Back for Seconds (25 page)

He linked both of his hands in his lap. “Do you have any questions for me, Joely?”

She practically shivered when he said her name. She was insane to think any of this would work. Here she was, only ten minutes in, and already she was ready to toss everything on the floor and fall into his arms right there on that big oak desk. “I can’t think of any,” she finally managed.

“Good,” he said as he stood. “I’ve already made an appointment with Jena and her sister for the end of the week. They’d like to nail down specifics on their customized cookie order for the baby shower. Also, Tish will be in town by the weekend so we can finally tape your segment for her show. Now that you’re preparing food through the kitchen here at Lillian’s Place, it will mean exposure for both you and your mother. Lillian’s already signed off on it.”

She sighed. This was exactly what she was afraid would happen. It was her business, but it wasn’t. Everything was happening way too fast. She felt overwhelmed. “Isn’t this a lot for a first week?”

He shrugged. “This is business. You should consider yourself lucky there’s this much interest this quickly. That’s a good sign, Joely.”

“But I’m only one person,” she pointed out.

“Not all people are created equal, love. What you can do with one day isn’t the same as what someone else might do with it. You’re stronger than you realize, which is good. The life for which you are aiming is one with demands as great as its rewards. But you’re not alone anymore, Joely. We’re all here to help you, whatever you need.”

Her eyes met his. So much went unsaid between them. “Thank you,” she finally said, in a voice so soft he could barely hear it.

He smiled wider. “No worries.” He spun the chair around and helped her to her feet. “Now get cracking. You have a lot of cookies to bake.”

When she got to the kitchen, she realized that they had set up another stainless steel table especially for her. She had her own shelf, full of all the ingredients she’d need to prepare her goodies. There was also an order form, so she could request inventory as needed. Her mother and her Granny Faye had already purchased duplicates of the tools she used for her cookies. “How did you know what to get?” she had asked them, since they were never really privy to her process.

“Kari told us,” Lillian said with a smile.

It warmed Joely’s heart to know that her child had been paying that much attention. She had everything she needed already at her fingertips. She spent the next couple of hours baking two dozen cookies, before she raced upstairs to complete the information to print out her labels.

All two dozen cookies were scooped up by early afternoon, forcing Joely back to the ovens to prepare more. She was running around like a chicken with her head cut off by the time Hannah was due to get out of class. Mason came to her rescue, sending Christopher to pick up both Hannah and Lilah from school. They could play together at their house until she was able to break away from the restaurant to go get her.

Three-thirty came and went without any hope of crawling out from under the orders she was now getting in real time, orders that she now felt compelled to fulfill both to boost her income and fortify her brand. Xander offered to pick up the older kids from school during his afternoon break, and she was forced to let him. He brought them both to the restaurant by five o’clock. They went instantly to work packaging her cookies, and Kari had a stack a dozen deep to add her special detailing. Xander gave her a wide smile as he watched her work. “Talent runs in the family,” he said as he placed two hands on her shoulders for an encouraging squeeze. She blushed deep as she grinned and nodded.

Christopher brought Hannah to the restaurant by dinnertime, where everyone took a break to eat together in their special corner of the dining room. Joely felt like a bum, covered head to toe in flour dust and icing, but the customers didn’t seem to mind. They made a point to stop by her table and compliment her on her wonderful edible works of art.

She was dog tired by the time she took the kids home. They spent their family time together that night talking about their exciting first day. Though she hadn’t been there for the kids the way she wanted, or the way she always had been, none of them seemed any worse for wear. Hannah was all smiles after her extended play date with her friend. The older kids felt included and important in this new venture, even Nash, whom Joely had enlisted to prepare the labels for the cookies he had to pack. Xander himself trained Nash on the computer work, which helped them to bond even more.

By the end of the day they were all exhausted from the hard day’s work, but Joely’s kids could see they were part of something bigger at the restaurant. That fulfilled them in a way Joely hadn’t expected.

