This was a distraction I desperately needed. I had barely gotten any sleep, woke up at four to bake, delivered the items, and stayed instead of going home like Hillya suggested to get some more sleep since it would be a late night. Saul was in my head and had been since he kissed me the other night.
I had compartmentalized him before. I didn’t allow myself to think of him too much and I could shut it down. Until that kiss. It was as if my lips knew what I was thinking about and they would tingle from the memory. Saul had been an issue since day one, but now he had made it even worse. I was not here to develop feelings for a guy. Especially one who didn’t feel the same.
My reasons for coming here had been deeper than that. I had to keep remembering why I came and stop thinking about Saul. His brooding was too much for me and his life was much darker than anything I’d ever experienced. I didn’t need that kind of damage in my life. I was trying to fix me; Saul would do the opposite. I feared he could destroy me if I gave him the power.
“Oh thank God, please tell me you’re back here to slice cake,” Emily said as I walked into the kitchen.
“Afraid not. I have to make a couple banana loaves and a chocolate cake, but I promise I will slice them when they are ready,” I told her.
Emily groaned. “Why would so many people come to get a stupid book signed? Just buy the damn thing on your phone and read it. Who needs to meet the author? Heck, I can’t remember who wrote the last book I read.”
Laughing, I began to get my ingredients and place them on the counter. Apparently Emily wasn’t a big reader. I would guess her last book was one she had to read for a class. If she truly loved reading, she would remember the author’s name. Now, the line forming outside was shocking to me, but I did find it cool. I just had never considered going to stand in line to meet someone before.
“Do you remember the last book you read and the author’s name?” she shot back at me.
I grinned as I poured my ingredients into a bowl. “The Perfect Game by J. Sterling.”
“Oh my God. Please don’t tell me you go to book signings and wait in line for hours.”
“No, I go to the library and pick out books, read them, return them, repeat,” I told her.
Emily sighed. “I don’t care much for reading.”
“You haven’t found the right book yet. When you do, it changes things. You’re reading the wrong things,” I explained.
“I’m reading what I have to read to pass my classes,” she replied.
“Exactly. Why don’t you get one of the books from the author coming tonight and try it out? Might be your thing,” I suggested.
I glanced over at her while I stirred the batter. She did not look convinced, but she shrugged. “Maybe.”
The rest of the afternoon, I ended up baking three of the banana loaves and two chocolate cakes, which came to fifty-eight slices. I took cups of water and baked goods to the thirty- seven people in line at four- thirty, and I made a dairy-free espresso martini for Hillya to try out. She had cases of red and white wine and her signature cocktail she was offering was an espresso martini. She just hadn’t considered that those with dairy allergies couldn’t have it. I gave her another option and she went and added it to the chalkboard menu.
By seven o’clock, the author was here and the line was almost at three hundred people. It wrapped around to the back of the building and then was separated into three sections. Hillya had hired some security to keep things safe and orderly out back. Per city ordinance, we could only have sixty people in the shop at a time. Mrs. Hoover was friendly but swift with each reader, making them feel special while they came up to the table but not letting them stay too long. She was obviously a pro at this.
I poured more white wine than anything, but occasionally, there was an espresso martini order. Three of those had been for the dairy-free martini. My banana loaf and chocolate cake had also been a surprise to those with allergies. I had heard several of the readers talking about the fact we had those options.
Twice Emily and I had been asked if we were sisters. I was surprised the first time, but after the second time a lady asked, I figured it had to be the pale skin. That and we did work well together.
Mrs. Hoover managed to get through four hundred readers in three hours. I was amazed. When she finally got to leave, we led her through the back and sent her off with a large bag of baked goods. She and her family were in town for a mini-vacation and we had enough slices of cake left to feed another hundred people.