Puffy & Precious

by Mary E Thompson

  I let myself into Town Hall holding the steel blue box SkinnyCakes box tied with a purple ribbon. The woman at the desk smiled and gave me directions when I told her I had a meeting with Mayor Ramsey. As I stood outside the door with his name, I felt the butterflies in my stomach take flight. I took a deep breath and rested my hand on my stomach, hoping I wouldn’t throw up on the mayor.

  When I pushed through the door I was greeted by a woman with wavy brown hair flowing halfway down her back, dark framed glasses, and one of the prettiest smiles I’d ever seen. Even though I could only see her top half, I could tell she was a bit overweight, which immediately put me at ease for some reason.

  “Can I help you?” she asked sweetly.

  “Yes. I’m Abigail Bentley. I have a meeting with Mayor Ramsey.”

  She checked her computer then grinned up at me. “Excellent. He’ll be ready to see you in a little while. I’m Olivia. Can I get you anything?”

  I shook my head. “No, thank you. I’m fine.”

  “Did you bring samples for Wyatt?” she asked with a nod toward the box.

  “Wyatt?”

  “Sorry,” Olivia said with a shake of her head. “Mayor Ramsey is Wyatt. He insists on me calling him Wyatt.”

  “Oh,” I said, wondering if there was something going on between them. Not that it was my business. “Um, yes, I brought samples. I figured if I was interviewing for a baking position it only made sense for him to know what I could do.”

  Olivia nodded. “That’s smart. Wyatt likes smart. I think he’ll like you. I shouldn’t tell you this, but you’re the nicest one so far, too. The others who’ve been in were all pretty short with me and acted like they were better than everyone else here.”

  My conversation with Sam came back. Charlie was the friendliest person I knew and there was no way she would have come across as short with Olivia. She would have loved Charlie. I’d spoken to Max and Charlie briefly the night before but forgot about the meeting. If Mayor Ramsey was still accepting interviews, I wanted to make sure Charlie had one. I had no doubt she would impress the hell out of ‘Wyatt’ if given the chance, but I didn’t know if he would see her.

  “I have a question.” Olivia nodded for me to continue. “Is he still interviewing bakers after today? My sister-in-law owns a bakery also.”

  Olivia handed me a card. “She can give me a call and set up an appointment if she’s interested, but Wyatt is going to be making a decision early next week at the latest. Since the event is in five weeks, he can’t wait too long before securing someone.”

  I nodded. “I understand. If I were to get the job, I’d want that time to test out different products. Today I brought some of my most popular baked goods, but would create new items specifically for the event.”

  “Make sure you tell him that,” Olivia said as she picked up her ringing phone. “Yes?” she said into the receiver. “Okay.”

  She set the phone down and smiled at me. “He’ll see you now. Good luck.”

  The butterflies that had settled while I talked to Olivia took flight again. I walked to the door next to her desk, took a deep breath, and walked into his office.

  The first thing that struck me was how young Mayor Ramsey was. He was handsome, too, with short, dark brown hair, matching kind eyes, and a lean, strong body that made me wonder what he did before he became the mayor of Winterville. I stepped further into his office, glancing out the windows that overlooked Town Square, and shook his hand.

  “Thank you for seeing me, Mr. Mayor.”

  His grip was firm in mine, not taking me lightly because I was a woman. I appreciated that. “It’s my pleasure, Ms. Bentley. I understand SkinnyCakes has been open since January?”

  I nodded. “Yes. I know it’s fairly new, but it’s doing well. Besides, what really matters is how my product is. I brought you a sample of some of my most popular desserts so you can test them out.”

  I handed over the box and watched as he untied the ribbon and opened the box. He inhaled the contents. “Well, it smells amazing. Will you tell me a little about each selection?”

