Worse yet, he hadn’t been able to get the recipe binder from the safe—Gran had changed the code, and he couldn’t ask her for it without telling her why. Now they were almost completely out of stock, and he was scrambling to prep inventory for Monday. Flour dusted his running shoes and batter was caked on his jeans. He ached head to toe, and the lack of sleep after only two days was taking its toll.
“I don’t understand why you didn’t ask Stephanie to make more cookies.” Georgette waited for his explanation, and Aaron finally relented with a sigh.
“Stephanie quit on Friday.”
“Yes. I know.”
He sank deeper into the chair. He hadn’t really expected to keep such a huge secret in small-town Everville, but he’d hoped... “So you heard.”
“Betty told me when she came for tea yesterday. She said Stephanie stormed out in quite a mood. I thought I’d wait to hear the truth from you.” Every word lashed him with razor-sharp reproof. “How long were you planning to keep it from me?”
“I didn’t think you needed to know. I can handle it. You should be resting and recovering.”
“Don’t give me that,” she snapped. “That is my business, Aaron. I’m grateful that you want to take care of things. I put a lot of faith in you, waiting as long as I have to see how you’d solve this problem. But I told you from the start, didn’t I? You need Stephanie. You were supposed to work together.”
“Things didn’t work out.”
His grandmother’s stony silence on the other end of the line told him that was not a satisfactory explanation.
“And what, exactly, are you going to do for inventory?” she asked.
“Well, since renos are happening anyhow, we could close up for a week or two. It’ll give me time to interview for a replacement baker.”
“A replacement?” She said it as if he’d proposed they grind bones for flour. “Absolutely not!”
“Gran, be reasonable.”
“You don’t understand. I trained Stephanie. I trusted her with my secrets. I’m not going to hand over my recipes willy-nilly to some stranger. We’ve no guarantee they won’t take everything they’ve learned and start their own bakeshop in town.”
“You didn’t have that guarantee with Stephanie,” he pointed out.
He could almost feel her imperious glare through the handset. “Loyalty isn’t something you can teach, Aaron. It’s bred into you. Stephanie would’ve stayed if I’d asked her to.”
Would she have? Aaron wasn’t so sure. He’d been rude and downright patronizing toward her. He hadn’t meant to insult her. He simply couldn’t stand it when things were left unfinished.
One credit. That was all she’d needed. And he’d made a huge deal of it instead of dropping it and appreciating what she could do. Like keep the bakery in business.
Boy, had he ever screwed this up. He never would have anticipated Steph quitting over his stupid comments. He wanted to blame her for being overly sensitive and taking his words too personally. He’d only meant to be helpful, after all. Making suggestions that would increase efficiency and cut costs had served him well in his old job, but that tactic didn’t work here. Steph was a person, not a business. She’d taken his criticism personally because it was personal. And he’d completely disregarded her pride.
He heard something thump on the other end of the line. “I’ll have to come in tomorrow morning to fill the orders.”
“Gran, you should be resting.”
“I can’t relax knowing my bakery is falling apart and my customers aren’t happy. I’m likely to have another stroke worrying and not doing anything about it.”
“Your blood pressure’s still too high. What if you fall or hurt yourself? You can’t lift all those heavy bowls and sacks of flour on your own.”
“And you can’t bake to save your life,” she shot back. “Listen to this. You hear it?” There was a loud tapping noise on the other end of the line. “Those are the cookies you sold Mrs. Lawler. God forbid I let you fill Monday’s orders. I may be old and my brain might be weary, but I still remember I’ll need to make three pies for Bartlett’s, two cakes for Sealy’s Bistro, and a flan for Mrs. Hendrick’s birthday. Do you know how to make flan?”
Aaron conceded that he did not.
“I’m going to bed now,” Georgette said waspishly. “I’ve an early start tomorrow, and you’re going to drive me to work.” She hung up, her anger and disappointment echoing in his ears.
He rested his head in his hands. He was supposed to be making Gran’s life easier, but instead he’d made a mess.
Kira appeared at his office door. “Hey, Aaron?”
“What’s up?”
Her fingers curled around the door frame. “Something’s come up. Would it be okay if I left early?”
He frowned. “I really need you here, Kira. What’s so important that you have to leave right now?”
“Family emergency.” She glanced at her toes. “Please, I really have to go. I’m sorry.”
The anxious look on her face said she wasn’t kidding around, so he waved her off. They were closing soon and no one was coming in anyhow. She thanked him and dashed out, backpack slung over one shoulder, her hairnet still clinging to her head.
He rubbed his temples. If Gran wasn’t going to trust her recipes to a replacement baker, he didn’t have any choice. He needed to get Stephanie back. He had a feeling it would cost him more than his ego, though.
* * *
AFTER HER FATHER’S birthday party, Stephanie returned to her apartment. She’d had enough coddling from her mother and was eager to be back in her own space. She was going to suck it up and get back her job at Georgette’s.
First things first: she had to organize herself. Making to-do lists would line up all her priorities. When she was a kid her babysitter, Kitty, had been all about lists, and she’d gotten her into the habit. She took out her phone and started typing, saying the words out loud as if it would commit her to the cause.
“One. Buy school supplies.” She’d left most of her old notebooks and the like back at her parents’ place. She might be able to dig them up, but she’d be more motivated to work if she had all new stuff. It was like working out in new gym clothes. Besides, it was an easy task, and Kitty had always said accomplishing small things would help get the ball rolling on bigger projects. She could get the basics downstairs at the pharmacy...or maybe she’d drive to a big-box store and get some new jeans while she was there.
She typed in her second goal: “Two. Buy jeans.” It was important that she treat herself now and again, after all, and she’d had a rough couple of days.
Number three on her list was a little more complicated. “Get high school diploma.” She typed it slowly and stared at the item.
Simple. Yeah. She wouldn’t even have to finish that one credit Aaron had harped on about. She could do a high school equivalency test and shove that piece of paper in his face.
She sucked a breath between her teeth. No, she was going to be mature about this. Getting her diploma wasn’t about Aaron. It wasn’t. And he hadn’t forced her out of Georgette’s, either. She’d walked out on her own. If she really wanted her job back, she was going to have to be honest with herself and her employer about it.
That was number