A Slice of Summer

by Melissa McClone

Garrett held up his hands to stop Taryn. “Nope. No kids talk. It’s hard enough thinking about my baby sister getting married. I’m not ready to imagine her being pregnant.”

  “Don’t you want to be an uncle?”

  He thought about it. “I’m Rex’s uncle. At least that’s how Callie told me to sign the tag on his Christmas gift.”

  Taryn laughed. “That sounds like your sister.”

  He nodded. “When I’m an uncle, I’ll be the best one there ever was. Of course, I’ll have to compete for the title with my brothers Flynn and Keaton.”

  “Callie mentioned you guys are competitive.”

  “We are, but not in a make-each-other-fail kind of way. We want the bragging rights.”

  “Those are important.”

  Taryn’s hand lay on the tabletop. All Garrett had to do was move his hand forward a few inches, and they’d almost touch.

  If this were a date—which it wasn’t—he would cover her hand with his to see if her skin was as soft as he imagined.

  Her hands were clean of paint, but had she put on lotion after washing them? If so, was it scented?

  “So quick bright things come to confusion,” a male voice said.

  Taryn glanced up and stiffened.

  That put Garrett on guard.

  The man standing next to their table appeared to be in his early thirties. He wore a button-up shirt, tie, and dress pants. He held a pizza box. “Stop kidding around. You know that one.”

  Taryn’s lips pursed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Nick.”

  Nick, as in Nick Baxter, who was Brandt’s nemesis? Garrett took a closer look. Baxter’s expensive watch seemed out of place for Luigi’s and the town. But then again, Brandt said the guy was a tool. He was overdressed for a small-town pizza parlor, too.

  Nick smirked. “I quoted a line of Shakespeare.”

  She took a sip of soda, visibly unimpressed. “You enjoyed doing that in high school.”

  “I did.” The guy’s chest puffed. If he noticed Garrett at the table, Nick didn’t acknowledge him. “Though I’m surprised you remember, given how you’re Team Brandt these days.”

  “I didn’t take sides,” she said with more patience than Garrett would have managed around the guy. “I’m friends with both of you.”

  “Not true.” Nick’s gaze darkened. “You’re baking Brandt’s wedding cake after he wouldn’t help me in December with that company in Raleigh.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding.” She half laughed. “I work at a bakery. That’s what we do. Bake cakes.”

  Nick wagged his eyebrows. “And now, there’s more than one bakery in the area.”

  “Summit Ridge didn’t open until March. Brandt and Callie hired me in January.”

  “Which is why you should have told them no when they asked,” Nick said in a matter-of-fact tone. “You were a close friend, but you crossed the line. Now you pay.”

  Her lips parted. “So opening the other bakery is some sort of payback?”

  Nick shrugged, but he didn’t appear indifferent or confused. “If you wanted to remain neutral, you should have pulled a Switzerland. Now you’ll pay.”

  The guy sounded more snake than human. No, that wasn’t fair to snakes.

  Even if Garrett hadn’t known the backstory of how Nick used the power of attorney Brandt had given him to sell their company’s technology and shut down the place, Garrett wouldn’t want anything to do with him. The guy gave off a negative, slimy vibe.

  Nick’s lip curled. “Rumor has it business is down at Lawson’s Bakery.”

  Taryn didn’t cower or look away. She squared her shoulders. “The new patio is a big hit.”

  “A little too late.” Nick sounded bored. “Are you ready for the summer fair?”

  “Almost.” She motioned across the table. “This is Garrett Andrews, one of Callie’s brothers. He’s helping me with the final touches.”

  “Well, good luck.” Somehow Nick made those words sound condescending. “May the best bakery win.”

  Taryn stiffened. “What do you mean?”

  Nick snickered. “Oh, haven’t you heard?”

  “Heard what?” Taryn asked, appearing more uncomfortable by the second.

  Garrett couldn’t take it any longer. He covered her hand with his.

  Gratitude shone in her eyes.

