Page 29 of Emerald Moon
nine
Aftertheirshift,Jowas in the back of the bakery working on a new batch of macarons when Harry came in from the front and announced, “You’ve got a visitor.”
Billie shot them a look.“Don’t leave this room without cleaning up your station first.”
“I will.I will,” Jo promised, doing their best to tidy their area quickly and wipe their hands on their already messy apron.
There were signs of baking all over their shirt when they took off their apron, but it was likely Krista out there waiting for them, and she wouldn’t mind how Jo looked.
They stepped out of the bakery, blinking as they adjusted to the noise out front.Classical music was playing and the sun glinted off the chandelier in the middle of the room.They scanned the room for Krista, ready to spot her rainbow hair, but instead she saw — “Cass?”
Waving, she stood off to the side of the counter, out of the way of customers.Jo glanced away to not make eye contact, only to notice the little yellow birds on her shirt.Cute.They dropped their eyes to her shoes as she approached.
“I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” she said.
Jo looked up.“Cass!No, you’re not interrupting anything.I’m just making a batch of macarons in the back, but I can step away for a moment!”
She looked like she was going to reply, but nothing came out.The two of them stood there, looking at each other.Jo held their breath, wondering why this felt awkward again.
“Do you want to —“ Jo pointed towards an open table.
“Oh!Yeah!Sure.I’ll just —“ Cass stiffly walked over and took her seat.
Jo flopped down in the seat across from her.They locked eyes and Jo had to look away.
“It’s wonderful that you’re working on your macarons,” Cass said.“How are they coming out?”
“Not too bad, actually!”Jo replied, feeling a swell of pride.“I tweaked my recipe a little and the consistency was way better than it has been.I could go grab one for you!”They stood up.“Oh, but you don’t like sweets, do you?”
“I’d try one.”
“Okay!Give me a second and I’ll — back — I’ll be right back.”Jo scurried back into the kitchen.The second the doors swung shut behind them, they paused, staring straight ahead with wide eyes.Why was this so awkward?It hadn’t been the other day when they were all hanging out.Was it because they were alone and last time Wil and Krista had been there, too?Was this the start of the annoying friend crush?
They realized Billie was staring at them.
“You stuck or something?”she asked.
“Just getting some macarons!”Jo dashed over and grabbed two of the better-looking ones before going back out front, stopping at the cases to grab a hand pie, too.
They presented the small haul once they got back to the table.“Some macarons to try and also a hand pie, you know, since you like savory stuff, and you haven’t been here before and I wanted to give you a taste of what talented people can make here and not just the weird, blobby things I make.”
“They look nice,” Cass said, picking up a creamy white macaron.“What flavor are they?”
“Vanilla bean.I wanted to focus on the construction more than the flavors today.Also, I didn’t feel like scrubbing dye off my hands later tonight.”
Cass stuck the entire thing in her mouth, her cheeks puffing out as she chewed.
Jo watched for a reaction, but she gave nothing away until she swallowed and gave a thumbs up.
“It was delicious.”
“Yeah?Not bad?Even though it’s sweet and not savory?”
“I really enjoyed it.”
“And you’re not just saying that to be nice?”Jo laughed to cover up their nerves.
“I don’t lie.”
