Page 4 of Rival Hearts

We did not, in fact, have it in the bag.

Because the only predictable thing about owning a small business is its unpredictability.

The morning passed in a blur of familiar faces mixed with strangers who decided to check out the event. It was amazing, hectic, and I would’ve sworn I had Caleb beat—may have even bragged to Shannon about my impending victory when she stopped by to see how things were going an hour ago.

Then the bakery gods decided to bring me back to Earth.

“What's going on out there, Mandy?” There's a crowd of people gathered on the sidewalk, and the iPad I use as my register shows that it's only 3:13 in the afternoon. Hardly a popular time for business.

“Why don't you go check it out?” I ask, nodding toward the door.

Mandy slips from behind the counter and pushes the front door open, setting off the jingling bell. She shoots a cautious glance back at me, then turns to the left toward Brewed. Five minutes later, Mandy is back, and she doesn't look happy.

“He's having a coffee tasting on the sidewalk. Has a table set up with all these different flavors, then encourages people to go inside to purchase a cup of their favorite…” She bites her lip. “But that's not the worst part.”

“It's not?” I can't imagine what else Caleb could've cooked up. A coffee tasting? Why didn’t I think of something like that? I could’ve offered cake pop samples or something to entice people inside during a lull.

Afternoons are usually slow and peaceful, especially since I close up shop at 5 P.M., in accordance with most of the small businesses on Main Street. Brewed stays open later, but Caleb and I accounted for that in the contest rules—we’re only tallying customers between 8 to 5.

“Remember how that guy came in earlier and bought all of our muffins? All the blueberry, chocolate chip—”

“Poppyseed,” I finished the list of our most-coveted muffin flavors.

“Yeah. Well, that guy must be a friend of Caleb's because they're over there giving those muffins out for free with a drink purchase.”

“You're kidding. That lowdown, sneaky...” A growl of frustration swallows up my litany of insults. I don’t know why it never occurred to me that Caleb would sabotage me.

He is my archnemesis, after all.

“Okay, so what's our response?” I force myself to take a calming breath and focus on rebounding, but then see the status of our depleted display case. We don't have much left to sell with an hour and a half left until closing.

“Why don't I whip up batches of cookies? They're quick and easy to make, and we can take them outside…” she trails off, thinking through her plan.

“We can make the cookies, but even if they come in, we don't have very much to offer them. But it was a good suggestion.” Her shoulders slump in defeat, and I fight the urge to join her. I thought I estimated the right amount of surplus we would need today. But our marketing efforts surpassed even my expectations, and I might lose because of the miscalculation.

And Caleb’s sabotage.

I can’t believe he had an undercover shopper buy all of our muffins just to turn around and offer them as an incentive to purchase his coffee. A part of me admires the clever tactic—and wishes I’d thought of something just as calculating to mess with him—but mostly I’m annoyed. Losing those muffins wouldn’t be such a big hit if I’d baked more stock.

I may have just lost the Dough & Joe Duel due to an oversight, and the realization stings.

CHAPTER FOUR

CALEB

When six o’clock rolls around, Sierra marches into Brewed with Mandy not far behind her. They wear matching expressions of frustration as both women join me at the back of the cafe where the announcement of today’s winner will take place. Since Brewed stays open later than Buttercream Dreams, it made sense to have the conclusion of our first round here, with a declaration of the winner and encouragement for everyone present to attend our next event, Pastry Palooza, two days from now on Wednesday.

“Caleb.”

“Sierra.” I mimic her derisive tone, though it’s difficult to mask my amusement. She’s clearly pissed about my decision to use her muffins for my own benefit, but I couldn’t resist the temptation. Teasing her is practically my side hustle because it’s fun and Sierra makes it way too easy.

“Welcome everyone to The Cafe Clash!” James smiles and waves at a few latecomers. We chose an impartial party—McCoy Security—to handle tabulations and judging for the contest. As part of the family that owns the security firm and a military veteran, James McCoy is a popular man in Suitor’s Crossing and the perfect person to ensure nothing is rigged in anyone’s favor.

Not that this event is supposed to be anything but a fun way to increase visibility and profits for the bakery and coffee shop. The overall winner gets bragging rights, but that’s it. Otherwise, both Sierra and I come out victorious.

“Thank you for celebrating the Dough & Joe Duel with us. I hope everyone enjoyed the delicious treats and drinks offered today. I know I did.” James pats his flat stomach, causing everyone to laugh. Raising a white envelope in the air, he motions for the crowd to quiet down. “Here are the results for today’s winner. They’ll have a leg up going into the next challenge—Pastry Palooza—on Wednesday. And the winner is… Brewed by a margin of seven! Congratulations to Caleb and his staff!”

Huh, that was closer than I thought it would be after my strong push at the end of the day.

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