The Sugar Cookie Sweetheart Swap

by Kauffman, Donna; Angell, Kate; Kincaid, Kimberly

  But Pete just shook his head, throwing every ounce of confidence he could work up into his words. “No, Chef. I think this cookie speaks for itself.”

  With that, he returned to his station. He’d taken plenty of risks in his life—hell, he thrived on it—and they always paid off. So what if he bent the rules a little with presentation? He’d put a work of art on that plate, and the food was all that mattered.

  Finally, after a stretch of time that felt better measured by millennia than minutes, Chase stepped back up to the podium. “Well. Once again, our judges were faced with difficult decisions, and once again, mere points have been the deciding factor. You’ve all worked hard, but only ten of you can proceed to the final round, to be held on Christmas Eve.”

  Chase began to read the finalist’s names, and Pete’s chest tightened at Lily’s ultra-serious expression from a few stations over. He sent his gaze to the audience, searching for an impartial face to latch on to in order to keep him steady.

  Lucas’s hopeful stare met him like a punch in the gut. This move would work, he told himself with silent, steely resolve. It had to.

  Pete couldn’t fail this kid. He knew all too sharply how much the disappointment hurt. But for the first time, his confidence felt flat, like a cake baked at the wrong temperature, never quite making it to where it should be.

  Finally, Chase called Lily’s name, but Pete’s relief was short-lived as the list continued to dwindle.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, we have one last spot, and with it, one last chance to win ten thousand dollars. It was an extremely close call, but in the end, once again, only one point made the difference.” Chase’s eyes skimmed the contestants, and Pete was certain his chest would implode from his heart’s feeble efforts to keep up. Finally, Chase said, “Our last finalist in this year’s Pine Mountain Christmas Cookie Competition is . . .”

  Chapter 10

  “I cannot believe you did that, you unbelievable jackass.”

  Lily propped herself up on one elbow, her hair spilling down her bare back as she fixed Pete with the mother of all stern looks.

  Too bad for her, he wasn’t buying it. Especially since she was still flushed and sweaty from the orgasm he’d given her barely ten minutes ago.

  “If I’m not mistaken, you threw yourself at me in celebration the minute I got here.” He gave up a lazy smile, and Lily’s cheeks flushed just enough to make him want a repeat performance of that orgasm-giving thing.

  “Not that. I meant what you pulled with the judges today. Do you have any idea how close you came to not making the final round?”

  Pete shifted to face her, still tangled in the bed sheets. “Haven’t we covered this territory?” he asked, skimming his fingers over the slope of her shoulder. “Points aren’t cumulative, remember?”

  She huffed out an exasperated breath. “Still! It was a massive unnecessary risk. Did you even look at your scores?” She gestured to the folder he’d tossed on the desk in her suite upon arrival, and his gut knotted in unease.

  “I was a little distracted,” he said, hoping she’d drop it.

  Not a chance. “But you’re not now.” Lily grabbed her bathrobe from the chair next to the bed and slipped it on, making a beeline for the folder.

  “Come on, Blondie.” Pete raked a gaze over her, and goddamn she was beautiful, even wrapped in all that terry cloth. “You distracted me when I walked in the door. It wouldn’t really be fair if I didn’t distract you back.” All it would take was one very strategic tug and about ten seconds, and he could have her naked. Again.

  “Using my propensity to follow the rules against me is a low blow,” she said, and despite the huskiness in her voice that told him she was thinking about the distraction he could provide, Lily stood firm. “I want to know why you didn’t say anything to the judges today.”

  He blew out a breath, lifting his shoulders in a shrug like nothing doing. “Guess I just wanted to make a statement.”

  “But if that were true, you would’ve done exactly that. Only you didn’t.”

  Of all the women in Pine Mountain, Pete had to go and fall for the most direct.

