Chapter 11
Cassie parked along the residential street, not far from the office, and she and Molly followed the smell of freshly baked pastries to Daily Bread, situated in an inviting cottage amid a bunch of houses.
A few patrons, clad in warm coats to ward off the slight chill in the air and unwilling to sit inside on such a beautiful Sunday afternoon, enjoyed pastries and coffee at the wrought-iron patio tables along the sidewalk.
Cassie walked through the open front doors and saw Jody at the front counter.
“Hey, Cassie!” Jody said with her usual warm smile as Cassie approached the counter.
“Hi, Jody,” Cassie returned the warm greeting and gestured toward Molly beside her. “This is my sister, Molly.”
Jody raised her eyes to Molly and seemed awestruck for a moment.
Molly reached out her hand in the brief silence. “It’s great to meet you. Thanks so much for doing this for us.”
The handshake seemed to bring Jody back to the moment at hand as the smile returned to her face. “My pleasure. Why don’t y’all take a seat at that round table,” she said, pointing to a white wooden table in the middle of the bakery. “And I’ll be right back with some flavors for you to try.”
Cassie had called Jody right after finding out that Katherine and Nellie had lost their baker to see if she could fill in and Jody had graciously accepted.
Cassie had relayed the basic chocolate cake request, but when she mentioned it was a budget issue, Jody insisted on giving them the wedding cake of their dreams at a deep discount that would make it affordable.
Jody invited the couple to do a tasting the following Sunday, but since they both had to work, they asked Cassie if she could stand in for them.
And since Cassie had no idea how to do a cake tasting, she had asked Molly to come with her.
Jody brought out a large silver tray that seemed to overwhelm her small frame, but her lean, muscular arms stayed solid under the weight.
The tray held a bunch of white ceramic plates adorned with delicious-looking slices of cake.
Cassie had to stop herself from clapping at the sheer joy rising inside her as Jody laid the tray in front of them.
She knew Molly’s job was stressful and laden with details, but getting to taste wedding cake for a client seemed like a pretty awesome perk.
“We can do pretty much anything the brides want, but I thought I’d let you try a few classic options along with NOLA-inspired flavors and a few signature flavors I’ve been working on.
” Jody pointed at the different plates as she continued.
“The classic options are chocolate with a vanilla buttercream and chocolate ganache, vanilla with vanilla buttercream filling and frosting, and lemon chiffon with a lemon zest buttercream frosting.” She glanced at Molly.
“We can also do a vanilla and chocolate swirl cake. And we can also do fondant on any of the flavors if that’s preferable. ”
Molly smiled and nodded at her, and Cassie couldn’t help but notice a slight blush on Jody’s cheeks.
Jody pointed to the next cluster of plates. “These are the NOLA-inspired flavors. Almond cake with pineapple filling and almond buttercream frosting. Our bananas Foster has banana-infused cake with hints of rum and cinnamon and a caramel and banana filling.”
As much as Cassie loved the presentation, she was more than ready for the tasting part to start.
Jody continued. “It’s finished with caramel frosting, chocolate drip, and actual bananas Foster along the top edge.
And this is our chocolate praline. Chocolate cake, praline filling, finished with chocolate ganache and praline crumble.
We can also do layered king cakes or king cake-inspired cupcakes. ”
Cassie exchanged an impressed look with Molly. This might be her first tasting, but so far she couldn’t imagine anything better than the flavors Jody had just described. Until she continued.
“And these are our signature flavors. Just some ideas I’ve been playing around with.
The chocolate and wine is chocolate cake with cocoa crumble and a Malbec-infused curd finished with a French meringue, cocoa crumble, and cacao powder.
Chicory decadence is chocolate cake with chicory coffee buttercream finished with chocolate ganache, dark-chocolate-covered espresso beans, and coffee mousse.
Lastly, for the season, Maple Street is maple pumpkin cake with praline filling finished with maple chocolate ganache and maple syrup brittle.
” She stepped back and clasped her hands in front of her navy-blue apron waiting for Cassie and Molly’s reactions.
“Am I drooling? I feel like I’m drooling,” Cassie said, wiping at her mouth, and Jody and Molly laughed.
Even Molly seemed relaxed and excited about the cakes. “Jody, this might be the most incredible spread I’ve ever seen at a tasting. You didn’t have to go to all of this trouble for us. And I can’t believe you did all of this in just one week.”
