Take the Cake (23 page)

“It did,” Kate replied. “Of course it did, but I thought he was someone much older, not …” Kate waved a hand as she searched for the right word.

“A total hottie?” Emily supplied.

“Yeah,” Kate admitted with a sheepish grin.

“Didn’t he mention anything about this?” Emily asked.

“Not really, but then again, I guess I never really asked,” Kate replied. “I asked him what he did, he said he was a writer and that he’d been published, and we left things at that.”

“He didn’t offer any other information? Not even a clue?” Wren asked, raising an eyebrow. She reached forward and opened a link to Amazon, scrolling through the bibliography of Michael’s work that was available. “Holy shit, I think I’ve read a couple of these.”

Emily leaned closer to read over Wren’s shoulder, and then reached out to point at the screen. “I’ve read that one. It was really good.” She looked at Kate. “Have you read any?”

“I don’t think I have,” Kate admitted. “I mean, I’ve been aware of them but just haven’t gotten around to any of them yet.”

“What are the odds.” Wren sighed. “You’ve even got a degree in Literature. Guess this means we can’t call you a groupie.”

“Guess so,” Kate admitted with an uncomfortable laugh.

Emily touched her shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“Sure.” Kate was still distracted by the screen. Why hadn’t he said anything? She suddenly felt as if the information Michael had given her would fit on the head of a pin. It made her feel unsettled.

“You don’t look okay,” Emily commented. “What’s got you freaked out, that he’s famous, or that he didn’t tell you?”

“I’m not sure,” Kate admitted. “Either way I feel pretty weird.” Kate stood chewing her thumbnail as she stared at the screen and then shook her head. “Anyway, we’ve got customers now so we’d better get back to work.” She snapped the laptop shut and shoved it back into her bag, moving to the mixer and getting back to work. Wren and Emily exchanged a quick glance before heading out into the shop front to take orders.

When there was a lull in orders, Emily turned to Wren. “Do you think she’s going to be okay?”

“Can’t tell,” Wren muttered, cleaning the milk froth off the steam spigot. “I don’t think so. Let’s hope the boy turns up soon because I think he’s going to have some explaining to do.”

~~~

Michael pulled on a clean pair of jeans and then went back into the bathroom to grab a towel. He gave his hair a brisk rub, and then hung up the towel again before heading out to the kitchen. Barefoot and shirtless, he stood in front of the refrigerator as he considered his options before grabbing the milk. He uncapped it and gave it a cautious sniff before getting out a box of cereal and a bowl. Padding into the living room with his breakfast, he switched on the TV and settled back on the sofa. He glanced at his watch and sighed; there were hours to kill until he could see Kate again.

Staring at the morning news shows, he finished his cereal and set the bowl aside, yawning and scratching his bare chest. He kicked his legs up onto the sofa and pulled the cushions into a more comfortable position. He didn’t feel like doing any writing just yet; he’d watch some TV for a while instead. Five minutes later he got up from the sofa with a growl and switched on his laptop, the words bubbling in his mind. He knew they would pester him until he got them out of his head and onto the screen. He pulled out the chair from his desk and sat down, stared out of the window for a moment, and then took a deep breath and began to write.

~~~

Kate slid another tray of cupcakes into the display cabinet, and then headed back into the kitchen. She paused to wash her hands and push her hair off her face before getting out her laptop. The laptop had been put into sleep mode, so she tapped the space bar to wake it up. The search results page was still on the screen, and she clicked on the Amazon page to read Michael’s biography. It was a short synopsis, but it gave her a snapshot of his career. Published in his early twenties, Michael had since gone on to be nominated for the National Book Award three times. Kate looked at the books available and swallowed hard. In the last ten years, Michael had written and published nine books, all of which had received positive critical acclaim. She shook her head. She couldn’t believe it was the same Michael she knew, and more still, that she hadn’t read any of his books.

Scrubbing her face with her hands, Kate sighed. Why hadn’t he told her? Had she even asked? She knew they’d discussed his writing, but he seemed to shy away from talking about himself too much. Perhaps he was just a reticent person by nature. Or perhaps there was more to it than that. There was one way to find out.

Her cell phone chimed. A new text message had arrived. Picking up the phone from where it had been resting on the counter, she looked at the screen.

I miss you. Can I see you tonight? xM

Kate looked from the laptop to her phone and gave a wry smile. The timing was impeccable. She hit reply and composed a message.

I miss you too. See you at closing? xK

She hit send and snapped the phone shut, moving back out to the store to get a coffee. Business had been going at a steady pace today, so she could take a break for a while. Wiping her palms on her jeans, she reached for the milk jug, only to have her hand slapped away by Wren.

