"Uhh, about seven years."
"Hmm. How come?"
I kept my face as straight as possible. "It's a really comfortable seat."
She narrowed her eyes, but then a tiny smile curled her thin, pale lips.
Mikey appeared with the box, and she beckoned him to come around the corner with a curl of one bony hand. With wide eyes, he walked it around to her so he could set it on the seat of her walker.
"You're funny, young lady," she told me.
"Oh, don't tell her that," a voice said from behind her.
I hadn't even noticed Levi walk in, and he was standing to the side, holding a flat box in his hands. He was grinning at me, tawny hair in desperate need of a haircut and a deep dimple carved into his cheek.
"Why not?" she snapped.
"It'll go straight to her head, and then she'll never answer people nicely when they ask her things."
"What's your name, boy?" she asked. "I recognize your face. You look like your daddy."
"Levi Buchanan, ma'am." He held out his hand, and she took it. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"You're too charming for your own good, Levi Buchanan."
He nodded seriously. "Just charming enough to keep me out of trouble."
She barked out a laugh. All I could do was roll my eyes. He winked at me.
"Now," Levi drawled, "you haven't told me who I have the pleasure of speaking with. That's not very Southern of you."
"Only my gentleman callers get to use my first name," she said. Levi's mouth fell open, and I slapped a hand over my lips to keep the laugh in. "You can call me Miss Barton."
He snapped his mouth shut. "Well, Miss Barton, I hope to see you around."
She looked over her shoulder at me. "This your man? He's cheeky."
Before I could answer, Levi inclined his head toward the door. "Oh, I come in a close second to the dog out there. But I'm okay with that."
All I could do was shake my head. Something on his face today, a glint in his eye made me smile.
"Enjoy the banana cake, Miss Barton," I told her as she walked past Levi. When she paused to pat Nero's head just outside the door, I laughed. "Man, I hope I'm like that when I'm her age."
Levi nodded, his eyes still watching Miss Barton shuffle away from the entrance of the bakery. "I can picture it far too easily."
I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to catch a glimpse of what he had in the box. "I didn't know you were coming in."
"Can't I ever try to surprise you?"
Before I could answer, Joy came from the kitchen, wiping her hands on the apron covering the front of her body. "Hey Joss, everything okay out here?" Her eyes snagged on Levi, a pretty pink blush covering her round cheeks, and she smiled widely. "Oh, how sweet! You came in to say hi."
"I sure did. You must be Joy."
If her smile got any bigger, she'd split her face wide open. "I am! Oh, I just love working with Jocelyn. She's wonderful."
I rubbed at my forehead and shot daggers at Levi with my eyes, which he ignored. "She is wonderful." He tilted his head down to the box that he held in his hands. "That's why I figured I'd bring her these."
Narrowing my eyes at him, I leaned up in my chair. "What's in there?"
He set the box down, and I noticed he was having a hard time holding eye contact. In two neat rows were small brown paper bags, the crisply folded edges of each bag held down by different colors of tape. In black marker, the bags were labeled with different names.
Almond
Wheat
Cake
00
Pastry
Spelt
Rye
Buckwheat
Barley
Rice
Oat
"Oh," Joy breathed out as I stared into the box like a giant dummy. "Flours. They're kinds of flour."
My eyes snapped up to him. "You brought me flours?"
His hazel eyes were bright, but before he could answer me, Joy sighed loudly. "That is so romantic."
I burst out laughing. "Oh my word, Levi, you didn't."
He smiled. "You told me once that buying flowers were a waste of money because all they did was suck up water and then die two days later."
"I did say that," I said around my helpless giggles. "But-but you totally ripped this off from that movie, you cheater."
His face blanched. "You've seen it?"
"What movie?" Joy asked, still staring raptly at the box of flour.
I shook my head, still grinning at Levi. "I can't even remember the name of the actor, but he's an IRS guy. She's a baker. It's good, you should watch it." Clucking my tongue, I gave Levi a mock-disappointed look. "Was this a test of my movie knowledge or something? You're the one who made me watch it a couple of years ago."
"I did?" He scratched the side of his face. "Huh."
I rolled my eyes and grabbed the box so I could set it on my lap and head back into the kitchen. "Oh, how quickly they forget. I'll be off work in an hour if you want to wait."
"I'll wait," he told me.
"Thank you for the flours," I said over my shoulder.
He answered in a weary tone. "You're welcome."
Joy was smiling at Levi like he'd dropped off a check for a million dollars. "I still think it's romantic."
"Thanks, Joy." He sighed. "Do you know how far I had to drive for the spelt flour?"
"So romantic," she repeated.
I was still laughing as I went back to my cupcakes. But every time my eyes caught on the box containing the neatly folded brown paper, I smiled.
Chapter 9 Jocelyn
The night before my next PT session, I promised myself that I'd draw the line at a quick swipe of mascara. The reflection of the girl staring back at me from the rearview mirror of my car the next morning all but called me a big fat liar.
My hair was tamed in two neat braids that met at the base of my skull. The shirt I wore