She tucked them into bed and was out the door again by eleven o’clock. She hadn’t planned on splitting her shift that night, but she had one last order to make. Her hands shook on the steering wheel as she pulled into the deserted parking lot of Lillian’s Place an hour after closing. She scanned the lot for Xander’s car. She wanted it to be there almost as much as she was afraid of it being there.

But it was not, so she was able to let herself into the empty restaurant. She baked only one dozen cookies that night, which she let herself into Xander’s office to label. She wanted these cookies exactly right.

The next day a courier delivered the goodies to Dr. Russell Morgan’s office. There was no accompanying note, but he got the message all the same.

She might have to fight a little harder for it, she might have to sacrifice a little more for it, but nothing was going to stop Joely now.

That week flew by in much the same way the first day had. Joely was at the restaurant by eight o’clock in the morning, baking and decorating all the way till she had to pick the kids up from school. Much as she hated it, Christopher and Xander had to take over carpool duties while she worked, but the kids didn’t seem to mind. Hannah got to spend more time with her bestie and the older kids thought Xander was about the coolest cat around. They were probably more excited to see him when he picked them up from school than their boring old mom.

In fact, Xander’s picking Kari up regularly from school had turned the tide on her popularity. Those catty, snarky girls were suddenly very interested about the hot guy in the expensive car. They wanted to know all about him, and why he was picking up someone like Kari from school. Two girls, Emma and Susan, the meanest of the mean girls, latched onto her like they were her new best friends. “Who is that guy who keeps picking you up from school?”

Kari opted to play it cool. She was back in the driver’s side and she knew it. “Just a friend,” she told them in a coy voice that suggested otherwise.

By Friday she was the talk of the school. The girls who once shunned her now wanted to include her in everything. She went from being some weird, dorky outsider to being the cool girl who had the hot, rich, older boyfriend from across the pond. They suddenly found her terribly fascinating, especially after she took the time to introduce them to Xander that Friday afternoon, which also happened to be Halloween.

He complimented them all on their costumes, which made them giggle and blush. They were all totally smitten with the sexy Brit as he sped out of the parking lot. Kari sent him a grateful smile. “They loved you.”

He chuckled, resting his hand on the gear shift between them. “No, Kari,” he said. She so loved it when he said her name. “They love you. And why wouldn’t they? You’re definitely one of the most awesome people I know.”

She lived for the moments when he’d say things like that. It just made her fall deeper in love with him. How she wished she could tell him. “Maybe we can invite them to my party.”

“I insist,” he grinned.

She heaved a heavy sigh as they made their way towards Nash’s school. “I wish I didn’t have to go to my dad’s this weekend.”

“Why do you say that?”

“It’s just more fun at the restaurant now.”

He nodded. “I have enjoyed having you all around more. It’s going to be awfully quiet without you.” He sent her another smile that left her weak in the knees. She held onto every morsel, hoping that one day soon he’d make her dreams come true and tell her that he loved her every bit as much as she loved him.

Their time alone, however, was always so limited. She lived for the days when she’d see his car parked in front of the school. He always picked her up first, since her school was closer than Nash’s. They had a five minute window between the two where he was completely and totally hers. There was so much she wanted to say but could never find the words. “I’ll miss you too,” she finally admitted in a shy, quiet voice. He slid her a glance but said nothing as they approached Nash’s middle school.

Instead of Joely prying herself away from the restaurant and dropping the kids off at Russell’s, he was forced to come to the restaurant to retrieve them, which he did a little after five o’clock that afternoon. Joely emerged from the kitchen to see them on their way. Russell glanced over her haggard appearance without saying a word. He simply handed her another check.

Xander watched the silent exchange from across the restaurant. He didn’t have much time to analyze it, however. His phone buzzed, letting him know that Jena was on her way with her sister to finalize their order. He smiled as he formulated a plan.

Ten minutes later he popped into the kitchen to fetch Joely. “Jena is here,” he told her with that smirk that made her want to smack him, then pounce him.