“Uh-uh, let me. You go take a seat and occupy yourself with lustful thoughts for a while, boss,” Wren admonished, flapping her hands to shoo Kate out from behind the counter.

“If you call me boss, does that mean I can call you
Bossy?”

“I’ve been called worse.” Wren shrugged as she set to work making a coffee.

Emily appeared at Kate’s table with a turkey bagel sandwich and one of Wren’s glossy fashion magazines. “She means well.” Emily winked.

“I know. Can you imagine what things would be like if she used her powers for evil?” Kate replied as she started to flip through the magazine. “I don’t know why I look through these things. I’ll never wear anything like
that
,” Kate commented, pointing at an extravagant couture creation for emphasis.

“Tell me about it,” Emily replied, gesturing toward her cargo pants and T-shirt. “I think this—” she patted her apron, “—is the closest to couture I’ll ever get.”

Wren arrived with the coffee which she set down with all due ceremony. Kate groaned at the artful “K M” that had been written in the coffee foam.

“I should turn this into a working lunch,” Kate commented as she made a move to get up.

“Stop right there. What are you going to do?” Wren said in a commanding tone.

“Uh, well, I need to order some more supplies. The checklist has been done. I just need to submit it online.”

“And how long does that take?”

“Five minutes, maybe ten, tops,” Kate said in a meek voice.

Wren considered this and then nodded once. “I’ll go get your laptop. You’re not to go behind the counter until you’ve finished your lunch.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Kate replied. Emily smothered a laugh and went back to work.

Wren delivered the laptop and the handful of papers Kate had left on the counter, and Kate set to work. True to her word, the order was submitted minutes later, and Wren approached the table again ready to whisk the computer away. She paused when she saw Kate staring at the Amazon page again.

“You really didn’t know,” Wren said in a quiet tone, watching as Kate shook her head.

“I had no idea,” Kate replied. “He never even so much as hinted.”

Wren took a seat at the table, and Kate wordlessly turned the laptop so that Wren could see the screen.

“Well, it figures,” Wren said after a while, and then went on as Kate looked at her in puzzlement. “You were never going to end up with some bonehead. The man’s obviously talented; you’ve got a literature degree.” She shrugged. “It’s a perfect match.”

“Maybe.” Kate was looking pensive again.

Wren leaned against Kate, nudging her with her shoulder. “So, come on, how was last night?” She watched as a flush of color rose up Kate’s neck and filled her cheeks. “That good, huh?”

“Oh, it was more than good,” Kate said in a strangled tone.

“So what’s the problem?” Wren questioned.

“I don’t know,” Kate replied. “Maybe there isn’t one. It’s just …” She waved a hand in a vague gesture. “I just don’t like secrets.”

“They’re okay if they’re
good
secrets,” Wren said after a thoughtful pause.

“True, but you know, the last guy I was with that kept a big secret was Tom,” Kate said. “And we all know how that turned out.”

“Ouch.” Wren winced. “Okay, point taken.” She reached over and patted Kate’s hand. “Just give the guy a chance, can you do that?”

“I’ll try,” Kate said.

“C’mon, everyone else seems to be singing his praises, so there’s nothing wrong with seeing what all the fuss is about.”

~~~

David paused outside the bakery and read the blackboard with bemusement. Entering the store, he made his way over to the counter. Just as he’d hoped, Wren was working, although for the moment she had her back to the store.

“It looks like you’re singing a different tune,” he called out.

Wren jumped and turned around at the sound of his voice. “Hey,” she greeted him, rubbing her suddenly damp hands on her backside. “What are you doing here?”

“It’s good to see you, too,” David said with an amused smile.

“Sorry.” Wren grimaced. “That came out wrong. It’s nice to see you, too,” she ventured. “I just wasn’t expecting to see you today.”

“As opposed to the other times we’ve bumped into each other?”

“I guess,” she acknowledged, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

David rested his elbows on the counter and leaned toward her. “So, have you changed your mind about love?”

“Huh?” Wren stared at him.

David nodded over his shoulder toward the entrance. “Your quote of the day. It sounds pretty optimistic for someone that was calling love a virus last night.”

“The …” Wren’s mind went blank as she tried to remember what she’d written, and then her memory caught up with her. “Oh! Right, no, that one was for Kate.”

“Ah.” David nodded. “She’s the boss, right?”

“Right, that’s her over there.” Wren pointed to where Kate sat hunched over a magazine.

“Gotcha,” David replied and after a quick glance at Kate, stepped forward to inspect the cupcake of the day. His eyebrows went up when he saw the cupcake name. “Nice,” he approved. “So I take it things are going well?”

“They could be,” Wren said after a careful pause. She liked David, but she wasn’t about to discuss Kate’s love life with Michael’s friend.

David looked up from inspecting the display cabinet at Wren’s cautious reply. “For what it’s worth, Michael’s pretty happy these days,” he said.

“Mm-hmm,” Wren said, tight-lipped on the subject.

David spread his hands in a placatory gesture. “Hey, I’m not here fishing for details. I actually came to talk to you about getting some cakes.”

“Okay.” Wren nodded.

“And your name and number,” David added.

The two of them exchanged a long look.

“Smooth,” Wren said at last.

“I thought so,” David replied, swallowing his grin as Wren went to get a piece of paper and a pen.

