Page 5 of Free to Breathe
It’s been like this since I appeared on the celebrity episode ofCaketasticon the Food Network with Brendan Blake six months ago. While the notoriety is excellent for business, I feel like there’s no end in sight. I haven’t had a full day off in a long time, and I have no assistants in the kitchen. Sure, I have Tina a couple of mornings, and interns from the local culinary institute, but that’s not what people are paying for. They’re sinking thousands of dollars for a Corinna Freeman trademark cake.
If we keep this pace up, it’s going to kill me.
Not even caring who’s where, I yell, “Get your asses into the conference room, now!” Fuming as I storm down the hallway, I run into a chest I know doesn’t belong to any of my family members.
Of course—Colby. “Excuse me.” I step aside to move by him, but he moves in front of me.
“Good morning, Cori.” He smiles. God, why couldn’t his face match the asshole I know who lives inside?
“Colby.” I nod. That’s about all the politeness I can manage for the man who once said—
Nope. Not going there today.
I hate that Colby’s taken Charlie’s ticket for the Brendan Blake concert since Charlie has a summer bug. Lucky me. One of the most insane gifts I’ve ever managed to give our family and he’s going to be along for the ride. Pushing past him, I walk down the hall toward the conference room.
Behind me, I hear him mutter, “Sorry. Next time I’ll get out of your way.”
Just stay out of my life, Colby. Permanently. You managed to do it for over ten years after you said you felt bad for the sweet fat chick you could “handle”. It’s not like we had a real friendship despite what I may have thought back then.
If I was a storm before, I’m a full-blown hurricane now as I burst into the conference room.
“Shit, she’s on the warpath,” Holly mutters. The youngest of our adopted family holds her camera up to her expert eye, aiming its lens at each of my siblings. “Who pissed her off today of all days?”
“We all know my version of cooking involves takeout or begging for food from one of y’all, so I’m free and clear. Next?” Em pipes up.
All eyes focus on Phil. I tap my sneaker-clad foot while I wait for him to speak. He looks affronted. Finally, I snap, “Well?”
“Listen, missy, if you’re pissy, don’t take it out on me.” Phil huffs.
“Phillip, if I’m ‘pissy’, it’s because I just spent the last half hour sorting out a double delivery of kitchen supplies. Do you want to know what that tells me?” Without waiting for him to answer, I continue. “Someone up here fucked up, and we’re about to lose thousands of dollars’ worth of perishables, or I got overbooked. Again. Which means I can’t cut loose the way I want to tonight because I’ll be back in the kitchen baking tomorrow. You know, the first day I was supposed to have off in six damn months!”
Ali has turned and is glaring at Phil. “You said you cleared the schedule with Cori, Phil, before I had the clients sign the contracts.” Ali, our company lawyer, has ironclad contracts. Short of a death in the family, there’s no breaking them.
Phil’s imminent death is looking awfully tempting.
“Umm, I meant to, but then I got caught up in my floral order…” His voice trails off as Cassidy, our chief executive officer, stands up and slaps her hand down on the table.
“Enough.” Her usually calm mask is gone. “Phil, you will be here at—” Cassidy turns to me. “What time, Cori?”
“I don’t even know what the hell I’m baking. I haven’t even seen the schedule.” I’m seething.
Cassidy pulls her iPad out and scrolls through the online program. She focuses on the screen before she lets out a sigh. Handing me her tablet, she sighs. “I’m sorry, Corinna.”
I look at the list and gasp. There are cakes due every day, including tomorrow.
“I have a cake to decorate in rose-gold foil by four. I now have to bake a three-tier cake and prepare the lemon curd filling to go in it for tomorrow. On top of that, I’ll have to be back tomorrow morning to decorate it in buttercream roses for the Collyer Garden Club. An order—” I pause to scan the intake form. “—you accepted yesterday?Yesterday?” I turn to my sister. “There’s nothing Phil can do, and nothing I want him to help with.”
Phil flinches.
“Fine. Alison, modify payroll this week to remove Phil’s percentages of any of the profits from anything he scheduled where Corinna didn’t sign off explicitly accepting the work.” Cassidy’s voice is calm but firm.
“That’s not fair!” Phil jumps to his feet. “I secured that business for us.”
“If Corinna, or any of us, had done this to you, you’d be outraged. You wouldn’t have tolerated a day off in six weeks, let alone six months. Since you aren’t a master baker who won us the notoriety to actually make these bookings, tell me what you plan on doing to make this up to your sister?” She holds up a hand. “A sister I might add who is taking us to the Brendan Blake concert this evening. A sister who expected to be able to spend time with her friend after the show unencumbered.”
Phil opens his mouth and then snaps it shut.
I don’t have time for this. “Someone get me a copy of the updated schedule within the next fifteen minutes. I have to go see if my kitchen has been set to rights.” I stomp toward the door. “And I’m just saying this: no lunch in the kitchen today. Keep out if you know what’s good for you.”
