Chapter 7
Emma
First Kiss Reaction
He kissed me. It wasn’t just a quick peck, but more like a tsunami. Wow! I touch my lips as I stare at myself in my bedroom mirror. Am I brave enough to date Joey knowing he’s probably going to get an NHL contract and move clear across the country? My heart begs me to say yes, but my brain tells me to say no. I’m so confused. Flopping down on my bed, I drift off to sleep, dreaming of that incredible kiss and trying to shove my worries aside.
The next morning, I hide out at the bakery. Thank goodness I’m not seeing Joey and the kids today. I need this time alone to get my head straight. With Joey around, I’ll fold like a house of cards. He’s simply too irresistible.
Blake enters the kitchen and begins mixing batter for the first batch of cupcakes. “What happened between you and Joey at the pizza place?”
“What do you mean?” I feign confusion, hoping to get him off track.
He snorts. “Emma, you’re as transparent as glass and Joey’s not much better. All evening, he looked like he had just won the lottery, and I doubt it was just because he played a whale of a game.” He stares at me and adds, “When you came back from the restroom, your cheeks were flushed, and you made googly eyes at Joey the rest of the evening.”
I roll my eyes. “What exactly are googly eyes?”
“Your twenty questions won’t deter me. I’m going to keep asking until you tell me what happened.”
This guy is like a dog sniffing out a bone. He won’t give up. The truth tumbles from my lips as I blurt, “He kissed me! I guess we’re now dating, or something like that.” I break eye contact and wave my hand in a dismissive fashion, as if this is no big deal.
A laugh bellows from his chest, filling the room and making me blush. “Well, it’s about time!”
I turn concerned eyes to my former boyfriend, “But what are we going to do when he gets that NHL contract?”
“You two will figure it out. Together.”
“Un huh! That’s easy for you to say!” I point a finger at him. “In my experience, a long-distance relationship doesn’t work. Look at us. When I moved away, we said we would keep seeing each other, but instead we drifted apart.”
He holds up his hand. “Stop right there! Admit it, Emma. We were never meant to be together. We were always more like friends than anything else. I think we dated just because it was convenient to have someone to go to dances and games with.”
The truth slaps me in the face. I never felt for Blake what I do for Joey. In fact, there was never any real attraction between us. I wasn’t even heartbroken when we broke up. “Our relationship was always friendship, wasn’t it? Remember when we kissed that one time? There was no sizzle.”
“It was like kissing my sister,” he admits. “And we never repeated it, did we?”
Funny how I never focused on the fact that Blake and I called each other boyfriend, girlfriend, yet we kissed that one time and that was it. “I’m glad we figured out that we should just be friends.”
“Me, too. Working for you hasn’t affected our friendship either. Even though you’re the boss, I don’t feel like you relegate me to peon, employee status.”
“Good! I wouldn’t want you to feel that way.” A few beats of silence fall between us, but I simply must ask what’s on my mind. “What am I going to do about Joey? I don’t see how this relationship is going to end in anything but heartbreak.”
“Would you follow him if he gets drafted?”
Would I? Chewing on my lower lip, I contemplate the question. “What about my bakery?”
“Sell it or get someone else to run it for you.” He grins. “You can always open a new bakery wherever you go.”
I toss him a tentative smile. “Thanks for talking me off the ledge, Blake. You’ve given me some great suggestions. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Joey and I have to get through the gingerbread house contest first. Let’s see if our relationship can handle the pressure!” I tease.
“I’m not worried. The way Joey looks at you, he’ll do everything in his power to make you happy. Even if you suggest building a pink gingerbread house overrun with fairies.”
I laugh. “Katie would love that, but poor Scott would deny any involvement with that kind of a building.”
“True. You need to make both kids happy. Just be yourself and their uncle will be happy.” Blake winks and then wanders off to pull the next batch of cupcakes from the oven.
After Blake’s pep talk, I’m still stewing over where this relationship with Josef Svenson might lead.
~*~
“Okay, spill,” Mia says when she arrives for her shift at the bakery. She quickly slips on her apron and immediately gives me a no-nonsense look.
“Spill what?” I ask, feigning innocence.
She snorts. “What’s up with you and Joey?”
“Up with me and Joey?” I repeat, stalling for time. Were we that transparent at pizza last night? First Blake. Now Mia.
Walking over, she squeezes my upper arm while giving me an interrogation-worthy stare. “After you two had that little rendezvous outside the restroom, you looked like a woman who had just been thoroughly kissed.”
My hand flies to my mouth. “Oh my gosh! Really? Was it that obvious?”
A slow grin crosses my friend’s face. “Gotcha!”
I slump down on one of the chairs in the corner and Mia joins me. Blake’s managing the front, so we have time for a little heart-to-heart chat.
After taking a few seconds to collect my thoughts, I say, “This attraction to Joey is so unexpected. I always thought our relationship was more of a ‘frenemies’ type thing. You know, sometimes friends, most times enemies. Now we’ve moved past that to... something else .” I don’t dare say boyfriend/girlfriend lest I jinx things. Resting my chin in my hand, I blow out a frustrated breath. “Mia, I’m so confused.”
She gives me a wistful smile. “I know exactly where you’re coming from. Remember when I said I would never date Otto in a million years?”
“I do! You quoted Taylor Swift’s famous line.”
Mia winces. “Oh, right. But if I remember correctly, I said, “We are never, ever, ever, ever getting together.”
We stare at each other, then burst out laughing. Mia and Otto are the classic “enemies to lovers” trope love story.
“And look at you now! You married the man,” I tease.
Reaching across the table, Mia pats the back of my hand. “He won me over little by little. One day I woke up and realized that I couldn’t wait to see him again. There was no going back to being enemies at that point.”
“Joey and I crossed over the enemies line when I went over to his house and agreed to build that gingerbread house with him and the kids.
She leans towards me. “And last night?”
A resigned sigh drifts from my lips. She’ll keep pressing until I tell her everything. “He kissed me, and it was the best kiss of my life.” Flinging Mia a concerned look, I say, “But what happens when he gets drafted?”
“You’ll figure it out. Otto might also get drafted, but I can be a lawyer wherever he goes.”
“I can’t exactly move the bakery,” I grumble.
“True. But you can open a bakery somewhere else.”
“That’s exactly what Blake said. But I feel like this bakery is my life’s dream.”
“I don’t know what to tell you Emma. Love conquers all, as they say. If you end up falling in love with Joey, you’ll find a way to make it work.” Mia stands. “I’m here for you and I’ll be happy to listen and talk things out. But I can’t tell you what to do. Your heart will have to tell you that.”
Smiling, she strides off to join Blake out front.
I think I already know what my heart wants, but I’m afraid to admit it.