~~~

Michael looked at the word count and gave a huff of surprise. Over the last few weeks he’d churned out over a hundred thousand words. That would keep Alistair quiet for a while. He tapped a few more keys, finished off the paragraph he’d been writing, and then closed the document.

He rested his chin in his hands and stared out the window, wondering what Kate was doing. He glanced at his wrist and then realized he didn’t have his watch on, or a shirt for that matter. He looked at the top right corner of his MacBook to check the time and gave a start of surprise. It was already mid-afternoon; he’d been writing for over six hours. No wonder he’d managed to produce so much. No wonder he was hungry, he realized, rubbing his bare stomach.

Getting up, he headed toward his bedroom to grab a shirt. He didn’t feel like being cooped up for the rest of the day. He’d get outside for a walk and grab something to eat before he saw Kate. He still had a few hours to kill, but for the time being, the words in his head had gone quiet. He’d make the most of it and get some fresh air. He opened his closet and glanced at his button up shirts, but reached for a soft old T-shirt instead and grabbed his sneakers.

~~~

Kate watched as the girls finished their chores for the afternoon. Emily was humming to herself, and Wren seemed distracted. Kate held off on asking what was going on, however, as she had enough distractions of her own for the time being. The girls finished up and departed, and they exchanged a chorus of goodbyes before Kate was left alone in the shop. She wandered back into the kitchen and picked up her bag, looking at her laptop again and deciding to leave it in the store for another night. She looked up at a quick tattoo of knocking on the front window and saw Michael. She couldn’t help but smile at the grin that split his face. The door was barely open when Michael had her in his arms.

“Missed you,” he said, before giving her a kiss that started the itch beneath her skin all over again as he ran his hands up her arms to cup her face. Kate’s lips parted as she leaned into his kiss, and he licked the tip of his tongue into her mouth.

The discoveries she had made earlier in the day could wait, because all she wanted to think about was right now. She fisted a hand in the fabric of his T-shirt as she tried to pull him closer and then closer still, putting a hand on his bicep to get better traction.

Michael was the first to break the kiss, resting his forehead against hers. Kate ran her hand up the nape of his neck, but there was no longer any hair for her to twine her fingers in, so she settled for running her nails over his scalp in a lazy caress. “I’ll give you forever to stop that,” Michael muttered as he pulled Kate’s T-shirt up and ran his hands over her bare back, pulling her hips soft against his.

The itch was getting more insistent now, and Kate closed her eyes as she felt his hardness against her, shivering as his warm hand rested on the small of her back. Somehow she mustered enough willpower to open her eyes and take a small step back.

“We should get out of here,” she said, taking a step further as Michael took her hands and followed her.

“Where to?” Michael asked, his eyes not leaving her as she led them out of the store.

“How about a drink and then we take it from there,” she suggested. She was going to have to tell him about her discovery sooner or later, and a glass of liquid courage might help.

“Deal,” Michael replied, releasing her hand so that she could lock up the store. When she straightened up, he draped his arm around her shoulders and they began to walk. “So how was your day?”

“Busy, but not quick enough,” Kate admitted as she leaned into Michael’s side. “This is much better.”

Michael tightened his arm around her and smiled. “You want to go back to the basement again, or shall we try somewhere else?”

“Basement is good,” she agreed, putting her arm around his waist as they walked.

It didn’t take them long to make their way to the bar, and soon they were settling at a table for two with a bottle of wine being set down before them. The wine was poured, and they made themselves comfortable, moving their chairs closer together.

“So,” Michael said again, toasting Kate’s glass before taking a sip, “how was your day?”

Kate gave him an amused glance, thinking about the daily routine of running a store which didn’t seem to vary that much from one day to the next. “You really wanna know?”

“I really wanna know,” Michael said, repeating Kate’s words. “You’re talking to a guy that has been staring at a blank computer screen these past few months. Tell me news of the outside world,” he said, giving the words an extra relish that made Kate smile.

“Well, let me think.” Kate sipped her wine, giving herself time to think, then set her glass down and reached over to steeple her fingers against Michael’s. “Customers came in and bought stuff,” she began.

