looking.
“I’m sorry but we close at 8:00 tonight and really there’s just not enough time to set up an entire tasting. But maybe next time you are in town we could set something up,” Emily answered.
Nora wasn’t taking no for an answer thought. “There’s no time for that,” she said breezily. “Honey, pay the woman.”
Abdul reached into the breast pocket of his suit and pulled out a checkbook. He clicked open a very expensive looking pen and started to fill out the check. Nora had also flipped something open, but it was her compact as she checked her lipstick as if she hadn’t a care in the world.
Emily wondered exactly who these people thought they were. Clearly they had plenty of money but she was absolutely not going to work with people who felt they could treat her any way they wanted and just pay her off. She may be hard up for some money, and maybe even a little nervous about paying the current month’s bills, but she was not going to be bought that way.
“I hope this helps,” Abdul finally spoke for the first time. His voice was deep, calm, and incredibly sexy. He handed her the check and she glanced at the amount, ready to refuse any offer that he had planned on putting in front of her.
But her eyes grew wide when she saw the actual amount. It would be more than enough to cover the bills for the month and probably help fix one of the dessert coolers that had been acting up. She hated it but she realized that apparently she could be bought. Besides, it was just a tasting. It was an extra night’s work in order to keep the check, but that didn’t mean she had to actually take them on as clients, no matter how much they might like the cakes.
“Ok, 9:00,” Emily agreed. “Let’s discuss the flavor profiles you are looking for.”