CORY
The meeting with Chad had been pretty satisfying. The man was a twerp. I could see immediately why Petra had such a problem with him. He was petty and conniving, trying his best to convince us to invest in him instead of Petra.
“She’s just a baker,” he said. “I’ve got the big picture.”
“If you’ve got the big picture, then why is the place still such a wreck?” I asked.
Donovan held his hand up. He didn’t want to antagonize the man, and I couldn’t blame him. We had to play nice in order to get what we wanted. It was all about Petra for me, probably half and half for Gavin, and more about the investment than the woman for Donovan.
When we’d finally convinced Chad that there was no deal without our favorite baker, he accepted defeat with a grimace. He called Petra into the office and nearly bit her head off. I watched her handle it all, and when she burst into excited rambling about what she was going to do to improve the place, I couldn’t help but smile.
She was so pretty. The more I saw her, the more I wanted to see. Our little afternoon rendezvous were quickly becoming the highlight of my day. As soon as we were all on the same page, the meeting broke up. Petra walked back to the kitchen, and we all followed.
Chad and Patrick followed behind as Gavin, Donovan, and I surrounded Petra.
“I’m in the middle of making a batter, but as soon as I get the muffins in the oven, I’d love to talk to you guys about my plans,” she said.
I would agree to anything, and I could see Gavin was likewise enamored. Luckily, Donovan still had a head on his shoulders and managed to say something thoughtful like, “What goes into the batter?”
“It’s my special recipe.” Petra winked. “The secret ingredient is sour cream. That’s what makes them so moist.”
“I don’t know anything about baking,” I admitted.
“Most people don’t,” Petra agreed. “Some people love it; some are good at it but don’t take the time to learn all the basics. Then there are other people who just like to eat baked goods and don’t care about what goes into them.”
“I’m one of those,” I teased.
“Most of our customers are,” she replied. “If everyone loved baking, I would be out of a job, so I don’t mind.”
“What are the rest of the ingredients?” I asked, feeling ridiculous but wanting to keep her talking.
“Milk, eggs, sugar, flour.” She recited the recipe as if she knew it by heart. “Baking powder, a little bit of salt, and butter.”
“Did you say you had a healthier option?” Donovan asked, concerned about the wellness-inspired customer.
“The oat muffins use honey instead of sugar, and I substitute whole oats for some flour.” She picked up the mixing bowl and began to beat the batter round and round. “Get the muffin pans. If you want to know what goes into them, the best way to do that is to help out.”
I picked up a muffin pan, and she handed me a sheaf of papers, instructing me on how to divide the batter into the individual cups. Then she had Gavin portion out half a cup of batter into each of four dozen tins. Donovan got to work the oven, and together, under the tutelage of our beautiful teacher, we made magic.
Patrick and Chad stood awkwardly in the middle of it all, not nearly as enchanted by Petra as the rest of us. In fact, once Patrick saw what was going on, he tried to run interference. He hurried to the oven before Donovan could reach it, grabbing his sister by the shoulders.
“You really need to get back to work,” he instructed her.
“This is my work.” She shrugged him off, resuming her conversation with Donovan. “This oven has two chambers, top and bottom, so you can cook two different things at the same time.”
“Is that optimal?” Donovan asked. “Shouldn’t you be able to cook three or four?”
“That would be nice, but…” She paused before flashing a brilliant smile. “I was going to say we couldn’t afford it, but a new oven would be great!”
She turned back to me, the excitement evident in her eyes. I gave her a thumbs-up, pleased to be in on her joy. She was like a kid in a candy store, or a baker in a kitchen who had just been given the greenlight to upscale. I couldn’t help it; she was amazing to watch. The way her hair danced when she bounced on her heels was precious. I wanted to kiss her.
The notion came over me so suddenly, it was like a wildfire. One minute I was watching her smile, and the next, the desire was so strong I nearly caught my breath. I had to have her. It was no longer a question of longing or an unfulfilled dream. I was going to make a move on her, and I was going to do it soon.
The kitchen was full of people. My mind started working overtime, struggling to come up with a way to separate Petra from the crowd. There wasn’t anything I could do, short of pulling the fire alarm, that would empty everyone out and leave us alone. Of course, I couldn’t do that.
Glancing at Gavin, I raised my eyebrows. He flashed me an easy smile, letting me know he was thinking along the same lines. I shook my head, trying to communicate that I was serious. It had gone beyond a nice idea. Determination took hold, and my thoughts narrowed to a single goal.
I looked at Donovan. He had all of Petra’s attention at the moment and wasn’t likely to give it up. I moved toward the pair, acting like I was deeply invested in the oven. Donovan seemed surprised to find me standing right next to him, but he moved aside to give me room.