Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
Maisie
The good thing about owning the only bakery in a small town? It was constantly busy.
The downside of being the only bakery in Willow Creek? It was always busy, so when I needed to speak to Janie, I had to wait until the only slow time of the day.
I dialed the number for the bakery and waited impatiently for Janie to answer. She finally did on the fourth ring.
"Wickedly Delicious, Janie speaking. How may I help you today?" My overly bubbly employee had me rolling my eyes. I loved Janie's work ethic but her personality was exhausting.
"Hey, it's me. I wanted to see how things were going."
"Oh my God! Hey, boss. Give me a second to finish making this coffee and then we can chat."
I listened in as Janie hummed to herself and then thanked the customer for stopping in. Customers loved her because she made them feel special and had one hell of a memory. She only had to meet someone once to remember what they loved.
"Okay. I'm back. The bakery is great. Opened a little late because I had to wait for the sheriff to give us the all clear but I know you already know that. The cleanup crew that you sent in was amazing. The new display case also looks amazing. I had to throw away all of the inventory from the shattered case because of the glass and, you know, blood splatter, but I've been a baking machine all morning. We don't have everything available today but I plan to come in super-duper early tomorrow to make sure we have all of your special treats available."
I don't think Janie took a single breath during the whole recap. Her lung capacity was incredible and probably a hit among men.
"Has it been busier than normal?"
I figured after the incident yesterday, everyone and their brother would want to stop in today just to be nosy.
"Oh my God, yes!" Janie exclaimed. "I swear I've seen every resident in Willow Creek and that's saying a lot considering I grew up here. Even the people who only pop out of their houses once in a blue moon decided to grace me with their presence. You'll be making bank today."
For once I wasn't worried about the bottom line, though I would've preferred a slower day since I wasn't there to oversee things.
"I'm sorry I left you by yourself."
"Pshh." Yes, she actually made the noise. "I'm just glad you're finally giving me the opportunity to prove myself. I thought it was going to take until you worked yourself into a coma before you gave up even a fraction of control."
Guilt ate at me. I knew Janie meant nothing by it. She was too nice of a person to ever say anything mean. She was my opposite in every way.
"I should've done it long before now. I'm sorry I let my pride get in the way of showing you how valuable I think you are to the bakery."
"You're going to make me cry if you continue to get all mushy on me."
I laughed. Leave it to Janie to make sure the conversation didn't stay too serious.
"You'll call me if you need anything?"
"Absolutely, boss. Otherwise try to enjoy your two days off. You deserve them."
I tried not to think about how I already enjoyed a few of those hours. Operation “stay away from Hendrix” wasn't going so well. I blamed it on his magical pierced cock. No sane woman would be able to resist that damn thing. Not if they were this close to it.
Ignoring Hendrix after the Halloween party was one thing. I could hide away at the bakery or turn into the Ice Queen any time he stopped in. I was finding I couldn't do the same when he was in my space for more than a few minutes.
I needed to find a way to get Hendrix out of my head, so I looked around his kitchen for anything that would help. Easier said than done when everywhere I looked was a reminder of whose house I was staying in. I couldn't believe I let him talk me into staying here.
Actually, yes I could. It was my damn libido's fault. It overruled my good sense.
With a frustrated and resigned huff, I dug around the cabinets. There was only one thing that could take my mind off my current problem.
Baking.
It was both my solace and my escape from reality. Ever since I was a child, I’d used it as an opportunity to run away to my own world. Perfecting a recipe kept me grounded and gave me a high like no other. I’ve never felt better than when ingredients came together to form something magical.
Except maybe when Hendrix gave me an orgasm.
Dammit!
And now I was back to thinking about the man I wanted to push out of my brain.
I stomped around the kitchen in search of the ingredients I needed to make chocolate chip cookies but of course I wasn't finding half of what I required. Hendrix's cabinets were practically bare unless you counted the copious amounts of protein bars, which, spoiler alert, I did not.
It appeared breakfast foods were the only thing Hendrix liked to buy. The fridge and cabinet above it were stocked with things to start the day but forget about the other two meals.
Okay, not totally true. There were plenty of takeout containers from the Crazy Fox. It was obvious Hendrix preferred to eat out rather than cook.
None of this helped me, and if I had any hope of relaxing even a little bit, I needed to bake.
Resigning myself to what I had to do, I swiped my phone off the counter and sent a text off to Hendrix.
Maisie: I can't just sit here all day and do nothing. I need to bake to keep busy but your kitchen leaves a lot to be desired.
The response was almost immediate, as if he were sitting around waiting for me to text him.
Hendrix: I was just leaving work anyway. Tell me what you need and I'll stop to grab it.
He was leaving anyway? I glanced at the clock. He was barely gone a handful of hours. There was no way he should be leaving so soon.
Maisie: Everything okay?
I could practically hear the attitude in his words.
Hendrix: Just tell me what you need so I can grab it.
