Chapter 17
TESSA
The morning rush at Hale & Honey was in full swing by nine o’clock.
A line snaked from the counter to the door, the bell chiming every few seconds as customers pushed in for their Friday fix of baked goods.
The furor following the drama Vanessa caused on social media still hadn’t died down a full month later.
We were so busy that my custom cake commissions were booked out a year in advance, and that was after I’d almost doubled my prices. The influx of cash had allowed me to hire an additional two employees, so now I had a team of ten working for me. Six in the kitchen and four out front.
I briefly considered closing an additional day each week, but Gage had talked me out of it.
Even though it would’ve given me another chance to go out on dates with him each week, he’d argued that I needed to take full advantage of the extra foot traffic while I had it because the free publicity wouldn’t last forever.
Almost as though my thoughts conjured him up, Gage walked in. He flashed a smile at Jenny, who was at the register, ringing up orders with the quiet confidence she’d grown into over the past few weeks.
“Good morning, Gage.” She gestured for him to come around the line. “Tessa has your favorite waiting for you.”
His gaze met mine from across the room, and I felt the impact of his grin in my heart…and my ovaries. Dressed in jeans and a button-down shirt, he was sexy enough to draw the eye of every woman in the bakery. But his attention never strayed from me.
A few customers noticed. Whispers started near the pastry case. One teenage girl pulled out her phone, angled it toward him, then looked at me with wide eyes. “Is that the guy you didn't steal?”
I gave her a quick smile. “Yeah.”
“Seriously so cool,” she whispered, furiously tapping on her screen. “My friends are not gonna believe this.”
Gage caught the exchange but didn’t react. He just took the bag from Jenny and murmured, “Thanks.”
Then he headed over to a table Jimmy hadn’t had the chance to bus yet. He set the bag down, collected the trash, then walked over to the garbage can. With that done, he rounded the counter to grab the cleaning spray and a cloth before heading back to the table to wipe it down.
When he finished, he returned the cleaning supplies to the spot where I kept them. But he didn’t stop there. He grabbed the tray of coffee sleeves from under the counter and began refilling the dispenser without being asked.
Jenny leaned toward me. “It’s hard to believe he’s the same guy who yelled at me that day. He finds a way to help every time he comes in here to see you.”
I nodded, not knowing what to do with the sight of him here, quietly making my morning easier. He’d changed so much from the man I knew three years ago, in all the best ways.
The dates he’d come up with each Monday were more proof of that.
He’d arranged for us to have after-hours access to the library branch where my mom used to take me for story time when I was little a week after the park date.
We spread a blanket on the floor and had a picnic with my favorite finger foods, and then he gave me a signed copy of the newest cookbook by a chef I adored.
The following Monday, he somehow got my landlord to give me space on the roof of my building for an herb garden, where we planted plants like lemon balm and mint.
And he raised the bar again last week when he found a copy of the cookbook passed down from my great-grandmother to my grandmother, and then to my mother.
The one in my family couldn’t be used because it had fallen apart a decade ago, and he had his gift professionally rebound so that I could enjoy the recipes that meant so much to the women in my family.
This version of Gage was thoughtful and giving in ways that were meaningful. The more I saw this side of him, the harder it became to pretend I’d ever truly fallen out of love with him. Or that my feelings for him weren’t growing stronger.
A man in a suit stepped up to the counter and pulled me from my thoughts when he asked, “Mind if I get a quick selfie with the cake in the case? My girlfriend’s obsessed with your cakes.”
“Go for it.” I tilted my head toward the glass cake holder on the counter. “And maybe snag her one of the raspberry mojito cupcakes. They’re today’s limited edition special flavor.”
“Great idea.” He snapped the photo, thanked me, and bought two cupcakes.
The whispers in line grew, and more phones came out. Gage noticed that a couple were aimed his way. He straightened, his cheeks flushing slightly, and looked at me.
I walked over to him. “You’re causing a ruckus.”
“Sorry.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t mean to draw attention away from the bakery.”
I smiled up at him. “I’m not complaining. Each time you’re spotted here, the chatter online picks up again, and I get more customers.”
“Maybe I should come in more often then,” he drawled, his green eyes twinkling.
My phone rang before I could agree. The ringtone was the one I’d set for celebrity clients. Pulling it out of my apron pocket, I glanced at the screen and saw an actress friend of Serena’s was calling. “Hey, Marisol. Everything okay?”
“Tessa, I’m so sorry. The jet is grounded due to a mechanical issue. They’re saying it won’t be cleared until tomorrow morning, but my cousin’s engagement party is tonight.”
Marisol had placed the order a month ago, as a surprise for her cousin. The cake was four tiers of pale blush buttercream, with hand-piped roses cascading down one side and delicate sugar pearls. It was gorgeous, delicious, and had taken hours to decorate.
“I’m sorry to hear about the issue with your plane, but better safe than sorry.
” I pinched the bridge of my nose while I tried to come up with a solution to the problem.
“I’m sure we can figure out a way to get the cake down to Miami before the party.
Maybe I can send one of my employees on a commercial flight down there.
Let me do some checking, and I’ll call you back in ten minutes. ”
“I’ll pay for the ticket, their overtime, and a hotel if that’s what it takes,” she offered.
As soon as I ended the call, Gage asked, “What’s wrong?”
“My client’s private jet is grounded. The cake needs to be in Miami tonight for her cousin’s engagement party,” I explained.
“Take mine.”
I blinked. “What?”
“Langford Tech has a jet. I might not be CEO anymore, but I still have access. Perks of family ownership. Let me fly it out for you.”
I stared at him. “You don’t have to do that.”
“I know.” He stepped closer. “But you need the cake delivered. I have the means. It’s not complicated unless you make it that way.”
I briefly considered arguing, but he’d offered the easiest solution to a problem with a ticking clock. It seemed silly not to accept. “Okay. Yes. Thank you.”
He pulled out his phone. “I’ll call the pilot. How soon can you get the cake to the airport?”
“I can send someone right now.”
“Perfect.”
He made the call, and I gave him the private airfield details Marisol had texted earlier. He repeated them to the pilot while I asked Jenny to help me load the cake into her car so she could drive it over. I knew I could trust her to get it there safely.
When he hung up, he grinned at me. “They can take off in thirty minutes. The flight is only a little more than three hours, so the cake will be there with plenty of time to spare.”
I nodded, still processing how quickly he stepped in. “I wish everything else were that easy. My delivery driver had a family emergency and will be out all week. I was planning to do the deliveries myself since nobody else has driven the van before.”
Gage glanced at the keys hanging on the hook behind the counter before studying me for a moment. “I’ll take his place this week.”
I laughed because I thought he was joking, but he didn’t join in. “You can’t be serious.”
“Why not?”
“You were the CEO of a billion-dollar company. You have a private jet.”
“Technically, I just own shares in a company that has a private jet.” He gave a small shrug. “And I don’t have a job right now.”
I choked on a laugh. “You actually mean it.”
“Let me do this, Tessa.” He stepped closer. “Please.”
I exhaled. “Okay. But if you damage the van, you’re paying for it.”
“Deal.”
A billionaire tech CEO was about to spend a week delivering cakes for me. And the weirdest part was how much I was looking forward to it.