Chapter Eight
Spencer
I paced the kitchen, looking at everything I had laid out on the island.
Was it going to be enough? I’d quickly made some cupcakes as soon as I’d gotten home after work, and they were cooling on a rack.
I’d pulled out all the ingredients to teach Noah how to make two types of icing: a simple chocolate buttercream and the more complicated marshmallow icing I used for the ghosts.
Since he’d thought they were cute, I kinda wanted to show him how to make them. Plus, they’d look awesome at the bake-off. I knew Noah said he wasn’t going to win, but I believed in him, and I was going to do everything I could to help.
The only thing I wouldn’t do was make them for him because that would be cheating, and I wasn’t down for that. Assisting was one thing; cheating was another. Besides, I wanted Noah to see that he wasn’t as bad a baker as he thought, and that wasn’t going to happen if I just took over.
There was a knot in my stomach that seemed to tighten every time I looked at the clock on the wall.
It was pink, like almost everything else in the kitchen, and although it was kind of old fashioned, I liked having it there.
Noah was going to be here any minute, and I’d never been so nervous about hanging out with someone.
Chris had said just to keep hanging out with him and see how I felt, but at this rate, my brain was going to explode from being so on edge. I’d barely been able to think about anything else all day, let alone get anything done.
A sharp knock on the door distracted me, and I practically sprinted towards it, pausing only to check my reflection in the large mirror by the door. I didn’t look too bad, and I wasn’t going to think about why I’d spent twenty minutes choosing the perfect t-shirt and jeans combo for this afternoon.
I pulled open the door to see Noah standing there, wearing a nervous smile and a green hoodie. He had a plastic bag in one hand, and I almost frowned because I’d told him he didn’t need to bring anything.
“Hey,” he said, holding out the bag. “I washed the clothes you lent me last week. Thanks for letting me borrow them.”
I’d almost forgotten about that. “Cheers, you didn’t have to.”
“What? Wash them or return them?” Noah asked as I took the bag and ushered him inside.
“Er…” I fumbled for a second because it hadn’t been my smoothest moment. “Wash them?”
Noah chuckled, and the sound made a million lights light up in my chest. “I wasn’t going to bring them back dirty. That would be so weird, especially because you lent me underwear.”
“Yeah, I guess,” I said, trying to work out why I was suddenly thinking about Noah in my underwear. I had no idea where the thought had come from, but now I couldn’t get rid of it. It was like now that I’d acknowledged it, it was getting bigger. “Thanks, though.”
“You’re welcome.”
I gestured for Noah to head to the kitchen and followed him, trying to get my head under control. Except walking behind him meant I got a good look at the way Noah’s jeans hugged his butt and thick thighs, and I couldn’t stop myself from staring.
I’d always thought it was normal to check out guy’s asses at the gym, but now I wasn’t so sure.
My confusion ratcheted up another notch.
“How was work this morning?” Noah asked as we entered the kitchen.
“Busy but good. Pretty normal Saturday.”
I saw Noah staring at the cakes, a sweet expression of confusion forming on his face. “When did you make cupcakes?”
“When I got back.” I shrugged. “I said I’d have some for you to practice on, and it didn’t take me long.”
“Yeah, but I thought you were going to bring some back from work?” Noah asked.
“We didn’t have enough,” I said. “Don’t sweat it.” I really didn’t want Noah to worry because it wasn’t like it had been a hardship.
For a second, it looked like Noah was going to say something else, but then he smiled and nodded to himself. “Okay. So where do we start?”
I decided to start with the chocolate buttercream, and once I’d handed Noah an apron, I showed him how to mix the room temperature butter with a little hot water so it went even softer before adding the melted dark chocolate.
“A lot of people say you have to do this over a saucepan of water on the hob,” I’d said as I helped Noah to break up the chocolate into a bowl. “But you can just as easily do it in the microwave. You’ve just gotta keep an eye on it.”