“Always a good sign,” Michael encouraged.

“Wren sassed me,” Kate continued, “but that’s nothing new.”

“Routine can be good,” Michael said, slipping his fingers through hers, rubbing his thumb over her hand.

“Mm-hmm,” Kate replied, shooting him a cautious look. “And I, ah, looked you up on the internet.”

There was a telling pause.

“Uh-huh,” Michael said at last. “So, the secret’s out then.”

“Kinda,” Kate agreed. “What with Wren and Emily seeing it too.”

“Right,” Michael said, releasing her hand to pick up his wine glass, which he gulped at this time. “So, what did you think?”

Kate chose her words with care. “I think I’m impressed,” she began, “and surprised.”

Michael swirled the wine in his glass peering into the liquid depths, and then looked at Kate.

“I mean,” she went on, “I know you’d told me you were published, I just didn’t expect to discover you had fan sites or talk about movie options.”

Michael grimaced. “Kate, you know that stuff isn’t real, right?”

Kate blinked at him. “How can you say that?”

Michael reached up to run his hand through his hair in an entirely unconscious gesture and had to settle for rubbing the back of his neck. “Well, of course, it’s real, but you know …” He trailed off, not knowing what to say.

“I don’t know.” Kate twisted in her seat a little, resting a hand on his thigh, the warmth of his body helping to reassure her. “But maybe you can tell me about it.”

Michael sighed and gazed at Kate for a long moment. She said nothing in return, but sat waiting for him to speak.

“My writing …” He stopped and cleared his throat, looking up as a waiter approached the table with menus. “Can you give us a minute?” The waiter nodded and withdrew. “My writing,” he began again, “is something that just … happened. It wasn’t something I sought out. When my folks got interested, I kind of went along for the ride. Then I got published and it seemed that everyone was getting excited about something I’d only ever done as a hobby or a way to kill the time.”

“That’s how my cupcakes started.” Kate smiled. “And look where it got us, huh?”

“So you do understand,” Michael said, feeling a rush of relief.

“I’m not sure I’d go that far,” Kate cautioned, “but it seems we both fell upon our current paths.”

“For sure,” Michael agreed. “For me, it was like everyone started taking my musings far more seriously than I ever had. The next thing I knew, I was meeting with editors, going to book signings, giving interviews.” He sighed again and gazed at Kate. “I felt like a fraud. It was like it was all some kind of fantasy, but I was the only one getting the joke. I still feel like that sometimes.”

Kate sipped at her wine while she considered what Michael had told her. He sat quiet now, his heart in his mouth as he waited for her reaction.

“So, you know this makes you kinda weird, right?” Kate said at last, wrinkling her nose at him.

“What?”

“What are you, some kind of reclusive author with a cupcake fetish?”

“Something like that,” he admitted. “I guess it’s something you don’t hear Stephen King talking about.”

“Definitely not,” Kate said in a solemn voice, and then gave a dramatic sigh. “Trust me to always attract the weirdos.” Now that they had laid their cards on the table, she was feeling like she had gotten a weight off her chest. It had been easier than she had expected.

Michael leaned forward to nuzzle the side of her neck, making her squirm against him. “I suppose that’s what you get for being so attractive.”

Sensing the drop in tension, the waiter approached the table. “Are you ready to order?”

Michael looked up with a smile as he reached for the menu while Kate topped off their glasses. “Thanks.”

~~~

Wren let herself into her apartment and headed straight over to her bed, throwing herself onto it with a sigh of relief. She rolled over onto her back and stared at the ceiling, and then glanced over at her laptop, sitting at the small table in front of the window. She considered her options for a moment before she got up and walked toward the desk.

She switched on the laptop and went to get herself a glass of juice while it powered up. Taking a seat at the desk, she clicked to open her email and sat drumming her fingers while she waited for her messages to download. Minutes later, she was surprised to see an email from an address she didn’t recognize.

How about we bump into each again soon? In the meantime, I thought you might be interested in this. David.

She clicked on the attachment and read the contents. She had to give credit where it was due, the man was good: it was an article about an upcoming exhibit at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She read the article and shook her head in quiet amusement while she chugged her juice, her eyes never leaving the screen. An exhibition about fashion and politics: he’d remembered her conversation about Chanel.