  Lily’s expression softened, and she sat down next to him on the bed. “Look, I was twenty feet away and I could see that those linzer cookies were the most incredible thing anyone made today. I get that you’re not a rules kind of guy.” She paused, as if the mere thought of it was total lunacy. “But you were a shoo-in for the final round, right up until you opened your mouth. Or more to the point, didn’t. Even for you, it was over the top, and you can’t pull that kind of stuff now that Conrad Le Clerc is in the picture.”

  Her words shot through him like ice water in August. “What?”

  She blinked, clearly confused. “Conrad Le Clerc is judging the final round, along with Martin, Olivia, and Chef di Matisse. Didn’t you read anything in your folder?”

  Christ, that folder was going to be the end of him. “No, I didn’t.” Pete pushed up to take the offered papers, shoving his score sheet to the back of the pile as he read. Sure enough, Conrad Le Clerc was listed as the special guest judge for all three courses of the final round on Christmas Eve.

  “Looks like they’ve upped our PR spots too,” he said, although it was an understatement. According to the sheet in his hand, they’d actually doubled.

  “Yeah, I guess the people at Delectable came through with that online spread. But that’s good for you, right? I mean, you want to win for the exposure.”

  Pete flipped his folder closed with a snap. “Sure.”

  But just like last night, Lily looked right past his no-big-deal smokescreen. She slid the folder from his grasp, her fingers lingering on his wrist. “What’s going on, Pete?”

  His instinct screamed at him to shut up, but something even deeper overrode it and guided the words right out. “If I win the competition, I’m going to donate the money to School Days.”

  Lily’s lips fell into a perfect pink O. “You’re . . . what?”

  “I just decided last night, but I’m sure. Those kids like Lucas deserve a good place, a safe place, to go. And for some of them, it might be the only place they can turn. So . . . yeah. If I win, I’m giving them the money.”

  “But I don’t understand. That should’ve been all the more reason to do what the judges asked today, yet you still took the risk. Why would you do that?”

  The tension in his chest coiled and redoubled. “It’s complicated. There are things . . . in my past . . . that aren’t like yours.” Pete stumbled, the words crowding his mouth, and their bitter taste was an all-too-stark reminder that he’d never once spoken about this to anyone other than his sister.

  But for the first time in his life, he trusted someone else enough to let it out.

  “I know you think I had a charmed upbringing, but I didn’t. My parents are alcoholics, and I’m not talking about the harmless-drunk kind. While there was no shortage of love in your house growing up, there was no shortage of mean in mine.”

  Lily’s eyes rounded, dark blue with surprise. “Did they hit you?”

  Pete grabbed onto a shaky breath. “Sometimes. But mostly they were happy to yell. And while I learned to expect it, the yelling actually hurt worse.”

  “Pete, I’m so sorry. I can’t even imagine how hard that must’ve been.” Lily wrapped her hand around his. Funny how such a benign gesture could feel so good.

  “As bad as it was for me, it was even worse for my younger sister, Ava. She never really grew a thick skin like I did, so I had to be strong for us both.”

  Lily’s fingers tightened, but he barreled on, just wanting to get the words out. “I figured the best way to do that was to prove our parents wrong. Every time they went on a bender and said Ava and I were worthless, I just told them we weren’t. I got cockier and cockier, until that bravado became a part of me. It wasn’t because I believed I was good enough, but because otherwise, Ava wouldn’t believe she was. And I couldn’t let them crush her. Not even when I turned eigh
teen and my father threw me out.”

  “Oh, God.” Lily’s whisper rode out on a tremble. “That’s where the bittersweet came from. Today, in your cookie. You meant it as both sides of your family.”

  Damn, she could see right through him. “Yeah. Linzers are Ava’s favorite, so the whole thing just made sense.”

  “Did you stay in Philadelphia to look after her, even when you were in culinary school?”

  “Until she went to college, yeah. Once she graduated, she decided to leave the city once and for all, to start a new life away from our parents. Her college roommate is from Riverside, so she came out here. But it was really hard on Ava after all the abuse we’d been through. To be honest, I didn’t know if she’d make it at first.”

  “So you moved out here, too, even though you work all the way in the city,” Lily finished, and the raw emotion in her gaze was as palpable as a touch.

