Chapter 3
Reina
I don't know what I expected, but the reality was devastating. My kitchen was a mess. The appliances needed to be replaced. The fire and water damage was extensive. I couldn't bake. I wasn't sure when I'd be able to reopen.
I was so used to starting my morning with baking in this kitchen; I wasn't sure what to do with myself. The next few months stretched ahead of me without any purpose or intention. What was I going to do with my time? If my business was closed, how would I make money?
I needed to renovate the kitchen, but that was a task for the Sterling brothers and Eve. I was a baker without a kitchen. How would I fulfill the orders I already had?
I needed to call around town and see if anyone had a kitchen that could accommodate me for a few months. Maybe I could increase the online ordering portion of my business until I had a storefront again.
I couldn't even deal with the conversation I'd overheard. Morgan telling Maddox that he'd handle me because Tom was deployed and couldn't be bothered? Screw that.
I wasn't a burden. I took care of myself and my business.
I waited in the passenger side of his truck, fuming while he lifted my suitcase into the back.
He opened the door and looked at me. "I'm sorry you overheard—"
"I don't care," I said curtly, refusing to look at him.
He sighed. "I wanted to apologize."
"There's no need." He'd been honest about what this was. He'd offered me a place to live to alleviate his guilt over his stupid vow to my brother. I couldn't deal with their stupid pacts. I wasn't a damsel in distress. I didn't need anyone to save or protect me.
Even if my heart contracted at the memory of him pulling me out of that fire.
But he'd probably done it because of my brother. Not because he was worried about me.
Men were stupid.
But I had a bakery to save. I couldn't be distracted.
Morgan sighed again and turned on the engine. "After the investigation is completed, I can do a full inspection. The good news is that when you reopen, you'll have more than enough capacity to handle whatever appliances you want to install."
I didn't want to have to deal with him at all, but he was the town's electrician. I'd have to work with him. "In the meantime, I'll find another place to live."
His jaw tightened. "That's not necessary."
"I don't want to be a burden."
"I wish you hadn't heard what I said. That's not what I meant. I want to help you. Why won't you let me?" He glanced over at me.
I looked out the window. "Because it's due to some misguided promise you gave my brother. It's ridiculous."
"You know how it is when someone deploys. He was worried about you, and I wanted to alleviate his stress. I wanted to take one thing off his plate."
That made me pause because I understood that desire. "I don't want Tom to find out, but I'm not a thing to be handled."
"If it alleviates Tom's mind to know you're here with me and you're safe, isn't that what you want?"
I couldn't say no to that. "I'll stay with you for now."
"And we agree that we don't tell your brother about the fire. He doesn't need to know."
"Of course not." That was one thing we agreed on. Tom didn't need to know about any of it. "You really think he'd want me living with you though?"
"He'd want to know you were safe, and he knows I'll protect you with my life."
I licked my lower lip. "You did last night."
"Yeah."
But it was probably because of the vow he'd made. "I don't want to talk about that stupid promise you made to my brother anymore."
He laughed softly. "Me either."
"Good." I knew I was being stubborn. I hated the idea of two men talking about me like I needed their protection. It was absurd. I wasn't a kid anymore. I could take care of myself.
He shifted slightly in his seat and glanced over at me. "You know a lot of people are going to want to help you. Will you let them?"
I crossed my arms over my chest. "I don't see how I have a choice if I want to get the bakery open again anytime soon."
"Everyone wants to see that happen. But it will go more quickly if you accept the help that's offered."
"I will," I said curtly.
A smile curved over his lips. "Why do I have a feeling you're going to fight me at every turn?"
I let out a breath. "I'll cooperate."
He shook his head, an amused expression on his face. "Somehow I don't believe you."
I shifted slightly so that I was facing him.
"The bakery is everything to me. Baking is the one thing I'm good at.
I wasn't sure I could handle the business side of things, but I figured it out.
I shared my baked goods with the town, and everyone seemed to love them.
But now, I'm not sure how I'm going to survive without that income.
Will I lose clientele to Telluride? If I'm closed for a long time, people will forget about me. They'll move on."
"I have a feeling you have a plan for that."
