Page 13 of Losing My Rejection

He pushed his way past me, his hand already on the door.

“I’ll pay you double!”

Josh stopped.

“And you’ll have health insurance. It’s full-time work with odd hours, but I guarantee you’ll make forty a week, if not more. With that kind of money, you could get out of Shifter Grove faster and do whatever it is you want to do.”

He glanced back at me, and I recognized the flash of consideration in his eyes. I had his attention.

“I’ll even give you a starting bonus. And, if I ever say anything out of line to you, I give you my full permission to deck me in the face.” I held three fingers up on my right hand. “Scout’s honor. I’ll even put it in your contract so I can’t fire you for it.”

“What’s the catch?” Josh asked, eyeing me suspiciously.

“No catch,” I replied, shaking my head. “I just really fucking need the help.”

He considered me for a long moment before his shoulders slouched and relaxed. Taking a deep breath, he stepped back into the room, his chest heaving a great sigh.

“What do you need made?” he asked.

My heart nearly jumped out of my chest. “You’ll do it? You’ll take the job?”

“I’ll give you a trial run,” he grumbled, pointing a finger at me. “Any funny business from you, and I’m fucking gone.” He snapped his fingers. “Like that.”

I held my hands up in defeat. “I understand one hundred percent. No funny business from me.”

“So what do you need made?” he repeated.

I hesitated for a moment, still reeling from his sudden and unexpected acceptance. I couldn’t believe I’d gotten him to stay. It was a miracle.

“Uh… cinnamon rolls.”

He lifted an eyebrow.

“Your cinnamon rolls. Five dozen.”

“Right.” Josh turned around, grabbing an apron from a nearby hook.

“I’ll show you where the–”

“Fuck off,” he snapped, rolling up his sleeves. “I know what I’m fucking doing.”

I stood there in shock. Nobody in my cafe had ever talked to me like that before. In fact, I don’t think anyone had ever, possibly. For half a second, I wanted to be upset, but I quickly tamped that feeling down. Josh was a fucking gift from the gods and the only reason I was going to get a good night’s sleep for the first time in months. If he wanted to talk to me that way, that was fine. As long as he could bake, I didn’t give a shit. I would take him hating me in stride.

And, if I was being honest, it sort of turned me on…

No. Stop that right now.

Taking a deep breath, I decided to leave Josh to it and do everything I could to push thoughts of him from my mind. I went back to my table full of dough and continued what I was doing. Out of the corner of my eye I kept tabs on him, just to get an idea of how he worked.

The man was a whirlwind. He buzzed around the kitchen like he owned the place. Somehow, without any introduction, he knew where to find all the pans, supplies, and machinery. Within ten minutes he had the large standing mixer going, putting together his dough for the rolls. In the meantime he beat together the filling and put it in the walk-in cooler so it didn’t melt.

When he had to wait for his dough to rise, he asked for another project to start. I told him he could make the scones, and he was off again. I’d never seen someone work so fast and with such competence. By the time he was done with half the scones, the cinnamon rolls were ready to be formed. By the time he finished the scones, the rolls were going in the oven. He didn’t ask for recipes, directions, or what flavors I usually used.

The bakery filled with the scent of warm cinnamon and sugar, driving away all other smells. More than once my barista came back to ask if there were any ready because customers could smell it and were already asking. Some of them had even decided to stay in the cafe until the rolls were out because it just smelled too good to pass up.

Josh was making me money and I hadn’t even technically signed him on as an employee yet.

The only moment I stepped in to help was at the very end when the rolls were coming out. My barista had already sold at least a dozen, so we plated and glazed a pan of them hot and took them straight out to the customers. Raving reviews followed their first bites, and I knew Josh wasn’t just relying on beginner’s luck. He knew what he was doing and there was no doubt in my mind now. Sam had inadvertently found me the perfect solution to all my problems.

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