Page 2 of The Accidental Honeymoon

“Of course!” I agree, my words coming out in a rush. “I’m doing this whole wedding for exposure, so take as many photos as you’d like. Just give me a heads up if I’m embarrassing myself.”

He smiles as he pulls out his phone. “Will do.”

As I begin arranging the samples, I can feel Jay's eyes on me. Stop it, Calla. He's not checking you out. He's probably just making sure you don't break anything expensive.

I clear my throat, pushing away the unwelcome thoughts. "This commission means a lot to me. It's my first big wedding cake, and I want everything to be perfect."

Jay is laser-focused on taking pictures of each square of cake. Without looking up, he says, "I'm sure it will be. Fromwhat I've heard about You Butter Believe It, you're the best in the city of Greater."

Greater is the small suburb of Atlanta, Georgia that I just moved to a few months ago. It’s by far the nicest place I’ve ever lived, with its mix of shops and restaurants surrounded by concentric rings of idyllic yards with stately Victorian homes.

So far, Iloveit.

Jay’s unexpected kindness catches me off guard, though. I duck my head, focusing on cutting perfect slices of each flavor. "That's... thank you. I just hope I can live up to the hype."

“That’s what I’m counting on.”

"Speaking of hype, how did you end up choosing my bakery? Greater's not exactly short on cake shops. There’s Slice Slice Baby, Bake My Breath Away, If It Bakes You Happy…" I pause. “God, what is wrong with all of the bakeries in this town? Our names are all such eye-rolling song title puns.”

“I’m sure yours is the best, though.” Jay's eyes twinkle mischievously. "Would you believe me if I said it was destiny?"

I snort, unable to help myself. "Not unless destiny smells like buttercream and has a terrible pun for a name."

He chuckles, a warm sound that sends an unexpected flutter through my chest. "Fair enough. Truth is, I don't really eat sweets. But I remember seeing your shop in the town square. Blake and I were having a… discussion after she fired the new cake baker. We were walking through the square and I thought… why not go with You Butter Believe It? Plus, you picked up when I called.”

"How romantic," I tease. “If stress and last-minute decisions count as romance.”

“It was something, all right,” he mutters under his breath.

I finish setting up then check the time. We’ve been waiting here for fifteen minutes. Ideally, both partners would taste all the cakes while I explained the flavor combinations. However, their wedding is in three days. If I don’t get started on their cake soon, it could be disastrous.

“When should we expect Blake?” I check my watch.

He heaves an exaggerated sigh. “That’s like asking me to predict the future. There is no way of knowing. She likes to keep people on their toes.”

His tone is thick with sarcasm even as he admits it.

That’s not great. And he looks so resigned as he says it.Yikes on trikes.

"All right," I announce, gesturing to the array of mini cakes. "We can get started, if you’re down with that. Let's focus on the vanilla bean first. It’s a flavor so classic that it borders on cliché?—"

"Actually," Jay interrupts, flashing me a smirk. "There is one flavor I'm particularly interested in. Do you make Berry Gentilly Lace cake?"

“No…” I blink, caught off guard. “Should I have?”

“I don’t know. It’s the only cake that I really crave, though.”

"I... haven't heard of it. But I can definitely look into it! What is it?"

As I make a mental note to research the recipe later, Jay's face lights up.

"It's incredible. I had it when I went to a wedding in New Orleans. It’s an almond cake with fresh berries and a whipped mascarpone cream frosting. It’s the perfect balance of sweet and tart, as lightand fluffy as a cloud.” He puts his fingers to his mouth and makes a chef’s kiss gesture. “Perfection.”

“Sounds like I need to do some research.” I make a note on my phone that just saysBerry Gentilly Lace????I’m only half convinced that the handsome groom is just making things up to mess with me.

“I like that you seem game for the challenge.” His lips twitch.

Okay, now I’m like ninety percent certain that Jay is messing with me. I mumble, “Uh huh…”

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