  “Mr. Jones doesn’t have time to build a booth this year with his wife’s knee replacement. We’d applied to be on the waitlist. Once they saw our design, the board gave us the hardware store’s place.”

  Taryn’s face paled. Her lower lip trembled. “I hadn’t heard.”

  Garrett squeezed her hand, wanting to reassure her and let her know she wasn’t alone.

  “It’ll be the battle of the bakeries this weekend.” The glee in Nick’s voice matched his expression. “We’re excited and raring to go. Spoiler alert! Our booth will be hard to beat.”

  She swallowed. “Good luck.”

  The woman had more class in her pinky finger than Nick Baxter had in his entire body because Garrett would have said something else to the guy. Words not meant to be spoken in a family restaurant. But this wasn’t his fight…yet.

  Nick barely glanced his way. “Nice to meet you, Barrett.”

  “Garrett.”

  “Whatever,” Nick mumbled. “Take pains. Be perfect.”

  With that, he walked out, leaving a stench in his wake. Okay, it was pepperoni, but without the pizza, it wouldn’t have smelled.

  Taryn rubbed her face. “Did that really happen?”

  “Unfortunately, yes.” Garrett kept his hand on top of hers. “Do you think he’s lying?”

  “I have no idea, but what was he saying about pains and perfect made no sense.”

  “It sounds like another quote.” Reluctantly, Garrett raised his hand from hers. He typed the words into the search bar. The results sent his heart dropping.

  She leaned forward. “What does it say?”

  “It’s a quote.”

  “Shakespeare?”

  Garrett nodded. “From A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

  “It has to be a coincidence.” Despite her words, she didn’t sound convinced.

  He readied his thumbs. “What was the first thing he said?”

  “Bright confusion. Something like that.”

  Garrett typed. “‘So quick bright things come to confusion’ is also from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

  Lines creased her forehead. She pushed away from the table. “I need to know what’s going on. Margot will know.”

  He grabbed the pizza box. “Let’s go.”

  Chapter Ten

  At Margot’s, Taryn sat next to Garrett. She couldn’t believe what Nick had said was true. The Summit Ridge Bakery was taking part in the summer fair. Talk about a worst-case scenario—a real-life nightmare. She had to do something, but what?

  Her nerve endings stood on end, and her hands shook. “How did this happen?”

  Margot sat in a chair opposite them. “We had several backup applications. When Mr. Jones pulled out earlier today, the board called an emergency meeting tonight. Nick must have gone from there to Luigi’s.”

  Taryn stared at the carpet, unable to think straight. “Additions have been made in the past, but never a direct competitor to a First Avenue business.”

  “I’m so sorry, dear,” Margot said, her voice full of compassion. “If it’s any consolation, I voted no.”

  Taryn’s gaze jerked up. “The others all voted yes.”

  It wasn’t a question because that was the only way the board would have given Mr. Jones’s slot to the other bakery. So much for having friends in the association. Still, it surprised her. Some had been in business as long as her father. But they were probably the ones also driving to Summit Ridge for their baked goods.

  “The booth’s design swayed others,” Margot explained. “I must admit to being impressed.”

  Taryn’s stomach churned, making her wish she’d skipped dinner.r />
  “Let me guess,” Garrett chimed in. “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

  Margot’s mouth gaped. “How did you know?”

  Garrett looked at Taryn. “Do you want to tell her?”

  “I’ll show you.” Taryn pulled out her phone and showed Margot what they’d been working on. “This is Lawson’s Bakery booth.”

  Margot’s eyes widened. “It’s almost the same design, except the Summit Ridge Bakery’s booth has four sides. Yours only has three.”

  Taryn’s insides twisted. She hadn’t been paranoid thinking they wanted to put Lawson’s Bakery out of business, but Nick had confirmed that earlier. But to stoop this low…

  Her throat tightened. “My original design had four. I changed it because I didn’t have enough time to build it that way.”

  “Did anyone see your booth before you put it into the storage shed last year?” Garrett asked.

  Her mom and dad had been traveling in their RV in August and September. No one had been at her house. “No one.”

