Chapter 7: Olive
Wow. What. An. Ass. Seriously? His big excuse is that he thought I was from out of town and he’d never have to see me again? Sure, why not just pin a woman to the wall and kiss her as long as there are no consequences? And then he says I dared him to do it? Douche.
I can’t believe how much time and energy I’ve wasted thinking about that kiss. I didn’t expect to see him again but I genuinely thought he was attracted to me. I guess I was just the chick closest to the door. He never would have kissed me if I hadn’t pushed him. Dared him. Whatever. I’ve never been one to push myself where I’m not wanted. I’d rather be alone. I can totally pretend the kiss never happened.
Sure. And somehow I’ll just ignore the way my skin tingles with awareness when he’s close to me.
Stalking back into the kitchen with Brooks behind me, I catch Della and Lilah whispering with Luis. All three of them snap their mouths shut, guilt written all over their faces.
“You three done gossiping? Can we get to work?” I head out the side door of the kitchen and breath in the crisp dry air. December in Wine Country is peaceful. It’s chilly enough that I should have grabbed a sweater to throw over my chef coat, but I can deal for a couple minutes. I actually welcome the cold. Maybe it will cool me off.
I’ve wanted to add a classroom to the bakery since I bought the building, but getting the main bakery financially successful had to come first. We’ve been in the black for a couple of years and this last summer was so profitable that getting the loan for my addition was a piece of cake, considering how much we can charge for classes and parties in the extra space.
I even have the perfect space for the addition. The bakery’s building is a large L shape, with a gravel lot in the corner of the L. Right now, we use the space to hold dumpsters and for overflow parking. We have plenty of parking without this space though, and we can move the dumpsters easily enough. I can already see what the addition will look like in my mind.
I walk Della around and give her an idea of how I want to arrange the classroom. I already gave her a sketch of the layout so we can plan the electrical and ventilation. She walks around the space taking notes and measurements, conferring with Brooks on materials. I’m careful to avoid making eye contact with him, but it’s hard to miss the way he looks at me. I struggle to push away the memory of last night every time I feel his eyes on me. And as much as I’d like to, I can’t ignore his voice as it rumbles over me, talking about lumber and timelines. Stupid sexy voice.
My sister stands off to the side adding a little something here or there, but mostly she watches my refusal to look at Brooks and sends lots of questioning looks my way. I try to give her my best stop-looking-at-me-like-that face, but she’s having too much fun with my suffering.
Della claps her hands and tucks her metal clipboard under her arm. “All right! I think I’ve got everything I need for now. I’ll get back to you with plans and once we confirm everything, Brooks can get you the estimate. Easy peasy.”
I meet Brooks' eyes, but his face is unreadable. Della, sensing trouble between me and the contractor, pulls me aside, a warm arm hooked in mine. "You okay, sweetie?"
I pause, thinking for a second. I don’t want her to think I’m unhappy with her or ungrateful. She’s an amazing architect and I’m lucky she offered to do my addition and gave me a ridiculously generous discount. “I know you will do an awesome job. I’m not worried about you at all… but why this guy?”
Della purses her lips and whispers, “Look, Lilah filled me in. Maybe I shouldn’t have let her, but I’m nosy and I love gossip. Not one of my best traits, I know. Despite the… weirdness from last night, Brooks is an amazing contractor. He’s one of the very best in the area and he’s available to start right away. He always finishes his jobs on time and on budget. If you want to go with another contractor, I can find one, but they probably won’t be able to start right away. You risk not having the bakery ready for tourist season. That would suck, right?”
Ugh, okay. Fine. “Yes, that would really suck.”
“Great!” Della is back at full volume again. “Let's go inside where it's warm and sign some paperwork!” God, she's so chipper. I hate her a little right now. Following her back inside, she moans as the bakery air hits her. “What are you guys baking? It smells like heaven.”
“It's the lemon poppyseed cake. I've got it in muffin form up front. Let me grab you a couple,” I offer, watching out of the corner of my eye as Brooks motions for Della to lead the way back to the table. I don’t miss the way he watches me as I split off and head behind the counter.
My barista sets up a French Press for me while I go to the pastry case to grab the muffins. My hand hovers near them, but I don’t pick them up right away. I can see Brooks through the glass sitting at the table with Della. The vindictive side of me is tempted to only grab two and let Brooks go hungry. But I’m not that person, and I have to work with him for the next few months. Oh, god. Months. This is going to be so unpleasant.
I tamp down the urge to be petty and plate three muffins, setting them on a tray with the coffee, three mugs, and some half and half. When I look up, Brooks has his eyes glued on me again. Heat shoots through my body. My stupid body has gone rogue and doesn’t give a rat’s ass that he doesn’t want me.
My body doesn’t at all care that he only kissed me because I taunted him and he wanted to shut me up. But reminding myself that he considers it a mistake, one he never expected to have to face again, is enough to throw a cold wet blanket on my hormones.