Page 62 of A Sweet Mess

“I thought you’d never ask,” Aubrey said, putting on her oven mitts. “Do you see how golden brown they are around the edges? They’re ready.”

“Mmm. They look and smell marvelous.” Aria sounded genuinely excited as she watched Aubrey pull out the cookies from the oven. “I wonder how your Moscato sorbet is doing.”

“Why don’t we check?” Aria’s excitement was contagious, and Aubrey opened the ice cream maker with a little flair. The stunt sorbet they scooped out of the ice cream machine was perfect per script. “It looks ready, but there’s only one way to know for sure.”

In real life, as she’d written in her recipe, the sorbet would need two hours in the freezer to be firm enough to hold their shape between the cookies yet soft enough to scoop. Television magic made perfection a few steps quicker.

“It’s time to taste test the ice cream sandwiches.” Aria clasped her hands together.

“Let’s go to the assembly line.” Despite it being part make-believe, Aubrey couldn’t help getting excited about her Moscato sorbet sandwiches. “This batch of cookies was baked earlier in the morning so they’re ready to be assembled. Be sure to cool your cookies to room temperature at home before you assemble the sandwiches.”

It was so much fun putting together the ice cream sandwiches and chatting with Aria that Aubrey almost forgot she was being filmed. When they toasted each other with the finished product and took their first bites, they moaned in unison and dissolved into laughter.

“Cut! Great work, ladies.” This time, Stan said it with a smile. “Now, I think the rest of the crew should enjoy some of those ice cream sandwiches.”

To the cheers of the crew, Aria and Aubrey assembled the rest of the sandwiches and passed them out. Aubrey was filled with joy and pride. It was so gratifying to see the crew devour them with appreciative murmurs. Impressing them was no easy feat, considering these people were used to eating the fine cuisine that celebrity chefs prepared on their shows.

As she turned the corner to feed the rest of the crew, she heard Landon greet Stan and Aria. Her heart picked up speed with anticipation. She’d missed him all day, and she couldn’t wait to see his face. Moving as quickly as she could, she made sure everyone had their sorbet sandwiches. But as Aubrey turned to walk back, something stopped her cold.

“Landon, do you have a minute?” The voice belonged to the director.

“Sure. What can I do for you?”

“I wanted to speak with you about some concerns.”

She heard footsteps, and their voices drew closer. They hadmoved into the hallway leading to the kitchen, on the opposite side of the wall from where Aubrey was standing.

In a hushed tone, Stan said, “There are some rumors circulating among the crew. Of course, I’m always the last to hear, aside from the star of the gossip.”

“The suspense is killing me.” Landon’s words remained light, but tension underscored them. “Just spit it out, will you?”

“Some of the crew have been talking about your uncomplimentary review of Aubrey’s bakery and why you flipped your opinion by casting her for the show. They’re speculating your change of heart has something to do with your sleeping arrangement. Some of the jokes are turning bawdy.” He continued when Landon remained silent. “If their gossip gets out, it wouldn’t be good for the show and would be disastrous for your reputation.”

“Thanks for bringing it to my attention. Perhaps you and Aria could run a refresher course on professionalism and discretion.” She hardly recognized Landon’s voice when he spoke. It was so tightly controlled, she couldn’t find a hint of her Landon in it. “They’re industry professionals who have signed nondisclosure agreements. They should know better than to spread rumors.”

“If there is no truth to the rumors, I suggest as a friend that you cut ties with Ms. Choi immediately,” Stan said solemnly.

“Thank you for your concern, but there is no truth to the rumors. Aubrey Choi is a talented baker that I casted for the good of the show. Apart from that, she is nothing to me.”

The blood drained from Aubrey’s face, and the tray in her shaking hands tilted precariously. She couldn’t hear the rest of their conversation over the ringing in her ears.She is nothing to me.Her heart trembled and shrank back, searching for the safeplace where even her father’s disdain and indifference couldn’t hurt her. But it was gone. She’d let Landon in too deep, and there was no place to hide.

Nothing?She meant nothing to him? Did he want to keep her around as his dirty little secret?

No.

Landon would never do something like that. He would never treat her like a plaything to be used and cast aside. She wouldn’t give up on their relationship based on one overheard conversation. He cared about her and respected her. Aubrey knew that. She trusted him. And she would not crumble in front of the people who believed she would peddle her body for a step up in life.

Her pride and iron will reasserted themselves in full force. She had to pull herself together. Though the ringing in her ears receded, the shock left her limp and nauseous, but she’d crawl across a bed of rusty nails before she would let anyone see that. Filling her lungs with air, Aubrey returned to the kitchen with slow, measured steps.

“Whoa. Careful with these. It’d be a tragedy to waste them.” Landon appeared at her elbow and took the tray from her limp hands. When he got a closer look at her, his smile froze on his face. “What happened? Are you okay?”

“Nothing. It’s nothing.” She shook her head to clear it. “When did you get here?”

“A few minutes ago. Just in time for dessert.” He was smiling again, but he still watched her warily. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Not really. I’m beat.” Landon wouldn’t believe her if she kept insisting everything was okay.

“Let’s go back to the villa, then.”

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