Page 17 of Whisk Me Away

The gravel crunched under my tires as I steered my cruiser to my spot next to the house. When I moved out of Mom and Dad’s, I spent a significant portion of my savings on this place, knowing full well it was a fixer-upper in dire need of updating. The plan was to take it one project at a time until I brought the farmhouse back to life.

I climbed out of my SUV and trudged up the gravel path leading to my front door. Exhaustion weighed heavily on my shoulders. It had been a typical day in Ashwood Falls. Nothing crazy happened except the excitement that our little town finally had another bakery after the previous one had been closed down for so long.

The sun dipped low on the horizon, casting long shadows over the sprawling fields and outskirts of trees that surround my humble abode. As I approached the front steps, I couldn’t help but admire the progress on the wrap-around porch. It was the first project I tackled when I bought this place, and though it’s still a work in progress, it was slowly but surely coming together.

Weathered and worn from years of neglect, the porch now boasted freshly painted railings and newly replaced floorboards. The only thing I added was a set of black wooden rocking chairs on the left side of the front door. There weren’t plants or anything to make it seem welcoming, but compared to how it looked when I bought the place, the refinished porch gave the house solid curb appeal.

Although the front porch now looked nice, I spent most of my time on the back porch. I had a flat-top griddle that I used whenever I cooked at home. I wasn’t a gourmet chef, but I could hold my own. I wasn’t starving. Mom would be proud. On the other side of the back porch was a wrought iron table with six chairs for when my family inevitably decided to crash my house and refuse to leave.

I pushed through the front door, tossing my badge and keys on the entry table before toeing off my boots.

I held the refrigerator open, contemplating whether I wanted to make something or just order in when I felt a faint buzzing against my thigh. Fishing my phone out of my pocket, I saw a text from Karis. The way my heart kicked up at the sight of her name on my phone was a bit concerning. Choosing to ignore that little realization, I slid my thumb across the screen, opening her message.

Hi. Thanks for stopping by today, your brother really knows how to make an entrance. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the treats.

I stood in my kitchen with the fridge door open, reading her text repeatedly until the beeping of my refrigerator pulled me out of my haze. Right, food. I closed the fridge and walked toward the living room before sinking down into my favorite chair, contemplating how to respond to Karis. Realizing I was thinking way too hard about this, I sent off a simple reply.

Hey. That’s one way to put it. *Eye roll Emoji* The treats were delicious. Thanks. Hope the rest of your day went well.

I swiped out of the text thread and pulled up the contact for the Asian place in town. They were one of the few places that delivered in Ashwood Falls, and I didn’t feel like going back into town to pick something up. After calling my order in, I tossed my phone on the coffee table and headed straight for the shower.

As I went through my post-shift shower routine, I couldn’t help how my mind wandered to Karis. It took some guts to open your own business, especially with no experience, but you would never know if she was nervous. Seeing her today, she looked perfectly at peace. In her element. Like this was what she was made to do. It was inspiring. If the sampling of treats I had today were anything to go by, she was definitely in the right profession. Those treats were terrific.

I hurried through the rest of my shower before drying off and slipping into a pair of grey sweats and a black tee. I scrubbed the towel across my head and ran my fingers through my hair a few times before leaving my bathroom and heading for the living room. Not five minutes after I got comfortable, my doorbell rang. I swung the door open and paid for my food before taking the bag to the dining table and digging in. It had been a while since I had Chen’s, and I was excited.

I placed the California roll on the table and pulled out the crab wontons and the chicken lo mien. A small smile tugged at the corner of my lips as I took my first bite. Olivia always hated the smell of Asian food, so I didn’t have it as often as I would have liked when we were together. Now I got to eat it whenever I wanted. That was precisely why I wanted my life just the way it was. No one dictating what I could and couldn’t do.

CHAPTER 12

KARIS

It had been two weeks since opening day, and the hype had yet to fade. The steady stream of customers flowing through the bakery had brought excitement and exhaustion. I was slowly learning what items were town favorites and which items should be part of the rotating menu.

When I was working at the bakery in Kansas City, they had a rotating menu. I adopted the same concept at Whisk Me Away, making specific treats and swapping them out each month for a new set. I planned to add some of my seasonal favorites as the Christmas season approached.

I couldn't believe it was almost Christmas, which meant I had been back in Ashwood Falls for nearly three months. I was still living at Mom and Dad's house but actively looking for my own place. Mom finished her treatment a few weeks ago and seems to be recovering okay. Her doctors were encouraged and believed that the treatment was successful but we wouldn’t know for sure until she had another scan. She had more appointments and follow-ups, but we were hopeful and grateful.

Since Mom was doing well and had yet to need much help from me, not that I’ve had a ton of time with the opening of the bakery, I was looking for my own place to either buy or rent. One of the girls I knew from high school was one of the town realtors. We weren’t super close back in the day, but from what I could remember, she was always kind. She’d been sending me listings every week. So far, I hadn’t seen anything I loved enough to spend the money on. I was being picky. I knew that, yet I couldn't make myself pull the trigger on any of the houses I'd seen.

Sometimes, I had a problem making decisions. If there were too many options, I tended to get analysis paralysis. My brain got overwhelmed and decided it didn’t want to work anymore. Leaving me to panic, picking something just so I could move forward. I was trying really hard to be a big girl and not fall into that trap with a decision as big as this one. Buying a house felt so permanent, so mature, and grown up. I knew that I’d just bought a bakery and started my own shop, but for some reason, buying a house felt different.

I pulled my mind back from my swirling thoughts before I could stress myself out. I ran my fingers through the blonde waves falling around my shoulders. Today I wore my favorite pair of dark wash jeans with a lacy white blouse and a black blazer over the top.

Church had ended, and I was sitting on a couch in the back office, waiting for my parents to finish before we headed to their house for Sunday dinner. I could have been out there chatting with the townsfolk, but after the last two weeks, I was exhausted and needed a minute to myself.

But I guess I jinxed it, because the moment that thought passed through my mind, the doors to the office flew open.

"I've been looking for you,” Eden sighed. "You left me out there alone. I thought we had a deal,” she gave me her best annoyed look.

I bit my bottom lip, holding back the smile as best I could.

When Eden and I were younger, we made a pact. We wouldn't leave each other alone after church until we returned to the office or found safety in a group of friends. We knew that if we got caught by ourselves, one of the ladies from the knitting group would drag us into one of their impromptu meetings, and we would never escape. That happened more times that I could count over the years.

They would press us for details about our friends at school, drama with the teachers, or anything about our friend's parents. After many failed attempts to extract any and all gossip, they would resort to teaching us different knitting techniques until we'd eventually get rescued by our parents.

One day, after one too many run-ins, I found Eden hiding in the church office behind the same couch I was sitting on now. After getting on to her about leaving me alone, we decided to make a pact, which had served us well ever since. Well, that was until today.

I shrugged sheepishly.

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