  Pete nodded. “We’ve stuck together all our lives, and as far as I’m concerned, Ava’s my only family. I love her.” His voice went rough, but Lily had asked him a question at the start of this, and it needed answering. “It’s why I couldn’t dredge up all those memories on film, no matter what the judges asked for. I didn’t want to hurt her, and I’ve been pulling off this hotshot act my entire life. I thought my confidence would carry me today like it always has, but the truth is, it’s only a cover. Deep down, I’m just a fraud.”

  “No, you’re not.” Lily shifted next to him, moving so close he could see the tears glittering in her eyes, and Christ, would she ever stop flooring him with that purely honest expression?

  “You’re not a fraud for believing in yourself. You are an amazing man.” She cupped his face, her mouth like a gift on his. “Amazing.”

  Emotion he’d been fighting for far too long roiled up, tightening his words to a whisper. “How can you be so sure?”

  Lily simply looked at him. “What you put on the plate today—and why you did what you did—proves it. We might’ve only spent a week together, but some things get into your bones the minute you see them. And what I know in my bones is that you are not a fraud.”

  And as Lily gathered him close and showed him exactly how worthy she thought he was, Pete knew deep in his marrow he was falling in love with her.

  The next four days brought some of the most intense hours Lily had ever spent in the kitchen. Rather ironic, really, that the corresponding nights were also the most intense she’d ever spent in the bedroom.

  She’d say it was complicated, but it felt too damned good to be anything other than right.

  “Hey.” Pete sat down next to her on one of the plush couches in the resort lobby, handing her a Styrofoam to-go cup. “I thought you might like an after-dinner pick-me-up.”

  She murmured her approval. God, he was spoiling her rotten with his coffee-making skills. But this was the last free night they had between now and the final round, and Lily needed caffeine if she wanted to make the best of it.

  She took a sip of her heaven in a cup and nodded down at the notes in her lap. “I was going to go through some recipes tonight, kind of fine-tune things before we get really crazy with PR. What do you say?”

  “We’re already crazy with PR. I say we skip work and take a breather.” Pete gave up a mischievous grin and swung his gaze around the room in mock stealth. “You know, where no camera crews will find us.”

  Ever since the finalists had been announced, Chase had the resort’s tech staff working double time to keep up with the crew from Delectable. Between both sets of cameras, numerous interviews, and grueling kitchen sessions complete with visits from each judge, neither of them could sneeze without four different media personnel offering a chorus of “God bless you.”

  “But the camera loves you, Chef Mancuso,” Lily laughed, mimicking the magazine reporter in charge of Delectable’s online spread. “You are just so dynamic and handsome.”

  “No way. You’re the fan favorite.” Pete nudged her with one jeans-clad knee. “I thought people were going to crash the resort’s website with all those requests for your snickerdoodle recipe.”

  Lily shrugged, although she couldn’t contain the smile poking at the corners of her lips. “I just wish I’d realized there was flour on my face before I went up to present those to the judges.”

  She and Pete had finally broken down and watched all the spotlights together last night after Chase described the number of hits on the resort’s website as “practically viral.” As much fun as Lily poked at the swoony reporter, she had to admit the woman was right about Pete. Each clip showed him clearly in his element, making even the most intricate pastry techniques look like a kindergartener could pull them off without a hitch. His talent was obvious, and his sly charm was as plain on film as it was in person.

  And Lily was falling head over kitchen clogs in love with him.

  “Very funny.” The sexy rumble of Pete’s laughter delivered her from her thoughts with a clunk. “But I’m ready for a break. Let’s forget work for one night and do something fun.”

  She paused. They really had been going full tilt. “What’d you have in mind?”

  “You, me, a bunch of movies from the hotel’s pay-per-view menu, and not a cookie or camera all night. Whaddaya think?”

  “I think that sounds great.” Lily pushed to her feet, tucking her recipes into her bag as they headed past the merrily twinkling tree. After all, who was she to say no to such well laid plans? They could always catch up on work tomorrow.