  I stood and pointed. “The flourless chocolate cake is my most popular. It’s sweet and rich, but also gluten free so it’s a good choice for almost everyone. My caramel cake is also very popular. It’s nearly as sweet, but because it’s caramel and not chocolate it appeals to a slightly wider audience. Because my bakery is a little health conscious, I also bake a wide variety of pies and cakes that are made with fruit. I prefer to use as many local products as possible, but in the off season, of course, I have to use whatever I can find. It’s a little early right now for local produce, but by the end of May I’ll be able to get local rhubarb, some strawberries, and carrots for these pies.”

  I indicated each slice as I mentioned it so he knew what he was tasting. He tried a piece of each with the fork I handed him but didn’t give any indication what he liked and didn’t like. When he finished, he set the fork down and looked up at me. “Thank you for coming in, Ms. Bentley.”

  He stood, ready to dismiss me. I remembered what Olivia said. “Oh, but I’d make brand new creations for the event. Really fit the theme of the day. A variety of items that would remind everyone of exactly why we’re celebrating, what we’re together for.”

  His eyebrows peaked. “Interesting. I appreciate your time today, Ms. Bentley. My office will be in touch early next week either way.” He shook my hand again. “Thank you.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Good luck with your selection process.”

  The next night I headed over to Bite Me! with Olivia’s card and my slice of pound cake covered in strawberries. Even though I loved Charlie’s cupcakes, even once a week was too much for me most of the time. I tried eliminating sugar the entire day before I went there, but my body still couldn’t handle the influx of sweetness. Every time I ate one of her cupcakes I got a headache and felt sick, not to mention I gained five pounds.

  Thankfully Charlie didn’t mind.

  When I walked in the door, Charlie handed over a cup of coffee. I knew it came from her personal pot in the kitchen, the one with the extra strong coffee she drank and shared with Max and me. She was helping another customer so I didn’t stop, knowing I’d get a chance to talk to her soon.

  Most of the others were already at the table. I took a seat next to Claire and smiled at her husband, Aidan. He was a nice guy, just like all the others, but he worked constantly so I didn’t know him well. Claire shared that she didn’t earn as much as she’d like running her non-profit company so Aidan worked a lot to make up the difference. It was good to see him at girls’ night for once.

  “Where’s Max tonight?”

  I shrugged. “I haven’t talked to him today. I’m not sure if he’s planning on being here or not.”

  After living with my brother for as long as I did, it was strange to have no idea what was going on in his life. I’d kept a lot from him when I was married, but the months after I left Brett were nice. I got to know Max again. I relied on him. He was there for me when I needed someone. I’m not sure I would have survived if he hadn’t been there for me when I wanted to give up.

  “Max?” Charlie asked, joining the table and giving me a hug. I nodded. “Yeah, he’ll be here. He had to check in with a few customers, but he’s on the way.”

  “Oh, hey, Charles, I have something for you,” I said, grabbing the card from my purse. “I went on an interview yesterday. The baker for the mayor’s big Kick-Off The Summer Picnic backed out and they’re looking for someone new to do it. His assistant said they’ll still take interviews. Call her and set something up for this week. He’s making his choice early next week.”

  Charlie took the card and studied it for a second before shaking her head. “I appreciate it, Abby, really, but no thanks.”

  “What? Why not? This is a huge opportunity. Why wouldn’t you want to do this?”

  Charlie shrugged. “When I moved in here I knew we weren’t in competition. Our products are different,
our clients are different. We’re different. I don’t want to ruin that by pitting us against each other.”

  I shook my head. “You wouldn’t. I promise. I’d be just as happy if you got it as if I did.”

  Charlie handed me the card back. “I hope you get it. I’m sure it would be great, but I struggle with big events. Heck 100 people is hard for me to handle. That kind of volume is making my palms sweat already. If you get it, let me know. I’d be glad to help you if you need it.”

  I nodded, feeling surprised. I glanced at Sam and she winked at me. I smiled at her, silently thanking her for encouraging me to talk to Charlie. Even if she didn’t want the job, she had the chance to make the decision, and I knew that was the right thing.

  Chapter 5

  “Okay, dish, how was the honeymoon?” Carrie asked.

  Charlie rolled her eyes. “Every one of you has been on a honeymoon. Why are you asking me?”