If I didn't need to bake to keep myself from killing him, I would tell him where he could shove his request. But alas, baking would keep me sane and killing another person was probably not the best idea.
Maisie: Go to the One Stop Shop and tell Ivan you're there to grab my secret stash. He'll know exactly what I'm talking about.
Some of my ingredients are hard to get in a timely manner when living in a small town. I could just travel the thirty minutes or so outside of town to get what I need but that would've meant exposing the car I own. Since that wasn't an option, I made a deal with Ivan. He would order extra for me and keep it on hand, just in case, and I would pay him accordingly. It was a win-win really. I never had to leave town and Ivan got to make some nice cash being my only supplier.
The ping of an incoming message pulled be from my musings.
Hendrix: You've got all the guys in town wrapped around your finger, don't you?
I could practically feel the jealousy through the phone and had to stop myself from rolling my eyes since he wasn't here to see it.
Maisie: He's the only shop in town. Now are you going to stop for me or do I need to leave the house to get it myself?
It was an empty threat. There was no way I would leave his house and chance being arrested.
I knew it. Hendrix knew it. But thankfully he was nice enough not to call me out on my lie.
Hendrix: I'll get what you need from your boy toy Ivan and be home shortly.
Now I did roll my eyes because seriously? Boy toy?
Maisie: He's old enough to be my grandfather, you dumb shit.
Hendrix: And you've already proven you like older men.
"Fucking A." I tossed my phone on the island with a curse. I can't believe he just said that to me!
Never mind.
Yes, I could. Hendrix had proven time and time again that he had no filter. Nothing that came out of his mouth should surprise me.
And his comment about older man?
Not true.
At least, it wasn't until recently. Hendrix was the first older man I had ever been with.
What was fifteen years anyway in the grand scheme of things? He was only forty-nine to my thirty-four years. It wasn't like I was some gold digger shacking up with a man four times my age just waiting for him to croak. An age gap was common. All the romance books said so. Hell, authors practically advertised it as a way to bring readers in.
So if they could normalize it, then there was no shame in actually living it.
That was my story and I was sticking to it.
Screw Hendrix.
And not literally.
Well, probably literally but that was for future me to worry about.
Gah! I needed to do something other than talk to myself. If anyone knew what was going on in my brain at the moment, they would think I was one step away from needing to be committed to the nut house.
Thankfully Hendrix chose that moment to arrive home. I wasn't sure him being home was any better for my mental health, but it had its advantages.
"Honey, I'm home!" Hendrix sang on his way in the door and I shook my head. Definitely not better for my mental health.
"Please tell me you got what I need?"
"What, no welcome-home kiss? No I missed you so much?"
Heaven help me. Forget talking to myself being the reason I end up in the nut house, it was going to be because of Hendrix.
"Absolutely not."
I noticed the bags in his hands and immediately reached out to snatch them away, but of course he was faster than me.
"Uh-uh. Not so fast. I did you a favor and now you need to do me a favor."
I tensed, not liking the sound of that at all. "Is it really a favor when I'm not allowed to leave the house?"
I regretted the words the second they left my mouth. Hendrix's cocky grin was enough warning that I wouldn't like what he had to say next.
"I knew that was an empty threat, so yes, this was indeed a favor."
With a resigned sigh, I crossed my arms in front of me. "Fine, what's your favor?"
"Just a welcome-home kiss. Is that too much to ask?"
From this man? Absolutely.
But I knew well enough that he wouldn't drop it, so instead of dragging the argument out, I rushed across the kitchen floor and used the fact that he was holding a bunch of bags to my advantage. I planted a quick peck on his cheek, then snatched one of the bags out of his hand and headed straight for the island.
"That was cheating," Hendrix grumbled.
"No . . ." I emphasized the one word. "That was me fulfilling my favor. You never specified what kind of kiss, so I left it open to interpretation."
There was no doubt in my mind Hendrix could've changed the narrative when I had gotten close to him. He had given me space, probably to see how I would handle the challenge.
"It's a good thing I'm a patient man. I'll get my retribution when you don't see it coming."
I scoffed at the ridiculousness. "Patience is not a word I would associate with you."
Hendrix moved into the kitchen and dropped the rest of the bags next to the one I placed on the island. "Fair enough. Patience isn't one of my specialties but payback is and that's something I can wait to do."
I had no doubt he could.
"I need to talk to you about something."
I froze at the seriousness in his tone. If there was one thing Hendrix never was, it was serious. My hand hovered over the large bag of chocolate chips I was reaching for. "Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like what you have to say?"
"Because you're not. And believe me, if I could keep this from you, I would, but I know for a fact you would kick my ass when you eventually found out."
Every nerve ending was on high alert. I didn't like the sound of that at all. In the few seconds it took Hendrix to tell me what the hell was going on, a million scenarios ran through my head. Starting and ending with how far, and fast, I would need to run away this time.
"Your brother took over for Atlas."
I could feel my legs giving out from under me. My vision darkened and the word no played on repeat in my mind over and over again.