"I need to find a kitchen that can accommodate me, and then I'll reach out to my existing customers and tell them I can still process their orders.
I'll make it clear that I intend to continue to take orders and deliver them.
I'll provide a service, and they'll want to come back when the shop is reopened. "
His brow furrowed. "Why can't you use my kitchen?"
"You only have one oven, and it's not a commercial size. I produce far more than your kitchen could handle."
"Your ovens in the bakery were something."
"They aren't cheap either," I said dryly.
"You have insurance and already have a plan in place for the interim. You're going to be okay."
"I hope that's enough." I was quiet for a few seconds as he parked in his driveway. "I'm not good at having nothing to do. I'm usually baking at this time of day."
He looked over at me. "You want to find a kitchen now?"
"You would help me?" I asked, a little surprised that he would want to get involved with this aspect of the business.
"I can come with you." He backed out of the driveway. “Where to? Christmas Town?”
"Let’s try there first." I was relieved now that I had a task to complete. Secure a kitchen, purchase ingredients, and get to work. Maybe I could reach out to the restaurants I delivered to and see if they'd want to increase their orders. My mind was racing with possibilities.
"Should we have grabbed your car when we were at the bakery?"
I winced, not wanting to rely on him to drive me around for the next few months. "I don't have one. Everything I need is in town, or I call a driver. But you live outside of town."
"I thought you had a car at some point?"
"I sold it to open the business. I needed everything I had to get started. I figured I'd get one when things took off, but then I didn't really need one. Until now."
"Then it's settled. I'll be your chauffeur."
"You don't have to do this. I can call a friend. I'm sure one of them will help me." The shop owners had rallied around Angela when her shop flooded.
"I have nothing to do today, so I'm all yours. Your other friends are probably running their stores today.
What was I going to do with all this time on my hands? What if I couldn't secure a kitchen? What if I couldn't fulfill my existing contracts? What if I lost the customer base I'd so carefully built?
"You're spiraling over there, aren't you?" He glanced at me, then the road.
My lips quirked. "Possibly."
"Don't worry. We're going to find you a kitchen."
"You can't know that for sure," I said.
"We're both determined people, and we get what we want, so we're going to find you something."
He was helping me because of my brother, but I wasn't going to turn down his offer of a ride. I didn't want to be alone with my thoughts right now anyway.
"What about the church?" He nodded toward the white building with the steeple. It was set back from the road slightly with a grass lawn area that kids loved playing on.
"That's a good idea. Hopefully, the minister doesn't hold it against me that I only attend at Christmas or when I'm worried about Tom."
He parked at the curb. "You go to church sometimes?"
"I pray for Tom to come home safely. It feels more impactful if I'm inside the church," I admitted, a little surprised that I'd shared that detail with him. I felt more comfortable with him because he understood what it was like to be close to someone who was deployed.
He reached over and took my hand. "It's really hard when he's gone."
"I only get to talk to him occasionally. He reserves most of his calls for our parents and maybe a girl I don't know. Not that he'd share that information with me."
"I don't get the video calls, but he emails to stay in touch. He wants to know what's going on with the town and my family."
"He's always loved your family." It felt good that we shared our affection for Tom.
"I don't know why. They are loud and annoying." But his voice was light.
I waved my hand at him. "You love them."
"I do. Especially now that my brothers are taking the pressure off me by pairing off with significant others. Mom doesn't give me a hard time about being single."
I ticked the couples off on my fingers. "Maverick and Belle. Hudson and Angela, Ford and Natasha."
"And Lincoln and Penny."
I stared at the red double doors of the church.
He rested his hand on the steering wheel, turning slightly to face me. "Are you ready to go inside?"
"There aren't many places in town that are going to have a large enough kitchen with multiple ovens." If it was the perfect space, then I had to convince the owners to let me use the kitchen. Was this something people even did?
He tapped the steering wheel. "We won't know until we check it out."
"Let's go see." I opened the door and got out.
He met me on the sidewalk, and we walked side by side down the path that led to the steps and the doors. He opened the heavy wooden door. Inside, it was quiet and hushed.
"Maybe we should have called ahead," I whispered to him.