Page 25 of Sweet Christmas Wish
“My first suggestion would be to invest in an espresso machine that would allow you to make lattes and steam milk. Oh, and you’ll need a drip coffee pot.”
Sarah chewed the inside of her cheek. “I don’t actually know how to use an espresso machine.”
Will flashed her a smile, his eyes alight with excitement. “Good thing you’re looking at a veteran barista. I can definitely teach you.”
“You’re on vacation!” Sarah protested. “You shouldn’t be expected to work.”
“Hey, I’m offering, aren’t I?”
Sarah knew she should say no, but she didn’t want to. The truth was that she desperately needed his help, but she also knew it was more than that. If Will was helping her to get things set up at the bakery, that would mean spending more time with him. Selfish or not, she couldn’t bring herself to say no to that.
“Okay,” she acquiesced. “Thank you so much.”
“It’s nothing. By the way, I’d also be happy to help you find a fairly-priced espresso machine. I know what to look for, so I can help you know if you’re getting a good deal or not. Plus, once we have the machine, we can really get down to business.”
“That sounds like a great plan.” Sarah pushed the plate of cookies toward him. “I may not be able to pay you, but I promise here and now that I will keep you plied with as many goodies as you can handle.”
Will took a bite of snickerdoodle, sighing with pleasure. The cookie was gone in two bites, and he was soon reaching for another.
“Man, you really have a gift in the kitchen,” he said, after taking a sip of eggnog. “I know you’re discouraged right now, but I think you should know that you’re doing better than you think you are. You’re doing a fantastic job of running this place. Running a business isn’t easy, and you’re doing it alone.”
Sarah’s heart swelled at his unprompted and genuine compliment.
“Thank you,” she murmured, her heart beginning to pound a little harder as she saw a glimmer of admiration shining in his eyes. “And thanks for coming over tonight—I really appreciate your help.”
Will gave her a crooked smile. “Well, to be fair, I really came for the cookies,” he teased, and she couldn't help but chuckle.
“Like I said, I promise to keep them coming for the rest of your visit.”
“Pinky swear?” Will lifted his hand to her, pinky extended.
She laughed aloud at that and hooked her pinky around his. “Pinky swear.”
CHAPTERTHIRTEEN
“So, you’re just doing this out of the kindness of your heart?”
Will tossed Clark a look. “Since when did you become so nosy, hmm? I always remembered you to be more…”
“More what?”
“Morereserved,” Will replied with a smirk. “Your attempts to play matchmaker with me and Sarah are not very subtle, my friend.”
“Hey, I know a good match when I see one. All right, let’s get this machine out of the truck. On three?”
Will nodded. On the count of three, they carefully heaved the massively heavy espresso machine and drip coffee maker out of Clark’s truck. As the owner of the hardware store, Clark had been the natural person for Will to call for help transporting the machine he’d found at a discounted price for Sarah. It had taken him a few days of scouring the Internet, but he’d found the perfect machine for her, and this afternoon he and Clark would be installing it for her. He had already dropped off some coffee and other supplies, but the machine was something he couldn’t carry alone.
“To answer your earlier question,” Will said, puffing a little with the exertion of carrying the machine, “Iamdoing this out of the kindness of my heart. Sarah is running this place by herself and I happen to make an excellent barista, so I can show her the ropes.”
At the front door of the bakery, Sarah opened the door wide for them, and Will stopped talking so she wouldn’t overhear. Angling carefully so as not to damage the machine or the door, the two men eventually got the machine inside the bakery and settled onto the counter where Sarah directed. Hands on his hips and trying to catch his breath, Will glanced over at Sarah. She was staring at the machine with wide eyes, looking totally overwhelmed.
“Wow… it’s certainly… something,” she managed to croak. “It looks complicated.” Her voice was a little weak, although she mustered up a quavering smile. “It looks like you’d need a degree in science to work this thing.”
“It’s not as scary as it looks, I promise,” Will replied.
Clark clapped Will on the shoulder. “You’ve got nothing to worry about. You’ve got Will’s personal attention to help you at as looonnnnggg as you need him.”
Sarah blushed, the not-so-subtle hint clearly not lost on her and Will turned to glower at Clark so that Sarah couldn’t see.