  They rounded the corner by the elevators, a little girl tugging her mom’s hand as she led the woman toward the Christmas tree with clear excitement, and Lily stopped short. “Oh, crap. Can you give me a couple minutes? I totally forgot to call home, and I need to talk to my mom about Christmas Eve.”

  Pete’s dark brows knit together. “Call me crazy, but I’m pretty sure you have plans on Christmas Eve. Gigantic cookie competition, ten thousand dollars. Ring any bells?”

  “Of course. But the final round is open to the public just like the last one was.” Lily let out a chuckle, realizing the source of his confusion. “You skipped reading the memos in the folder again, didn’t you?”

  But rather than crack a smile, Pete just looked at her. “So your mom is coming to watch the final round?”

  Oh, hell. She’d felt so easy and happy and good about the night in front of her that the words had just flown out. “Ah. Well, it’s on Christmas Eve. We usually spend that time together, so yes. My parents are coming.”

  “It’s nice that they support you like that.” Although the words were genuine enough, the tightness beneath gave Pete away.

  Her heart shifted hard against her breastbone, but it wasn’t enough to stamp out her candor. She cared about him too much to pull punches, anyway. “Have you thought about asking Ava to come?”

  Cue the cocky smile, and God, it made Lily’s chest ache that much harder. “Nah. She spends the holidays with her roommate’s family, since I usually work and all. I don’t want to mess with that.”

  “Are you sure? I mean, you deserve some support too.”

  He shook his head, but the torn emotion in his eyes defied everything coming out of his mouth. “It’s all good, Blondie. I’m okay on my own. Plus, you’ll be there.”

  But as the elevator dinged to end the conversation, Lily was already formulating a plan that would make Pete’s Christmas worlds different from any of the ones in his past.

  Chapter 12

  Lily’s eyes blinked open before daybreak on Christmas Eve morning, the serene quiet of her hotel suite doing nothing to calm her. But that jangle of nerves would only throw her off her game, both on the contest floor and afterward. The logical thing would be to just forget it and focus on each task as it came.

  Right. And then she could go bench press a Buick. Oh, God, this day had the potential to blow up in her face on so many levels. Taking risks was just not her forte. Taking risks with someone she cared for deeply? Had to be the worst plan ever.

/>   “Hey.” Pete curled an arm around her, tantalizingly warm from the bed sheets. “It’s really early. You should try to get some more sleep.”

  “You’re up,” she pointed out, and he sent a chuckle into her hair as he fitted her tight to his side and kissed the crown of her head.

  “Yeah. I’m just thinking about today, I guess.” Silence filtered between them, measured only by the pull and release of their breath. “I don’t want to compete against you.”

  “Oh.” The straightforward words caught Lily off guard. “I know, but we have to. Only one of us can win.”

  Pete’s arm tightened around the back of her ribcage. “I know, but it doesn’t mean I have to like it. I want to win the money for School Days. If I’d had a place like that, who knows how different my life would’ve turned out? But if I beat you, I’ll feel like I’m stealing your dream.”

  Lily’s heart locked in her throat. “You can’t think of it like that, Pete. It’ll wreck your concentration, and you’re going to need all you can get. I know how much you want to help those kids.”

  “I do, but . . .” His heart sped up beneath the hand Lily had splayed over his chest. “I love you, Lily. I know it’s crazy, but I don’t care. If I’ve learned anything over the last couple of weeks, it’s that sometimes, honesty really is the best policy, so yeah. I love you, and I don’t want you to lose your chance at having your own bakery.”

  The words wrapped around her heart with an even combination of shock and pure rightness, and Lily pushed up to look at him through the soft, predawn shadows. “Just because you’re pursuing your own dream doesn’t mean you’re stealing mine. Even if you beat me today, I’m still going to have my own bakery someday.” She paused, a tiny smile sliding over her lips. “Don’t misunderstand me. I’m still going to do all that I can to win. But if that doesn’t happen, it’s okay. Because no matter what, I’m in love with you, too.”