Page 31 of Beauty and the Baker
“It has to be one of the best cakes I’ve ever eaten.” He swiped the little bit of frosting from the plate and licked his finger clean.
“What ever made you think of doing that, Charlie?” Cassie asked.
Charlie froze.Did he miss some part of the conversation?“I’m not sure what you are talking about.”
“Maybelle said that you added the coffee to the batter,” Frances offered. “I would never have dreamed of that.”
Charlie’s eyes flew back to Georgina. She gave him a half-smile before turning to Hal. “It was quite by accident, but I think Charlie has a natural gift in the kitchen.”
“You should put him in charge of creating new flavors. Imagine what other combinations he could come up with,” Hal boasted, stuffing another bite of cake in his mouth.
Georgina looked at Charlie. “I’d like that very much. Maybe he can come to the bakery and help me out.”
“At least it would get him out of the house,” Cassie said.
“I can’t see a problem with that,” Charlie said.
“Good,” said Maybelle. “You can help Georgina starting tomorrow.”
Georgina was exhausted. Dinner was lovely, but she was ready to go to bed.
Max carried Maybelle home and deposited her in her favorite chair in the sitting room. She insisted on walking, but Max didn’t want her to risk falling. It was, after all, his cat that got her into this predicament.
Georgina reflected back on the events of the evening. It was a surprise for sure, to see Charlie there, especially after he left so abruptly that afternoon. Since they didn’t have any extra ingredients, Maybelle insisted that Georgina not waste the cake batter. So, she baked it anyway and let it cool.
She had enough for two layers and a little tiny cake that she and Maybelle could split to taste the flavor. That was a trick Maybelle taught her … always create a tester that could be eaten immediately. That way you weren’t destroying the entire cake to make sure it tasted good.
The cake smelled heavenly while it was cooking, and Georgina’s mouth watered …it actually watered…as she pulled it out from the oven.
The first cake she made was all but forgotten as she and Maybelle gobbled down the sample of the chocolate cake with the coffee in it.
Georgina was so happy it was well received by everyone. Maybelle swore them to silence, stating that she wanted to keep the recipe for the bakery only. Everyone agreed.
Max bid them goodnight and Georgina watched him walk out the garden gate. He open and closed the gate three times, before making sure the latch was secure. Georgina drew the blind and went into the sitting room with her aunt.
“I think that went very well this evening, don’t you?” Georgina nodded. “I noticed you were very attentive to Charlie,” her aunt said.
“I don’t think I was. I paid as much attention to him as I did to everyone else.”
“Yes, but it was the way you looked at him. I’ve seen that look before.” She adjusted her skirt, pulling it from underneath her splints. “Your mother had that look when she first met your father. I would look at my Phillip that way. And now, you are looking at Charlie that way.”
“I am not looking at Charlie in any way. I’ve only known him for two days.”
“And you are going to be spending a lot of time with him at the bakery.” Her aunt closed her eyes, laying her hands on her belly.
“I don’t know anything about him. I don’t know what he does for a living. Nothing. I want to marry a man that I know can support me.”
Aunt Maybelle opened one eye and looked at her. “Interesting. No one said anything about marriage, and you bring it up.”
Georgina stood and stomped her foot on the carpet. “I’m going to go get everything ready so I can get to the bakery early. I promised Charlie I would make him a pound cake.”
“Alright. I’m just going to close my eyes for a few minutes and then I’ll go to bed.”
Georgina went back into the kitchen and started putting together the items she needed when she opened the bakery tomorrow.
She was going to try giving away samples of the chocolate coffee cake, in hopes of drawing people into the bakery. She added an extra coffee pot to the growing pile of items.
When she had everything done, she looked around for her basket.Oh bother, she had left it by the front door.