Jody seemed a little more relaxed now. “I know you said the couple wasn’t wanting anything too fancy, but I don’t know, it’s their wedding.
It should be special. And,” Jody looked down at the tray of cake, “my hope is that you like the cake enough to become a repeat customer.” She raised her eyes to meet Molly’s with a shy but genuine smile.
Cassie watched the exchange with curiosity before Molly spoke. “Well, if these taste half as good as they sound, you don’t need to worry about that.”
Jody nodded. “Great, well, enjoy, take your time, and let me know if you have any questions or need anything.” And with that, she headed back to help the young woman behind the counter who was waiting on the growing line of customers.
“Which one do you want to try first?” Molly asked.
“I don’t know, which one are you going for?” Cassie replied.
They both reached for the chocolate and wine at the same time and laughed. “You first,” Cassie said, gesturing for Molly to take it as Cassie reached for the chocolate praline.
Thirty minutes later, Cassie was beyond full, happy, and on a sugar high. “So, are we decided?”
Molly nodded, a satisfied smile on her face. It was the most relaxed Cassie had seen her since she moved in.
“Alrighty. Let me video chat with Nellie and Katherine to see if they like the plan.” Cassie rang the couple and showed them the table full of cake slices. What was left of them anyway. While she was explaining the flavor profiles, Molly walked over to the counter and started talking with Jody.
Once the couple agreed on flavors and the presentation, Cassie ended the call and watched the exchange between Molly and Jody.
Jody, as Cassie had sensed, was clearly smitten with Molly.
She had a permanent blush on her cheeks and occasionally tucked her hair behind her ear with a shy grin.
And, as Cassie expected, Molly was clueless.
Molly was pretty adept at social interactions.
It made her excellent at what she did for a living, which primarily revolved around pleasing clients.
But Molly had always been unaware of the effect she had on others.
And being in a relationship for nearly twenty years made her more oblivious.
Cassie couldn’t blame Jody for being a little starstruck around Molly.
She was striking, after all. She had the same auburn hair as Cassie, though few knew that since Cassie’s hair was almost always dyed a different color.
They also shared the same fair complexion.
But Molly, ten years older and a little taller and thinner, had always possessed an elegance and grace that lit up the room around her.
The most attractive thing about Molly, however, was her blissful ignorance of her beauty and charm.
She was giving and kind and thought the best of people.
Something Cassie wished she was better at.
Molly and Jody joined Cassie at the table. “So, what’s the verdict?” Molly asked.
“They trust our judgment.” She turned to Jody. “It’s going to be a three-tiered cake with each signature flavor as one layer. Chocolate and wine will be on the bottom, then chicory decadence in the middle, and Maple Street on top. They’re expecting a hundred people, so that should be perfect.”
Jody nodded. “Sounds great.”
Molly placed her hand on Jody’s arm. “Jody, we can’t thank you enough. I’m glad you decided to follow your passion and expand into wedding cakes.” Between the touch and Molly’s words, Cassie didn’t think Jody’s smile could get any bigger.
As they walked back to the car, Cassie’s curiosity got the better of her. “What were you talking to Jody about?”
“Oh, just about how incredible her flavors are and how she got started making cakes.” Molly brushed her bangs out of her eyes and shivered in her thin, knee-length cream coat.
“How did she get started? She never told me that part of her story when we were working on her designs.”
“She made a cake for her wedding.”
Cassie stopped walking. “Jody’s married?”
Molly stopped and frowned. “Not anymore.” The sadness in Molly’s voice seemed to stretch much deeper than Jody.
Cassie stood there, not knowing what to do. Molly had been like her old self during the cake tasting and Cassie didn’t want that to slip away.
“What are you doing? Come on, it’s freezing.” Molly rubbed her hands together to warm them, and Cassie joined her as they walked briskly to the car.
Cassie cranked on the heat since the temperature had dropped while they were in the bakery.
The weather this fall seemed more like her days in New England than the typically hot and sticky weather in New Orleans, but thankfully the car warmed up quickly.
She glanced at Molly as she put the car in gear.
The worry line that had been a fixture between her eyes the past few weeks had disappeared.
It was nice to see Molly relaxed and happy again, even if only for a short while.