She hated that he planned this meeting so late in the day. She was a mess, head to toe. But it wasn’t like Jena cared about what Joely looked like. She knew that the younger woman only had eyes for one person at Lillian’s Place, and that person happened to have a penis.

She followed him to the office where Jena and Nicole sat, both in Halloween costumes. Jena, of course, was a sexy cat, while Nicole was a nurse. Both of them were so effortlessly stunning it made Joely feel even more like a slob as she took her seat, a chair that Xander had placed next to him behind the desk.

“I’m so glad you could fit us in today,” Jena told them. “Sorry we’re in costume. We’re on the way out to The Ranch for the big Halloween bash.”

“No complaints from where I’m sitting,” Xander said with a smile. “You both look amazing.”

Both girls preened under his praise. She could see from the corner of her eye that Xander was fully enjoying the view in front of them, with the tight spandex cat suit on Jena as well as the cleavage bearing uniform for Nicole. It made Joely feel even more out of place. “So have you decided on what kind of cookies you wanted?” she asked, trying to bring the topic back to business.

“Definitely,” Jena said as she reached for the portfolio that Xander had created for their custom orders. “It’s a Noah’s Ark theme, so we’d like to get two dozen animals, paired of course, along with sixteen personalized cookies to use as place cards for the seating arrangements.”

Xander leaned forward to do the math on his adding machine. He tore off the price and handed it to Jena, who didn’t even flinch at the pricey amount. Normally that amount would have made Joely herself cringe, but she considered the number fair given she had to factor in the tramp tax.

“Ten percent down will secure the date,” he told her and Nicole was quick to whip out her checkbook. The business part of their meeting was over in five minutes, which left Jena plenty of time to flirt with Xander right in front of her.

“Now that that’s all out of the way, maybe we can go have some fun. It is Halloween after all.” She looked at Xander. “Do you have plans?”

He briefly glanced at Joely, who was stoic at his side. “No, as a matter of fact.”

“Excellent,” she grinned. “Get yourself in a costume and get down to The Ranch and I’ll save you a dance or two.”

“Just two?” he murmured as he leaned forward.

She giggled and Joely resisted the urge to puke. “Maybe more if you think you can keep up with me.”

“When I get started, I can go all night,” he told her. He turned to the uptight woman at his side. “Right, Joely?” he asked, his dark eyes boring into hers.

“I’m sure I wouldn’t know,” she managed.

The other women giggled. “You should definitely come too,” Jena told her.

“I don’t have a costume,” Joely told her.

“Are you kidding? Go as is. No one will ever know you’re not Aunt Jemima.”

Joely’s fists curled into little balls as she glared at the younger girl, who turned promptly back to Xander. “See you there, sexy,” she said before she and Nicole flounced out of the office.

Joely’s eyes flashed with anger as she turned back to him. “What the fuck are you trying to prove?”

He just chuckled as he stood, putting her at eye level with his crotch. “I don’t have to prove anything,” he told her. “I’m just a lonely man trying to fill an empty night.”

She watched him as he rounded the desk and walked toward the office door, which he closed after he watched their guests depart down the hall.

His eyes were dark as he faced her. “I mean, you’ve made it clear that we’re over, right?”

She stood. “Right,” she said with far less conviction than she felt. Her breath caught as she watched him approach.

“So I’m free to date – and fuck – whomever I want. Right?”

She gulped hard as he closed the gap between them. “Right,” she said again, this time in a much softer voice.

His voice was equally soft as he leaned towards her. “Maybe I’ll find that person at The Ranch tonight.”

There was a challenge issued in his eyes. She tipped her chin. “If you think you’re going to make me jump just because you threaten to sleep with another woman, think again. You get to make your own choices. You’re a big boy.” She tried to brush past him but he caught her arm.

“You should know.”

She trembled in his grip. His infuriating grin proved that he had felt it. His thumb brushed against her skin until her eyes fluttered closed. This week working side by side with him had been torture. She still wanted him even though she knew it was foolish to pursue him. “Xander, please.”

