Page 112 of Fire and Icing

Each judge goes down the line, stating how the two desserts compared based on each of the three criteria. When all the judges have finished making their comments, Kamela stands between us and the other couple.

She looks into the camera and says, “I know each of you at home are eager to find out who won this year’s Plated Network’s Half-Baked Competition. We’ll be right back after this commercial break to find out.”

The cameras pause recording. Dustin’s arm remains securely tucked behind me. We don’t move as we only have two minutes until the cameras are rolling again.

Kamela welcomes the television audience back and then she says, “Well, are you ready to find out who the judges picked?” She glances at our competitors and then us.

We all nod.

The first judge says, “It was a very difficult choice, but in the end, it came down to the execution of the concept. And because of the way this couple represented the frailty of love and the bridge between two separate individuals, I chose Emberleigh and Dustin.”

I glance up at Dustin. His hand on my back tightens momentarily and he smiles down at me.

The next three judges share their votes, one after the other. Two are in favor of our competition. The fourth says she sides with us. We’re tied.

Kamela looks into the camera. “We have two judges left. If both of them vote for the same couple, we have a winner. If we end up in a tie, the contestants will compete in a speed round tie-breaker. Each couple will have forty-five minutes to create a dessert according to our specifications.”

Kamela turns to the fifth judge. He’s the one Dustin always thought was flirting with me. Geoffrey.

After a dramatic pause, Geoffrey says, “The competition was fierce. I’ll admit I had my biases—but this dessert won me over. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I have to say, Dustin and Emberleigh gave me a confection worthy of the prize.”

The studio is still as the cameras pan to the final judge. She smiles at each of us. “I am honored to have been one of the judges for such a talented group of bakers. Each of you deserve to be here and you both deserve to win. I do have a favorite. And,I’m happy to say, the dessert created by Dustin and Emberleigh was the winner.”

Her words wash over me. Did she say … Dustin and Emberleigh? We won?

“We won!” Dustin shouts.

As soon as my eyes land on his, reality sinks in. We won!

I jump up and down, throwing my arms around Dustin. He pulls me in, hugging me close. His voice rumbles through his chest. “We won! You won, Firecracker!”

I pull back, looking up into his eyes. He bends down, placing his mouth next to my ear. “You did it. I’m so proud of you. You deserve this.”

He starts to pull back. The warmth of his breath still lingers on the shell of my ear. The buzz of excitement fills me. The studio audience is cheering. Dustin’s cheek grazes mine. I grab his face, cupping his cheeks in my hands, and I kiss him. He smiles into our kiss. I can feel his lips turn upward.

Pulling back, I whisper, "I ... I'm sorry. That was … I’m so happy!"

Dustin brings his mouth back so it’s right next to my cheek and he whispers, "Don't apologize. I've wanted to do that for a while."

He steps back, taking my hand in his, looking down at me with a look I’ll never forget for as long as I live.

Kamela says something into the camera to the viewing audience. Everything around us becomes a blur. Cameras zoom in, Branson appears seemingly out of nowhere, a microphone extended in our direction. “Congratulations, Emberleigh and Dustin!”

I’m half grateful for the distraction, half flustered. I want to talk to Dustin. But, do I? What if I’m misreading his signals? He’s a golden retriever through and through—the kind of person who makes everyone feel special. Unfortunately, people like mecan end up misreading all that warmth for something more than it is.

I set all my thoughts about Dustin aside while Kamela thanks the viewers at home and tells them to tune in to the next cooking show the network is hosting.

Someone on the production team shouts, “That’s a wrap!”

The stage lights start powering down.

A member of the security team ushers us through the back doors into a hallway and out to Dustin’s truck while the studio audience is escorted to their cars.

I’ve barely buckled when Dustin turns to me and says, “That was amazing! I knew you’d win.”

“We won.”

“I couldn’t have won a baking contest at a preschool. You won.”

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