  “Because we want to hear about the sex, of course,” Carrie said without a trace of humor.

  I couldn’t stop my snicker which started everyone else. “Come on, Charles,” Lexi encouraged. “Max isn’t here yet. How was it?”

  Charlie glanced at me and I shrugged. “I’ll pretend you’re talking about someone else.”

  Charlie smiled, but I knew that was what she was worried about. I was the first one of the group with a sibling married to one of them. It made sense that it was a little weird.

  Or a lot.

  “The honeymoon was great. We went snorkeling and enjoyed the beach and had lots of sex.”

  Everyone cheered when Charlie admitted the last part. Even though I didn’t want to hear details, I was glad they had a good time.

  “Did you do it on the beach?” Sam asked, leaning forward as far as her belly would allow.

  Charlie nodded, biting her lip. “And in the ocean.”

  “Ooh, I’ve never done that,” Sam cooed. “Tell me more.”

  I laughed with the others. It amazed me how comfortable they all were with each other. Maybe one day I’d feel comfortable about telling them private things like details of my sex life. Of course, I’d have to be having sex to share the details.

  “What are we talking about ladies?” Max asked from behind me. I stood and hugged my brother. It stung a little when he took the empty seat next to Charlie instead of one near me, but I knew that wasn’t fair. She was his wife.

  “Well,” Sam sulked, “Charlie was going to tell us about sex in the ocean, but now that you’re here we’ll have to talk about the other, boring parts of your honeymoon.”

  Max shook his head at Sam and kissed Charlie’s neck. “Let’s keep something private, Sam. How’s the baby?”

  Sam rubbed her belly and grinned. “She’s doing well. I’m getting more and more kicks. I told Brady she takes after him. She’s strong.”

  Max smiled at her and rubbed Charlie’s belly. Something told me there was more going on and before I could stop myself I blurted, “Oh, my God! Are you pregnant?”

  Max and Charlie both rolled their eyes and laughed at me. “No. We talked about kids a lot, but we’re waiting for a while. Are you?” Charlie countered.

  “Gotta have sex for that,” I mumbled, immediately feeling stupid for even asking.

  “Not always,” Addi said.

  Nine heads swung her way. “Are you pregnant?” Carrie asked, a touch of jealousy in her voice. I knew how much both Addi and Carrie wanted to have kids.

  Addi shook her head. “We’re starting to look into IUI and IVF though. We’ve been trying for a while and my doctor said it makes sense to start looking into other options.”

  “Would you adopt?” Carrie asked.

  Addi shrugged. “Maybe eventually. I’m not ready for that yet.”

  “We’ve talked about adopting if we ever decide to have kids,” Lexi said. “Neither of us really want the baby stage, and with our jobs it would be tough. Of course we also haven’t decided if we want to have kids at all.”

  “Neither have we,” Claire added, leaning into Aidan. “It’s such a big job. It seems everyone wants kids though, and if you don’t you’re strange.”

  “You are strange,” Carrie teased. “But I get it. It’s all I’ve ever wanted. You guys love your careers. Some people want kids the way others want careers, and then there’s the really crazy ones, like Mandy and Sam, who want both.”

  “Hey!” Mandy and Sam said together.

  “I couldn’t deal with being home all the time,” Mandy said. “I don’t think I have the patience for Elise constantly, even though I adore her.”

  “I agree,” Sam said. “Giving up my job would feel like losing a limb.”

  Carrie shook her head. “I’ve never felt that way about a job.”

  “Will you leave XD when you get pregnant?”

  “Yes,” Mandy and Carrie answered together. Mandy and Carrie’s husbands were X and D, Xander and Drew, co-owners of XD Home Restoration. Carrie never hid her desire to be a stay at home mom.

  “So, Abby, tell us more about this party the mayor is throwing,” Claire said.

  I turned toward her and grinned. “It sounds like it’s going to be a great party. Saturday is really the big day of it since it’s the kick-off. Over the rest of the weekend he’s setting up a craft fair for local and regional artists to come in and showcase their work. Monday will be the parade honoring the military with the chili cook-off and fireworks in the evening. It sounds like it’ll be a lot of fun.”

