Page 71 of Valentine's in Bayberry

“Oh.” Alice sent her a big smile. “Wait here.”

Alice walked to the front of the store and returned with her hands behind her back.

Carrie eyed her suspiciously. “What are you hiding?”

Alice held out a long-stemmed red rose. “This was dropped off for you.”

Carrie accepted the rose and sniffed it. She was getting spoiled. She loved the fresh flowers. She would add it to the vase of roses at home.

When she turned her attention back to Alice, her friend produced a white square box with a red silk ribbon.

Alice placed it on the work table in front of Carrie. “This was also ordered for you.”

“Who is it from?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“Alice...” She pleaded with her eyes. “You can’t keep their name from me. It’s driving me crazy.”

“I promise you’ll find out soon.” She pointed to the gift box. “Open it.”

Carrie looked at the pretty box. There was no reason she couldn’t open the box and then proceed to interrogate Alice. She untied the ribbon and let it fall to the countertop.

Excitement pulsed through her body. She hadn’t been this excited about opening gifts since she was a kid. And yet there was a part of her that felt guilty. She couldn’t keep these gifts, because she already had feelings for someone.

Still, it didn’t hurt to look inside the box. She lifted the lid. Inside there was red tissue paper. After she removed the topsheets, she found a big milk chocolate heart nestled in a bed of red tissue paper.

Written in white chocolate across the heart it read:Break my heart.

Carrie’s gaze rose to meet Alice’s. “Did you make this?”

Alice smiled and nodded.

“But when?” And then she remembered Alice had been at the shop before her that morning. “Wait. Is this why you were in early this morning?” When Alice smiled and nodded, Carrie said, “You did a really good job.”

“But you didn’t even taste it yet.”

Carrie looked at the six-inch chocolate heart with a white chocolate ribbon around the edge. She knew it wasn’t easy to make perfectly molded chocolate, especially this size. “I can’t break this.”

Alice approached her. “Sure, you can. How else are you going to be able to taste the chocolate?”

Carrie turned her head and arched a brow. “What does it taste like?”

Alice smiled and shrugged. “Guess you’re going to have to try it and see for yourself.”

That was a challenge she couldn’t resist. She reached for a spatula and then she tapped the edge of the heart. It left a tiny nick in the chocolate, but there were no cracks.

“Silly,” Alice said, “you have to hit it harder.”

Carrie knew it, but she still hated breaking it.

As though sensing her inner struggle, Alice took the spatula from her and whacked it against the chocolate. The edge shattered into pieces.

Alice looked at her. “Go ahead.”

Carrie didn’t have to be told twice. She reached for a piece of the chocolate. When she put it into her mouth, she wassurprised with the explosion of flavor. The silky milk chocolate was accentuated with...

“Is that honey I taste?” When Alice nodded, Carrie asked, “And chili pepper?”

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