She stopped and turned. Andrew was standing there, smiling.
“Hey.”
She stopped and smoothed her apron. “Hey there. I was just heading back over to the bakery.”
“If it’s not a sight for sore eyes,” her mother shouted.
Kelly stood there dumbstruck by Mom’s animated response. Yes, she’d told Mom they’d had a nice visit, but that didn’t change the fact that he’d broken her heart. She was her daughter. Even if Kelly was having trouble staying mad, Mom shouldn’t.
Kelly watched them hug. She felt the grimace on her face as she folded her arms. She quickly replaced it with a half-baked smile.
“It’s great to see you, Mrs. McIntyre.”
“You look good,” Mom said. “So grown up.” Mom flashed her a he-did-look-good glance.
“Have a cup of coffee with me,” Andrew said to Kelly.
Mom was already racing toward the empty booth next to Andrew with two mugs. “Here you go. You have a few minutes to spare, don’t you, Kelly?”
“Thank you, Mrs. McIntyre. Oh man, I’m going to need a piece of that cake too.”
“Of course, you are. Kelly’s practically famous for that around here.”
“I am not,” Kelly said, rolling her eyes and sitting down. “Moms. You know how they are.”
“Quit being so modest. You’re the best daughter a mother could wish for,” Mom said. “She just won a big contest. She’s headed to the big RBA event. Flying and everything.”
Guilt hung in Kelly’s throat. She was tempted to tell her parents the truth and swear them to secrecy right now. But just as quickly as that thought popped into her mind, she could picture Mom whispering to every customer who ventured into the Main Street Cafe, and at church on Sunday, the secret she was sworn to keep. Yeah, it would be around town so fast she’d be disqualified before she ever got on the plane to New York.
He looked impressed. “Kelly, that’s great. Why didn’t you say anything?”
“It didn’t come up?” She shrugged, taking a sip of her coffee and trying to act as if it was no big deal.
“My baby girl’s first plane ride,” Mom gushed as she slid a whopping piece of cake in front of Andrew. “It’s so exciting.”
“It is,” he agreed. “When do you leave?”
“Tuesday.” She jumped to her feet. “And I’ve got so much to do before I leave town. It was good to see you. Enjoy your cake.” She didn’t wait for a response. She rushed over to the empty teacart and raced through the door to The Cake Factory, stopping only to whisper “Mission accomplished” to Sara as she passed by. Sara gave her a thumbs up and continued filling a box with pastries for the customer at the counter.
Kelly closed the door to her office and plopped into her chair. It would be just like Andrew to ask so many questions that he’d trip her up. She got out of there just in the nick of time.
Glad that was all behind her, she pulled out a legal pad. She turned the pad wide and started heading columns. Signature recipes. Undisclosed ingredients. Fast but Fabulous. Showdown original.
She started going through her recipe list, trying to figure out which recipes she should cite as her signature dishes if asked. She needed two in case one of the other rounds was perfect for the other recipe. Or, even more importantly, if she learned something from a judge in a round that made one of the recipes less appealing. Maybe she needed three signature recipes in her back pocket.
Being prepared for any scenario would make things a lot less stressful. Even if it might cause her to go bonkers now.
If she made it to the final round, she’d have to use a completely original recipe. That was easy. Her Triple-Layer Honey Almond Cake with Berries was hands-down her favorite dessert to make and the one most people were impressed by. She could make it in her sleep, the perfect situation for baking under pressure. Plus, the dish lent itself to something pretty and Valentines-y with the red strawberries and toppings. A winner for sure.
Sara poked her head in following a double-knock at her office door.
“Hey, come in.”
“So, mission accomplished. The RBA convention worked?”
“It did. However, I moved it to Orlando. Hopefully she won’t look it up.” She pulled her lips together. “How bad is it if you get caught lying about your lie? She wanted to make it a girls’ trip since Atlanta is close enough to drive. I had to do something. I told her I won a contest and they’re flying me down.”
Sara shrugged. “If she figures it out, just claim it’s an exclusive one, by invitation only.”
“I’m not sure if I should be impressed or worried by how quickly you can make up a story.”
Sara giggled. “Impressed. I always wanted to be a novelist. Just can’t sit still long enough to type all those words.”
“That explains it.”
“While you were working on your cover story, I worked on a little something last night to help.” Sara fanned out a pile of orders.
“What is all of that?”
“Fake orders. Things you can practice with so no one notices what you’re working on. Look. I wrote all the names in purple ink and highlighted the delivery stuff in pink. That’s our code that they’re fake orders just in case they end up lying around or fall into the wrong hands.”
“This is a real battle plan.” She nodded, impressed by the effort. “You’ve thought of everything.”
“Trying to help. I made them tough too. So, good luck.”
“I’m so ready. Bring it on.”
Sara flipped through them. “Ahh. This one. Okay…you’ve got two hours. Go for it.” She dropped the fake order on the desk and left Kelly scrambling. “The clock is ticking.”
Chapter Eighteen
The long blasts from the oven timer pulled Kelly from her concentration on the four three-tiered mini cakes she’d just finished. With a Red Hots theme, she hoped the chocolate cinnamon combination held in proper balance once the