  Margot rubbed her chin. “How would they have gotten hold of your design?”

  Taryn remembered. “The office bulletin board. I put the design up a few weeks ago so I could make a plan for baking the edible decorations.”

  “That must be how they found them,” Margot said.

  Taryn shook her head. “No one goes into the office except employees.”

  Silence filled the room. Both Garrett and Margot stared at her with knowing expressions.

  “No.” Taryn jumped to her feet. None of the guys who worked for her would do that. It was unthinkable. Impossible. “The employees who now work at Summit Ridge weren’t around when I hung the designs. No one would do that. They wouldn’t.”

  “It’s difficult to think of someone close to us betraying our trust.” Margot’s voice was full of compassion. “But didn’t you mention the other bakery has been copying your recipes? And when you introduce something new, they do, too.”

  “Yes, but…” Taryn plopped onto the couch. “Who would do this?”

  “Who works at Lawson’s now?” Margot asked.

  “Jayden, Carl, Finley, and Brecken.” It couldn’t be one of them. She wanted to cover her ears, to stop them from ringing. “They aren’t new employees. Carl worked under my dad before he retired.”

  Taryn’s eyes stung, and she buried her face in her hands. This wasn’t happening.

  An arm went around her, and Garrett pulled her against him. She leaned into him, needing his support.

  He rubbed her back. “We’ll sort this out. I promise.”

  “But the fair.” Oh, no. She squeezed her eyes tight before opening them. “I can’t have the same theme as the other bakery. I’ll be accused of copying them because people know my original booth was destroyed.”

  “Let’s not panic, but it’s Wednesday night,” Margot reminded her. “You’ve already started over once.”

  Taryn wrapped her arms around her stomach, but that didn’t stop the nausea. “I can’t drop out.”

  “You need to come up with a different theme,” Garrett said, his tone soft. “But one that will still work with the base part and the trees. The sign would be repainted, so it looked new.”

  Taryn rubbed her eyes. “A new sign is better than replacing everything else.”

  He squeezed her. “That’s my girl.”

  Warmth furled inside her, making it not seem so bad. Nope, this wasn’t the time to delude herself about what this was and wasn’t. “All we need is to come up with a new theme and finish by Friday. Not exactly easy-peasy, but with a simple idea, it might work.”

  “Not you. We.” Margot grinned. “Three brains are better than one.”

  “Let’s brainstorm.” Garrett kept his arm around Taryn, and she wasn’t eager to scoot away. “We’ll think of a theme tonight. Go shopping for what we need tomorrow morning and put the pieces together after that. You’re not alone, but even if you were, you could do this.”

  Margot nodded. “Of course, you can.”

  “I appreciate the vote of confidence.” Taryn didn’t feel that way herself, but her family’s legacy was at stake. Failing wasn’t an option. “Let’s do this.”

  *

  Garrett tossed and turned all night. His brain wouldn’t shut off. Not when he wanted to discover who helped Nick Baxter and the Summit Ridge Bakery drive Lawson’s out of business. But an investigation would have to wait until booth version 3.0 was complete.

  Despite his lack of sleep, Garrett needed to get busy. He arrived at the hardware five minutes before it opened. He wasn’t surprised Taryn was here. The circles under her eyes matched his, but she might not appreciate being called twinsies over it.

  “Hey,” he said. “Ready to get this done?”

  Her nod lacked enthusiasm, but she must be reeling since last night. She showed him a note on her phone. “I made a list of items, but I still can’t think of what to call the booth.”

  “What was Margot’s suggestion?”

  “She had two.” Taryn tapped on her screen and read. “A picnic for two or a summer picnic. They’re not bad.”

  “But it’s not as catchy as A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I’ll make another sign, but you can wait to paint it until you have a theme name you’re happy with.”

  “Good plan. It’s not as if we don’t have other things to do.”

  When the doors opened, Taryn handed a list to Mr. Jones. “If you could cut wood to these sizes while we shop, I’d appreciate it.”

