I left my motorcycle in the back parking lot of Sweet Seasons and knocked on the front door.
She opened the door wearing the Sweet Seasons uniform this time—black collared shirt, dark blue jeans, and pink apron—but she still looked gorgeous. She led me back to the kitchen and instructed for me to clean out the stoves and warming ovens once more.
“Is this how you treat all your friends?” I picked up a sponge.
“I don’t have…I’m sorry I ever asked for your help Ethan,” she sighed. “This was very selfish of me. I guess they got that part right after all, huh?”
She walked out of the kitchen in tears and left me standing there.
I’m confused…
I threw my sponge into a bucket and walked out into the dining area. Selena was sitting in a booth with her head down.
“Hey, it was sarcasm…” I tapped her shoulder. “I didn’t mean anything by that. I don’t mind helping you at all.”
“Really?” she wiped her face on her sleeve. “Well, I’m sorry I walked out on you. I’m a lot more sensitive than I normally am…I read another story about myself today and it really bothered me…They reached out to the people who set up my last trailer and they said I was one of the most unreasonable people they’d ever worked for.”
“Do you honestly think that’s true?”
“No! It’s not my fault I asked for ten bowls of red gummy bears and they only brought me nine! I asked for ten!”
Wow…
I laughed and pulled her to her feet. “Let’s get started so we can get out of here earlier than last time. Okay?”
She smiled at me and looked as if she wanted to say something, but she turned away and headed into the kitchen.
There was no passionate kiss between us this time. She never let me get within five feet of her, and I gave up trying after my first two attempts failed.
Even though we didn’t talk much, I enjoyed simply being around her.
It was my second off day and I couldn’t sleep. It was six in the morning and all I could do was think about Selena Ross.
It didn’t make any sense. I didn’t know too much about her except that she was a celebrity, she should never ever be allowed around a karaoke machine, and she liked to eat crepes and red gummy bears.
She also admitted that she liked Autumn Wonder more than Starbucks—maybe that was it. Maybe that was why I was so fascinated.
I closed my eyes and tried to force myself to sleep but my phone rang. Barry.
“Yes?” I pretended to be half-sleep. “Do you know it’s six o’ clock in the morning here? Has headquarters burned down or something?”
“Get over yourself. We’ve figured out all the ingredients to every single pie except the cherry bourbon one. We’ve had seven different chef teams try to crack it and they’ve come up with nada. Our version still tastes good, but it’s not great. If we’re going to crush Sweet Seasons by the end of the year and turn up the heat on Starbucks, we need to figure it out ASAP. Could you send us three more?”
“Sure. And did you guys recreate that heritage coffee I sent? I think we should use that for the Valentine’s Day season.”
“Yeah, that was pretty easy. The board thinks we should roll it out in February too. By the way, is there a reason why I paid for fifty thousand tons of sand yesterday? Is there a reason why you used my personal account?”
I laughed. “Yeah, it was my way of saying thanks for volunteering me for this ridiculous assignment. I really appreciate it…Oh, and the purchase is nonrefundable, just in case you’re wondering.”
“I see. Have you gone on any more dates this week? How about the lady that licked your toes over dinner? Could you bring her with you when you come back? I’d love to introduce her to the rest of the club.”
“Bye Barry,” I hung up.
I scrolled down to Selena’s name in my phone and contemplated calling her. I knew it was early and she might be sleeping, but I wanted to hear her voice.
By my checklist standards, Selena should have been excluded from consideration a long time ago: she had emotional baggage, she’d rejected me twice before, and she’d made our first two “dates” cleaning up a kitchen. Yet, I couldn’t bring myself to leave her alone.
I usually waited two to three days before calling a woman after a date, but I couldn’t do that this time.
She picked up on the third ring. “Hello?”
“Hey Selena…”
Why am I so nervous?
“Hello Ethan.”
“Sorry to call so early…Did I awake you?”
“Not at all, I’ve been up all morning,” she sounded cheery. “I’m making some signs for Sweet Seasons.”
“Why does it need new signs?
“Not new signs, they’re demonstration signs…It’s lost a lot of money recently so we’re going to have a fall sale and a rally…Starbucks weakened its’ coffee business a little when it came four years ago, but ever since Autumn Wonder moved in with its cheaper bakery and extremely similar menu, Sweet Seasons has lost a lot more customers…”