Page 38 of Cloud Storm

“I have something to tell you,” Roselynn announces just as I sink my teeth into the warm bun.

“And you were waiting for this moment to tell me, right?” I growl. What? I have my mouth full of food. I’m doing my best here, don’t judge.

“I had to wear you out first, you’re a tough cookie, gal.”

I roll my eyes so hard.

“Speak.”

“You know we are a new business and we have a lot of competition.”

I’ve finished with my mouthful of food and now I take a sip of my cherry lemonade.

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

“So, as you know Cupcakes’ Battle is coming to San Diego for a special episode.”

Yeah, I knew this, but when I got all the information, they’d already closed the admission. Plus, I don’t think we’re ready. Our bakery is too new, we need more experience.

One of my role model bakers is a judge on the show, and I’ve always thought that if by some miracle I ever got to go on the Bakery Coliseum, I’d need months and months to train my team, to get the recipes ready, in order to give my best on the best show.

Participating could be a double-edged sword. It could be awesome, an incredible experience or you could potentially be ruined. The growing reputation of The Sweet Tooth couldn’t take a failure that large, so waiting until next year would be best.

I can hear that French judge now, saying with his fancy accent, “This tastes like a flat tire.”

No, no, not even in my worst nightmares.

“I know,” I manage to reply to my friend.

“Oliver is dating this girl, Nikki, she’s awesome. The thing is, she knows the producer—they were roommates in college, I think—so, they saved a spot for us to go to the Cupcakes’ Battle.”

“You have to be shitting me.” This is a joke, a bad one at that. How dare she?

“I’m dead serious, Ariel,” she states. “We are going on Cupcakes’ Battle.”

“Roselynn, we aren’t ready for this! We’d need to do a hell of a lot of practice and preparation, and they’ll be filming here in just two weeks.”

“I know,” she replies. “Oliver just told me, and I’m as nervous as you are.”

Ha!

“You aren’t the one having to stand in front of a thousand cameras and bake.”

“I can be your assistant if you want,” she replies smiling. Roselynn is a good friend and the best business manager I know, but she’s useless in the kitchen. Her husband does all the cooking for them both. “But you know, taking Katie with you would give us a better chance of winning the big prize.”

“You know the prize is the reputation, right? It’s not just the money you get.”

“Ariel, of course I know that, this is my business too. I want the best for it, for the both of us, and I know I’m asking a lot from you.”

“You’re asking for something impossible,” I reply. As I said, this needs lots of training and I’m not ready mentally or physically.

“You said the same when I told you about the money to open the bakery, but it worked out fine, didn’t it? So shut the fuck up and focus, because we are already in, and now we just need a plan.”

But this is different. When she offered me the money to open the bakery I was ready, I had a plan in motion. It took me months and months of baking, researching and some failures along the way too. This doesn’t compare, that’s for sure. But what choice do I have if she’s already committed us?

“Tell me what you need,” Roselynn asks.

“Time.” That’s the one thing she can’t buy for us, but we need it anyway.

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