He chuckled. “God, I love it when you beg.” But instead of pulling her closer, like she wanted, he simply let her go. “Happy Halloween,” he told her before he retrieved his keys from the dish on his desk, grabbed his jacket from the peg by the door and left her alone in his office.

Across town, Russell was pulling into a parking space at the mall. He had planned a movie and some pizza at one of the restaurants there, which was full of kids in costumes as the entire place celebrated the festive holiday. They let Hannah, who had, thanks to Granny Faye, dressed up as a sparkly little fairy, trick or treat at the various stores who passed out candy to the tiny revelers.

When they passed the empty storefront Russell had wanted for Joely, he pointed it out to Kari and Nash. “See that? That’s where they used to sell cookies here before.”

Kari nodded. “I remember. You got me a big one for my eleventh birthday.”

He smiled. “Yes, we did. I was thinking that it’d be the perfect place for your mom to open her business. What do you think?”

Kari pursed her lips as she thought about it. “I guess. But she’s not ready.”

“Oh?” Russell queried.

Kari nodded. “Xander says that she should probably stay at the restaurant for about six months at least to really get a feel for what it takes to run a commercial kitchen.”

The lines in Russell’s face hardened.
Of course he’d say that
, he thought. He just wanted her around for a convenient piece of ass whenever he got the urge. Those images had haunted Russell all week, ever since he got Joely’s care package. They had found a way around his threat in a way that brought them into closer contact. But Russell knew she was just trying to punish him for what had happened with Jena. Eventually she’d come to her senses. She couldn’t chase around a younger man forever. Eventually he’d tire of her. Joely simply came with too much baggage for a young buck like Xander.

“Xander doesn’t know as much as he thinks he does,” Russell told her. “All she needs is a good manager to take care of the business end. She could have her own place by Christmas. Isn’t that what you would want for her?”

Kari fidgeted. She wanted her mother to be happy and successful, but she didn’t want to leave the restaurant yet. She knew that her mother opening up her own place would pretty much guarantee that. She’d need someone to help her with the business, much like she and her siblings had for weeks.

But Kari couldn’t leave now. Not when she was so close to what she wanted.

Russell put his arm around her shoulders. “Something to think about,” he told her. “She could open her own business and you all could come home. I can’t think of a Christmas gift I’d want more.”

Kari’s stomach dropped as they walked to the next storefront offering candy for Hannah. If her father had proposed this idea months ago, she’d have been on his team no problem. She would have pulled out all her best moves to manipulate her mother into doing what she wanted, like she had learned to do since she was a little kid. Daddy had taught her how to get around Joely’s objections, to appeal to her people-pleasing nature, which had always worked like a charm on all the little things. Joely always measured each decision, weighing happiness against safety. She wouldn’t let her wear makeup, say, because it would attract older men and put her safety at risk. But she’d buy her the expensive jeans she wanted just because it made her happy.

Kari had no idea how her dad’s new plan would factor into this metric. Obviously Joely would want her kids to be safe and secure, which the house in Fairway Oaks promised to provide. With Russell’s plan, she could have the money to start her business, without having to scrimp and save like they were doing now. She could also hire people to make the workload a lot easier for all of them, which would give them more time at home as a family.

And her mother had to be lonely, Kari figured. After all those years together, Kari knew that Russell’s affair had devastated her mother. She hadn’t been the same person since they had moved into her Nana’s house.

But it hadn’t escaped Kari’s notice that her mother had actually been happier since the move. She had found the cookie thing, which seemed to fulfill her in a way she hadn’t been before. She was definitely more fun to hang around. She wasn’t as militant or regimented like she had been. Before the split, she would tell anyone that would listen that her mother was out to make her life miserable. Now her mother had been more receptive to the things that would make her happy, even if she didn’t agree, like the job or the makeup.

Kari had to admit she liked her mother a lot better now. They were practically on the road to being friends.

As Russell and the kids entered the pizza joint, Kari was faced with a real conundrum. If she helped her dad, she could reunite her family again. They could be together. They could be happy. Everything could go back to the way it was.