Sweet Trouble

JESSE SHOWED UP FOR her shift at ten in the morning. The entire building was in a state of confusion. The parking lot was overflowing, there were a dozen people standing in line and a very unhappy-looking Nicole met her before she’d gone five steps into the bakery.

“Did you know about this?” her sister demanded. “Did you know about the review?”

“Not until I read about it in the paper.”

Nicole didn’t look convinced. “We don’t have enough. We’re going to sell out within the hour. Then what am I supposed to tell people?”

Jesse stared at her. “I didn’t know,” she said. “If I had, don’t you think I would have told you? Don’t you think I would have wanted us to be prepared for the rush? At the very least, you have to think I’d want to rub it in.”

That seemed to convince her sister. “It’s a mess,” Nicole murmured. “They’re buying a half-dozen at a time. We’re making them as fast as we can, but we have limited production capability. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.”

Jesse ignored the implication that her brownies couldn’t possibly take off. They had a bigger problem right now.

“Are there phone orders?” she asked.

Nicole’s expression tightened. “A few.”

Which Jesse would guess meant a lot. “This is only going to get bigger. What if we rented a kitchen short- term? We don’t need much space. A couple of commercial ovens would do it. There’s virtually no start-up costs with that.”

“That’s a fairly permanent solution for a short-term problem,” Nicole said.

Jesse didn’t think it was short-term, but she decided not to push on that. “We could sell the extras over the Internet.”

Her sister groaned. “Are you ever going to let that go?”

“No. It’s a great idea. It’s easy money. I have the Web site ready. All I need is to hook up with a server and we’ll be online.”

“Another of your community college business classes?”

“Yes,” Jesse said, trying not to be annoyed by her sister’s continuing doubt. “I’ve researched the right shipping material and boxes. It would take two days to get us up and running. We could even use it as spillover for bakery customers.”

“I don’t think so,” Nicole said.

“You can’t even muster one ounce of enthusiasm about any of this, can you?” Jesse asked, feeling bitter and defeated. “You’re not happy because it’s my recipe.”

“I’m cautious because I have a responsibility to this business and my employees. I can’t throw around resources just because you think it’s a good idea. We’re talking about a lot of money. I have payroll to meet. People depend on me. I can’t afford to make a mistake.”

Jesse pointed to the parking lot. “That isn’t a mistake.”

“It’s not today, but what about in a week? A month? Do we hire new people then turn around and fire them if this doesn’t work? I won’t play with people’s lives on a whim. I have more to worry about than your brownies, Jesse. I’m sorry if that bothers you.

“If you want to learn about the business,” Nicole continued, “I would welcome that. I’m happy to give you a chance. But there’s a lot more to the bakery than the flavor of the week. I have to remember that even if you don’t.”

Jesse didn’t know what to say. Fortunately she saw Sid walking toward them. She couldn’t read his expression, but it was one she’d never seen before.

“What’s wrong?” Nicole asked.

“Nothing. Line two. You need to take this call.”

Nicole crossed to the old wall phone, punched a button then picked up the receiver.

“This is Nicole,” she said, sounding wary. She listened for about thirty seconds, then asked the caller to hold on. She handed the phone to Jesse. “It’s for you.” She thrust out the receiver and walked away.

Jesse stood staring after her. What on earth? “Hello?”

The female caller sighed. “Who am I talking to now?”

“Jesse Keyes.”

“Really? That’s great. Finally. You were not easy to track down. The number I found for you in Spokane was forwarded to another line, but you never picked up. I didn’t know what else to do.”

Jesse frowned. “I forwarded it to my cell.”

“You might want to keep that turned on, you know. It would make it easier to reach you.”

“Who are you?”

The other woman laughed. “Right. Sorry. Margo Walkin. I’m a producer here at Good Morning America. I’m in New York, but I used to live in Seattle. It’s my birthday and my mom sent me some of your brownies as part of my present. Oh. My. God. They were incredible. Then she said they’re getting all this buzz out there, so I thought I could do a segment on them. Or you. I know there’s a story. So I want to set up a phone interview so we can talk and then I’ll get a team out there for some filming. What do you think?”

Jesse looked at the crowd of cars in the parking lot and thought about the article in the newspaper, then she laughed. “I think it’s going to be a really, really good day!”

NICOLE SAT ON THE COUCH, then threw herself sideways and buried her face in a cushion. “I’m a horrible person,” she muttered.

“You’re not.”

Claire’s voice was warm and loving. The perfect supportive sister. Nicole knew she didn’t deserve it.

“I’m hideous,” she mumbled into the fabric. “I should have to wear a sign and a bell so people can be warned that I’m coming and can run away. Like I’m some kind of emotional leper.”

“You’re not an emotional leper,” Claire told her. “Although you are dramatic. You’re usually more rational than this.”

“I can’t seem to be rational about Jesse. I think that’s the problem.”

“Apparently. Now sit up. You’ll hurt your back if you stay like that.”

Nicole straightened. One of the things she most loved about Claire was that her sister always saw the best in people. Claire would listen and try to make Nicole feel better. Unlike Jesse, who would point out Nicole was acting like a bitch, then say she deserved what she got.

“I miss her,” Nicole admitted. “I missed her while she was gone and now that she’s back, I miss her more. I hate what’s happening. I hate how I’m acting. I hear the words and I can’t believe they’re coming out of my mouth.”

“Why are you saying them? Are you still angry at her about Drew?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. Yes.”

“Do you believe that she didn’t sleep with him?”

Nicole didn’t want to go there. “Yes, I believe her, but I’m still so hurt and upset. I can’t seem to let it go. It’s been five years. Shouldn’t I be over this?”

“Probably, but you’re not.”

Nicole eyed her. “I always think of you as the helpful sister.”

“I’m trying. Look, it’s been five years, but nothing’s changed for you.”

“It’s the Oprah moment all over again.”

Nicole hadn’t meant to say that and as soon as the words were out, she wished she could call them back.

“What’s the Oprah moment?” Claire asked, sitting next to her on the sofa and rubbing her back. “Is that like the lightbulb thing?”

“Nothing that positive,” Nicole muttered, feeling smaller and meaner by the second. “I was on Oprah about ten years ago. Someone sent her one of our chocolate cakes and she liked it so much, she brought me out to the show so I could talk about it.”

Claire’s eyes brightened as she grinned. “You never told me. That’s incredible.”

“It was supposed to be, only I didn’t get to talk about the cake. Between inviting me and my going to Chicago, someone on her show found out about you. So instead of showing off the famous Keyes chocolate cake to America, I answered questions about what it had been like having a twin sister who was a child prodigy. I hired extra