He held one of the scraps of cake to her lips. "Taste."
Heat rushed into her cheeks at the private look he sent her. Her lips closed over the piece. Coconut flakes enhanced the creamy flavor of the icing and blended with the nuttiness of the pecans in the moist layers of cake. Not overpowering, just right. Deeply relieved, she grinned. "I think it's perfect. Just like when my mom baked it."
He let out a breath. "Good. There isn't time to start again."
"Did you taste it?"
He bit into the cake and groaned. "This is amazing. You did a great job."
"No, we did a great job. One step left, icing the cake." She set the bowl next to the cake and took a deep breath. Aesthetics counted for so much. "We have plenty of time so don't rush."
Looking entirely uncomfortable, Xavier spread his frosting like he was applying spackle. But he was doing a decent job. She carefully smoothed the confection onto the cake, side by side with the man who had come to mean so much to her.
He left for a moment and returned with a small step ladder. "There's no way I can do this as well as you. Now you'll be able to reach the top tiers."
Grateful that she wouldn't have to resort to scrambling onto the counter, she added a pattern of swirls along the cake's sides, then placed the flowers throughout the tiers. She scrutinized every angle of the seven-layer tower, adding little dabs of icing in different places. Rolling the stiffness from her shoulders, she stepped back and turned her head, checking on Xavier's progress.
Eyes narrowed in concentration, he sprinkled coconut over the flowers' centers. He didn't even flinch when the host called out a reminder of one minute remaining on the clock. Steady hands kept going until with ten seconds remaining, he stepped back and set the flakes aside. "That's it. All done."
"It looks good."
He enfolded her into his embrace and kissed her forehead. "It looks amazing."
The buzzer sounded a moment later.
"Time's up." The host's voice boomed. "Now, one final twist."
Ashley groaned and pulled out of Xavier's hug. "What now?"
Around her, similar groans and murmured questions rose. The host grinned. "Steady hands are important on the football field. Bakers, you must move your cakes to the display tables we've set up in front of your stations. If the cakes survive, so do you. If not, then game over."
Xavier rubbed his hand over her back. "We've got this."
"If I had known that we had to move this, I would have made the cakes smaller or stopped at a lower number of tiers. This is going to weigh well over one hundred pounds. The bottom three tiers alone probably weigh that much."
"We'll be fine."
"The tables are a good ten feet away from our stations. Cakes get really heavy really fast."
"We managed to do fine during our deliveries, didn't we?" Xavier hugged her again. "We'll be fine."
They turned to watch Tyson and Blackstone carry their giant cake to the display table ten feet away. The gorgeous creation teetered once along the trip, drawing a gasp from the audience, but they made it safely.
The next team, Dion and his baker, moved with ease. Their cake looked more like a sculpture, with interesting angles and sugar art that resembled stained glass.
Ashley cast a critical eye over her cake. She was proud of it. Proud of what Xavier had done. In her opinion, all three cakes looked worthy of the prize.
The host nodded at her. "Team Bliss Bakery, please move your cake."
Nerves carving into her stomach, she held the edges of the board. Xavier met her gaze. "We've got this."
Together, they lifted the board an inch off the table. She adjusted her grip. Sweaty palms didn't help. She blew out a breath. Her heart thudded so strongly, she wondered if the judges could hear it. "Ready."
Xavier met her gaze. "On three, we move. One. Two. Three."
She lifted up and her muscles immediately strained at the weight. Squeezing her hands on the board, she took a step to the side. "Careful. Just like those times we made the cake deliveries."
"Another step."
They inched their way across the floor. With every step, the display table got closer, and the cake grew heavier and heavier.
Her fingers were screaming. The table was a little higher than the workstation counter. Muscles shaking, she raised the board. Cake vibrated with her movements. Ten more seconds, and they'd get the cake over the table.
She lifted it a little higher to make sure it cleared. The edge of the board clipped the table, and the cake's top tiers shook and slid.
The audience gasped.
"Let me," Xavier barked out. "I got it."
He lifted his end, a beat faster and a bit higher than she could match, and half of the board crossed the table. The cake's top tier fell, smashing into her shoulder. Panicking, she jerked her end up and moved as fast as she could. The cake wobbled violently as they fought to stabilize the board, but as it landed on the table, the remaining layers crashed to the floor.
Her stomach clenched and her chest tingled. A sudden coldness hit her square in the gut, stealing her breath. She stared at the coconut carnage. "No. This can't be happening."
Hours' worth of work, gone in mere seconds.
Her chance at saving the bakery lay smashed.
Just like her dreams.
* * *
Xavier stared at the cake in disbelief.
This was worse than losing any