  “And you’ll be baking?” Riley asked.

  I shrugged. “I hope so. I’ll find out next week though. I’m not sure how many others put in for the job.”

  “How did you find out about it?” Charlie asked.

  “Brett.”

  Max stilled and glared at me. “What do you mean, Brett?”

  I sighed. “He came into SkinnyCakes last week. He set up the appointment I had with the mayor yesterday.”

  “Why?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know. He said because he believes in me.”

  “He’s a snake, Ab. You know that. You can’t trust him.”

  “I don’t trust him,” I told my brother, failing to hide my irritation.

  “I’m not trying to say-”

  “It’s fine. I know.”

  Thankfully Max let it drop. The others didn’t need to know everything. Like all the horrible things Brett said to me while we were married. Or the way he dismissed me when someone important was around. Or how crushed I was when I found him fucking his assistant. Not to mention that he didn’t stop when I walked in on them and kept going once I’d closed the door and left.

  Max knew, but the others didn’t need to.

  Thankfully the conversation moved on after that and I faded into the background. Max didn’t mean to make me feel like a child, but he had the uncanny ability to do so. I screwed up when I married Brett, but I learned from that mistake. I wasn’t ever going to let another man walk all over me.

  I obsessed about my tasting with the mayor for the rest of the week. I wondered if I should have brought different things. Or maybe tried out new recipes. Waiting to hear back was nearly impossible. Especially since my evenings were so quiet.

  Living alone was a whole new experience. I enjoyed the quiet when my thoughts didn’t make me crazy. I hadn’t heard anything from Brett, so my thoughts were making me crazy.

  Late Thursday afternoon I was looking up new recipes on Pinterest when I heard the front door open. There was something familiar about the woman who walked in. Her long blonde hair stuck out from under the hat she wore and trailed more than halfway down her back. She was curvy, slightly bigger than I was, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that I knew her.

  When she looked up, her hazel eyes met mine and I grinned. “Tara? Is that you?”

  I started walking to the end of the counter, amazed at how my friend had changed. “Oh, my God! Abby! I can’t believe you work here. How are you?”

  We collided in a hug and I
nearly cried. I hadn’t seen her since college. We were roommates our junior and senior years. After graduation I married Brett and Tara went to California. She said she’d always wanted to see the Pacific Ocean.

  “I’m great. It’s so good to see you. What are you doing here?”

  “You look amazing! This dress is so cute,” she gushed. “I’m so happy to see you.”

  “You, too. Are you back to visit your parents?”

  Her smile faltered. “My dad’s not doing too well. I was kind of floundering in California. Involved with a low budget director who dumped me when he moved up the ladder. Couldn’t get any acting gigs. I was both too old and too fat to get any decent roles. That and I wasn’t willing to have plastic surgery to change everything about me. Or sleep my way to the top.”

  “I’m sorry to hear about your dad,” I said, my head spinning with everything she’d thrown at me. “And about California. Are you back for good?”

  She shrugged. “For now, I guess. Mom needed help so I came back because there really wasn’t much keeping me there. I’ve only been back about a week but kept driving by this place. I was so worried about coming in here.”

  “Why?” I asked, worrying I did something to turn potential customers away.

  Tara laughed. “The name. Anything that says ‘skinny’ makes me think I don’t belong. But if you’re working here I’ll feel a little more comfortable.”

  “Actually, I own this place. It’s my bakery.”

  “No, shit! Good for you.”

  That was what I loved about Tara. She was endlessly happy for the people around her. She congratulated you on a date even if she just got dumped, or cried with you when you failed the test she aced. I wished I had her sense of confidence and could be as empathetic to others as she always was.

  “Thanks. It was a lot of work, still is, but I’m enjoying it.”

  “How’s Brett handling you having your own bakery?”

  I laughed at Tara’s insinuation. If she’d been around, Brett and I never would have stayed married as long as we did. Tara knew what he was like and told me not to marry him before we graduated. I wished I’d listened to her.