  Garrett grabbed a cart. He had no idea what she’d spent to make the first two booths, but this theme didn’t need as many items. Still, items filled the basket.

  “Too bad the heavy building is done, or I’d need one of these.” A leather tool belt caught his eye. He reached for it and put it on. “What do you think?”

  She studied him. “Not exactly what I’d imagine a lawyer wearing, but it works.”

  “It does.” He struck a pose.

  Taryn laughed. “Next time.”

  He debated buying it now because there wouldn’t be a next time. Unfortunately.

  That bummed him out. Not about the tool belt, but spending more time with Taryn. After tomorrow afternoon, he’d have no reason to see her. Besides, he would fly home a week from Sunday.

  After she paid, he loaded the supplies into the trunk before getting into her car.

  The lines around her mouth had relaxed a little. That pleased Garrett.

  She checked her phone. “That’s the first thing on our to-do list.”

  “What’s our next stop?”

  “The general store.” She started the car. “We may be able to get all the items, but if not, the market will have the rest.”

  Her voice sounded stronger than it had last night, but Garrett sensed a hesitation in her.

  “You’re doing great.” He touched her shoulder. “It’s going to be okay.”

  “I tell myself that, but I also keep thinking about how my dad will react when he sees how much money we’ve lost.” Taryn pulled away from the curb and drove along Main Street. She kept her gaze focused on the road. “If I don’t win the booth competition, which doesn’t seem likely now, he’ll be so disappointed in me. Again.”

  “That’s a tough place to be.”

  She glanced his way for a moment. “Sounds like you’ve been there yourself?”

  Tension formed between Garrett’s shoulder blades. Few people knew what happened all those years ago, but hearing what he went through might help Taryn. He wanted to make her feel better and didn’t know what else he could do.

  “I have.” He took a breath, not wanting to relive his biggest failure but knowing he should for her sake. “The summer after my first year of law school, I interned for my dad’s law firm. I always assumed I’d work there and rake in six figures straight after I graduated with my JD. I was the definition of cocky.”

  “And you’re not now?” she teased.

  He laughed. “I’ll take the Fifth.”


  “Sorry, I couldn’t stop myself. Continue.”

  Garrett appreciated the reprieve. He took another breath.

  Come on. It wasn’t that bad.

  Except it changed the path of his life.

  He swallowed. “My dad wanted one of us to follow in his footsteps. Flynn was in medical school, making our mom proud, and I was happy to apply to law school, knowing my career would be set working for the firm where he was a partner.”

  She tilted her head but didn’t look his way. “Didn’t you work for the DA’s office?”

  “I did after I graduated and passed the bar. This was before.”

  “Okay, but that’s a completely different career path and income level.”

  Garrett blew out a breath. “You’re not wrong.”

  “What changed?”

  A perfectly valid question and the point of his story. “I made a mistake during that summer internship. Something that could have cost my dad’s firm a lot, including their reputation.”

  Taryn gripped the steering wheel. “You were just an intern.”

  “But I should have known better.” The words flew out. It was his standard reply. “I was a founder’s son. I believed I knew what I was doing. It was a perfect example of hubris, and I’m sure I’m still used as an example for interns today. Not by name.”

  “What happened?”

  “I was in preparing documents for the court. But I’d messed up, and some things slipped through. Thankfully, a senior attorney caught the mistake, even though I’d told him it wasn’t necessary. If he hadn’t thought to check…” Garrett scrubbed his face. “He submitted corrected paperwork. But the mistake was all on me. The next summer, I didn’t return.”

  “Was it your choice?”

  This was the part that sucked. “No, it was my dad’s.”

  “Oh, Garrett.” She touched his hand. “I’m sorry.”

  “Thanks.” His throat hurt, but that was nothing new when he thought about this, which wasn’t as often these days. “As a founding partner, my dad didn’t want any sign of nepotism. He suggested I find a different internship the next summer. To gain a broader experience were his exact words. What he meant was stop riding his coattails and prove myself, so I did.”

  “Did you apply to his firm after you graduated?”