I’d shown him how to spot when the chocolate was just melted enough that a good beating would break up any remaining lumps and leave it smooth and silky without the risk of burning.
It was so much less of a faff, and soon we had a delicious-looking chocolate and butter mixture we could add the icing sugar too.
I grabbed a tea towel off the side and gave it to Noah as he added the last of the sugar to the bowl and lowered Betty’s arm. “Put this over the top,” I said. “It’ll stop the icing sugar going everywhere when you first switch it on.”
“That’s… I’d never have thought of that,” he said, taking the towel from me. His fingers brushed against mine as he did, and a shock shot down my arm so fast and sharp I flinched.
“Sorry. Static shock.”
“It’s fine.” Noah had flushed slightly, but I didn’t know if it was because of the shock, or the fact the kitchen was warm, or something else. He draped the towel over Betty. “Like this?”
“Perfect,” I said. My tongue suddenly felt like lead, and my mouth was achingly dry. “Just leave that to talk to itself for a few minutes, then we’ll have a look. Do you want a drink or something?”
“Er, just some water would be great. Thanks.”
The glass of water didn’t help my leaden tongue, but I hadn’t thought it would. Instead, I distracted myself by checking the buttercream and showing Noah how to achieve the perfect consistency.
“You don’t want it too firm,” I said. “Otherwise it’s really hard to pipe, but if it’s too soft, it just runs everywhere. It’s why baking in the summer is a nightmare.”
Noah smiled. “It’s basic chemistry.”
“Yeah, exactly.” I nodded and looked at the bowl in front of us. “Right now, this is pretty much good to go. I’m going to chill it for like ten or maybe fifteen minutes so it’s easier to work with, but then we can ice some cakes!”
“This is actually simpler than I thought,” Noah said as I slid the large, metal bowl onto the shelf in the fridge that I’d cleared and set a timer through the Alexa on the windowsill. “I thought it would be a lot more involved.”
“I mean, you can make super complicated buttercream if you want, but I think the simple stuff is just as delicious. Like to me a good, simple vanilla or chocolate buttercream will beat your Italian meringue white chocolate ganache buttercream any day of the week.”
“That just sounds over the top,” Noah said. “Nice but over the top.”
“Exactly. Although, if we get time, I’ll teach you how to make the marshmallow icing for the ghosts. It’s a bit more complex because we’ve gotta boil sugar, but I figure since you’re a chemist, you’ll enjoy it, and it won’t freak you out too much. Plus, you’ll know not to stick your finger in it.”
“Speaking from experience?” Noah asked with a raised eyebrow.
I coughed and looked away. “Maybe. In all fairness, it wasn’t deliberate. There was just a bit on the spoon, and I went to push it off with my finger. Luckily, it wasn’t boiling boiling, but it still hurt like fuck. Mina made me stand with it under the tap for ages.”
“Don’t worry. I once had a beaker explode on me because I let it get too hot before I put water in it. Luckily, it was just water instead of acid or something, but that was not fun,” Noah said. “I got such a bollocking from my supervisor.”
I chuckled. “I think yours is almost worse. Do I have to get more baking injuries now?”
“Definitely not.” He unclicked the beater from the mixer and held it out to me. “Want some before I wash this?”
“Always.” I ran my finger over the edge and scooped up some of the buttercream. I’d already had some, but where was the fun in home baking if you didn’t get to lick the bowl and the beater clean? Otherwise it was just going to go to waste.
I sucked the buttercream off my finger, revelling in the rich, chocolaty taste.
I’d happily squirt a whole piping bag of the stuff into my mouth, but then I’d probably feel sick, and we wouldn’t have any left to decorate with, so it wasn’t going to happen.
I realised Noah was staring at me, and I let my finger linger between my lips for a second.
Noah licked his lips. They were a delicate pink colour and looked really soft.
“You should have some too,” I said, my words coming out quieter than I’d intended, but to me, they still sounded deafening.
“Sure. Okay.” He grinned and lifted the beater to his mouth, flicking out his tongue to lick icing off it. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him as his tongue deftly curled around one of the metal bars.
All I could think about was that Noah had a talented tongue. Then I wondered whether there were other ways he’d know how to use it.
My cock stirred, sending a wave of heat through me accompanied by a flood of panic.
Not at the idea of getting hard, but at the idea that Noah might see it and that would be hella fucking embarrassing.
How the fuck could I explain that? Watching you lick up chocolate buttercream was turning me on? That just sounded creepy.
I didn’t want him to stop, though.
A ringing alarm pierced the air as Alexa signalled the end of the timer. Noah froze, his eyes widening like something was wrong.
“Alexa, stop,” I said. The alarm stopped. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“It’s fine,” Noah said, walking over to the sink and putting the beater in the bottom. He sighed. “Sorry, I meant to wash everything up while the icing was setting.”
“Don’t worry. I can do it later.” I opened the fridge and checked the buttercream, taking a moment to let out a deep breath. I needed to get my head back on track before I got carried away and ended up God knew where.
I was in well over my head, and although my feelings didn’t exactly scare me, they were confusing because I’d never experienced anything like this before.
Not for a guy at least. I’d only ever felt like this for girls.
But this felt different, more intense, and I didn’t know if it was because it was so new or if it was because it involved Noah, someone I’d known almost all my life.
“How’s it looking?” Noah asked.
“Great,” I said, grabbing the bowl. “We can start piping now.” I put the bowl on the island and grabbed the racks of cupcakes from where I’d left them to cool. I’d made twelve since that would give me a couple to demonstrate on and still leave plenty for Noah to use for practice.
Noah stood on the other side of the island, watching closely as I showed him how to fit the star nozzle I’d chosen into the piping bag and then how to fill it without getting buttercream all over his fingers.
His gaze was intense but not in an intimidating way.
Instead, it just made my stomach twist and bubble.
“Okay, so what you want to do,” I said, grabbing a cupcake to demonstrate, “is start in the middle with a little bit of pressure until you get almost, like, a small flower, and then you want to make a swirl going outwards and let it overlap slightly.” I slowly moved the piping bag so Noah could see what I was doing.
“Then when you get to the edge, you just slowly release the pressure and almost tuck the end in.” I lifted the bag up with a flourish and grinned at him.
“And there you have it, a simple, piped rose. It looks proper fancy but is super easy. Everyone will be dead impressed.”
“Including me,” Noah said with a laugh.
“Come on, you can do it. Watch again.” I grabbed another cupcake and repeated the process. “Now you try.”
Noah took the bag, his lips setting themselves in a nervous grimace as he reached for a cupcake. I moved around the counter so I could watch him closely, my eyes fixed on his hands as they gripped the piping bag.
“That’s it,” I said. “Just do it gently.”
“Oh God,” Noah said, his tongue darting out to lick his lips. “This is a disaster. It looks so squashed.”
“It’s not that bad.” It was a bit squished and lopsided, but it was still recognisable.
“Especially for a first attempt. Try again.” I picked up another cupcake and placed it in front of him, sliding closer until we were side by side.
I felt the heat of his body against mine, which meant I was probably too close, but I didn’t care.
I reached out and gently moved his hand. Another spark zipped across my skin, but I couldn’t blame this one on static.
There was something going on I couldn’t explain.
“How’s that one?” Noah asked, turning his head to face me. We were almost nose to nose. I swallowed.
“Perfect.”
Noah smiled. “You didn’t even look.”
I glanced down. “I did that time.”
“And?”
“Like I said, it’s perfect.”
“Okay.” There was a moment of silence that stretched out between us. I wondered if I ought to break it, but I didn’t know how. “I should do another one,” Noah said eventually, tearing his eyes away from mine. “I need the practice.”
“Yeah, makes sense,” I said. “If you do these, I can teach you how to make the marshmallow if you want?”
“I’d like that.”
It was only later, when I was shoving things into the dishwasher, that I wondered if I should have kissed him.